Every Mazda vehicle takes pride in its precision-engineered Mazda Parts. These well thought of components for the automobile promotes the safety of the users as well as other motorists. Aside from the safety features, proper knowledge about driving is also a key element for an accident-free drive. For this reason, the Mazda North America and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca have joined forces to work with the Skip Barber Racing School and the Monterey County Parks Department in order to educate young drivers in Monterey, California.

This Saturday, December 8, Mazda, along with the other groups, is slated to conduct a rare and affordable safe-driving clinic for the Monterey, Santa Cruz, and San Benito-based license holder teenagers, whose ages range from 17 to 21, at the established Mazda Raceway Laguna in Monterey.

“This program is a great example of the private sector and the public sector working together to benefit the local community” said John Pinio, who is Monterey County Parks Department’s director of parks.

Each interested participant only has to pay $199 compared to the established Skip Barber Racing School’s regular rate of $795. Students will be taught the necessary things to remember when driving, such as defensive dsriving, street awareness, and road etiquettes, among others. All these hands-on driving activities will be done at the infield paddock of the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

This program is designed to expose new drivers to the techniques critical to true defensive driving, including emergency braking and emergency lane changes, car control skills practiced on the autocross, slide recovery skills practiced on the wet skid pad, and enhanced street awareness & road etiquette. All these activities are taught within the safe confines of the infield paddock of the world-famous Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA.

Information source is the PR Domain.

Mazda CX-9, which is the latest crossover utility vehicle from the Japanese automaker Mazda, has already established a decent number of followers in the United States as well as in Canada.

In spite of the burning $40, 000-tag price of the Mazda CX-9, more and more motorists in North America are still clamoring for this vehicle. To date, the economical SUV has already accumulated a total of 19, 630 units, where 3,000 were purchased last month, since its first appearance in the US market last March. With only a month left before the year closes, the automobile has successfully exceeded the company’s set goals.

Aside from being a hit for automobile owners, the Mazda CX-9, equipped with well-crafted Mazda Parts, was even recently hailed as the SUV of the year by the Motor Trend Magazine. Such recognition further placed this vehicle, which is laden with precision-engineered Mazda Parts, on the pedestal.

Conceptualized three years ago, the Mazda CX-9 was among the models that came from the company’s annual advancement activity program. Hiroshima (Japan), Frankfurt (Germany), and Irvine (California) are the research and development centers that are behind the program. The products of such program are geared toward particular markets, like the United States, for example.

“The CX-9 was originally supposed to be a minivan,” said Robert Davis, who is the Mazda North American Operations’ head of development and quality.

With such positive response for the Mazda CX-9 from its western market, the company is keen in coming out with more models that will only be available in the North America-based Mazda dealers.

Details from Auto Week and photos from Mazda USA.

For seasoned British racer Jonny Baker, winning is not everything as the experience also contributes much for a race to be remembered as something great. This is what he believed in after going home with trophies but instead took home valuable memories in Goodyear’s 2008 Star Mazda Championship held in Florida this last week.

At a young age of 23, Buckinghamshire-native Baker has always been on top of the league back in his country. In the UK Formula Ford Championship, he successfully pocketed an overall ninth and fifth spots in 2006 and 2005, respectively. In another event dubbed as the British Racing Drivers’ Club Single-Seater Championship, Baker bagged the silver for the Class B in 2004.

 Things had a different turn, however, in the Star Mazda. Baker suddenly became a new face in the crowd – in the Andersen Racing F2000 Team. Moreover, the young lad had to face far different tracks that trailed from the United States to the borders of neighboring Canada. At the end of it all, Baker came home empty-handed as he did not win in any races but despite of that, he still considered this Andersen Racing Team as one of the best he had in years.

“I learned an awful lot about myself this year, living in another country away from family and friends, but everybody at Andersen Racing made sure that I had the best year of my life,” said Baker. “Dan Andersen runs a very professional team that has a family-like core to it. If I were just here on my own it would have been a long year, but it wasn’t anything like that; the time just flew. The whole team is made up of an amazing bunch of people!”

Going beyond just driving the car was also one of the pointers Baker got through this experience. He learned a lot about Mazda Parts as he had to work closely with his engineers all the time.

For now, Baker is back in his homeland and continues to harness his skills on and off the racing track.

Details from Auto Racing Daily.

Small or compact cars have established a good number of followers. Automakers, like Mazda, saw this as a good opportunity to increase sales. In fact, Mazda has already jumped into the booming market and has a new product to offer that is christened as the Mazda 2.

Mazda 2, which will only measure at 168-inch long and 67-inch wide, will surely boast of well-crafted Mazda Parts. This compact car from the Japanese automaker has the standard fog lamps for safety during foggy nights and sturdy fenders for those front and rear slow-speed collisions, among others. To complete this small car’s air and look of elegance, quality alloy wheels and leather upholstered seats are used.

