The 25th anniversary edition Miata is (almost) here!

This year marks Mazda’s silver anniversary with the MX-5 Miata, the most iconic roadster ever created. Unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show in February 1989, the Miata quickly found its way into the hearts of auto enthusiasts around the world.

25 years after its debut, Mazda is still wowing crowds at auto exhibitions with the Miata. Recently at the 2014 New York Auto Show, Mazda unveiled the 25th anniversary edition 2014 MX-5 Miata and reactions have been unanimous. It’s beautiful.

The exterior illuminates class with its Soul Red Metallic body with Brilliant Black accents on the Power Retractable Hard Top roof, side mirrors, and A-pillars. Almond leather upholstery with red stitching makes for a comfortably classy ride inside the Miata. Not only does the car come with custom 25th Anniversary badges, but buyers will also receive a special edition Swiss-made, stainless steel Tourneau watch with a display winder box.

It is a fantastic must own for the most die-hard Miata enthusiasts and roadster aficionados but there is one small problem. Mazda only made 100 of these limited edition Miatas available for North America. Worse, you can’t pre-order it… for another week.

Next week on Tuesday, May 20 at 1:25 pm EST, Mazda will officially open up the 25th anniversary edition Miata for pre-order exclusively through their special anniversary website. Pre-orders will close after the first 250 deposits are submitted. These pre-orders will be processed to determine the first 100 qualified buyers.

For more information about the 2014 MX-5 Miata, check out our 2014 Miata research page created by the Mazda Experts at Don Mealey’s Sport Mazda in Orlando. Click here to go to the Miata pre-order site.

2014 Mazda3 named a finalist for the World Car of the Year

You would think what it takes to be considered a world class car is a price tag that would intimidate the fattest of wallets. That’s not the case this time as this year’s finalists for the World Car of the Year was announced last week at the Geneva Motor Show.

It’s not surprise that pricey powerful cars like the Audi A3 and BMW 4 series would secure a nomination, but finding its way on this prestigious list is the 2014 Mazda3.

Auto journalists from around the world has praised the design and engineering that was poured into Mazda’s mold of automotive excellence that has come to embody the latest generation of the Mazda3.

The selection committee for the World Car of the Year awards also acknowledged the beauty of the Mazda3 by naming it a finalist for the World Car Design of the Year, along with the BMW i3 and Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

It’s not every day that you see a $20,000 compact competing as a finalist against luxury cars that cost three times as much for a world title.

We won’t know if the Mazda3 is the World Car of the Year until next month when the winners will be announced at the 2014 New York International Auto Show.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3, visit the home of the Mazda Experts at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Automobile Magazine ranks the 2014 Mazda3 as king of the compacts

“Compact” is not another way of saying “cheap.” At least that is how things are nowadays seeing how every major manufacturer is throwing their hat into the compact ring.

Automobile Magazine recently pitted the top 8 selling compacts in the market against one another to see what stood out as the best over the course of a week.

Day-by-day contenders dropped from the race until the 2014 Mazda3 and 2014 Volkswagen Jetta remained standing.

Automobile Magazine declared the 2014 Mazda3 the champion due to its “Goldilocks” like feel. Not too sporty. Not too small. It’s just right.

Reviewers praised the Mazda3’s ability to channel BMW’s personality by being a luxuriously designed with a smooth sporty feel that makes a $20,000 compact feel like a $200,000 car.

On top of the BMW feel, reviewers noted the diminishing line in tech options that have clearly favored mid-sized sedans in the past are now becoming more common in compacts with the 2014 Mazda3 being the strongest example.

The impressive safety features including blind-spot monitoring, forward obstruction warning, and lane departure warning, to name a few, gives the 2014 Mazda3 more safety options than its competitors.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3 including tech specs, pictures and videos, visit SportMazdaOrlando.com. Home of the Mazda Experts.

Via: Automobile Magazine

Mazda celebrates their 4-millionth Mazda3

Since June 2003, Mazda has built 4-million Mazda3s to date. To put that in perspective, there have been more Mazda3s built than there are people living in Oregon, the 27^th largest US state, by about roughly 70,000.

It’s been an impressive ten years and seven months of milestones since production first began on the first generation of Mazda3s. The first Mazda3 rolled off the assembly line in June 2003 at the manufacturing plant in Hofu, Japan. A fun fact about the Mazda3 is that in Japan it is not called the 3 but actually named the Mazda Axela.

In 2009, the second generation of Mazda3 debuted with an architecture formed from a collaboration with Ford and Volvo. By 2011, Mazda first debuted the SKYACTIV platform of technologies in the 2012 Mazda3. With fuel economy reaching 40 mpg while still maintaining a fun-to-drive sporty feel behind the wheel helped the Mazda3 grow in popularity over the next few years.

