Automotive News Europe - Talk From The Top Supplement - December 2019 - 23

AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE

TALK FROM THE TOP

The MX-30 will start at 35,000 euros. Isn't that a bit expensive for a
vehicle which Mazda has defined as
a second car?
We know that the EV prices will change as
more competitors bring their new models
to the market. Therefore, we believe that
depending on the package you offer, there
will be demand for relatively small vehicles
at a relatively higher price point. We are
positioning our car in that sub-segment.
The current price is for the launch edition.
We will carefully monitor the market response and, if needed, quickly revise our
strategy, which will be very agile.
Why did Mazda equip the MX-30 with
a relatively small battery with a 200
km range?
We based the battery size on the needs
of our target customers, who are young,
urban buyers. The second factor was
that when we did a life-cycle assessment,
which considered not only the emissions
caused while driving but the emissions
from the production of the battery, we
found that a 35.5 kilowatt hour battery
would result in CO2 emissions similar
to our diesel models. That is why we selected a right-sized battery for our first
battery-electric vehicle. We understand,
however, that some customers require
cars that can provide a longer range.
Therefore, as a second step, we will deploy
a rotary-engine based range extender to
the vehicle. We also need to closely monitor how fast battery capability progresses.
If it improves significantly we may consider a bigger battery in the future.
The decline in diesel sales in Europe has
stabilized and in some cases demand
for the powertrain has risen. What is
your forecast for diesels next year?
It is very hard to precisely predict how
the diesel share will evolve. That's why
we employ a multi-solution strategy. Our
Skyactiv-X SPCCI (spark plug controlled
compression ignition) is a very good solution to counter the declining diesel trend.
That being said, every time I drive a diesel
on a German autobahn it reaffirms my belief that it is the most suitable powertrain
for long-range travel in Europe.
The new Skyactiv-X engine launched
in Europe this year. What role will it
play and how many do you expect to
sell in 2020?

2019

In Partnership with

Mazda expects the CX-30 to become its best-selling model in
Europe next year.

Since Skyactiv-X launched, 60 percent of
the orders for the Mazda3 are equipped
with the engine and the share is 45 percent for the Mazda CX-30 crossover. We
hope this momentum will help lower our
CO2 emissions level in 2020. Interest
in the Skyactiv-X engine is much higher
than we had expected.
What will be Mazda's best-seller in
Europe next year?
Currently our best-seller is the CX-5, but
based on the sales momentum we have
seen since the launch of the CX-30, we
believe it will become our best-selling
model next year.

penalties, we will start selling it in Europe first. As far as other countries are
concerned, we are still in a study phase.
Who will supply the battery packs to
the MX-30?
Panasonic.
Mazda is also working with Toyota on
electrification technologies. Will the
future battery-electric vehicles from
Mazda be the fruits of the work you
are doing with Toyota?
As you know, the MX-30 has been entirely developed by Mazda. But we have
established the so called EV-CAS (EV C.A.
Spirit Corporation), a 50-50 joint venture
with Toyota. This joint venture is doing research to develop the most efficient electric vehicle platform. In the future, many
companies will be able to derive their electric vehicles from this platform. Mazda is
contributing to the joint development with
its model-based engineering and modelbased design research processes. We may
leverage the jointly developed platform design in the future, but at the moment nothing has been decided.

Will the traditional small car segment,
where you offer the Mazda2, continue to be Europe's largest and most
competitive in the midterm or will it
be surpassed by small crossovers?
In every segment we see a shift from
hatchbacks and sedans to crossovers.
The small hatchback or sedan continues
to play the role of entry car in the life of
most customers in Europe. This is true in
Japan and other Asian markets. Therefore,
from a global perspective we definitely
When can we expect the next electric
need to remain in the small car segment.
vehicle from Mazda?
Will the MX-30 only be sold in Europe At this moment nothing has been decidor will Mazda also offer the car in Ja- ed. Considering the stringent CO2 regupan, the U.S. and China?
lations coming into force in 2025, we are
ANE
Given the importance of minimizing CO2 studying many opportunities.

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Automotive News Europe - Talk From The Top Supplement - December 2019

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