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Mazda CEO closes door on talk of RX sports car revival

Some rumors in the auto industry simply refuse to die. Over the last decade, a few of the strongest have focused on Japan. A few years ago, we could have explained away the constant whispering over a new Toyota Supra, Acura NSX or Mazda RX-7 as nostalgia for Japan's golden era of performance. Today, though is different.
We already have the Nissan GT-R, and, thanks to the Toyota FT-1 Concept, a Supra successor finally appears to be on the way. Acura will someday, allegedly, deliver on its promise to put the NSX on sale. So where does that leave the third member of the Japanese performance trio mentioned above? Well, um, it still isn't happening.
"We don't have that kind of vehicle in our future product plan," Mazda CEO Masamichi Kogai told Automotive News when asked about a successor to the rotary-powered RX line. "If you increase the number of segments, then the resources we can allocate to each will decline and that will prevent us from developing truly good products."

2017 Mazda CX-9 packs turbo power, fresh style

After nearly a decade of sales, Mazda finally introduces the second-generation CX-9 crossover. It delivers a comprehensive interior and exterior overhaul, blessing the CX-9 with a powerful, efficient Skyactiv powertrain, and instilling even more of the sporting character that makes Mazdas so darn charming. Like every other vehicle in Mazda's catalog, the CX-9 now wears the handsome, suave stylings of the company's Kodo design language. We think it looks great, but feel free to disagree in Comments. The second-generation CX-9 is the perfect example of Mazda's growing interior design prowess. As is so often the case, it's not so much the style but the choice of materials that stands out. Nappa leather can be paired with real Japanese rosewood and aluminum accents to craft a cabin that feels far more expensive than what you might expect from Mazda. The quality is impressive, even on the pre-pre-production prototypes we tested (drive impressions coming soon). The other headline, aside from the gorgeous interior, is the powertrain. The heart and soul of the operation is a new 2.5-liter, turbocharged Skyactiv engine. Although it only produces a modest 250 horsepower, that figure is complemented by a whopping 310 pound-feet of torque. Importantly, torque is easy to access in the lower part of the rev range, with peak twist coming in at just 2,000 rpm. It drops off rather suddenly north of 4,000 rpm, but as Mazda tells it, most consumers rarely venture above that figure. Mazda expects the CX-9's core market to be perfectly happy with the robust low-end output. A six-speed automatic is responsible for doling out that grunt, and is meant to play nicely with the same i-Activ predictive all-wheel-drive system found in the CX-5 (although the two cars don't share any AWD components). Using 22 different sensors, the system measures road conditions 200 times every second and will even send up to half the engine's power to the rear axle. The entire car, meanwhile, rides on the same Skyactiv architecture as the CX-5 and Mazda6, meaning a multi-link rear suspension has been paired with MacPherson struts up front. Eighteen-inch wheels will be standard, although 20s will also be on offer. You can expect to hear much more on just what the new CX-9 is like to drive next week. Until then, enjoy the official images from Mazda, and keep an eye open for live shots from the LA debut, headed your way soon.

Mazda's Tokyo concept foretells of rotary revival

Mazda has long been rumored to be planning a revival of its rotary-powered sports car. Some of those rumors may have come down to wishful thinking as much as concrete information. But now, on the eve of the Tokyo Motor Show, new details have come to light. The Japanese automaker is slated to unveil a two-door sports car concept, previewed in the teaser image above. Little in the way of firm information has been made available prior to the show car's debut, but sources are now citing senior company officials as confirming it has a rotary engine. "It is a two-door, two-seater, Mazda CEO Masamichi Kogai told Autocar. "It is a pure sports car design. We have MX-5 and another icon is a rotary sports car. We haven't talked about market reach but this would be in that segment." R&D chief Kiyoshi Fujiwara added: "People think rotary can not meet modern eco demands. The SkyActiv engineers worked on rotary and gave it cutting-edge tech. It is an essential part of our DNA and it [will] just be passed onto future engineers. It is synonymous with the brand. Some time in the future it will return and be called SkyActiv-R." The last time Mazda produced a rotary-powered model, of course, was with the RX-8, which ended production in 2012. That was preceded by three generations of RX-7, the first of which will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2018. If it manages to get the Wankel technology up to modern standards, that could provide just the right opportunity for Mazda to launch a new model. Reached for comment, Mazda spokesman Jacob Brown told Autoblog: "While we can confirm that Mazda continues to develop rotary engines, we cannot confirm production of a rotary at this point. Rotaries are one of the signature engineering technologies that define Mazda, and we will continue exploring them to see where they may fit for production applications." Related Video: