Mazda has announced the meeting of one of its greatest milestones; 50 million vehicles produced as of May 16, 2018.
The memorable moment has come after 86 years of build-up and evolution. It started with a three-wheeled truck called the Mazda-Go Autorickshaw in 1931, though the passenger market took a bit longer to crack.
That debut unfolded in 1960 with the introduction of the R360 Coupe micro-mini. Then, just seven years later, came the Mazda Cosmo [pictured] — the company and the world's first foray into rotary engines.
“You only need to look at the rotary engine, the MX-5 and more recently the Mazda SUV range to see why the company has such a long and proud history," says Mazda New Zealand Managing Director David Hodge.
"The development of new and flexible production techniques including mixed production lines have also enabled it to adapt quickly to changes and remain competitive and that is set to continue well into the future.”
Mazda say that they aim to sell more than 1.6 million cars in this fiscal year. It will mark the end of Mazda's Structural Reform Stage 2 medium-term business plan — a phase that's seen Mazda introduce their second-generation SKYACTIV engine technology to the marketplace, as well as new models like the upcoming CX-8.