This Week:

• DaimlerChrysler presents F 400 Carving research vehicle with dynamic chassis technology at the Tokyo Motor Show 2001
  .

• Chevrolet Introduces The "Cruze" Compact Lifestyle Vehicle at the Tokyo Motor Show 2001, Jointly Developed By GM, Suzuki
  .

• Porsche invests approx. 250 million marks in Leipzig
  .

• Toyota and Daihatsu Announce Plans for Tokyo Motor Show
  .

• Andrej Barcak To Take Over European Remarketing And Used Vehicles
  .

• Seita Kanai and the new Mazda 6
  .

• Ford Reports Third Quarter Loss
  .

• Audi still enjoying record-breaking success
  .

• GM, Ford And DaimlerChrysler Go After Parts Counterfeiters
  .

• Valeo announces a plan to close its Baumenheim plant in Germany
  .

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News of  October 24, 2001
.

Seita Kanai and the new Mazda 6

Mazda 6

Photo: Mazda

Tokyo - The dynamic performance engineered into the new Mazda 6 in a way can be traced back to a wheel mini cap developed by a young engineer 27 years ago. Seita Kanai, platform general manager on the Mazda 6, wasn't what you would call a "car nut" in his university days as a mechanical engineering student. Despite having grown up in Hiroshima, Mazda Motor Corporation's hometown, joining the automotive industry wasn't a career he had given much thought about. But after receiving his degree, Kanai moved back to Hiroshima and was hired by Mazda.

One of his first jobs as a young engineer at Mazda was designing a wheel mini cap. When he finally saw the part on a vehicle he was hooked. Kanai later moved into the suspension engineering group where he developed Mazda's e-type multi-link rear suspension, a new version of which appears on the Mazda 6. It was during that time he mastered the driving techniques necessary to test vehicles at their limit. And it's that expertise he applied to the development of Mazda's newest and most important car in its history.

New Mazda 6 Designed to Set New Standard in Global Midsize Vehicle Segment

Mazda 6 is an entirely new name for a completely new car platform that will enhance Mazda's global reach in the important midsize market segment. It symbolizes the insight, ideas and innovations of a company that has been reborn to create it.

It embodies the company's unique Zoom-Zoom spirit. The new Mazda 6 is more than just a new family of cars. It's the vehicle that helps to redefine the Mazda of the future by redefining the midsize car of today.

Redefining the Midsize Mazda

Martens and his team set three major goals in developing the all-new Mazda 6 as a worldwide benchmark in the midsize vehicle segment:

• Retain the strengths of Mazda's rich heritage as an innovator in developing cutting-edge performance and technology, while delivering distinct styling and a wealth of customer-oriented safety and security features.
• Meet or beat the driving dynamics, performance and refinement of the best European midsize sedans, while retaining the secure, all-weather performance of front-wheel drive.
• Exceed the quietness and refinement of the best Japanese midsize sedans.

The team started with a clean sheet of paper to create an all-new platform powered by a new family of engines, studying traditional vehicles in this segment and also some of the best German sedans. Benchmarking efforts included examining the BMW 3-series, Volkswagen Passat, Honda Accord and Toyota Camry and establishing a dialogue with their owners.

The Mazda team sought to integrate all of the positive attributes of great midsize cars into a single vehicle that would assert a new style of leadership:

• Segment-leading comfort, harmony and human factors
• Performance under all conditions, including foul weather
• Protective safety features, both active and passive
• Sound quality, including interior noise
• Innovative technology that exceeds customer expectations
• Extraordinary value

While team members realized that a competitor might meet the new Mazda 6 in an individual measure, their goal was for the new family of vehicles to be recognizably superior overall. The result of their efforts will be manufactured in Hofu, Japan, and the AutoAlliance International assembly plant in Michigan, USA.

The interior design of the Mazda 6 is designed to be as innovative as the exterior, giving customers a completely fresh and dynamic look unique in the class.

(Oct. 19, 2001)

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