New 2015 Mazda2 Officially Breaks Cover

After catching a glimpse of the all-new Mazda2 earlier today, the Japanese carmaker went ahead and officially revealed its new supermini that keeps the Demio nametag for the domestic market. The new Mazda2 will begin to roll out in global markets (including North America) in the final quarter of the year.

Seen here in Japanese specification, the new generation Mazda2 is strongly influenced by the Hazumi concept exhibited at the Geneva show in March, displaying same edgy ‘Kodo’ design language as the latest Mazda3 compact and Mazda6 mid-size models.

The same holds true for the clean looking interior that can be had in different colors and trims, with highlights including a tablet-style touchscreen on top of the dash, controlled via a rotary dial located next to the handbrake lever, and a heads-up display option.

Mazda was pretty stingy with the details, but it did say that the new sub-compact hatch benefits from a full suite of lightweight and efficient SkyActiv technologies including engines, transmissions, body, and chassis.

Depending on the market, the new 2 will be offered with up to three engines at launch, including the SKYACTIV-G 1.3-liter and 100PS (99hp) 1.5-liter gasoline units, and the 105PS (104hp) SKYACTIV-D 1.5-liter diesel, matched to 6-speed manual and automatic transmissions.

Expect the new Mazda2 to have similar dimensions to the Hazumi Concept that measured 4,070mm long, 1,730mm wide and 1,450mm tall.

Mazda said it will hand out more details on the new 2 later in the year.

Mazda Confirms Unveiling of All-New MX-5 Roadster

 

Mazda made an official announcement about its upcoming all-new MX-5 roadster. We knew the car was supposed to be revealed this year, but we didn’t know when and where; now we do. The Japanese automaker will be showing it off for the very first time on 3-4 September, in Barcelona, Spain. Other similar venues will follow in Japan and the US. In regards to the upcoming event, that’s also meant to commemorate 25 years since the first Miata came out, Mazda’s European president and CEO said:

“The MX-5 is the product that best epitomizes Mazda’s convention-defying spirit and our love of driving. It has been grabbing people’s attention for 25 years, and with the new-generation model we’re aiming to share this passion with yet another generation of drivers.”

Looking at how much sporty flair Mazda’s been able to imbue its more mundane offerings with, the naturally sporty MX-5 will probably come out really desirable, if they stick to the same approach, and they probably will…

It’s definitely one of the most important model launches of the year.

BBR Mazda MX-5 Turbo or TRD-Tuned Toyota GT86?

Both the Mazda MX-5 and Toyota GT86 (Scion FR-S) suffer from having too little power, whichever one you go for. This is apparent whatever sporty car you climb out of before driving either of them, but as the EVO video posted below tries to illustrate, there’s no harm in trying to improve these cars to really make the best of their chassis.

First off, the Toyota can be had with a list of factory updates, in the form of a TRD kit. However, that does nothing to up the power and torque of the GT86, the car’s two main quibbles. It does address the grip problem brought about by the use of 17-inch Prius tires in the basic car by swapping them out for larger 18-inch forged rims with much better rubber.

Still not fast enough, but that’s where the MX-5, tuned by BBR, comes in with 70 hp more than the stock GT86, courtesy of a turbo kit. It’s a car that has been slightly neglected ever since the Toyobaru came out, but as the folloowing comparison illustrates, in this slightly-tuned guise, it’s actually a better choice (for the money).

CNET Finds the Mazda 3 Great, Slightly Spoiled by Iffy Infotainment System

By now, you have probably seen many reviews of the new Mazda 3, a car that looks, drives and feels great. However, none of the reviews had as their main focus on the infotainment and satnav systems, so CNET Brian Cooley’s angle is one you should not neglect if you're interested in this kind of stuff.

As usual, the review is tech-centric, and it immediately finds the on-board tech inadequate. The nice-looking dash-mounted screen has a complicated menu, filled with confusing terminology and extra menus and settings you didn’t think were necessary for regular users, plus it doesn’t seamlessly show traffic information or connect to the internet without a phone-hosted (or another) exterior hotspot.

The video posted below goes into detail, explaining all of the discovered issues.

Moving on, other bad points are the apparent lack of power from the (2.5-liter) engine, and the long-legged character of the gearbox that makes it not ideally suited for city driving – the manual 2.0-liter I drove had that too, and it was quite leisurely with 120 hp; you’d have struggled to call it brisk…

Aside from the points mentioned above, the review finds the Mazda hatch a true contender in the class, one of the most appealing models currently on sale in its price bracket.

Modified Mazda MX-5 Electrocutes Tesla Model S in Drag Race

You know something is up with this dark green Mazda Miata / MX-5 by taking a single look at its massive rear tires. What’s even more frightening about it is the ease with which it can initiate a burnout, in spite of the tires’ width and soft drag racing compound. However, it can still put its power down and scare a Tesla Model S in a quarter mile drag sprint.

The battery-powered Mazda is known as being able to run in the low 9s consistently, or a full three and a half seconds faster than the Model S.

Tesla’s sedan is still pretty quick off the line, as you’ll see in the video posted below, and it would have probably nudged ahead for the first few yards had it been put up against a conventional methanol-burning dragster of comparable power to that of the electric Miata.

Someone Please Get These Mazda SUVs a Room

For every spine-chilling accident recorded on Russian dash-cams, there's always at least one incident on the web that will leave you either scratching your head or bursting into laughter.

We may be chuckling at how the driver of the white Mazda CX-5 proceeded to get in front of the line in traffic, but something tells us that the unfortunate owner of the CX-7 didn't find the move amusing at all…

If you watch the video until the end, you'll see that the CX-5 driver immediately ran to the BMW 1-Series hatch in front and tried to open the passenger door. Unless it was someone he was chasing, we assume he wanted to play the blame game.

Biker Rear Ends a Mazda CX-5 Allegedly at 140mph or 225km/h and Lives!

All it takes is one second of removing your focus off the road for an accident or a near crash to occur. Naturally, the faster you're going, the less time you'll have in your disposal to react and respond to a dangerous situation.

The author of this YouTube video is 'XKotovX' who claims to be the one riding the motorcycle (we have not confirmed this) that rear-ended the Mazda CX-5 crossover on a highway near Fort Collins in Colorado.

In the description, he states: "My motorcycle crash at 140 MPH [225km/h]". Like many commentators on YouTube, we're also a tad skeptical about the speed claim as it doesn't look like he was going 140mph fast - but nevertheless, if he did indeed live, it's nothing short of a miracle. We're going to leave it at that for now and until we find more details about the incident – if you know or have heard something, send us an email or tell us in the