Introduced in the media today at the 5th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition, the Mazda 2 or Demio in Japan is set to be available first in China by the first quarter of 2008. This compact car, which will be assembled in the Nanjing Plant of Ford Mazda Automobile Company, is going to be one of the five models that the Japanese company is relying on to really boost its sales and market share worldwide.

Details from Auto123.

Carrying precision-engineered Mazda Parts, the Mazda 2 Supermini exceeded its Japanese automaker’s expectations as the new car hit it big in the United Kingdom.

According to Mazda UK, sales of the Mazda 2 Supermini shoot up the ceiling with a total of 1,600 vehicles that translates to more than a hundred percent from the company’s seen numbers.

During the media launch of the Mazda 6, James Hopkins, who is fleet and remarketing director of Mazda in the UK, revealed to Motor Trader that the Supermini has really went beyond what is expected from them in the United Kingdom. Moreover, Hopkins said that the car company no longer pushed through with the Mazda 2 Supermini’s fleet presence as it is not necessary anymore.

“Our order take is very strong and the future looks very rosy for this car,” said Hopkins.

At present, Mazda is prepping up for the unveiling of its Mazda 6, which is laden with high-end Mazda Parts, in time for the holidays.

Details from Motor Trader.

Mazda, which is one of the established automakers in Japan, is very keen in coming out with new products in China in the next few years as the company sees this as an opportunity for bigger earnings in the republic as well as globally.

Three years from now, Mazda, which is behind the Supermini and Mazda 3, aims to triple its sales to a whopping 300,000 cars from this year’s decent 100,000 units. Such goal has really to be realized as the Republic of China comprises almost a fifth of Mazda’s sales worldwide. If things go as planned, the Japanese car company is set to enjoy about $1.6 million from its worldwide profit in 2010.

“China plays a vital role in boosting Mazda’s global sales not only because of its huge market potential but also because big markets such as Japan, European and United States have matured,” said Ozaki Kiyoshi, who is Mazda’s director and senior executive officer for businesses in China.

To date, sales of Mazda vehicles in China is doing very well. In fact, for the first six months of this year, revenues went as high as 78 percent that translates to already 41,000 vehicles.

To further establish the company’s future goals, it just gave a sneak peek to the media its new offering dubbed as the Mazda 2 sedan at the 5th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition this month. Mazda 2, which will be made at the Ford Mazda Automobile Company’s Nanjing plant, is slated to be officially introduced in the first quarter of 2008. Moreover, this latest sedan is going to be one of the five vehicles that are set to come out in the market by 2010.

“With the launch of Mazda 2 sedan, we have broadened our product mix with a strong presence covering China’s mid-to-high class, economy cars and compact car segments,” said Yamada Noriaki, who is Mazda’s president and chief operating officer for operations in China.

Details from Shanghai Daily.

As the CX-9 is Mazda’s first SUV, it paved the way for Mazda to have enter the full size SUV market. Some say that the CX-9 is like an inflated version of the ingenious CX-7. In reality, the design of the CX-9 can be traced to the architectural design of the Mazda 6 sedan. If one will give a long look at the CX-9, one will see that it is really similar to the CX-7 but for obvious reasons, the original design was stretched in order to come up with a bigger and larger vehicle. As for the works when it comes to the engineering of the CX-9, it can be observed that it has a unibody that is undoubtedly the best among its kind when it comes to rigidity of structure.

Some say that it is the “Soul of a Sports Car” and the “Zoom Zoom” or what they call athletic dynamism is what distinguishes Mazda vehicles from the rest. On the other hand, there are some speculations on the agility of the CX-9. The said vehicle measures for 4400 pounds. Unlike the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook, or the Buick Enclave, the CX-9 has a good footwork. This gives the said vehicle a step higher when it comes to safety.

Another feature of the CX-9 is that it does not seem to need a lot of fuel. Other sport utility vehicles tend to be thirsty for fuel all the time. For this reason, many are expected to have their eyes on the CX-9. It features an EPA fuel-economy rating of 16 mpg in the city and of 22 mpg on the highway. Aside from the agility of the CX-9, fuel economy, as well as increased hustle, it features good interior furnishings. It has a DVD entertainment system, a premium Bose audio, a nav system for the DVD, power sunroof, among other features. Safety features of the CX-9 include the ABS, stability control that comes with roll stability control, traction control, and air bags. It has a camera that helps minimize blind spots. It flashes a warning in the vehicle’s mirrors when a vehicle is hovering near the rear areas of the vehicle.

Every designer dreams of having the freedom to fashion designs without having to think of so many factors such as economics, etc. This year, Mazda was able to pave the way for designers to do this with a contest tagged as the Mazda Design Challenge. The said contest is made possible with a partnership with Facebook, an online social networking giant. Participants of the Mazda Design Challenge get to pass their vision of how the 2018 Mazda 3 should or would look like. Every entry must come with a description of the design that won’t be less than 150 words. Aside from the description, participants may also include an illustration of their design but this is not a requirement.

