Mazda slashes EV investment as it focuses on Skyactiv-Z hybrids
Switch in strategy sees less cash spent as Japanese brand prolongs the life of combustion enginesMazda has its revised Lean Asset Strategy that will radically alter previous plans aimed at speeding up its switch to EVs.
As part of the new plan, the brand says it will slash its R&D costs through more joint ventures and partnerships with other car-makers while improving production efficiency productivity.
Its new SkyActiv-Z hybrid powertrain that will launch in 2027 will be a key pillar of its revised strategy, hence its debut under the bonnet of the next-generation Mazda CX-5 – easily Mazda’s most important model globally.
The new CX-5 will actually make its debut later this year and then adopt the new hybrid systems as part of a mid-life update.
Announcing that we had entered the ‘dawn of electrification’, Mazda said it would follow the likes of Toyota and continue to offer a mix of internal combustion, hybrid and battery-electric models going forward.
Thanks to its new plan, Mazda says it will cut its planned investment in electrification from ¥2 trillion ($A21b) to ¥1.5 trillion (A$15.8b), helping it save a cool $5 billion.
Instead of building dedicated factories for electric cars, Mazda said that it would reduce costs by up to 85 per cent by building EVs on the same existing production lines as its hybrid and combustion-powered cars.
Artificial Intelligence, factory over-the-air updates and automatic guided vehicles (AGVs), plus improved efficiency of its entire supply chain would net even more savings.
It’s already known Mazda is about to launch a new electric mid-size SUV, hotly tipped to be called the CX-6e, that will be sold globally alongside the Mazda 6e sedan, with both products developed in collaboration with Changan.
Another new EV will land in 2027 on an all-new Mazda platform that’s thought to accommodate battery-electric hardware as well as combustion powertrains.
The new model will be made in Japan and come with advanced new batteries from Panasonic Energy, however Mazda says it’s nowhere near ready to give up on petrol engines and is close to creating the ‘ultimate combustion’ engine that delivers by high fuel efficiency and performance.
Early details of the SkyActiv-Z suggest it will be an all-Mazda affair rather than Toyota-supplied and be deployed in both four-cylinder and six-cylinder applications.
“As the automotive industry is going through a once-in-a-century seismic shift, Mazda keeps evolving by updating our 'joy of driving' for the next generation of vehicles,” Mazda CEO Masahiro Moro said.
“All of us at Mazda are committed to striking the right balance of efficient business management and development of sustainable technology to deliver unique value regardless of business scale.”
It’s thought the new stripped-back strategy and cuts in how much Mazda invests in new technology is a knock-on effect of inflationary pressures in Japan and the fears of a recession in some of the global markets it operates, including Japan.
Last year Mazda made sold 1,277,578 passenger vehicles; a sales increase of three per cent overall, but sales in Japan were down in by about 20 per cent.
The drop-off was less dramatic in Australia with sales slumping by only four per cent to 95,987 units in 2024, making the brand the third-most-popular car-maker.
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