Mazda is preparing to keep its sports cars alive after it goes electric, teasing what could be the MX-5’s battery-powered successor in a media presentation.
Japanese car-maker Mazda has announced it will spend ¥1.5 trillion ($AU16 billion) to develop battery-powered vehicles by the end of the decade – while also previewing an electric sports car concept which may be previewing the next MX-5.
In a media presentation on YouTube, Mazda shared a brief glimpse of the electric ‘Vision Study Model’ shortly after a montage of the MX-5’s four generations.
While the Mazda MX-5 has been exclusively powered by petrol engines since its launch in 1989, recent overseas reports have suggested its upcoming fifth-generation will be the first to adopt hybrid power.
In February 2022, a patent for a hybrid system with three electric motors, all-wheel drive, an automatic transmission, and a compact battery was uncovered.
This was followed by a report in September which suggested the ‘NE’ generation MX-5 could instead be powered by Mazda’s 2.0-litre ‘SkyActiv-X’ engine from the Mazda 3 and CX-30, possibly with the addition of hybrid assistance.
Given the fifth-generation Mazda MX-5 is expected to launch in 2024, it’s not clear whether the Vision Study Model will influence the current model’s successor – however, it could preview what an electric version of the sportscar will be.
Mazda has previously confirmed the MX-5 will adopt hybrid or electric power by 2030, in line with the company’s broader plans for its model line-up.
“[Without speaking specifically] on MX-5 I think we’ve reached a level of comfort that, there’s work on batteries, there’s work on other things. We can improve the internal combustion engine with SkyActiv-X [petrol engine technology] and beyond, and Mazda’s working to do that,” Mazda Australia marketing boss Alastair Doak told Drive in February.
“If you can combine that kind of technology and that thinking with even some relatively lightweight form of electrification, then that means that car and that kind of ethos will continue for a long time to come.”
In addition to the brief sports car teaser, Mazda executives outlined the company’s ‘three-phase’ plan to decrease its carbon footprint, starting with the development of hybrid and electric cars.
The first phase of the plan reiterates an announcement made in June last year, where Mazda claimed it would introduce five new plug-in hybrid models as well as three electric cars between 2022 and 2024.
Mazda’s second phase relates to a new hybrid system for its models, due to be launched between 2025 and 2027 – although details about the electrified engines are yet to be confirmed.
Finally, Mazda claims it will ramp up its electric-car charge to include battery-powered models between 2028 and 2030, with the Japanese company considering an investment into in-house battery production.
By 2030, the car-maker estimates electric cars will account for 25 to 40 per cent of its global sales. At the same time, petrol and diesel-powered cars will be banned in markets such as the UK.
Mazda currently sells just one electric car globally – the MX-30 small SUV. Mazda Australia only imported 100 examples of the MX-30 Electric, but slow uptake of this variant has resulted in some dealers offering discounts of up to $15,000.
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