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Mazda announces live-streaming vehicle intro on Xbox

In April, Mazda introduced a marketing campaign titled "Game Changers" to showcase how certain people have made significant impacts in their respective sports, and now it's the Japanese automaker that is changing the game by creating an innovative way to launch a new product. Mazda is teaming up with Xbox to offer a first-of-its-kind live-streaming global debut of a new product. Mazda didn't say which model will be debuted, but our guess is that it will be the next-generation Mazda3.
The actual reveal will take place at 9 pm on June 26 during a live concert from the band Metric in New York City, but there will be other live events preceding the concert in Melbourne, St. Petersburg, Istanbul and London. Mazda will be promoting the event on social media using the hashtag #GameChanger, and there is also a contest on Xbox where one winner will receive $2,500 to attend a music event of their choice. Scroll down for the full details of the contest and vehicle debut event.

Honda may recall up to 1M vehicles for airbag issue, following Toyota's lead

It seems Toyota won't be the only one recalling the faulty Takata airbag inflators for long. Honda insiders in Japan claim that the company is getting close to announcing its own worldwide campaign that would begin before the end of June.
Unnamed sources close to Honda in Japan tell Automotive News that the company is pursuing an internal investigation into possibly affected models and is working with Takata to gather more information. They claim that it could involve even more than the 1.14 million cars worldwide that the automaker covered under the first recall for the problem in April 2013, including 561,000 vehicles in the US.
Toyota jumpstarted this process last week when it recalled over 2 million cars worldwide, including 844,277 in the US. Soon after, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration began a preliminary evaluation into the issue following six reported incidents, and started assembling data about potentially affected models from Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Nissan, Chrysler. NHTSA also began investigating Takata itself.

How long will the 'golden age' of performance last?

High-powered sports and luxury cars were everywhere at the New York Auto Show, prompting the obvious question for enthusiasts: How long will this golden age of performance last? Industry leaders have some time before regulations elevate the Corporate Average Fuel Economy level in 2025. Even then, they expect cars rippling with power to survive in some form. "Is it the end of an era," I don't think so," said Ola Kallenius, Daimler AG board member for Mercedes-Benz cars marketing and sales. "That performance element of individual mobility I don't think will ever go away." Kallenius, who oversaw the company's AMG division from 2010-2013, expects it to continue to grow. Last year, AMG sold a record 68,875 units around the world, an increase of 44.6 percent over 2014, with strong growth in the US, China, and Germany. Still, there's always the potential for gas to spike, and pending fuel economy regulations are looming. That could lead AMG to add electrification to its products, Kallenius said, pointing to the electric SLS as a test case. Chevy is also thinking ahead, said Al Oppenheiser, chief engineer of the Camaro. He wouldn't bite when asked about electrification for the Camaro (he did say "never say never"), but admitted in 2025 "it's going to be pretty tough to sell V8s." For now, things are rosy for muscle cars, and Chevy confidently showcased the 640-hp Camaro ZL1 in coupe and convertible form in New York. "I think that this is truly the golden age of performance," Oppenheiser said. It's hard to disagree. News & Analysis News: The 2017 Mazda MX-5 Miata RF was a show-stopper in New York. Analysis: There was a palpable energy when this RF — for Retractable Fastback — was revealed the night before the show at a trendy off-site venue near the Hudson River. Even as a parade of SUVs and flashy luxury cars rolled out the rest of the week, the Miata remained a hot topic. The Retractable Fastback is really a clever targa top, with part of the roof stowing behind the seats, adding about 100 pounds compared to the standard convertible. It makes the car more practical and arguably more attractive. The RF continues Mazda's tradition of selling the Miata with a hardtop variant. The first and second generations offered a detachable one, and a power retractable hardtop (a $1,700 option) was available on third-gen models. Judging by its reception in New York, the RF could prove to be even more popular than its predecessors.