There are many who joined the said contest and after so much deliberation and thinking, the engineers of Mazda and members of Facebook have agreed to declare Mallory McMorrow as the winner. McMorrow lives on the South Bend, IN. This lucky winner has already been paired with one of the top Mazda designer who is Jacques Flynn. Together, they drafted the ideas to reality and came up with an actual sketch of it. The design resembles the Mazda Ryuga concept in more ways than one. McMorrow’s 2018 vision of the Mazda 3 merges the recent Mazda styling cues with her own. When asked on it, Mallory says that her vision is a meeting between sports car qualities and everyday use, which is, in her belief what a Mazda vehicle of the future must be. In her words, “I was thrilled when I opened up the images of the final renderings. I’m proud to say that the end design was still definitely my car and I can’t wait to see it come to fruition on the show floor.”

As this competition is able to prove its success, Mazda has decided to take it a step further by having a prototype of McMorrow’s winning design and have it on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show. For the span of ten days, McMorrow will work with Franz von Holzhausen, the director of design at the Mazda North American Operations. Holzhausen’s team is the one tasked to put McMorrow’s design in tangible form. The sculpture of the vehicle will be available for viewing starting Nov. 24.

The sole distributor of Mazda vehicles in UAE, Galadari Automobiles, has already released a statement that the Mazda CX-9 will be launched. What makes the CX-9 particularly special is that it is the first 3 rows, 7-seater crossover sport utility vehicle that is created by Mazda. This vehicle already made its debut in Dubai. Its unveiling made noise among auto enthusiasts and was able to be voted for the SUV of the year by Motor Trends magazine. The Mazda CX-9 has a 6-cylinder V-6 engine that is geared with 24 valves that represents Mazda’s Zoom concept of family cars that are stylish, spirited, and insightful.

The Mazda CX-9 is designed especially for young couples as well as modern families that are fond of adventure. This vehicle is perfect for any family who are intact with their sense of adventure and other high-intensity leisure activities. It has sufficient space for an outgoing family to haul all their stuffs. It is also ideal for families with children who have an active lifestyle.

At the launching ceremony of the CX-9, Mr. G. A Kazmi, who is the General Manager of Galadari Automobiles said, “[w]e are delighted to bring the latest 7-seater Mazda CX-9 to the UAE market. The Mazda CX-9 will be marketed to families that want to live life in style, luxury, and are passionate about what they drive. While all other conventional 3-row SUVs offer functionality and focus only on the family, the CX-9 offers emotional appeal, pride of ownership and a sense of satisfaction to the driver. As a leading automobile company in the UAE, it is our endeavor to provide best-in-class cars to our discerning customers.”

As for the time that the new Mazda CX-9 was released, Mr. Keizo Okue, the General Manager of the Middle East and Africa Sales Division of Mazda Motor Corporation, made mention that “Mazda is committed to the UAE market and the launch of CX-9 is in line with our regional strategy to offer best-in-class transportation solutions. 3-row SUV offers overwhelmingly athletic styling, dynamic performance and high quality luxury craftsmanship at an attractive price… We are very confident that Mazda CX-9 will emerge as the car of choice for connoisseurs and lead the 3-row 7-seater segment.”

According to the statement made by Mazda Motor Corporation last November 2, 2007, the company was able to remain on track for yet another year. This is good news for Mazda. Word has it that the weakened yen has managed to lift the corporation’s net profit by around 6.8 percent. This is in lieu of six months to the month of September. Nowadays, the Mazda Motor Corporation is considered to be the fifth among the largest Japanese automakers.

Mazda is an affiliate of the Ford Motor and it also came as a good news for Ford that Mazda was able to post a net profit of 29.05 billion yen, which when converted amounts to 253 million dollars. This earning is despite the fact that Mazda suffered a 62.5 percent plunge on sales as far as the fiscal first quarter is concerned.

According to the Hiroshima-based group, as for Mazda’s first-half operating profit, it was able to gain around 4.8 percent last year to 73.08 billion yen. This is an “all-time high” as revenue continue to rise up to 8.9 percent to 1.66 trillion yen. Cheaper yen is profitable for those who are doing exports. Since Mazda is among those who do, they were able to profit from their export earnings. Apart from this, they were also able to employ their cost-cutting efforts that really came well to counter the heightened costs of raw materials.

According to reports, Mazda has a 0.9 percent increase in its global sales. In the 0.9 percent, 659,000 vehicles were sold in the first half. This was considerably dragged down when there was an overall decline in Japan’s auto market by 5.8 percent. Afterwards, the sales were able to pick up again as it rose to 7.1 percent increase in the United States. At this time, Mazda vehicle sales in Europe remained flat and unfortunately, it dropped by 32.6 percent in China. This is primarily caused by the termination in the production of two Mazda models.

If one can recall, Mazda has forecasted that it will yet have another year of record earnings. According to their forecast, they will have a 15.3 percent increase in terms of net profit. This roughly translates to about 85 billion yen. Recently, Mazda has been experiencing an operating profit increase of 0.9 percent to 160 billion yen. On their record revenue, 3.32 trillion yen is up by 2.2 percent.