Mazda has been one of the slowest automakers to embrace electrification and its first battery-powered model in the U.S., the MX-30, didn’t last very long due to limited range. Now, however, the Japanese automaker seems to be getting serious about EVs and has offered the first look at an all-new platform expected to be used for a battery-powered SUV due out in 2027. But the automaker also is shifting resources to put more emphasis on hybrids, such as one coming for the next-gen Mazda CX-5 crossover. Headlight.News has more.
The Mazda MX 30 didn’t last long in the U.S. due to range of barely 100 miles.
If you blinked you might have missed the Mazda MX-30. The little EV didn’t last very long in the U.S. market, demand severely restricted by its miniscule 35.8-kWh battery pack delivering, at best, about 100 miles of range.
The Japanese automaker does have some EV offerings available in China and Europe, EU pre-orders just starting for the new Mazda6e sedan. But, until now, it hasn’t said much about plans to return to the U.S. electric vehicle market.
That could soon change, Mazda finally revealed a new, dedicated EV platform which, it indicated should go into production in 2027. That said, the company has also indicated it will shift resources and put more emphasis on future hybrids as part of a “Multi-Solution” strategy that should debut with the 2027 launch of the CX-5 crossover.
What we know about the upcoming EV
Mazda New EV Platform will offer flexibility in size – and in terms of battery pack size and chemistry.
No surprise, the new EV platform adopts a skateboard layout placing battery and motors below the load floor. That layout offers the advantage of freeing up space normally devoted to an engine compartment which could provide more cabin space. It could also be used to provide a front, or front trunk under the hood.
Mazda isn’t saying much about what it will use the new platform for. But the two teaser images it released suggest an all-electric SUV is in the offing. Of course, EV architectures tend to offer significant flexibility meaning the platform will all but certainly show up in multiple applications going forward.
Set to show up in production sometime in 2027, the first EV will rely on batteries sourced through a partnership with Panasonic.
Mazda’s “Multi-Solution” strategy
The all-electric Mazda6e is just going on sale in Europe.
While EV sales growth has slowed in some markets, notably the U.S., demand continues to expand worldwide. That’s particularly true in China, where Mazda currently offers the EZ-6 sedan based on the EPA1 architecture developed by local partner Changan.
Nonetheless, Mazda has read the tea leaves and realizes it needs to cover all the bases. Picking up on the strategy adopted by competitors as diverse as Toyota and Stellantis, it is shifting resources to focus on what it has dubbed a “Multi-Solution” strategy. That means a mix of gas, hybrid, PHEV and EV models. The automaker has also suggested it may add range-extender technology.
So-called E-REV systems pair an internal combustion combined with a mid-size battery pack. But unlike is today’s plug-in hybrids, the ICE side of the drivetrain is used solely as a generator to keep the battery pack fully charged. This approach reduces the complexity of the drivetrain and yields the high-torque benefits that come from only using electric motors to drive the wheels.
Overall, Mazda now plans to invest the equivalent of $10 billion in its electrification program, down from a previous target of $13.3 billion, it announced this week. But the figure is a bit misleading, as it is off-loading some costs to partners that include Panasonic, Chang-An, Denso and Toyota. But Mazda officials also suggested on Tuesday they’re leaning away from full-on joint ventures — like they’ve had with partners such as Chang-an and Toyota – going forward.
More Mazda News
- First Drive: Mazda CX-70 PHEV
- Mazda Confirms Next CX-5 Will Get Hybrid
- Mazda CEO Reveals More on Rotary Engine Revival Plans
SkyActiv-Z
Speculation continues that Mazda will bring back the rotary engine both in a sports car and other range-extender applications.
A key element in the new strategy will be the launch of the SkyActiv-Z engine. Developed with hybrid applications in mind, it will first appear roughly two years from now under the skin of the next-generation CX-5 crossover. There apparently will be a variety of packages offered – likely reflecting regional demands. In a news release, Mazda indicated the underlying platform for CX-5 will accommodate “diverse types of batteries.” That could mean both varying pack sizes, as well as different chemistries, such as lithium-ion and less expensive LFP.
SkyActiv-Z itself will be a family of engines, with likely inline-4 and inline-6 variants, the automaker has indicated.
What wasn’t discussed on Tuesday was the long-awaited revival of the Mazda rotary engine. The company’s CEO did provide some background last December and there is widespread speculation the engine, formally known as a Wankel, could return as the ICE choice for Mazda E-REVs.
Staying competitive at its size is no easy task for a company like Mazda but it summed up its future approach by noting it intends to “”reduce development investment by 40% and development man-hours by 50% compared to conventional development through collaboration and partnership.”
That could translate into more products more quickly – and at a lower cost.
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