Nagare concept hints Mazda's future

30 November 2006

Mazda is looking as far ahead as 2020 with its dramatic-looking Nagare concept, unveiled at the LA motor show this week.

However it could pave the way for a new RX-7 sports car long before then, according to new design boss Laurens van den Acker.

'It would be a great inspiration for an RX-7,' he said, pointing to the RX-8-style flared wheelarches and the fact that it is theoretically powered by the same rotary engine that's available in the four-seater coupe.

The Nagare � Japanese for flow � is the first in a series of concepts set to be rolled out in the next 12 months all giving clues to Mazda�s future design direction.

This one was designed and built in California but the next one, to be shown at Detroit in January, is the work of the company�s Japanese design studio and is billed as a car that could emerge in the next decade. The third, set for unveiling at the Geneva show in March, gives clues to a near-future production car � expected to be the new Mazda 2 supermini.

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