Last September, the 2014 Mazda3 released ushering in the third generation of Mazda’s best-selling compact.

Production is in full swing across the world in Japan, China, Thailand, and at Mazda’s brand new state-of-the-art plant in Mexico. At the rate the 3 is being built today, in the next 10 years Mazda might be celebrating the 10-millionth Mazda3.

For more information about Mazda3 specs and details, visit the Mazda Experts at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Consumer Reports strongly recommends the 2014 Mazda3

The verdict is in. Consumer Reports has added the 2014 Mazda3 to their recommendation list of must buy vehicles.

Consumer Reports used a midtrim sedan and a higher-end hatchback 2.0 liter engine models to conduct their road tests.

The 2013 Mazda3 was a recommended model last year due to its fuel economy, smooth transmission, and safety. Consumer Reports sings the same song with the 2014 Mazda3 stating that the fuel economy, which averaged 33 mpg during the test, is the best they have ever seen on a compact that was not a hybrid or diesel.

Road testers found the manual transmission to be one of the slickest shifters in the car industry making it an agile daily driver that comes alive on a track.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3 specs and videos, visit us at SportMazdaOrlando.com which is home to the Mazda Experts.

Via: Consumer Reports

EPA declares Mazda as 2013 most fuel-efficient automaker in the US

With a 27.5 mpg average across all models, Mazda has been declared the most fuel-efficient automaker in the United States by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Mazda Experts at Don Mealey’s Sport Mazda Orlando are used to educating curious car shoppers about the economical fuel saving advantages that Mazda’s proprietary SKYACTIV technology platform offers Mazda drivers.

This is the second year in a row that Mazda has been declared the most fuel-efficient automaker in the US by the EPA which noted a half mile increase in overall fuel efficiency over the vehicles produced in 2012.

Not only is Mazda the most-fuel efficient, but they also have the lowest carbon emission rate out of all automakers for two years in a row as well.

2013 was the year Mazda unveiled two game changers to their lineup. The launch of the 2014 Mazda6 in January, which was the first Mazda completely built around SKYACTIV technology, was the beginning of something great.

In September, Mazda launched the 2014 Mazda3 which was also completely built around the SKYACTIV technology platform and based on the Kodo “soul of motion” design language that the Mazda6 was adapted from.

Next year Mazda will be introducing a newer more fuel efficient MX-5 Miata which will contribute to the annual trend of Mazda’s shrinking carbon emissions and growing fuel economy.

For more information about Mazda vehicles, visit our website at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Via: AutoBlog.com

2014 Mazda3 nominated for 2014 North American Car of the Year

North America’s car of the year could very well be the hottest compact to ever come out of Japan. The Mazda3 has been nominated as a finalist for North American Car of the Year award at the 2014 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan next month.

Fourty-eight automotive journalists across the United States and Canada casted their votes last month to determine the three finalists for Car of the Year. 

The Mazda3 goes up against the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and last year’s Car of the Year, the Cadillac CTS. Out of the three nominees, the 3 is the most affordable with a base price of $16,495 for the sedan.

With its affordability, luxurious styling and technology, it’s easy to see why the 2014 Mazda3 has been nominated when compared to this year’s hottest autos.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda or other Mazda vehicles, visit us on our website at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

2014 Mazda3 named AutoGuide.com’s Car of the Year!

Mazda promised a game changer when hyping the unveiling for the 2014 Mazda3 and did it ever change the game for the compact car segment.

Last week, AutoGuide.com unveiled their nominees for car of the year. The 2014 Mazda3 was nominated alongside its larger twin, the 2014 Mazda6, in the mid-size sedan segment. The nominees also included the 2014 Chevrolet Impala in the full-size sedan segment, the Cadillac CTS in the luxury segment, and the Mercedes-Benz CLA in the CLA segment.

AutoGuide.com chose the Mazda3 after asking if they would recommend the nominees to be the best vehicle to consider over others in the same class. The Mazda3 stood out as the choice because, as AutoGuide puts it, “It’s not that the Mazda4 is a great compact car; it is a great car period.” There were no other cars in the compact segment worthy of being considered along with the Mazda3.

With fuel efficiency of the 2.0 liter engine base model being 30 mpg city and 41 mpg highway, a tight chassis making turns feel fluid, and the styling of a high end vehicle were the main factors that AutoGuide.com took into consideration to pick the 3 over the Civic Si Sedan and the Ford Focus ST.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3, please visit SportMazdaOrlando.com and schedule a test drive for yourself to see why the Mazda3 is a must own vehicle.

Via: AutoGuide.com