SKYACTIVE Mazda CX-5

Skyactiv is Mazda’s answer to sustainable mobility. Automotive manufacturers are using a myriad different technologies to reduce fuel consumption, thereby diminishing the effect that modern motoring has on the environment. Rather than institute electrification or new, usually expensive technologies, Mazda has decide upon a more traditional route.

Mazda’s engineers foresee more efficiency from the internal-combustion engine; efficient drivetrains, less mass and more aerodynamic bodies are seen as the answer to help curb CO₂ outputs.

The first of the models to launch the Skyactiv approach is the all-new CX-5. This small SUV is an unlikely candidate but returns a combined fuel-consumption figure of 4,6 litres/100 km. That is impressive for a 113 kW 2,2-litre diesel engine coupled with a six-speed manual gearbox.

Building on its long-time credo of Zoom Zoom, Mazda refers to this new outlook as Sustainable Zoom Zoom, whereby the spirit of driving is not compromised by the need to reduce CO₂ output. Apart from the aforementioned optimisation of current systems, Mazda is aiming to make each of its new models 100 kg lighter than their predecessors. The medium-term goal is to reduce fuel consumption by 30 per cent by 2015 when compared to 2008 levels.

Model