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NEWS
Mazda3 hits top gear
New Mazda mainstay to take up where its top-selling predecessor left offGet ready for Mazda3 overload, if you haven’t already been bombarded by mass media saturation of the Japanese brand’s new best-seller.
The first TV commercial for Mazda Australia’s most important model release of 2014 went to air on Sunday night, spearheading the biggest single marketing investment for any single Mazda model.
The new Mazda3 will be heavily spruiked across all media platforms except radio in the lead-up to its appearance in the Mazda3 Celebrity Challenge at the 2014 Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne over March 13-16.
Mazda is preparing for hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage to the 20 cars in this year’s event, but hopes it won’t be a repeat of last year’s Mazda6 Celebrity Challenge, from which all but one car emerged battle-scarred.
Another 20 Mazda3s were allocated for last week’s Adelaide media and dealer launches, which were attended by 35 journalists and 380 sales staff respectively, including 250 dealer principals and their wives.
Underlining the importance of the latest small sedan and hatch range to Mazda Australia, and the latter’s importance to Mazda Motor Corporation, MMC global chief Masamichi Kogai was in attendance in his first official overseas trip as president and CEO.
“Mazda Australia serves as an excellent model for Mazda around the world,” he said. “Many people tell me Mazda has an excellent reputation here, so I decided to travel Down Under to visit dealers for myself,” he said.
Mazda is Australia’s top full-line importer and sold 103,144 vehicles in 2013 – its second consecutive year above 100,000 and more than any other brand except local manufacturers Toyota and Holden.
Australia therefore accounted for a significant slice of the company’s global volume of 1.135 million units last year, and Mazda Australia’s market share remains significantly higher than almost every other nation.
Of course, it’s too early to tell if the multi-million-dollar advertising campaign has been worth it, but so far the signs are positive, with more than 74,000 potential customers registering their interest on Mazda Australia’s public website ahead of its official release on February 1, representing its best ever pre-sales campaign.
Mazda Australia Managing Director Martin Benders said he was confident the third-generation Mazda3 would emulate the success of its top-selling predecessor, which was Australia’s most popular new car in 2011 and 2012.
“We believe we have the right car to again challenge for the lead,” he said. “It’s the highpoint of our new model renewal.”
Asked if the new 3 could wrest sales dominance from Toyota’s Corolla range, which was Australia’s favourite new model last year and will be joined by a redesigned sedan in two weeks, Benders said: “I think so.
“I think it’s a better car than the Corolla. I think the new Corolla sedan is coming, but when you sit in it and drive it you’ll find the Mazda3 is a different class of car.”
Mazda is off to a flying start in 2014, selling 9411 cars, SUVs and utes last month – its biggest January on record – to achieve an 11.4 per cent market share, which is also a record, and place second in the market overall.
Topping the pops was the Mazda3 with a whopping 4561 sales, setting a new January record and the second best monthly sales tally ever, supported by the Mazda2 and CX-5, which also topped their respective light-car and SUV segments.
The vast majority of those sales were of the outgoing Mazda3, which has been in run-out – priced from $19,990 drive-away – for a number of months. The old 3, which dates back to 2009 and ended the Holden Commodore’s 15-year run as Australia’s favourite car two years ago, is expected to remain in stock until April or May.
However, the new Mazda is forecast to attract in excess of 4000 monthly sales initially, before averaging about 3800 new 3s a month, which would equate to about 45,000 registrations this year.
Last year Toyota sold 43,498 Corollas, compared to 42,083 Mazda3s. The Mazda3’s best sales year was 2012, when it found 44,128 new homes, while the Commodore remains Australia’s best-selling individual model with 45,856 sales in 2010.
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Written byMarton Pettendy
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