The next Mazda MX-5 could make use of mild hybridisation

The automotive sector is changing in every way, as the brands demonstrate with their continuous innovations. Hybrid powertrains have taken hold well in the market, since they bring a significant reduction in CO2 emissions and considerable fuel savings. However, this technology has not only been applied to more ordinary vehicles but also to sports cars. Mazda is one of the brands betting on these hearts full of personality, as they are able to keep using naturally aspirated engines supported by a second electric motor, a pairing that we could see reflected in the next MX-5.

For now, the Mazda 3 and the CX-30 use a mild-hybrid system to clean up their engines and deliver greater performance. However, the iconic Miata could join that line-up of vehicles combining a 48 V battery with a combustion engine, thus offering a more environmentally committed package but still naturally aspirated, as the Japanese house has always accustomed us to.

It is risky to anticipate details of the next generation of the MX-5, since the ND still has quite a bit of commercial life ahead of it. Indeed, the fact that models such as the Mazda 3 and the CX-30 are powered by this kind of technology makes us think that the Japanese sports car will be the next to succumb to the mild-hybrid system.

We should not see this as something bad or negative, since this kind of powertrain will allow us to keep enjoying a vehicle with the character of the MX-5 and, at the same time, its harmonious naturally aspirated engine. Today, the Japanese company offers two engines for its flagship sports car: a 1.5 with 132 CV and a more powerful 2.0 capable of delivering 184 CV.

In the not-too-distant future this would not necessarily have to change, and we could continue to enjoy two options whose outputs might rise to 150 and 200 CV respectively. But the high point of all this would be the label, since the MX-5 would gain the coveted DGT zero-emissions badge, which will allow the Japanese sports car to enter the heart of major cities such as Madrid or Barcelona.

For now Mazda maintains a deafening silence about the next generation of the MX-5, a model that we know the company will keep alive at all costs because of the ideals it represents and the relevance it holds. Perhaps it will be at the next Geneva Motor Show that we learn more details about that future MX-5 NE that is set to generate so much anticipation.