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Masamichi Kogai new Mazda president and CEO

There's some executive rearranging going on in the top suite at Mazda Motor Corporation in Japan, with current CEO Takashi Yamanouchi telling reporters there "I'd like to hand over the work to younger people" now that the company has returned to profitability. Yamanouchi became CEO on November 19, 2008 of an independent Mazda that had to fight for its future in the immediate aftermath of the global financial crisis. What followed was four years of losses before finally getting back to black last year.
Masamichi Kogai (pictured) will be appointed the new president and CEO on June 25, pending approval at the company's annual general shareholders' meeting. Kogai assisted Seita Kanai with the production-efficiency initiative that Mazda called Mono Tsukuri Innovation, which worked to give export-dependent Mazda the best chance at profitability in spite of a rising yen. Kogai, lately in charge of production and purchasing, has been with the company since 1977 and worked in areas from R&D to logistics.
Kanai, who headed the Mono Tsukuri effort and was among the leadership on Skyactiv, will be promoted from executive vice president to vice chairman. Akira Marumoto will become executive VP of Mazda and assistant to new president Kogai. Yamanouchi will remain Chairman of the Board. There's a short press release below to make it official.

Mazda recalling 18k Mazda6 and RX-8 models over airbag inflators

Faulty Takata airbag inflators keep taking their toll on automakers. Mazda is the latest to be affected in the US by announcing a recall covering 18,050 Mazda6 and RX-8 models to replace the front, passenger-side airbags. Specifically, the campaign covers 18,000 Mazda6 units from the 2003 and 2004 model years built between May 29, 2002, and March 4, 2004, and 50 RX-8 vehicles from the 2004 model year made between June 25, 2003, and June 30, 2003.
As with the rest of the vehicles with these faulty inflators, it's possible for the part to rupture when deploying the airbag and potentially spray shrapnel at the occupant. Mazda's defect notice goes into a bit more detail than most about the problem saying: "some propellant wafers have been produced with an inadequate compaction force, or may have been exposed to uncontrolled moisture conditions (those wafers could have absorbed moisture beyond the allowable limits)."
This isn't Mazda's first difficulty with Takata-supplied airbags this year. The company was among the seven automakers that recalled vehicles in hot-weather states over the inflators. It also had to recently fix 42,000 Mazda6 vehicles in China over the issue.

2009-2013 Mazda6 door latch recall covers 161k cars

Mazda is voluntarily recalling 161,400 Mazda6 cars due to door latch mounting screws that may loosen, which could cause a door to open while the vehicle is in motion, thereby increasing the risk of accident or injury. The recall covers 2009 through 2013 Mazda6 models manufactured between February 4, 2008 and August 24, 2012.
The recall is expected to begin by October 18, 2013. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will provide repairs free of charge. Scroll down for the official recall notice from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.