Next-gen Mazda MX-5 rumoured to retain gasoline engine

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Fans of the pint-sized Mazda MX-5 convertible may be pleased to learn that new industry scuttlebutt points to the presence of a traditional internal-combustion engine under the hood of Mazda’s next grin-making convertible.

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According to a report in U.K.’s Autocar , Hiroshima’s commitment to gasoline-powered engines will continue — at least through to development of the next variant of its popular MX-5 sports car.

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Next-gen Mazda MX-5 rumoured to retain gasoline engine Back to video

While such a machine is more than a few years away from any sort of public introduction, those in the know are alleging it will not include a plug-in hybrid or battery-electric powertrain.

This could definitely be construed as good news. After all, while such types of motivation have long since shed their appliance/commuter car roots, the fact remains that batteries tend to be extremely heavy. One of the MX-5’s headline features is its light weight; in fact, the current model (ND) doesn’t weigh appreciably more than the original car (NA) despite needing to incorporate kit like modern safety equipment and typical passenger comforts.

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Mazda has begun dipping a tentative toe in the EV waters, of course, producing the curious MX-30 , which features clamshell doors and less than 200 kilometres of driving range. Speculation is rampant that the company is using this rig as something a test-bed for future product, rather than jumping headfirst into a segment in which it has limited experience.

Even on the gasoline-powered side of Mazda’s ledger, a range of extremely efficient engines do their part in keeping a lid on its average fuel economy or CO2 emissions, depending on the market in which it is playing. And since the MX-5 sells in relatively small numbers compared to its crossover and SUV lineup, eschewing electrification on that model probably won’t make that much difference to overall fleet numbers.