[SkyActiv]

According to the head of Mazda UK Mazda has a goal to become a full luxury car producer going forward.

It makes sense as far as profit margins go but I don't know if taking on the Germans is the best idea.

Mazda Says It Wants To Evolve Into Fully Fledged Luxury Brand

Mazda UK boss tells Autocar the company aims for a similar positioning as Lexus to become another Japanese luxury marque to rival BMW, Mercedes, and Audi.

www.motor1.com

Why does it seem like more and more automakers are aspiring to become luxury brands? The answer is simple – higher profit margins. It's not all about who sells the most cars as accountants will tell you the money made with each vehicle delivered is just as important. Case in point, Mazda has been gradually moving upmarket with its latest products and will kick things up a notch with a new wave of RWD-based models.

Jeremy Thomson, the company's UK boss, told Autocar the goal is to turn the Zoom-Zoom company into a fully fledged luxury car manufacturer: "Our aspirations are to become a credible alternative to the traditional mainstream premium and that means non-German. We're not looking to mimic German premium because that's very well catered for with the existing incumbents and probably impossible to beat them at their own game."

In other words, Mazda doesn't want to become the next Mercedes, BMW, or Audi, but rather to offer something fresh to entice premium car shoppers looking for a change. He went on to say there is still room in the crowded luxury segment for a Japanese high-end car. Jeremy Thomson admits Lexus "is about a third the size of Mazda in sales terms," but the objective is to occupy "a slightly different space."

When asked directly by Autocar whether Mazda wants to be the next Lexus, the firm's UK chief said "why not," adding Toyota's luxury division is the only Japanese brand that competes with the German trio. That said, we mustn't forget Acura and Infiniti are also playing in the big leagues, albeit they're not truly global brands.

It's not the first time when Mazda is looking to upgrade its image as some will remember the dead-on-arrival Amati sub-brand from the early 1990s. It never happened as the Japanese economy plummeted in 1992, resulting in liquidity shortages for the automaker. The ill-fated marque was supposed to come out in the spring of 1994, but Mazda pulled the plug.

Fast forward to 2022, the CX-60 through CX-90 SUVs riding on a new RWD platform with inline-six engines and PHEV powertrains will allow Mazda to fight the German trio. Some would argue it's a bit too late what with EVs taking over, but the Japanese automaker is heavily investing in that area as well.

 

[hejhej]

Any opinions on whether Mazda will/should introduce a new Luxury brand name separate from Mazda to move into the luxury space; similar to what was done by Toyota/Lexus, Honda/Acura, Nissan/Infiniti, Hyundai/Genesis, etc?

 

[benzaccord]

Any opinions on whether Mazda will/should introduce a new Luxury brand name separate from Mazda to move into the luxury space; similar to what was done by Toyota/Lexus, Honda/Acura, Nissan/Infiniti, Hyundai/Genesis, etc?

They were going to introduce a new brand around the time they launched the Millenia (Amati). Mazda, in my opinion, is being very innovative, by basically encompassing low level, mid level and upmarket, as well as a performance brand by trim/engine levels. They can save costs by using the same dealer network and not having to promote more than 1 brand. Not everyone wants to be noticed for the "premium" brand that they happen to be driving. I kinda like that the $4X,XXX loaded CX-70 that I hope to be driving next year won't look a heck of lot different from the base model that will be more than 10K (guessing) less expensive.

 

[TSM1981]

They were going to introduce a new brand around the time they launched the Millenia (Amati). Mazda, in my opinion, is being very innovative, by basically encompassing low level, mid level and upmarket, as well as a performance brand by trim/engine levels. They can save costs by using the same dealer network and not having to promote more than 1 brand. Not everyone wants to be noticed for the "premium" brand that they happen to be driving. I kinda like that the $4X,XXX loaded CX-70 that I hope to be driving next year won't look a heck of lot different from the base model that will be more than 10K (guessing) less expensive.

Agree completely. 4 of the 5 cars I’ve owned have been German and I love their quality but not their unavoidable snootiness (or repair bills). Nothing would suit me better than a Mazda badge on an upscale trim level of what I hope the CX-70 will be. Also hope it’ll match the 7700lb towing capacity of the Q7/GLE350 but keep the low roofline, car-like ride, and sporty look of the CX-50.

But the same engine in the CX-60 only pulls 5500lbs (despite having more torque than the Germans) and that new CX-90 spy shot looks just as tall as everything else. Even so, I’m cautiously optimistic the CX-70 will be the Goldilocks.