Tag Archives: Mazda

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2026 Mazda2 (Japan) First Look: The Little Hatchback That Just Won’t Quit

In a world where subcompact hatchbacks are disappearing faster than manual gearboxes, the Mazda2 stands as one of the segment’s most stubborn survivors. The current generation has been on the road for more than a decade—an eternity in car years—yet Mazda continues to polish, tweak, and lightly reinvent it for its home market. Now, despite long-running chatter about its impending retirement, the brand has confirmed another set of model-year updates for Japan. The message is clear: the Mazda2 isn’t done yet.

Old Bones, Fresh Touches

The third-generation Mazda2 launched in the summer of 2014, borrowing heavily from the Hazumi Concept that wowed Tokyo motor show crowds earlier that year. Since then, Mazda has slowly warmed the recipe through two facelifts—one in 2019, another in 2023—adding incremental changes without rewriting the formula.

For 2026, the updates follow that same philosophy: modest but meaningful.

The entry-level 15C II gains the previously optional Utility Package, bringing a 60/40 split-folding rear bench and tinted rear windows. Not glamorous upgrades, but ones owners will appreciate every single day.

Move up a rung to the 15 BD i Selection II, and the equipment list expands more dramatically. This trim now includes the Mazda Connect Package with an 8.8-inch infotainment display, the 360° Safety Package (a surround-view camera, front parking sensors, and an auto-dimming mirror), plus a digital TV tuner—very on-brand for the Japanese domestic market.

The sport-leaning 15 Sport II now comes standard with heated front seats and a heated steering wheel. Small hatch, big luxuries.

The Enthusiast’s Secret: The 15MB

At the top of the enthusiast wish list remains the 15MB (Motorsports-Based) trim. Mazda didn’t touch it for 2026—and that’s a good thing. This is the purist’s Mazda2: a slightly warmer version of the 1.5-liter Skyactiv-G engine, a six-speed manual only, and equipment pared back to keep weight down and track-day fun up. Think of it as Mazda’s modern answer to the “build-it-yourself” grassroots racetrack starter kit.

Accessibility and Customization

Mazda’s lineup also continues to include a version with a rotating passenger seat, a thoughtful mobility-focused option you won’t find from most OEMs.

For buyers who want their Mazda2 to look less like a commuter and more like a canvas, the brand still offers its colorful Rookie Drive, Clap Pop, and Sci-Fi visual themes. Meanwhile, the factory-approved AutoExe body kit takes things a step further with a front splitter, rear wing, diffuser, bumper vents, lowering springs, and a chrome exhaust finisher—turning the humble hatch into a surprisingly convincing mini hot hatch.

Same Drivetrain, Still Charming

Mechanically, the 2026 Mazda2 remains unchanged. Power comes from a familiar 1.5-liter naturally aspirated Skyactiv-G engine producing 109 hp in most trims or 114 hp in the 15MB. A six-speed manual or six-speed automatic handles shifting duties, and depending on trim, buyers can choose between front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive—a rarity in the segment.

No, the numbers won’t raise anyone’s heart rate, but the Mazda2 has always been more about lightness, balance, and communicative handling than straight-line theatrics.

Pricing and Market Position

Pre-orders are open now in Japan, with deliveries slated to begin in early December. Pricing starts at ¥1,720,400 (roughly $11,000) for the base 15C II FWD and climbs to ¥2,501,400 (around $16,000) for the top-spec 15 Sport+ with AWD.

It’s worth noting that Mazda has already pulled the Mazda2 from the UK market. Europe and the UK still get the Mazda2 Hybrid, but that’s effectively a rebadged Toyota Yaris Hybrid—a completely different car sharing only the badge.

Still Alive, Still Kicking

In an era of crossovers and consolidation, the Mazda2’s continued existence feels like a small miracle. It may be old, but it remains relevant thanks to steady updates, clever packaging, and a level of character that’s increasingly rare among small cars. As long as Mazda keeps giving it just enough love each year, there’s no reason this plucky little hatchback can’t keep rolling.

Source: Mazda

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Mazda Wants Your Driving Habit to Save the Planet — And Its Race Car Is the Test Bed

Mazda has never been shy about zigging where the rest of the industry zags. Rotary engines long after everyone else gave up? Check. Putting handling above horsepower for decades? Absolutely. And now, in a world laser-focused on EVs, the company is testing a technology that sounds like science fiction: a car that captures its own CO₂ emissions while it drives.

CO₂ capture device installed on the demonstration vehicle

At the Japan Mobility Show 2025, Mazda doubled down on its manifesto, “The Joy of Driving Fuels a Sustainable Tomorrow.” And they mean it literally. The company’s long-term goal, pegged to 2035, is a bizarre but intriguing idea: the more you drive, the more CO₂ you remove from the atmosphere.

Yeah, we raised an eyebrow too.

Race Track First, Public Roads Later

To prove they’re serious, Mazda bolted its prototype system—called Mazda Mobile Carbon Capture—onto a race car. Not a show pony. A race car.

At the Super Taikyu Series Round 7 on November 15–16, the system made its debut aboard the MAZDA SPIRIT RACING 3 Future Concept (Car No. 55). The car ran on HVO biodiesel, a carbon-neutral fuel already in use across parts of Europe. That means the fuel itself doesn’t contribute net carbon. But Mazda’s aiming higher.

