Mazda wins top fleet award for SKYACTIV technology
Fleet chiefs and company car drivers are backing a winner if they select Mazda models featuring the manufacturer’s breakthrough SKYACTIV technology, according to industry publication Fleet World.
Mazda won the Innovation Award for its SKYACTIV initiative at this year’s Fleet World Honours with the trophy presented today (Wednesday, May 11) at a special ceremony held at the Royal Automobile Club in London’s Pall Mall.
The Fleet World Honours are presented annually to those motor manufacturers, service companies and individuals who have, in the opinion of the judges, achieved the highest possible level of excellence in their sector.
SKYACTIV embraces a range of technology that will deliver major fuel savings and emission reductions for fleets and company cars on future models. The first UK-bound Mazda to benefit from the technology will be the all-new compact crossover car, the Mazda CX-5, which is scheduled to launch in 2012.
Industry-leading developments that focus on retuned powertrains, improved aerodynamics, vehicle weight reduction and chassis and transmission developments are all embraced within Mazda’s SKYACTIV programme.
Crucially those developments, which are designed to achieve the seemingly conflicting goals of driving pleasure without compromising on environmental and safety performance, see Mazda staying loyal to petrol and diesel engine technology.
It was that loyalty to the tried and trusted combustion engine and the promise that the technology would deliver a 30 per cent improvement on the 2008 average fuel economy of Mazda vehicles with comparable emission reductions that won support from the Fleet World Honours’ judges.
The publication’s editor Steve Moody, who chaired the judging panel, said: “Motor manufacturers are under relentless pressure from different governments to reduce emissions, but at the same time they must produce cars that people actually want to drive and buy.
“Mazda’s SKYACTIV programme combines breakthrough innovation and next-generation technologies such as petrol and diesel engines with record compression ratios, all-new manual and automatic transmissions plus body and chassis systems that are lighter and more responsive than ever before.
“The introduction of these technologies will result not only in major reductions in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for all Mazda models, but will also ensure that Mazda’s sustainable Zoom-Zoom strategy can continue to provide fuel-efficient, low-emission motoring for the most enthusiastic company car drivers.”
As SKYACTIV technology is gradually introduced across the Mazda range, fleets can expect to see emissions on models such as the Mazda CX-5 at sub 120g/km, while Mazda's next generation D-segment offering is to drop to 105g/km.
The monthly fleet magazine’s recognition for SKYACTIV is the first UK award for the technology-driven programme at a time when fuel prices are at an all-time high and unlikely to reduce in the foreseeable future, according to experts.
Mazda Fleet and Remarketing Director Steve Jelliss said: “Many of our competitors view electric and hybrid vehicles as the technological answer to sustainability, but they typically come with a price premium and may have limited fleet appeal.
“Our approach is to utilise traditional technical platforms as the basis for the introduction of a host of new technologies designed to achieve fleet customers’ goals without compromise in terms of, for example, driving range or price.
“We are naturally delighted at the award for SKYACTIV and believe that fleet managers and company car drivers can reap the benefits they desire - fuel-efficient, low CO2-emission vehicles - through our relentless focus on ‘whole vehicle’ enhancements.”
