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Mazda recalls Takata airbags in B-Series

The Basics: Mazda will recall 19,000 examples of the 2004–2006 B-Series pickup. The Problem: The pickups contain Takata-sourced driver's side airbag inflators that could rupture in a crash. The spray of metal shrapnel could injure or even kill occupants. Injuries/Deaths: None reported in the Mazda pickups. However, a rupturing airbag inflator killed the driver in a Ford Ranger, which is identical to the B-Series. The Fix: Mazda will replace the driver's side inflator. If You Own One: Mazda plans to notify affected owners as soon as dealers have the replacement parts. More Information: Mazda already recalled 442,266 driver's side Takata inflators and 416,475 of them on the passenger's side. The affected models included the 2003-2008 Mazda6, 2004-2006 B-Series, 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed6, 2004-2008 RX-8, and some examples of the 2004 MPV. Ford also issued an expanded safety campaign for 391,394 examples of the 2004-2006 Ranger. Related Video: Mazda Announces Recall On B-Series Vehicles With Takata Driver-Side Frontal Airbag Inflators WASHINGTON, DC (February 1, 2016) – Mazda has decided to recall all 2004–2006 model year B-Series Trucks with Takata driver-side frontal air bag inflators. Approximately 19,000 vehicles are affected in the U.S., Puerto Rico and Saipan. There have been no reports of accidents or injuries on the Mazda-badged vehicles subject to this recall. Model Year 2007-2009 B-Series Trucks with Takata passenger-side frontal air bag inflators are part of a previous recall. Approximately 19,000 vehicles are affected in the U.S., Puerto Rico and Saipan. Below is a summary of Mazda models with a passenger- and/or driver-side front Takata air bag inflators currently being recalled. Total Number of Driver's frontal air bag inflator - 442,266 Total Number of Passenger's frontal air bag inflator - 416,475 2003-2008 Mazda6 2004-2006 B-Series 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed6 2004-2008 RX-8 (All Driver-side / Certain Passenger-side) 2004 MPV (Certain Vins only. Click here to see if your vehicle is included.) Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through more than 700 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City.

Half of Chinese car buyers won't shop Japanese over hard feelings

The hard feelings between China and Japan is no real secret. Besides modern-day disputes, the two countries have had a long-running enmity that dates back to well before the atrocities of World War II. All things considered, then, it shouldn't be a shock that half of Chinese car buyers wouldn't consider a Japanese car. This survey, conducted by Bernstein Research, found that 51 percent of 40,000 Chinese consumers wouldn't even consider a Japanese car – which, again, isn't really surprising, when you consider stories like this. According to Bernstein, the most troubling thing is the location of these sentiments – smaller, growing cities where the population is going to need sets of wheels. We imagine it wouldn't be as big of an issue in traffic-clogged Shanghai or Beijing, but these small cities are going to become a major focus for automakers. "Nationalistic feelings are an impediment. [Japanese] premium brands will struggle," analyst Max Warburton wrote in a research note, according to The Wall Street Journal. Things will improve for Japanese makes, although China will remain a challenge, with Warburton writing, "the one thing that comes out most clearly is that most Chinese really want a German car. While we expect Japanese brands to continue to recover market share this year, ultimately the market will belong to the Germans." There are a few other insights from the study. According to WSJ, Japanese brands are viewed better than Korean brands, and they're seen as more comfortable than the offerings from Germany or the US, despite the fact that everyone in China apparently wants a German car. This is a tough position for the Japanese makes to be in, as there's really not a lot they can do to win favor with Chinese buyers. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, particularly as the importance of the PRC continues to increase year after year. News Source: The Wall Street Journal - sub. req.Image Credit: Kazuhiro Nogi / AFP / Getty Images Honda Mazda Nissan Toyota Car Buying

Mazda's EV resistance may mean CAFE trouble ahead

Is Skyactiv the limit for Mazda? The Japanese automaker has ridden its gas-powered engine technology platform to the upper end of fleetwide fuel economy among automakers in the US. But the company's lack of electrification, either hybrids of plug-in vehicles, combined with increasing sales of crossovers, may limit future fuel-efficiency gains, Automotive News reports. Mazda has no plans to add battery-electric variants across its product line, the publication says, citing comments from Mazda North America CEO Masahiro Moro. So far, the dependence on Skyactiv has worked well, as Mazda was the second automaker - after electric-vehicle maker Tesla Motors – to meet the US fuel-economy mandate of 34.1 miles per gallon for 2016. Additionally, Mazda plans to unveil the second-generation version of Skyactiv next year. Using a technology called "homogenous-charge compression ignition" (HCCI), Mazda's gas-powered engines will approximate the compression in diesel engines, boosting fuel economy accordingly. Because of that development, Mazda's Moro is "very confident" that the company will meet the US Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) mandate for 2021. With no plans for US plug-ins or hybrids (Mazda's only hybrid, a variant of the Mazda3, is sold in Japan), Moro is not so sure about meeting the 2025 CAFE mandate of 54.5 mpg (which equates to a "real world" fuel economy of about 40 mpg). Additionally, Mazda's "biggest regulatory headache" will be meeting California's mandate that 15 percent of the state's new-vehicle sales be zero-emissions within the next decade. In 2011, Mazda laid out its strategy of leaning on its Skyactiv technology instead of moving to drivetrain electrification as a way to boost fleetwide fuel economy, saying at the time that "you can't out-Toyota Toyota and you can't out-Honda Honda." The company also took a strong stance against even the idea of electrification in vehicles. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mazda's model-year 2015 vehicles averaged 30.1 mpg, beating out Honda's 28.9 mpg, Subaru's 28.7 mpg, and Nissan's 28.3 mpg. Mazda's fleetwide fuel efficiency increased from 29.4 mpg for the 2014 model year, and from 28.1 for the 2013 model year, according to the EPA. Related Video: Featured Gallery Mazda3 SkyActiv-Hybrid View 21 Photos News Source: Automotive News-sub.req. Green Mazda Fuel Efficiency Green Automakers Electric Hybrid skyactiv mazda hybrid mazda electric car