ASH8

Mazda CEO forecast back in black this coming financial year.

You can tell your Ford M8 that "they" walked out on Mazda for cash, Ford needed the $$$'s.

No offense to my American friends, but this is typical corporate America, learn how to (make cars, and how to be a car Executive) in this case from Mazda and then walk out....just about every US car maker has done the same...after all Ford did not 'recuse' Mazda in the 1970's because they just felt like it.

Whatever one thinks, Mazda or any other Japanese car maker will not be allowed to fail completely, either the federal Japan Government or local Government won't allow it...and so far it has not happened to any Japanese car maker...they are all still around.

Bladecutter

Honestly, both car companies are doing well right now, because of new product releases that have value to the American people, not because of smart/stupid executives, or because of any other reason.

It's not like Ford has fallen off a cliff, nor has Mazda climbed Mount Everest, and both companies still have a few products that are currently tied at the hip on the market.

Its good to see Mazda doing better, but someone needs to straighten out their American Market Team and let them release all their models in all the transmission and color combinations that other countries get.

Hey, lets put it this way...
If Mazda actually had released the CX-5 Sport Manual in either Red or Blue, I would have bought that instead of my gf buying the Fiat 500 Abarth that we did the other week.

-1 sale for Mazda.

BC.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Yes and No

Ford do not need bailout --- but they were pretty close, Bill Ford almost fuxked the whole company up, the board was smart and kick his *** out before things got worst. They are also very short sighted, instead of Mazda's share they could of sell something else. but hey Mazda is just a small potato to them so it doesn't hurt, right? Wrong.

As for Mazda, they learn their lessons cuz they know they have been a market "follower" for a long time, couple years ago they know they need to lead, even a tiny bit ,even just a brief period of time, that little lead might give them the brand recognition they have been dying for. They did pretty well on the FD a lot of people got a Mazda cuz RX-7 was "cool", but they have nothing after that. So they start their SkyActiv project and that has reward them really well.

Ford and Mazda has been married for so long so they both do share some failures. Like the Models thing that BC mention, they don't give customer what the customer want, everything is picked by them and there is nothing you can do about it. and it took Ford so long to bring the Euro model of Fiesta model over. Jesus.

Gambit

....so basically you prioritize car color over make/model?

kvndoom

Nothing wrong with that. There is no excuse that you can buy a sport Auto in 7 colors but a Sport manual in only black/silver/gray. It's not like the transmission somehow shifts different when there's blue paint on the car. Mazda used to be more "have it your way" than this.

ASH8

How the heck do you compare a CX-5 with a Fiat 500 (Abarth)?

Colour would never be a deal breaker for me...THE vehicle always comes first.

azzuro

It was his gf who bought the Fiat ...

Bladecutter

Color is a deal breaker if I want one color, and they don't offer the transmission/engine combo I want in it.

I didn't buy an R3 because they only offered it in Red, and I didn't want red.
I didn't buy a CX-5 because they didn't offer the FWD Manual in either the really cool Zeal Red, or the Stormy Mica Blue.

My gf already owned a Fiat 500 Sport in Azzuro Blue.
She received a mailing from Fiat to receive $50 for test driving a Fiat, and she got to test drive the Abarth, with no real intentions on buying anything. She enjoyed the test drive so much, and they just happened to have a car exactly the way she would have ordered it coming in 4 days later that wasn't already spoken for, so she went ahead with the purchase.

The Abarth arrived the day before her b-day.

Had Mazda sold the CX-5 with a manual in Zeal Red or SM Blue here in the US, like they do in Canada, Australia, the UK, and pretty much everywhere else, we would have bought that, and would not have been able to buy the Abarth when we did.

So, Mazda loses.

Hope that cleared things up a bit.

BC.

ASH8

Looks like Mazda has a winner.

The new CX-5 has sold so well, more than 60,000 orders were received in a matter of four months and Mazda's CX-5 production capacity simply cannot handle the demand.
In Japan, a diesel trimmed CX-5 has a wait list that's extended to three weeks and counting.
Orders for the Gasoline model will take about month as well

http://www.imotortimes.com/articles/...-customers.htm