Mazda CX-3 on the way but city car unlikely

Mazda is confident that its CX-3 SUV, a potential rival for the likes of the Renault Captur and Nissan Juke, will surpass expectations when it is unveiled.

Company employees at the Geneva motor show wouldn’t say when the SUV was likely to be revealed, but Ikuo Maeda, Mazda’s design chief, was bullish about the design.

He told What Car?: ‘It looks really nice. When you see the car, it will be beyond your expectations. We are confident about that.’

Maeda also confessed that the Hazumi concept shown in Geneva is very close to the production design of the next-generation Mazda 2 hatchback. ‘This is the show car, but when you see the production one, maybe it’ll be hard to pick where the differences are,’ he said.

Mazda Europe’s chief operating officer, Phil Waring, told What Car? that he was delighted with the Hazumi concept. ‘When this is in the showroom, it’s going to turn heads.’

Mr Waring also admitted that a Mazda 1 city car was unlikely. He told us: ‘It’s difficult to make money. Citroen, Peugeot and Toyota had to get together. Not that I’d speak for any of them, but I would question whether they make any money out of it at all. It’s very difficult with that sort of car.'