Last weekend Mazda wrote its name into the record books by setting no fewer than 20 FIA speed records at the firm’s test oval in Papenburg, Germany
Three Mazda6s powered by 129 kW SkyActive-D 2,2-litre engines completed a 24-hour marathon run with the front car achieving an average speed of 137,37 mph (221,06 km/h) and the other two close behind. The current record for diesel-powered production cars (2,0-2,5 litre displacement) is 130,38 mph (209,82 km/h). Each of the three vehicles also set several other average speed records over a variety of distances (subject to FIA homologation). The cars covered 5 299 km during the 24-hour period.
23 drivers from seven EU countries included professionals as well as journalists and car enthusiasts, who could apply to take part as part of a campaign started by Mazda last May. During their 1,5-hour stints behind the wheel, they were not allowed to follow in the slipstream of a preceding car. The pit crews consisted of employees from various Mazda dealerships.
Mazda’s award-winning SkyActiv-D engines feature a 14:1 compression ratio, the world’s lowest in a diesel engine. These engines have been successful on the track previously. In mid-2013, a SkyActiv-D powered Mazda6 became the first diesel to ever win a race at the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the U.S.
