Mazda is certainly a manufacturer on the offensive, with the recently released Mazda6 winning plaudits world-round and is now set to unleash the new Mazda3, with the Tokyo Motor Show being used as a showcase for it latest incarnation.
Not only that, but Mazda is also using the 43rd edition of the event to show off its new Skyactiv-Hybrid and CNG technology that will be used in conjunction with the Mazda3’s launch.
Mazda has been late to the hybrid game, but look confident that this new engine platform will place them firmly amongst the established competition. All the Japanese manufacturer has released about the technology, however, is that it will mate its 2.0-litre Skyactiv-G four-cylinder engine with an electric motor.
The new Mazda3 will be on our roads come January, but it is unclear when we will see this new hybrid platform and where. However, the Mazda3 accounts for over 30 per cent of the company’s global sales volume and it would be unusual for them not to make it available on a worldwide basis, or at least in its best-selling domains.
Mazda’s Skyactiv technology has already been touted by the manufacturer itself as a green alternative to hybrids, but it seems market demand for hybrid-based vehicles has seen them give in to the insistence of consumers.
Hybrids have not exactly been renowned for their driving dynamics and handling, but recent Mazdas have been praised for such elements; by combining these elements with the green credentials of a hybrid power plant, the manufacturer could be onto a winner.
Along with the Skyactiv-Hybrid, Mazda will also bring along a compressed natural gas Mazda3 concept to the Tokyo show. This CNG example is a bi-fuel system that would allow the car to switch between natural gas and gasoline/petrol.
With the ability to switch between the two, Mazda would remove the anxiety that comes with the lack of range a CNG-only engine has. More space would be freed up also, as having two separate tanks eliminates the need for one giant gas tank that eats up essential room at the rear.
Both cars will be exhibited to the public at the Tokyo Motor Show from November 22.
