Why does Mazda "fly under the radar" from other Japanese Cars (vehicles, SUV)

[LexWest]

First off, let me say I'm a Honda/Toyota Loyalist.

Any loyalist (former/current) and even those who are tired of hearing about these cars know the saying Honda's/Toyota's never die/last forever. Unfortunately my old reliable '97 Honda Civic has reached it's end. (Honda haters can "rejoice;" However, it lasted for 200k+ miles, so I'm not too disappointed

I now have a 2002 Mazda Protege, which is the predecessor to the becomingly popular Mazda 3. I'm happy with the car thus far.

I don't know much about Mazda in general, except that they're a Japanese company owned by Ford. I've heard some good things about the Protege and the 3, the competitors to the obvious Corollas and Civics. However, in general, it seems most people speak of the obvious ones moreso than the Mazda.

How is Mazda in general as a brand, and why is it not mentioned as much as "(Honda/Toyota) " or even Nissan as good/decent Japanese cars? Has it improved, or was it just not popular until the 3s and 6s rolled out? Do most consumers just assume it's "American"?

[ferretkona]

You mean Ford/Mazda?

[texdav]

Mazda from what I see is mostly a company that targets their cars to younger people with a price range to match.

[LexWest]

Originally Posted by ferretkona

You mean Ford/Mazda?

I meant Mazda (which happens to be owned by Ford).

[LexWest]

Originally Posted by texdav

Mazda from what I see is mostly a company that targets their cars to younger people with a price range to match.

I hadn't initially thought about that: it could be their angle. While I certainly see younger drivers, I see plenty of middle-age consumers who want an affordable car, but don't want a Ford, and buy them--especially the Miata/MX-5 and the RX-8.

[Mawoods]

I understood that Ford was no longer associated with Mazda. We just bought a Miata and love it.

[dnvrsoul]

My other half has a Mazda and LOVES it-I have a Nissan and LOVE IT-I have beaten that SUV and I will never own another brand-it has gotten me out of blizzards, mud and everything else-
Personally I think Mazda's are a little overpriced for what you get-the SUV is about 30K and it's not even a 6-

[NJGOAT]

I think the reason Mazda was such an under the radar company is that they were never very succesful until the 2000's. Honda, Toyota and Nissan had already planted themselves as the main Japanese imports by the time Mazda turned the ship around and people started to notice. They were always into "different" engine technology such as the Wankel rotary and Miller-cycle engines and while this earned them some praise and a cult following over the years, it also turned a lot of people off.

Their alliance with Ford was the best thing that ever happened to them and for Ford. Ford supplied much needed engine and trans technology and Mazda developed virtually all the platforms that modern Ford vehicles ride on. This alliance and the mainstreaming of their product made people notice.

They are quickly coming out of relative obscurity, but that has been a very recent thing, mainly riding on the success of the Mazda 3 and 6. Still, they are the most "American" of the Japanese car makers and I think many hardcore Japanese car fans don't consider them Japanese enough and many American car fans don't consider them American enough.

Beginning in the late 90's Ford owned 33.9% of the company and was the controlling stake holder and appointed the CEO. First was Henry Wallace he began a major revamp that set Mazda up for it's current success and he was followed up by Mark Fields who expanded their lineup and gave them their current flavor.

In 2008, Ford sold 20% of it's stake in Mazda leaving Ford with 13.4% of the company. Mazda itself bought back about 7% of the shares. Ford no longer directly controls Mazda, but the two companies are very tightly tied together in terms of product, engineering and manufacturing.

[rbohm]

Originally Posted by Mawoods

I understood that Ford was no longer associated with Mazda. We just bought a Miata and love it.

ford owns a substantial percentage of mazda, around 20% iirc, and it has worked out quite nicely for both companies. for instance in the 70's when the first mini pick ups were introduced, the ford courier was a rebadged mazda. today the mazda pick up is a rebadged ranger. the companies share platforms, and mazda gets the advantage of fords volume discounts when buying parts for outside suppliers.

i think part of the problem with mazdas lack of popularity is that they have always been somewhat of a niche manufacturer. for instance in the 70's when mazdas first hit american shores, the RX2 and RX3 had a rotary engine, which was unusual at the time, and while sales of the cars were decent, they never really met expectations, mostly due to the uniqueness of the cars engines.

[NJGOAT]

Originally Posted by rbohm

ford owns a substantial percentage of mazda, around 20% iirc, and it has worked out quite nicely for both companies. for instance in the 70's when the first mini pick ups were introduced, the ford courier was a rebadged mazda. today the mazda pick up is a rebadged ranger. the companies share platforms, and mazda gets the advantage of fords volume discounts when buying parts for outside suppliers.

i think part of the problem with mazdas lack of popularity is that they have always been somewhat of a niche manufacturer. for instance in the 70's when mazdas first hit american shores, the RX2 and RX3 had a rotary engine, which was unusual at the time, and while sales of the cars were decent, they never really met expectations, mostly due to the uniqueness of the cars engines.

See my post above yours. Ford owned 33.9% of Mazda up to 2008. They then sold 20% of their stake and gave up control of the company. They are still tightly tied together, but Ford no longer controls Mazda and they never "owned" it.