Archive for the ‘Mazda’ Category

New vehicle sales report – March 2011

March was another month without much fanfare as far as vehicle sales go. The official press release from FCAI is very matter of fact. In real terms, though, the numbers don’t seem too bad. A total of 93,984 sales were registered, a drop of just under 1% compared to March 2010. FCAI Chief Executive Andrew [...]

New vehicle sales report – January 2011

The start of the new calendar year has seen a solid result in the new car market with 73,584 new vehicles finding homes. That’s a minor drop in sales of 1280 (1.7%) compared to January last year. However, it is worth noting that sales in flood ravaged Queensland dropped by almost 2000 (12.8%) compared to [...]

The world’s best selling two seat sports car

// Posted in Mazda

Congratulations must go to Mazda and its plucky little MX-5 for reaching a total production milestone of 900,000 vehicles. The new high-mark comes 21 years after production of the MX-5 began in April 1989. In May 2000 total production of the MX-5 reached 531,890 which was enough to earn it the title of “Best selling [...]

New vehicle sales report – December 2010

Congratulations Australia, for just the third time ever we have managed to send over 1 million new vehicles out the door. To be exact, 1,035,574 passenger cars, SUVs and commercial vehicles found new homes in 2010 and that represents an increase of almost 100,000 sales on 2009 figures. “This is an exceptional outcome and is [...]

New vehicle sales report – November 2010

VFACTS recorded a moderate increase in sales last month, up 1509 vehicles from November 2009. FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar reckons the motor industry is performing well compared to other industries, “These figures show new car sales continue to outperform other economic indicators, including retail spending and business investment. “Much of the strength of the [...]

BBR teams up with Cosworth to give MX-5 added punch

// Posted in Mazda

The little Mazda MX-5 is a true modern classic. For over 20 years it has been adored by critics and buyers across the globe. Built from an old skool perspective where handling is more important than outright power, many have often felt the MX-5 could do with some more grunt. The latest tuner to try [...]

Mazda targets sub-1000kg weight for next MX-5

// Posted in Mazda

Along with the above rendering Autocar brings word that Mazda are aiming to keep the weight of its next MX-5 under 1000kg. A saving of over 130kg on the current model. As usual, we can expect a nice little handler. Further aiding nimble handling is the adoption of production techniques from the RX-8 which will [...]

AIMS 2010: Photo gallery

Here is the AUSmotive photo gallery from the Australian International Motor Show industry day. There are 128 photos in all and you can simply click on each thumbnail to access a 2000px super image. Highlights include a couple of track specials in the form of the awesome Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and the rear-engined V6 [...]

New vehicle sales report – September 2010

Official VFACTS data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) showed that 85,054 passenger cars, SUVs and commercial vehicles were sold in September, up 8.9 per cent (or 6,923 vehicles) on the same month in 2009. It also represents a new record for the month of September, beating the old mark (2005) by [...]

Mazda BT-50 ute to debut down under

Commercial vehicles aren’t usually an AUSmotive staple, but when a manufacturer sends out a funky sketch with news said vehicle will make its world premiere at the Australian International Motor Show in about a month from now then we may as well give it a plug. So, you’re looking at a sketch for the new [...]

Burnout fatigue

The folks over at Inside Line bring us this Burnout Super Test featuring the Volkswagen Golf GTI and the Mazda3 MPS. Why they bothered is anyone’s guess. Perhaps the presenter should have said his last line to camera at the start of the clip and saved everyone the hassle. Still, nobody got hurt and so [...]

New vehicle sales report – May 2010

A new sales record for the month of May was set this year. New vehicle sales totalled 89,218, and improvement of 578 sales from the previous May record set in 2008. “This is a record May result and shows the new vehicle market is maintaining a strong sales momentum,” said FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar, [...]