Mazda targets Moscow with new crossover concept
by John Neff on Jun 16th 2008 at 10:00AM 
Click above for high-res gallery of Mazda's new CUV concept
Mazda announced today that it will debut a new compact crossover concept at this year's Moscow International Automobile Salan that incorporates the brand's Nagare design language into a more functional form. While not yet officially named, the crossover concept is said to express the design theme of "crosswinds" and is being developed specifically for the Russian market. SUVs are still popular in Russia and the market for new cars has grown large enough there to warrant the specific attention of automakers. The Moscow Motor Show will take place in late August at which time we'll get to see Mazda's Russian crossover concept, and we're told an official name will be announced in due course. Check out a few more pics in the gallery below to see if this concept is as impressive as Mazda's previous Nagare concepts, including the Nagare, Ryuga, Hakaze, Taiki and Furai.
[Source: Mazda]
PRESS RELEASE
New Mazda Concept Car to Premiere at Moscow International Automobile Salon
HIROSHIMA, Japan-Mazda will present an all-new show car at this year's Moscow International Automobile Salon. The concept is a sporty, compact crossover SUV designed especially for the Russian market.
The Moscow show car is the latest concept to be developed using the new design direction called Nagare – following in the footsteps of Nagare, Ryuga, Hakaze, Taiki and Furai. Nagare, which means "flow" in Japanese, represents a new approach to expressing movement in car design, taking as inspiration the flow patterns of natural elements, such as the wind. The design theme of Mazda's concept for the 2008 Moscow motor show is "crosswinds".
Russia is one of Europe's fastest-growing markets and is rapidly becoming the region's largest automobile market. SUVs are particularly popular in Russia, with a segment share of about 20 percent. Mazda's latest concept car is designed to appeal particularly to younger SUV owners who have a strong sense of style.
The Moscow show car, the name of which will be announced in due course, again showcases the depth of creativity within Mazda design. In February 2008, the Mazda Design team received the coveted Grand Prix du Design at the Festival Automobile International in Paris.
The Moscow International Automobile Salon media days are on August 26 and 27, whereas August 28 caters for industry and trade specialists. The show is open to the public from August 29 through September 7. The new show car will be unveiled at the Mazda press conference at 10:15 on August 26 at the Mazda stand.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
mk 11:56AM (6/16/2008)
When are they actually going to build something?
Concepts, concepts, and more concepts. some great, some odd, but all show pieces.
WHERE are the actual production cars?
Where is the KABURA, for pete's sake? A street-version of the Furai, even, or at least something...
The existing Mazda lineup is good, but isn't getting any younger. The new Mazda 6 is looking more vanilla than I thought it would.
Zoom Zoom has no coupe sports cars, and the RX8 is not a sports car, it is a sport coupe/kinda 4-door thing. A sports car has two doors and two seats, and a coupe has that plus a fixed roof, which Miata does not.
I would work toward buying a Kabura, if they built one, and with the MZR Mazdaspeed DISI turbocharged engine, and RWD, it would seal the deal against the Solstice GXP targa coupe. (which looks really good, but a removable roof means it is probably no more stiff a chassis than the convertible.)
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Red 10:26AM (6/16/2008)
I'm really loving Mazda's new design language. Very distinctive and graceful and very Japanese. Typically, Japanese design has lacked emotion (and really compared to certain European brands, they do...even domestic companies do aggressive, bold--if not, at times, incohesive--design fairly well). Kudos to Mazda.
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Robert 10:38AM (6/16/2008)
I wish Mazda would make a 30-40 inch tall (depending on if those wheels are 20 or 30 inches) CUV. That'd be pretty radical engineering.
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Soccer Mom 11:14AM (6/16/2008)
I am not sure about those speed-boat/Zelda shield fronts that Acura and Mazda attempt to slap on all their vehicles. It may look very unattractive, but from practicality stand point it is probably good. Just think of countless pedestrians that you can impale on that pointy thing or city walls that can be rammed with it.
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broosewee 12:04PM (6/16/2008)
Mazda.. please target a new RX-7. Preferably based on the Furai concept.
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Ligor 12:10PM (6/16/2008)
I still say UGLY as they come
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