It was just over a year ago that I sat down at the table to chat with Ikuo Maeda and the big question remains: when will we get a glimpse of the next Mazda RX?
The Mazda RX Vision Concept, between awards and praise for its undeniable beauty, is undoubtedly the height of the KODO language and an antechamber of the brand's future. But anyone who longs for a Mazda with a rotary engine wants to know when and how this future model will reach the production lines of the Hiroshima brand.
Ikuo Maeda, in case you didn't know, is the father of the Mazda RX-8 (among other models like the previous generation Mazda 2) and his father Matasaburo Maeda designed the iconic Mazda RX-7. With the acronym RX in his DNA, Maeda is a kind of Yoda but I'm a long way from being an Obi-wan, because drawing is not for me.
In this interview we talk about the future of Mazda and of course the next RX. There was still time to comment on the evolution of the man-machine relationship, with autonomous driving inevitably falling “on the table”. Light sabers and intergalactic analogies aside, stay with the interview with Ikuo Maeda, Mazda's Global Design Director.
RA: (Bring to the chase…) How long do we have to wait for any news related to the next Mazda RX model?
Ikuo Maeda: (laughs) Everyone asks me that and I'm really happy about it. We will do everything in our power to have the model revealed as soon as possible.
RA: Is there anything you can share?
Ikuo Maeda: I can…less talk about timings! There are many unresolved issues, including issues related to the sale, the business itself, from a market perspective. I have this dream, the dream of making it real, but the timings condition everything.
RA: Talking now about the engine… of the concept! (laughs) This engine is an inspiration, as is the Mazda RX-Vision Concept. What influence will this engine and this concept have on future Mazda models?
Ikuo Maeda: The reason I created this model was to show a direction in the brand's design and some aspects we can carry over to future models…
RA: We know that the design department and the finance department do not always agree and that they often go into “war”. Is the financial issue one of the conditions of the future RX?
Ikuo Maeda: Tough question, with a tough answer. Despite representing a cost, this does not mean that due to budgetary constraints the design is hampered. There are other more important problems that we have to face, mainly environmental issues. That's the biggest challenge in developing the next RX. But it's true, design under these conditions is becoming difficult…
RA: Environmental issues bring us to the engine. With the ever-increasing restrictions on emissions it must be difficult to build a car focused on performance…
Ikuo Maeda: Yes, but we have to take a global view: engines, weight, aerodynamics, recyclable materials, it's a combination of several aspects that concerns us.
RA: This is the height of the KODO language, with the Mazda lineup showing itself completely renewed. What does the Mazda RX-Vision Concept mean to the brand's adopted design language?
Ikuo Maeda: Right now what we're looking for is the next generation of design and this is one of the paths we can take. Simpler shapes but at the same time with a design focused on emotions.
RA: That means the Mazdas of the future will be driver-focused.
Ikuo Maeda: Yes.
RA: How does autonomous driving come into this equation? Is the search for a simpler design focused on the driver able to impose itself in a future where autonomous driving will have an increasingly predominant role? How do you manage this “conflict of interest”?
Ikuo Maeda: Our brand message is “Fun to Drive” and as such, what we have to guarantee as designers is to build a car that evokes that feeling at first glance. In the future there will be many different styles of driving and it will be up to the market to decide which ones. As a designer, I don't have a right answer as to whether, at the design level, we should align with these requirements…
RA: What do you think about autonomous driving?
Ikuo Maeda: I would say that if all cars become autonomous, there will be no place for me. I know the change in driving style will be the big trend, but as a designer I don't worry about that right now.