New Mazda3 Won’t Get Performance MPS Variant

From the moment the all-new Mazda3 was unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show, we started to imagine how the car would look in high-performance MPS guise. Unfortunately, we’ll never know.

During an interview with Australia’s Drive publication, Mazda global boss Akira Marumoto said that the hot hatch segment isn’t a high priority for the car manufacturer and that a Mazda3 MPS isn’t on the cards.

“Mazda is a small player and if [you are asking whether] that segment has a high particular priority for Mazda my answer would be no. Therefore we not planning for MPS in the future.”

Rather than chasing sales in the increasingly competitive world of mild and full-blown hot hatches, Marumoto revealed that Mazda instead wants to establish itself as a premium alternative to what the Europeans offer. To do so, the automaker will focus on improving the quality, comfort, and refinement of its models.

While the world won’t enjoy a new Mazda3 MPS, the standard model appears exciting enough to grab the attention of some enthusiasts.

For starters, there is the design. Mazda’s engineers used the breathtaking Kai Concept as inspiration for the new Mazda3 and much to our surprise, didn’t mess with the design too much for the production model. Consequently, the car features a similar pointed front fascia, aggressive lights front and rear, as well as a thick C-pillar and raked rear window.

Excitingly, Mazda recently confirmed to Carscoops that U.S. buyers will have the option of an all-wheel drive system in the hatchback. While it remains unclear which engine, or engines, all-wheel drive will be offered with, we know that the all-wheel drive system will include G-Vectoring Control Plus (GVC Plus) that controls torque distribution between the front and rear wheels.