Mazda to remain 'mainstream' despite luxury car push - and isn't afraid of Chinese manufacturers challenging the budget segment

Mazda has opened a new chapter with the launch of its CX-60 luxury mid-size SUV now priced in premium territory, and the next two Mazda models, the CX-90 and CX-80 will continue this upmarket push.

In fact, by the time you get a top-spec CX-90 on the road when it arrives before the end of 2023, we’ll be looking down the barrel of a Mazda costing in excess of $100,000.

The brand says this push is deliberate, as its research has shown there are many buyers who are ready to step up from its existing offerings, CX-5 or otherwise, who would have to go to a luxury brand for their next vehicle, as their income grows.

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So, is Mazda becoming exclusively a luxury brand? Speaking to CarsGuide at the launch of the CX-60, Mazda Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi explained the brand didn’t have plans to abandon its mainstream audience.

“It is absolutely our intention to remain in the mainstream, offering the right value. When we talk about ‘Mazda premium’ we’ve identified it as an opportunity to expand uphill on what we’ve built in Australia over the past 10-20 years,” he said.

“CX-90 is a three-row offering in a six- or seven-seat configuration, and when you look at that part of our portfolio, we’ll move to three offerings, CX-8, CX-80, and CX-90.”

The CX-9 is set to be discontinued imminently to make room for the larger CX-80 and CX-90, and when Bhindi talks about ‘Mazda premium’ he is referencing the brand’s new rear-biased large car architecture which will underpin the new-wave of SUVs with straight-six engines or a sophisticated plug-in hybrid layout starting with the CX-60.

“This offers more combinations in terms of grades and powertrains. Our offering is going to be more expansive in terms of covering that segment.” Bhindi explained.

The top-spec CX-90 will cost in excess of 0,000.

Does this mean Mazda will leave behind its more affordable base, which is currently catered for by the likes of the CX-5 and Mazda2 that have yet to inherit the brand’s evolved design language?

“We’ll always have something that’s competitive - and of course offer value - we’re not sitting there and saying ‘how cheap can we make a car’ - you know, by de-speccing. We’ve never compromised on safety, for example, we’ve made a lot of things standard in our offerings,” Bhindi said.

“In fact, if you look at our history and our offering, in each of our nameplates, our demand for our entry model is quite a bit lower than it is for most other manufacturers, we’re mainly in that mid- to high-spec in the nameplates we offer.”

With higher prices, and demand being pushed toward cars with higher MSRPs, is Mazda afraid of Chinese manufacturers eating into its mainstream base at the lower end? Not at all, according to Bhindi, who said competition is good for the market, and the emerging lower-cost budget segment needs it.

The CX-9 is set to be discontinued imminently to make room for the larger CX-80 and CX-90.

“Australia has been very open to manufacturers entering. We’ve got about 70 brands competing for 1.1-1.2 million cars, I don’t think there’s another market in the world that has so many competitors,” he said.

“Of course, they’ll have their own strategy, and they’ll find their fans, so we don’t have concerns, as such, but if their strategy is to offer entry-level products for first-time or budget conscious buyers, then that’s fantastic, it drives competition.”

The CX-60 has just arrived, priced between $59,800 and $87,252 before on-road costs, playing in the space between high-end versions of cars like the Mitsubishi Outlander and Kia Sorento, and low- to mid-grade versions of the Lexus NX, Genesis GV70, and Audi Q5.

Meanwhile, the CX-90, the “largest and most luxurious Mazda ever” will land before year’s end with pricing between $74,385 and $93,865 before on-roads. The CX-80, which sits between them, will arrive in 2024.