Gorgeous Mazda Shinari coupe is soul of motion

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Friday, September 10, 2010

We wrote last week of how Mazda was finally finding its own singular voice in the broader automotive world, especially since Ford had watered down its shareholding in the Japanese manufacturer, and further evidence of this emerged this week.

In the normal course of events, the issuing of press releases about concept cars are not of much interest in this quarter, especially as so few ever reach production, but one such release passed our way in recent days and, so beautiful is it, it just had to get some column inches on this page.

The car in question is the Mazda Shinari and as you will see from the accompanying pictures it truly is drop-dead gorgeous.

The Shinari is a four door, four seat coupe and is, according to Mazda, the expression of the company new design theme — ‘Kodo – Soul of Motion.’ Mazda says it has spent many years exploring the concept of ‘motion,’ offering customers designs that are exciting, both to view and to drive. “In particular,” the company says, “since the launch of the Zoom-Zoom brand message, Mazda has pursued the concept of more athletic and sporty motion, and has adopted dynamic designs for all Mazda models, starting with the Mazda6 and followed by the RX-8 and the Mazda2.

In recent years, this motion-based design has been further extended to incorporate the theme of ‘motion inspired by nature’ embodied in the Mazda Nagare concept car series and the all-new Mazda5.”

As a result of these initiatives, since the launch of the first Mazda6 in 2002, Mazda design has been the subject of great acclaim, receiving 30 global awards for car design alone.

Mazda says — and I hope this is true — that the Shinari showcases several new design elements that will carry forward into production, and represents the first initiative by Mazda Design to express ‘Kodo – Soul of Motion’.

We are told that the Japanese word Shinari describes the powerful yet supple appearance of great resilient force when objects of high tensile strength, such as steel or bamboo, are twisted or bent. It also refers to the appearance of a person or animal as it flexes its body in preparation for a fast movement, and it is these images that form the basis for the name of this concept car.

The distinctive front fenders represent the further evolution of the prominent fenders introduced on the RX-8. They highlight the dynamic movement expressed in the sides of car, in a style that is both sporty and elegant.

There is a powerful line of movement originating at the grille and continuing through the bonnet, fender, front lamp modules and bumper.

Finally, an aluminium floating bar linking the grille with the headlights enhances the three-dimensional expression of speed.

In the interior, Mazda Design has created the ‘ultimate athletic space’ focused on linking ergonomics with basic mechanical functions.

We have designed the optimum space for both the driver cockpit, to enable the driver to focus on the task of driving, as well as the passenger environment, offering a sense of openness.

In this model, Mazda offers new ideas for the human-machine interface in cockpit design, enabling the driver to switch at will between three modes: Business, Pleasure and Sport, to enjoy driving in line with the situation at the time.

Intriguing. Let’s just hope some of this eventually finds its way onto our roads.