Straight 6 skyactiv-x engine in development

I certainly hope this suv craze ends soon.

Don't see that happening.

Hell, I know too many people that don't feel safe driving on the road in sedans because of larger SUVs and CUVs which are far more prevalent hitting them.
 
VW has the atlas and even Kia has a large SUV now too. Mazda is trending that way I guess.
 
I certainly hope this suv craze ends soon.

I'm turning 65 soon. All of us Baby Boomers want vehicles that (a) are safe, and (b) are high enough off the ground to get in to/out of easily without us making unseemly noises. Every person I know who is my age has either an SUV or a pickup truck. It's the modern version of us all driving Oldsmobiles and Cadillacs.

Many of us have the money to spend. Fuel efficiency is nice but not necessary at this stage of our [retired/non-commuting] lives. We are already sold on the style. It's only a matter of which model we're going to buy. I don't know why SUV manufacturers don't specifically market to us, rather than telling younger people that they will suddenly go camping and stargazing and "listening to the trees talk to each other" if they buy that specific model.

Maybe they don't want the younger crowd thinking "this is an old person's car." But I think a peek at SUV owner demographics might be eye-opening.

Dominos had "Avoid the Noid"
Maybe Mazda needs to roll out "Shunt the Grunt." Or "Please the Geeze."
 
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Being the largest in the world also means they have lots of shareholders to answer to. If "leeching" is cheaper, so be it. Everyone else does it. I bet the Supra, even with its BMW drivetrain and infotainment, doesn't break even or barely does, on the development and cost of setting up an assembly line for it.

Personally, I would rather buy a car with proven components in it than be on the "Bleeding Edge." I don't now why people would be against implementing existing engines or transmissions...as long as the manufacturer is not stealing the technology without paying appropriate licensing fees. I think the inline 5 on my GMC Canyon is borrowed from Audi...that's a good thing.
 
So I completely understand the ingress/egress thing. As for safety I think that has more to do with the vehicle being well designed with safety in mind than inherently a attribute of its form factor. So do we really need the pseudo sport pretense and plastic cladding and so on? Or do we just want a car (generally defined as transportation) thats easier to get into and out of thats safe? If yes I argue it doesnt need to be an SUV per se. I am at least glad to see some car like ones (just taller) catching on that forgo a lot of that pretentiousness and are at least a bit more civil to drive. But then they still throw a bunch of plastic fantastic all over it. Anyway I digress.
 
I doubt the 6 would sound quieter per se. And I believe the Skyactiv X itself sounds kind of diesel like due to the high compression ( spark controlled) ignition. Ergo itll probably sound like a diesel I6.

Wait a minute you've got a point considering there's gonna be 2 more cylinders. Perhaps MAzda could pipe in some good sounding artificial intake engine grunts into the cabin. The new VW GLI has this feature with on/off switch.
 
Wait a minute you've got a point considering there's gonna be 2 more cylinders. Perhaps MAzda could pipe in some good sounding artificial intake engine grunts into the cabin. The new VW GLI has this feature with on/off switch.

Ha! Turning off sound actor ( or whatever they call it) was one of the first things I did when I got my OBDeleven.
 
I'm turning 65 soon. All of us Baby Boomers want vehicles that (a) are safe, and (b) are high enough off the ground to get in to/out of easily without us making unseemly noises. Every person I know who is my age has either an SUV or a pickup truck. It's the modern version of us all driving Oldsmobiles and Cadillacs.

Many of us have the money to spend. Fuel efficiency is nice but not necessary at this stage of our [retired/non-commuting] lives. We are already sold on the style. It's only a matter of which model we're going to buy. I don't know why SUV manufacturers don't specifically market to us, rather than telling younger people that they will suddenly go camping and stargazing and "listening to the trees talk to each other" if they buy that specific model.

Maybe they don't want the younger crowd thinking "this is an old person's car." But I think a peek at SUV owner demographics might be eye-opening.

Dominos had "Avoid the Noid"
Maybe Mazda needs to roll out "Shunt the Grunt." Or "Please the Geeze."
I was 22 when I bought my CX-5. Perfect mix of feeling sporty to drive, easy access in and out for me and my long legs, practicality with cargo space when I need it and AWD, and good looks and style.

As a one car house, ticks all my boxes for what I want out of a car I drive everyday, on road trips, bad weather, etc.
 
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So I completely understand the ingress/egress thing. As for safety I think that has more to do with the vehicle being well designed with safety in mind than inherently a attribute of its form factor.

You're absolutely right, however people have their perceptions and preconceived notions that I've noticed seem to boil down to SUV = safer whether grounded in actual fact or not and you better believe that influences purchasing decisions.
 
People can make whatever excuses they want for Toyota cheaping out on the Supra, but that was the point of the article in regards to Toyota: if a small car company like Mazda can R&D a new inline 6 from the ground up, there is no excuse why the world's largest auto company couldn't R&D their own engine, except for laziness and taking the cheap and easy way out.

Mazda will put that engine in many cars for years to come amortizing the cost across thousands if not millions of vehicles. No other Toyota vehicle uses that type of engine, or is even able to package such an engine without significant other compromises. Mazda's small size and limited lineup actually works in their favor this way - they can tweak the vehicles to fit it without too much effort.
 
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Mazda will put that engine in many cars for years to come amortizing the cost across thousands if not millions of vehicles. No other Toyota vehicle uses that type of engine, or is even able to package such an engine without significant other compromises. Mazda's small size and limited lineup actually works in their favor this way - they can tweak the vehicles to fit it without too much effort.

Agree. I expect to see this in the next gen CX9 and new flagship 6 sedan to begin with... or maybe a bigger sedan ala the vision coupe show car.
 
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Isn't a inline-6 overall considered the smoothest running engine design?

Yes it is. Makes it interesting to pair with skyactiv-x high compression tech though. I wonder if Mazda will opt for both port and direction injection like Toyota does.

Imagine this with a Skyactiv logo.

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Agree. I expect to see this in the next gen CX9 and new flagship 6 sedan to begin with... or maybe a bigger sedan ala the vision coupe show car.

I'm trying to think of a way this could fit in with a new RX. They've said the rotary component could be a Range eXtender for an electric. Maybe they sell two versions? Electric RX with rotary range extender, and a straight-6 powered version. I can't see them putting much resources into a sedan - those just don't sell now. Obviously you can update the 6 without too much trouble. Or maybe go the way of the NSX with a turbo 6 + electric !
 
Its inherently balanced which is why theyre so smooth and ideal. Just a packaging challenge. Honestly I think packaging often is the primary design constraint and they just have to engineer around everything else.
 
I'm trying to think of a way this could fit in with a new RX. They've said the rotary component could be a Range eXtender for an electric. Maybe they sell two versions? Electric RX with rotary range extender, and a straight-6 powered version. I can't see them putting much resources into a sedan - those just don't sell now. Or maybe go the way of the NSX with a turbo 6 + electric !

Sports cars sell even less than sedans though.
 
Sports cars sell even less than sedans though.

More like a halo car, like the Corvette. For example, I don't think Toyota has any kind of business case for the Supra based on sales alone.
 
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