1999 Mazda B-4000 Troy Lee Extended Cab 4x4 Ranger 5 Speed Original on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2019 Mazda CX-5 turbo model seemingly confirmed, doesn't come cheap

We reported last month on some leaked documents that announced the 2019 Mazda CX-5 would get the turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder as an option, and it's looking even more official now that additional documents have appeared on Reddit. The new information comes from a "Product Information Bulletin" that not only confirms the engine's availability but reveals pricing, trims and feature sets for the new model year. As it turns out, the turbo CX-5 won't be cheap. The base price for a CX-5 with that engine will be $35,865 with destination. That's about $5,500 more than the cheapest turbocharged Mazda6. There are a couple of reasons for this. The turbo engine will only be available on two new high-end trims for the CX-5, Grand Touring Reserve and Signature. Both of those trims bring a variety of high-end features and options with them. It can also only be paired with all-wheel drive. The Mazda6 turbo engine is available on the slightly lower Grand Touring trim and is only paired to a front-drive drivetrain. Conspicuously absent from the 2019 documentation though is the elusive Skyactiv-D diesel engine. This is strange, since the engine has been rated by the EPA, so it's presumably ready for introduction to the U.S. market. We'll be curious to learn that engine's fate. We could see the turbo gas engine threatening the diesel's U.S. introduction, since it delivers the same amount of torque as the diesel with more horsepower. Plus the diesel didn't get amazing EPA numbers. But that's just speculation on our part, and it's entirely possible the diesel will still come here. The rest of the CX-5 lineup sees some welcome upgrades, too. The infotainment on CX-5s starting with the second-lowest Touring model will get standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. All models also will receive G-Vectoring Plus. The feature, along with the turbo engine option, was announced for the Japanese CX-5 recently. What this system adds is a little bit of braking force to the outside wheel as the driver winds the wheel back to a straight position when exiting a corner or completing a lane-change. The idea is that it helps make the car more stable when straightening out after a turn. Also, although the turbo CX-5 models will be rather pricey, the other CX-5 models won't change much in price. The base Sport trim starts at $200 more than the 2018, the Touring model increases just $100, and the Grand Touring goes up by $400.

Mazda teases its Tokyo-bound EV again — and it's a crossover coupe

Another 15-second teaser clip, the third so far, stars Mazda's coming electric vehicle in the role of coquette. This time we get a glimpse of the body shape, and coming as a shock to no one since Mazda practically admitted it, we'll be seeing a crossover coupe on the Tokyo Motor Show floor. Mazda says there'll be a few surprises therein, though. The overall line and detailing embody "an expansion of our renowned Kodo design philosophy" at the same time as the EV "explores new directions in design." And within the "uncompromisingly simple" form we're told to expect "a unique door concept, opening your mind." Another couplet in the press release poetry promises a "friendly expression" up front for a new segment entry embodying "futuristic values and changing lifestyles." Well then. This will be Mazda's fourth electric vehicle, but the first meant for mass production. The company built a small batch of the Mazda Demio (our Mazda2) battery electric vehicle in 2012 for the Japanese market, leasing them to government and corporate customers. The following year the automaker built a Mazda Demio EV prototype with a 330-cc rotary-powered range-extender engine. After that came the e-TPV prototype that the company's used to prove out the powertrain going into this month's show car.  The urban-focused electric runner should go on sale next year in markets like Japan, China and Europe, where dense city centers negate the need for sky-high range figures; the 35.5-kWh battery is likely to return a 150-mile range at most. As foretold in the most recent teaser, the interior will deliver an airy sense of space thanks to open spaces between the driver's and passenger's seats. Zoom-Zoom will come with EV internals, too — Autocar recently drove the eTPV prototype and lauded it for being "well-planted," "original to drive" and "more like a car in the traditional sense of the word." 

2020 Toyota Yaris hatchback could return as a Mazda2 clone

Less than a week ago we got the news that Toyota killed the 2019 Yaris Liftback in the U.S., instead choosing to sell the remaining inventory from 2018. There should be plenty of stock left, too: Car and Driver reports that Toyota sold 1,940 of the tiny hatches last year. The automaker said it would have an announcement about the Yaris at this year's New York Auto Show in April, telling Automobile, " We're working on something new for MY2020." C/D thinks it already knows what's coming, writing, "We assume ... that the new Yaris hatchback ... will be a rebadged Mazda2, like the current Yaris sedan that Mazda builds for Toyota in Mexico." Toyota and Mazda formed a development- and technology-sharing partnership in 2015. As part of the collaboration, we got the Scion iA in 2016, based on the Mazda2 sedan. That four-door became the Toyota Yaris iA when the Scion brand got put in the ground, and then became just the Yaris for 2019. In spite of Americans' well-publicized aversion to sedans, the trunked Yaris sold 25,269 units last year. Meanwhile, the Yaris hatch, built at a Toyota factory in France, has carried on basically untouched since 2013 — with a four-speed automatic, even — helping to explain its slow take-rate. If the Yaris five-door moves to the Mazda2 platform, we expect it to follow the same formula as the sedan. That means a 1.5-liter Skyactiv-G four-cylinder with 106 horsepower and 103 pound-feet of torque. That's the same output as the Toyota NR engine in the current hatch, but from a better, more modern engine. Transmission options would include a six-speed manual as standard on the L and LE trims. For 2019, Toyota added an XLE trim to the sedan that comes with a six-speed automatic. Assuming all comes to pass, the new Yaris five-door would be built at Mazda's Mexico plant alongside the sedan. But we'll have to wait until New York to know for sure. Related Video: