Mazda aims for premium image, but clearly “non-German”

If each brand takes its own place on the automotive playground, Mazda’s position is clearly that of the eternal individualist. He doesn’t need a clique and he just does his own thing, but what he does, he does well. The premium brands of this world may therefore just hold on to their hearts, because Mazda would now have set its sights on a higher segment.

The new Lexus?

For example, Jeremy Thomson, Managing Director of Mazda in the United Kingdom, told the British coach that his brand wants to become a credible alternative to the well-known premium players. Although there is a nuance to this, because the director also immediately indicated that Mazda is not looking for the position of the German three — by which he refers to Audi, BMW and Mercedes. He even admitted that those constructors have gotten so good at their own game that it wouldn’t be realistic to try to beat them at it. Thomson refers rather to an alternative image like that of Lexus, although Mazda says things in Europe are somewhat larger than Toyota’s luxury branch.

Unlike Toyota — or Honda and Nissan, although their premium brands are no longer present in Europe — Mazda doesn’t seem to be planning to create a sub-brand for its higher ambitions. Instead, the manufacturer wants to reinforce its existing values ​​of driving pleasure, durability and technology under its own logo. We already see that happening with the upcoming CX-60 and CX-80, which are the first Mazdas to be equipped with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, be rear-wheel drive and have powerful six-cylinder engines in the range.