The onboard device uses zeolite, a porous mineral that behaves like a molecular sponge, to adsorb CO₂ directly from the exhaust stream. Not “reduce,” not “offset”—capture. Under real racing loads.

And according to Mazda, the system worked. It successfully trapped measurable CO₂ during the race.

A Small Step, A Big Claim

Let’s be clear: Mazda isn’t announcing a magic box that cancels out a road trip’s worth of emissions. This is early-stage tech, and even Mazda admits capture rates need to rise—dramatically—before anything transformative happens.

Demonstration vehicle

But the company is committing to more real-world testing in the 2026 Super Taikyu season, iterating hardware and refining the system. That’s notable. Race tracks are unforgiving R&D labs; if something can survive hours of high-RPM abuse, it has a shot at surviving daily driving.

Why This Matters

EV evangelists will rightly point out that carbon capture on combustion engines feels like prolonging the dinosaur age. But Mazda is playing a different long game, one rooted in practicality:

  • Internal-combustion vehicles will be on the road for decades.
  • Carbon-neutral fuels exist today.
  • Capturing exhaust CO₂ could help bridge the transition to whatever comes next.

If Mazda can scale this, it could carve out a uniquely sustainable role for combustion engines—one where enthusiasts don’t have to choose between performance and planetary guilt.

The Big Picture

Mazda’s “drive more, pollute less” vision sounds almost like satire from an alternate universe. Yet here they are, strapping experimental carbon sponges to race cars and chasing down a future where tailpipes become vacuum cleaners.

Is it the solution? Probably not the only one.

Is it peak Mazda? Absolutely.

And we’d expect nothing less from a company that still believes in the magic of throttle response, feedback, and the joy of movement.

Source: Mazda

NEW CARS

Mazda’s First True EV Takes Shape — And It Looks Like a CX-5 Reboot for the Electric Age

Mazda is finally warming up its electric motors. After years of dabbling around the edges of electrification with the quirky MX-30 and a handful of platform-sharing arrangements, Hiroshima’s most stubbornly driver-focused automaker is now deep into testing its first bespoke EV architecture—scheduled to debut in 2027. And the early evidence suggests it might arrive wearing one of the most important nameplates in the brand’s catalogue.

Mazda Goes All-In: The 6e Era Begins

For an automaker that prides itself on going its own way—long hoods, rear-biased dynamics, and an obsession with “jinba ittai” harmony—Mazda has been conspicuously absent from the bespoke-EV-platform club. Its sole EV, the MX-30, sat on a modified CX-30 chassis. Meanwhile, its new 6e sedan and EZ-60 SUV rely heavily on tech from Chinese partner Changan.

Not anymore.

Mazda has kicked off a $10 billion electrification campaign, and central to that plan is an in-house EV platform engineered by a dedicated skunkworks team dubbed E-Mazda. CTO Ryuichi Umeshita says he’s already driven an early prototype—and claims it feels exactly like a Mazda should.

“It’s a real jinba ittai car… It has very good driving dynamics,”
Umeshita told Autocar, sounding like a man genuinely relieved his new EV hasn’t turned into a soulless appliance.

Mazda knows it’s late to the game. But Umeshita insists that developing the MX-30—flawed though it was—gave the company a cadre of engineers who already understand the complicated world of EV packaging, safety, and integration.

A CX-5–Sized EV? The Spy Shots Say Yes

Early test mules have now hit public roads, and at a glance they look suspiciously like a downsized CX-90 wearing a not-so-convincing disguise. But look again:

  • The front-door-to-wheel-well distance is dramatically shortened
  • The overall proportions are trimmer
  • The arches swallow the wheels, hinting at an underlying EV skateboard layout

All signs point to a five-seat crossover roughly in the footprint of a CX-5 EV—a smart move if Mazda wants its first clean-sheet EV to actually sell. The CX-5 remains Mazda’s best-selling model globally. Giving buyers a familiar shape with an unfamiliar powertrain is just good business.

Volume or Niche? Mazda Still Isn’t Sure

Despite the prototypes roaming the streets, Mazda hasn’t even decided whether its EV debutante will be a high-volume mainstream model or a lower-volume halo.

Why? Because regulations, not marketing, will dictate the final answer.

“If the regulation requires a higher EV mix, it must be a volume car,”
Umeshita told Autocar.
“If the regulation is eased, then we can ease the volume restraints.”

Translation: Mazda is ready to pivot either way.

Lean, Mean, EV Machine Development

Perhaps the most Mazda-like part of this whole story is how the company plans to build the thing: efficiently and with a touch of quiet genius.

The brand has rolled out a “lean asset strategy” that relies heavily on:

  • Simulation-led R&D
  • AI-assisted engineering
  • Strategic partner-suppliers
  • Cost-cutting development processes

Mazda claims this approach will let them triple development output with the same resources—a crucial advantage for a relatively small automaker trying to compete with the likes of VW, Hyundai, and Tesla.

The Road Ahead

So what do we have? A shrunken CX-90 lookalike mule. A 2027 deadline. A new EV platform with “Mazda” written all over its handling DNA. A development process pulled tight like a drum.

If Mazda can deliver a genuinely engaging, beautifully built, reasonably priced EV crossover in the CX-5 mold… it might just pull off one of the quietest, most impressive comebacks of the electric transition.

And honestly?
We’re rooting for them. Mazda has always made cars for people who love driving. If they can bring that magic into the electric era, the market will be better for it.

Source: Mazda