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Mazda CEO predicts record US sales in next 2 years

The recently appointed CEO of Mazda is apparently quite the optimist, claiming that the Japanese brand, renowned for its Zoom-Zoom driving character (and more recently its sleek, refined designs and Skyactiv efficiency), is claiming the company will record its best-ever US sales within the next two years. According to a report from Automotive News, Masamichi Kogai expects Mazda to move 400,000 of its Kodo-styled vehicles in the increasingly competitive US market by March 2016, with the recently launched Mazda3 leading the charge. "It will impacted considerably by the trend of the U.S. industry. But... it's my hope we achieve the record by that time," Kogai tells AN.
The brand is currently targeting 300,000 units by the end of this fiscal year in March 2014. Given that production and sales of the Mazda3 (and consumer awareness of the 2014 Mazda6) is still picking up steam, it isn't a stretch to imagine Mazda, which sold 240,000 vehicles from January to October of 2013, hitting its target.
Along with the overall increase in sales numbers, Kogai is expecting the independent brand to take an even larger slice of the US sales pie, claiming 2.5 percent US market share, improving from its current 1.9-percent foothold so far in 2013. "I think the upper limit may be 2.5 percent for the time being," Kogai told AN, before pointing out, "We don't want to use a lot of incentives. That is not the sales approach we aspire toward."

2016 Mazda2 gets EPA-rated 43 mpg highway

To paraphrase the famous quote from astronaut Neil Armstrong, that's one small step for man and one giant leap for the Mazda2. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has weighed in on the new Mazda2 version, and says it gets a fuel-economy rating of 33 miles per gallon city and 43 mpg highway with a six-speed automatic transmission. Stick-shift gas-mileage figures are 31 city and 42 highway, which are still substantially better than the 29/35 rating from the most recent iteration of the model. That's about a 15-percent jump in fuel economy, people. More importantly, the Mazda2 beats out competitors such as the Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio Eco and even the Honda Fit in terms of fuel efficiency, which is pretty good company. The Mazda2 boasts a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine. But it is the upgrade to six-speed transmissions in both manual and automatic versions that seem to be making the biggest difference in the ratings. Mazda started unveiling details about the next-generation Mazda2 last year, and last fall began production of the model at Mazda's new factory in Salamanca, Mexico. At that time, the Japanese automaker had already sold more than 2.4 million Mazda2 vehicles since the model's introduction in 1996. Related Video:

Mazda: Penn & Teller

Mazda turned to magic to highlight its refreshed CX-5, bringing in Las Vegas staples Penn and Teller to saw the CUV in half. The glitzy spot has a very Sin City feel to it, although considering some of the ads we've seen tonight, it's short on shock value, humor and heart-tugging imagery. Have a look, though, and let us know what you think.