2012 Sport Used 1.5l I4 16v Automatic Fwd Hatchback on 2040-cars

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Mazda hopes to return to Le Mans

Mazda has been away from the winner's circle at Le Mans for some time now. But it could be preparing a return to the forefront at the famous French endurance race in the near future. That is, at least, if the racing enthusiasts within its ranks get their way. "I know that the expectation for us to return to Le Mans is high. I can imagine a day when Mazda returns," Nobuhiro Yamamoto told Top Gear at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this past weekend. "I hope - as with many other Mazda fans - that we go back to Le Mans." His words hardly serve as confirmation of the Zoom-Zoom brand's intentions, but they certainly speak rather loudly to a desire within its ranks. They hardly come out of left field, either. Yamamoto-san is arguably the man best positioned to spearhead such a campaign – or would at least be best informed if such a campaign were underway. He's currently the program manager for the MX-5, and decades ago was the racing engineer behind the 787B. That Group C prototype racer represented Mazda's last major effort at taking top honors at Le Mans, and take them it did when it won the race outright in 1991. The Japanese automaker was out in force this past weekend at Goodwood, the event's central sculpture honoring Mazda's racing history, and its presence only fueling rumors that it could be preparing a renewed assault on endurance racing – potentially once again under rotary power. The 787B, motorsport history buffs will tell you, represented the first and last time to date that a Japanese manufacturer won the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Although Toyota has been competing with Audi and Porsche at the front of the field with the TS040 Hybrid, it has yet to win the key race, despite having taken the FIA World Endurance Championship last year. "Everyone at Mazda would love to see the only Japanese company to ever win the 24 Hours of Le Mans return to the famed twice-around-the-clock classic," a spokesman for Mazda's North American motorsports department told Autoblog by correspondence. "Whether that'll actually happen isn't something we can discuss at this time, but, given our historical and current involvement in motorsports, our interest in the event should be no surprise to anyone. We agree with Yamamoto-san when he says he hopes it happens." So while Mazda may not be ready to confirm the prospect of its return to Le Mans, it certainly isn't ruling it out, either.

More photos of the 2014 Mazda3 sedan

Thanks to the folks at Top Gear Russia, we got an early glimpse of the 2014 Mazda3 sedan. Now, Mazda has released more images of its sleek new four-door, and if you like what the Japanese automaker has done with the five-door hatchback, you won't find anything to complain about with the sedan.
Many would argue that the Mazda3 sedan looks like a scaled-down version of the new Mazda6, and in many cases, that's true. But there are subtle details about the Mazda3 that we really like, starting with the larger grille that makes for a slightly more aggressive front end. On the profile, we like how the strong arching character lines that flow over the front and rear wheel wells intersect in the middle of the car and then taper off. At the rear, a short decklid rounds off a very clean design with taillamps that are indeed reminiscent of the larger Mazda6.
We can't yet confirm powertrain details (or any other specifications, really), but we fully expect the same 2.0-liter and 2.5-liter Skyactiv-G engines to carry over from the hatchback, as well as the six-speed automatic and manual transmissions.

Carmakers, NHTSA to unveil auto-emergency braking agreement tomorrow

Happy St. Patrick's Day Eve. Tomorrow, there will be green beer, corned beef and cabbage, and automatic emergency braking for all. Weird combo, we know. But on St. Patty's we can expect an official announcement from a pact of automakers making auto-braking systems standard equipment by 2022. That's per a report from Reuters, which cites three sources familiar with the plans. Originally announced in September 2015 by 10 automakers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the agreement is expected to be even larger when the details are unveiled tomorrow. According to Reuters, the manufacturers of 99 percent of the US domestic market's vehicles will be represented by the new agreement. It's believed that standard AEB systems could prevent thousands of accidents across the country. Expect more on the official announcement when it's made. Related Video: