Future Mazda2 to be based on the Toyota Yaris

The Mazda’s near future will not be defined solely by inline six-cylinder engines and a new rear-wheel-drive architecture. Buried in the same presentation document was information that also clarified what lies ahead for the Mazda2.

Introduced in 2014, the Mazda2 is among the segment’s longest-serving models. By now, we would normally expect to know its replacement, as a car’s market life cycle usually lasts six to seven years. Yet that has not happened.

Mazda2 updates are no longer enough

At the start of 2020, the Mazda2 received another update. Alongside a modest facelift, it gained additional technology and mild-hybrid capability, which we have already sampled first-hand.

However, after the segment’s extensive renewal over the past 18 months - with the Renault Clio, Peugeot 208, Vauxhall Corsa, Hyundai i20 and Toyota Yaris - remaining competitive will require more than a modest facelift. A new generation will be necessary.

Toyota, the partner

It is significant that the small piece of information concerning the future Mazda2 appeared in the section titled “Strengthening the Alliance”, which focused on Mazda’s relationship with Toyota. Isuzu is mentioned first - Mazda’s new BT-50 pick-up is derived from the Isuzu D-Max - but the information is chiefly centred on the Toyota partnership and its direction over the coming years.

The two Japanese manufacturers have drawn closer in recent years. Toyota owns 5.05% of Mazda, while Mazda holds 0.25% of Toyota. This collaboration has already led to the joint construction of a factory in the United States and to the future development of electric vehicles.

Over the next few years, the partnership will deepen further. For example, Mazda will launch a crossover built at the new, previously mentioned North American factory, using Toyota hybrid technology. But that will not be the end of it.

Mazda2: a disguised Toyota Yaris?

On this side of the Atlantic, in the “Old Continent”, the effects of this partnership will also be felt. The Mazda2 successor is due to arrive by the end of 2022 - although no more precise date has been given - and, surprise, it will be derived from the new Toyota Yaris.

As stated in the document, the main reason for this decision is the need to meet increasingly demanding European emissions regulations. Mazda joined Toyota for the calculation of 2020 CO2 emissions, but adding a supermini with the Japanese giant’s hybrid technology to its future range is a decisive step towards lowering its average emissions.

Toyota Yaris GA-B platform for the future Mazda2

Rather than adapt that technology to one of its own platforms, why not also use the Yaris platform? Not only has the GA-B received considerable praise - including from us - but it also makes greater economic sense than developing a new small-car platform. Mazda does have the still-new Skyactiv-Vehicle Architecture for its C-segment models, but it is too large for a supermini such as the Mazda2. Stretching a platform is easier and less expensive than shrinking one.

Using the GA-B instead of a Mazda-developed base also helps explain Mazda’s silence in recent years regarding the Mazda2’s fate. We have heard only about six-cylinder engines, rear-wheel-drive architecture and the Wankel as a range extender.

It is worth remembering that the reverse arrangement already exists in the United States. The Mazda2 is not sold there, but buyers can purchase a Mazda2 as a Toyota... Yaris - a story worth exploring further.

What remains unknown is how different the future Mazda2 will be from the new Toyota Yaris, inside and out. Nobody wants a return to the era of the Ford Fiesta/Mazda 121 clones. Today’s platforms are flexible enough to create products that are markedly different from one another.

If the Mazda2 has a secure future, what will happen to the Mazda CX-3? Let the speculation begin...