The 1982 Mazda 626 is not generally regarded as a hero in the Mazda line-up, nor one particularly significant in Mazda’s history of motor vehicles.
With Mazda’s first-gen RX-7 in full swing and creating headlines, and the 323 competing in world rally stages, and rotary-powered Cosmo looking after passionate family drivers’ needs, the new front-engined, front-wheel drive 626 ushered in a new era for the medium-sized 626, a legacy which continued into the Mazda 6.
So it’s a little surprising to see a pristine, red, two-door 1982 Capella sitting in the foyer on the Mazda offices, in the Hofu manufacturing plant.
About an hour's drive, some 120km south-west of Mazda’s Hiroshima headquarters is the port city of Hofu, and home of Mazda’s expanded manufacturing facility since 1982 comprising two sub-plants: Hofu 1 looks after Mazda 2/3 and CX-30, while Hofu 2 looks after CX-60 and CX-90, and Mazda 6.
Covering an area of more than 800,000sqm, with 3000 employees, total production from the Hofu facility is 400,000 units per year, with 138,000 units passing through Hofu 2.
Hofu 2’s first car was its the revolutionary Capella/626, a model that heralded a new wave of cars, evolving from the inline, front-engined, rear-drive vehicle platforms of the 1970s, into the front-engined, front wheel-drive platforms which have become commonplace 30 years on.
So it’s somewhat ironic, or historical, that the Hofu 2 plant is also home to a throwback, at least in engineering terms, and home to the ‘rear-drive platform’ Mazda CX-60, its latest SUV, along with the CX-90, both of which started manufacturing in January, 2023, after a plant freshen-up.
Like the facility in Hiroshima, the Hofu plant proves a little surprising to see the high amount of human labour on the production line, what Mazda calls “using the provision of skills of Takumi human production and craftsmanship, for products that exceed expectations.” This also means that the human skills aspect is passed on from generation to generation.
On the robotic side, AGVs (Automatic Guided Vehicles) are constantly roaming in, outside and around the plant to effectively move parts to where they are needed, when they are needed. From moving parts around the exterior, to shorter paths within, such as bringing completed engine and axle assemblies to the bodies as they pass down the line, and doing endless rotations of collecting engines from one side, and transporting them to the bodies just 10-20 metres away, with consideration to the differing types of engines and drivetrains, such as FWD or AWD. Despite this automation, and despite AGVs doing more than three-quarters of the heavy grunt work, human staffing has actually increased.
Mixing human skills with modern technology are values that are designed to enhance values in the CX-60 and CX-90 range, according to Norihiro Kishikawa, GM of a Vehicle Production unit at Hofu, by combining Jinba-Ittai ethos for wheel alignment, ride-height and a high quality ride, with Kodo design for body surfaces and precision assembly, and artisan colouring paint technology.
The technology side comes to the fore with a high-rigidity inner frame, outer skin welding and aluminium cast suspension. Panel gaps are set to between 3mm and 4mm depending on where the gap on the body is, to maintain the utmost in quality. The leading bonnet gap, for example, has reduced from 4 to 3mm… the gaps on the bonnet sides, are down from 3.5 to 3mm. Door gaps are 3mm.
The line is also a mixed model production multi-line, enabling a range of models to pass down the same line at the same time: from large front-engined, to small front-engined, plus hybrid, PHEV and BEV EV vehicles. Seeing more than 2-3 of the same model of car consecutively proves quite uncommon.
The line is constantly moving at a crawling pace, too, with 243 stations stretched out over almost 2km of line, with each station offering a little less than two minutes to get the job done, along with with minimal jobs per station allowing an employee to immediately recognise the model, pick a part and either fit or prepare the fitment for the next station.
One of the few fully automated aspects is the glass handling and assembly, from the sealant application to the location and fitting pressure.
The small and large Mazda products will start to provide the electrification from 2025, so not only is the plant in a transitional period, but Mazda is committed to what it calls “Sustainable Zoom Zoom to 2030”, using materials and techniques designed to flow into the next decade and beyond, with hybrid variations for all powertrains.
With CX-60 and CX-90 already rolling down the Hofu line this year, when they do arrive in New Zealand in the second-half of 2023, we'll know exactly the kind of crasftsmanship, quality and pride taken, and exactly where they came from.
READ MORE: Sushi, Shinkansen and Mazda CX-60 first drive
READ MORE: Mazda CX-60 inline six is cleaner than CX-5’s four
