Last year, Mazda Motor Corporation announced that it was embarking on a new direction with technology development. The strategy, called ‘Sustainable Zoom-Zoom,’ would focus on producing vehicles that combine Mazda's trademark driving excitement with further evolved environmental and safety technologies.

‘Sustainable Zoom-Zoom’ and Mazda's Nagare design have been combined in the Mazda Kazamai concept car which showcases how Mazda could deliver a vehicle in the near future that is exhilarating to look at and exciting to drive, with an improved average fuel economy by 30 percent and producing far fewer emissions than today's production models. This is Mazda at its best — a cool, athletic compact crossover, with next-generation environmental performance. Designed with the Russian compact SUV segment in mind, Kazamai gives a glimpse at where Mazda is heading with a possible future compact crossover.

Russia's booming Automobile Market
Between 2004 and the end of 2007, Russia's automobile market grew by about 1.28 million cars, and in the process became Europe's second largest car market after Germany. During this same period, Mazda quickly established itself as one of Russia's most popular car brands, increasing sales from 8,565 units in 2004 to over 50,000 units last year — six times more than 2004.

One of the country's biggest segments is the sports utility vehicle (SUV), representing nearly 16 percent of the total sales volume in 2007. Between 2004 and 2007, the segment became 10 times larger and this growth is expected to continue over the mid-term in Russia. Mazda's mid-sized sports crossover SUV, the CX-7, has been on the market for less than a year in Russia and has already found over 7,900 customers — easily Mazda's largest market for the CX-7 in Europe.

The Mazda Kazamai concept car addresses the growing popularity of SUVs in Russia and gives a strong hint at where Mazda might be going with a compact crossover SUV. Small, lightweight with dynamic styling, low-consumption, a next-generation Mazda powertrain, it is meant to appeal to young, upwardly-mobile Russians with a strong sense of style and urban lifestyle demands.