After months of high anticipation, Mazda finally held a ceremony today at its Hofu Plant, gathering over 500 employees together to celebrate the production launch of the all-new 2014 Mazda6 midsize vehicle.
More than just an opening ceremony, 2012 also observes two anniversaries: 2012 marks the 10th year of production for the Mazda 6 and the 30th year of operation at the Nishinoura district of the Hofu Plant. Mazda President and CEO Takashi Yamanouchi said, "I am deeply moved that production of the third generation Mazda6, the flagship model of our new-generation vehicles, starts in such an important year for us. It is the 30 year anniversary of the start of operations here in the Nishinoura district of the Hofu Plant and the 10th anniversary of the start of production of the first-generation Mazda6, back in 2002. That first Mazda6 debuted as an embodiment of Mazda's brand message, Zoom-Zoom, and its success led to great improvement in our brand image. The new Mazda6 that starts rolling off the line today features both SKYACTIV TECHNOLOGY and KODO - Soul of Motion design. Its development represents the very best of our engineering capability and our uncompromising attention to detail. Let's all work together to promote the new Mazda6, to make it a model that gains the support of customers all over the world and leads the Mazda brand to new level."
The first Mazda6 to roll of the line was a Europe-bound Mazda6 wagon powered by the 2.0 liter SkyActive engine. The wagon marks the beginning of the second line of vehicles to fully adopt SkyActiv engineering practices for superior fuel efficiency. The Mazda 6 also debuts the new Mazda i-ELOOP regenerative braking system.
The first Mazda6 off the line was a European bound wagon, powered by the 2.0-liter SkyActiv gasoline engine. This is the second vehicle in Mazda's lineup to fully adopt the SkyActiv suite of fuel saving technologies, as well as the brands new KODO- soul of motion design language. Stepping up in the fuel economy department, this Mazda6 also debuts the i-ELOOP regenerative braking system for the first time.
Mazda's timetable has European market Mazda6 distribution scheduled for later in 2012. The new Mazda6 will debut in North America in early 2013.
