OFFICIAL RELEASE - Mazda2

• Production of SKYACTIV Technology-based subcompact begins in Japan
• Japanese market launch of Mazda's next-generation model slated for autumn

Mazda revealed the all-new Mazda2 today as the unconventional carmaker launched production of its next-generation supermini at its Hofu plant south-east of Hiroshima. The fourth member of Mazda's current model generation features the full range of ultra-efficient SKYACTIV Technology underneath a stunning KODO – Soul of Motion design that is bursting with energy.

With a winning combination of performance, fuel economy, safety and Mazda's patented driving fun, the all-new Mazda2 has the potential to reproduce the immense popularity of its siblings – the Mazda CX-5, Mazda6 and Mazda3 – when it goes on sale in autumn starting in Japan. Evolving and enhancing the technology and ergonomics cultivated in these vehicles, the newest Mazda is expected to raise the bar in the crucial B segment, Europe's single largest in terms of market share.

The all-new Mazda2 will premiere in Europe with a brand-new small displacement clean diesel engine, the SKYACTIV-D 1.5, as well as different power versions of the petrol SKYACTIV-G 1.5^*. Together with SKYACTIV body, chassis, and manual and automatic transmissions, it also gets the company's innovative MZD Connect in-car connectivity system, a class-beating range of i-ACTIVSENSE active safety technology and a remarkably spacious and refined interior.

Applauded time and again for its outstanding value and unwavering reliability, more than 2.4 million Mazda2s^** have been sold globally since it was first launched in 1996. With its new generation, Mazda is bringing another exciting interpretation of the supermini to drivers around the world.

^* Powertrain availability may vary according to the market.

^**Also sold as Mazda Demio.