Mazdaspeed no more

[JazzySP20]

Mazda has announced that its performance-focused division Mazdaspeed will be no more.

Mazdaspeed Cars Are Dead Because Mazda Wants to be More 'Mature': Report

Couldn't they just build upon their extensive zoom-zoom experience instead?

www.thedrive.com

Just when we thought Mazda was about to up it's game in the performance side of things, they go and do this!

 

[sm1ke]

Mazda has announced that its performance-focused division Mazdaspeed will be no more.

Mazdaspeed Cars Are Dead Because Mazda Wants to be More 'Mature': Report

Couldn't they just build upon their extensive zoom-zoom experience instead?

www.thedrive.com

Just when we thought Mazda was about to up it's game in the performance side of things, they go and do this!

They've been saying this for years. It even came from the CEO.

Mazda Is Too 'Mature' Now To Build You A Mazdaspeed3

Remember when you were young and your dog ran away, and you always hoped it would come back while knowing deep down Rocko was actually dead? That’s how a lot of people feel about a new Mazdaspeed3 or Speed6, which Mazda has no plans to bring back for the current generation of either car.

jalopnik.com

Mazda can still up it's game performance wise, without committing to a Mazdaspeed model. The upcoming hybrid RWD-based inline-six platform with 8-speed might be proof of that.

I'd love to be back in a fun-to-drive sedan again, but if you look at the numbers, few people are buying sedans and coupes. People are buying CUVs, SUVs, and crossovers instead.

I think Mazdaspeed will come back, but it's going to take a while. They need to sell more cars so they can make more money. More money = budget for passion projects like Mazdaspeed. That's my $0.02.

 

[Bird-Dog]

"An unnamed Mazda spokesperson told Roadshow that the Mazdaspeed brand just doesn't fit with Mazda's current aspirations to become a more premium, luxury automaker."

As if they've never noticed BMW M division, Mercedes AMG, and Audi RS models?

I think Mazdaspeed will come back, but it's going to take a while. They need to sell more cars so they can make more money. More money = budget for passion projects like Mazdaspeed. That's my $0.02.

You may be right. One would think that "premium, luxury automaker" also necessarily includes that sub-market of "premium, luxury" performance like the big-3 German brands. And especially so with Mazda's upcoming foray into RWD platforms. But yes, volume may well be the issue for the time being.

Perhaps, too, going forward it's simply the Mazdaspeed name that no longer fits their new image and they will dream up a performance designation that sounds more "premium" to them when the time comes to revisit that end of the catalog.

I also have to wonder if Toyota doesn't have some influence on this, wanting to see Mazda focus on becoming an interim level step between Toyota and Lexus brands (in appeal and pricing). While Toyota holds only a very minor stake in Mazda at the moment, they appear to have a good working relationship that benefits both companies. It's entirely plausible for Toyota have designs on acquiring a controlling interest at some point in the future... if there's some compelling reason, such as slotting neatly in between their current brands, to add them to their portfolio.

 

[Antoine]

Perhaps, too, going forward it's simply the Mazdaspeed name that no longer fits their new image and they will dream up a performance designation that sounds more "premium" to them when the time comes to revisit that end of the catalog.

This is my current theory as well.

I also have to wonder if Toyota doesn't have some influence on this, wanting to see Mazda focus on becoming an interim level step between Toyota and Lexus brands (in appeal and pricing). While Toyota holds only a very minor stake in Mazda at the moment, they appear to have a good working relationship that benefits both companies. It's entirely plausible for Toyota have designs on acquiring a controlling interest at some point in the future... if there's some compelling reason, such as slotting neatly in between their current brands, to add them to their portfolio.

Interesting, not sure how I feel about that but it doesn’t seem impossible...Hmm, I do like that Mazda and Toyota seem to have a good relationship these days. Plus Toyota appears to be investing heavily in Motorsports, something I wish Mazda could and would do...Someday perhaps.

 

[Natey]

Mazda still has a performance division called Mazda Motorsports, but yes, Mazdaspeed has been gone for a few years now.

Seems like Mazda had a killer little "Japanese BMW" niche going for awhile that I guess they wanted to trade in for cheap Lexus or something. Makes me sad because I grew up with 323 GTXs, FD RX-7s and Mazdaspeed Miatas.
Oh well, time marches on and people want CUVs now. I guess it's all about tech and not about the driving experience anymore.

 

[Bird-Dog]

Seems like Mazda had a killer little "Japanese BMW" niche going for awhile that I guess they wanted to trade...

I think Mazda has their eye on being a BMW-lite more than ever. To me Mazda's shift to RWD platforms for their next generation telegraphs that goal pretty clearly.

And, while BMW certainly still delivers outstanding performance with their M treatments, they're not quite as driver-enthusiast focused across-the-board as they perhaps once were. It's the reputation as a premium brand that Mazda aspires to above all. After all, that's where the bulk of sales volume must come from in order to address the performance niche as well.

That said, I do think it's a very good sign that Mazda is offering their 2.5T across most of their line-up for 2021. While they may not be "all in" like their MazdaSpeed treatments of yore, it does show that performance is still on their radar. Hopefully we'll see some interesting developments with the upcoming platforms a couple of years down the road.

 

[dougal]

Crazy to think that almost 15 years ago Mazda made a mid-sized sedan that came with AWD and did a 0-60 in less than 6 seconds.

 

[Natey]

..or beat the Integra Type R through the cones with the Mazdaspeed Protege to become the quickest FWD car ever tested through the slalom by Road & Track Magazine.

..or won outright at LeMans, the only Asian carmaker to do so, holding that record for almost 30 years.

..or built the 1st Japanese rally car for the street, with the turbocharged, AWD 323 GTX. Decades before we saw STis or EVOs in America