Production of the Mazda CX-8 seven-seat SUV is planned to end for Japan at the end of this year, but Mazda Australia says it is safe in local showrooms.
The Mazda CX-8 six- and seven-seat family SUV will be discontinued in Japan from the end of this year ahead of its replacement by the larger and more expensive CX-80.
Mazda Australia says there are no plans to cull the model from local showrooms, where the CX-8 is planned to remain on sale alongside the upcoming CX-80, and the even-larger, CX-9-replacing CX-90 in showrooms now.
However it is unclear exactly how long the three vehicles will be sold side-by-side.
A notice on the Mazda Japan website advises “production of the Mazda CX-8 will end in December 2023. Sales will end when the number of orders reaches the production volume by December.”
The Japanese car maker confirmed nearly two years ago the CX-8’s replacement in its home market will be the CX-80, which is due to be unveiled later this year, and has been confirmed for Australian deliveries.
The CX-80 is the stretched, seven-seat version of the five-seat CX-60 – in the same way the current CX-8 is the longer version of the CX-5 mid-size SUV.
It sits below the CX-90, which is expected to be similar in length and seat capacity to the CX-80 – but is a wider vehicle designed for North American markets with broader lanes, and is intended to succeed the CX-9.
Both vehicles are underpinned by a new rear- and all-wheel-drive chassis known as the Large Architecture, with a choice of six-cylinder petrol and diesel, and four-cylinder plug-in hybrid power.
Prices for the CX-80 are yet to be confirmed, but using the CX-60 and CX-90 as a guide, it is expected to be considerably more expensive than today’s CX-8.
Regular petrol and diesel versions of the CX-60 are priced from $59,800 to $73,000 plus on-road costs, while the CX-90 is priced from $73,800 to $93,655 plus on-road costs.
Adding plug-in hybrid technology lifts the CX-60’s price to between $72,300 and $85,500 plus on-road costs, while the CX-90 plug-in hybrid due next year is estimated to cost about $86,000 to $106,000 plus on-road costs.
The current Mazda CX-8 is priced from $42,660 to $72,010 plus on-road costs.
“We will offer CX-90, CX-8 and CX-80 as our three-row offerings, and the CX-8 will continue to play its part alongside these new models. We have recently launched the most comprehensive update on the CX-8 since its introduction in Australia,” a Mazda Australia spokesperson said in a media statement to Drive.
Mazda Australia boss Vinesh Bhindi told Drive: “From our point of view, if [CX-8 is] in production, and if it’s available to our market, we would have it.”
The comments Mazda Australia has made about plans to keep the CX-8 beside the CX-80 are reminiscent of its commitment to the CX-9 when the CX-90 was unveiled earlier this year.
Executives said the CX-9 would continue to be available “as long as Mazda Corporation produces [it],” and that it was locked in until the end of 2023 – and could continue beyond.
However it would be confirmed later that there would be minimal overlap between the CX-90 in showrooms this month, and the CX-9, which is expected to exit production later this year.
The post Mazda CX-8 to be axed in Japan this year, Australia safe for now appeared first on Drive.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar