Mazda CX-50 Hybrid revealed in China with Toyota power

Changan Mazda joint venture revealed Mazda CX-50 hybrid for the Chinese market and it will use Toyota’s powertrain technology.

At the Shanghai auto show, Mazda’s Chinese joint venture made several announcements, detailing the petrol CX-50 series for that market, launched the CX-50 Hybrid and showcased its upcoming electrification plans in the world’s largest car market.

Diving through the country’s Weibo social network, China car cloud network reports that pre-sale of the CX-50 has now begun in China, with 2.0- and 2.5-liter petrol models priced from 159,800 yuan ($34,660) to 212,000 yuan ($45,982).

Changan Mazda will debut the CX-50 at Mount Everest in May – there’s a mountain adventure theme in the CX-50’s marketing materials in China.

The Japanese brand’s joint venture also introduces the new CX-50 Hybrid, which will follow the petrol engine versions to market and kickstart Changan Mazda’s electrification journey.

More specifics are slim on the ground, but it’s been reported that the CX-50 HEV – as it was also mentioned in several presentations in Shanghai – will use Toyota’s hybrid technology, in a Interesting brand move.

Toyota Motor Corporation holds a minority stake in Mazda (about 5.0 percent), but apart from some reorganization work – like European market Mazda 2 Hybrid it’s actually a yaris in drag – we hadn’t seen Toyota’s hybrid system on one of Mazda’s models until now.

While the specifics of the Mazda CX-50 Hybrid’s powertrain don’t appear to have been revealed anywhere, clues could come from where the brand’s crossover is made, which could also be the case. points to hybrid deployments beyond China’s borders.

Changan Mazda will produce the CX-50 domestically at its Nanjing plant, but for the US, the crossover is assembled in Huntsville, Alabama, along with Toyota Corolla Cross. The American-made model is also exported to Canada, Colombia and, more recently, Mexico.

While the CX-50 and Corolla Cross do not share a common platform – the CX-50 runs on an extended version of the Mazda3 And CX-30 platform – it wouldn’t be surprising if the CX-50 Hybrid used a version (or versions) of the Corolla Cross’s existing hybrid powertrain.

It’s unclear when Mazda Motor Corporation plans to introduce the CX-50 Hybrid outside of the Chinese market, but at its global launch in November 2021, it confirmed the electrified powertrain will be available. future of the nameplate “including the traditional hybrid model”.

Since the US-built model is also meant to introduce hybrid technology at some point, the Toyota joint venture further points to a powertrain partnership with the Corolla Cross.

While the Corolla Cross offers both 1.8-litre 90kW and 2.0-litre 146kW petrol-electric hybrid powertrains globally, only the 2.0L version is used in the US-made model.

Our prediction is that the Mazda CX-50 Hybrid will offer a version of the 2.0-liter system, with reports from China suggesting both front- and all-wheel drive versions of the HEV will be offered when hit the market.

Petrol versions of the Mazda CX-50 come standard with a six-speed automatic transmission, although Toyota’s hybrid system suggests an eCVT will be used in the CX-50 HEV – unless Mazda develops its own transmission. or tune a six-speed version. Hybrid automatic speed is being used in Toyota’s latest Hybrid Max models.

In addition to the CX-50 HEV, Changan Mazda briefly teased two upcoming electrified versions, which appear to be sedans.

Sedans may be on the decline in most parts of the world, but they still play an important role in the Chinese market.

Both vehicles, pictured under the red plates in the roadmap trailer above, will offer both plug-in hybrid and electric powertrain according to the graphics.

It is unclear if these are next-generation models or if they will be based on existing nameplates. Currently, the Mazda 3 And Mazda6 are the only sedans that Changan Mazda sells in China.

This might be our best sign that the Mazda 6 is getting a new generation, though with Changan Mazda’s China-exclusive production, it could soon become other global nameplate banished to the afterlife of China like Ford Mondeo – we will investigate this more in an upcoming story, stay tuned.

Mazda Australia previously ruled out the CX-50 launching in Australia, largely due to the fact that it is currently only produced with left-wheel drive.

However, the brand has mentioned several times at the local level that there will be a new generation of CX-5 in some form, but will it be an all-new CX-5 or is it a replacement? with something similar is yet to be determined. is still unclear.

Mazda’s best-selling model globally is CX-5 To some extent, and in Australia, it is easily the brand’s golden child on the sales charts despite its age.

It makes sense for the newer CX-50 to replace the last CX-5 due to its newer architecture, similar dimensions and familiar powertrain lineup – plus plans for electrified variants – but on the other hand, should the CX-5 be phased out this generation, the new generation? CX-60 offers cheaper variants that in Japan have undercut even CX-8.

According to the report of auto expert Last August, the CX-60 offered an entry-level 2.5-liter naturally aspirated petrol engine with rear-wheel drive in its home market. In base decoration, this is cheaper than base CX-8 in Japan, starting at $40,190 locally.

Stay tuned auto expert for the latest information and let us know what you think in the comments.

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