马自达是否已准备好加速前进

    斯巴鲁曾一度是日系品牌里的“丑小鸭”——不知道是否还有人记得曾经的Brat和Baja两个车型。不过斯巴鲁敏锐地抓住了紧凑跨界SUV的潮流，将跨界SUV的便利与四驱功能相结合，并用聪明的营销手段加以包装，没几年工夫，斯巴鲁就占据了日系厂商中的第四把交椅，并且如今在美国市场中的所有汽车品牌中名列第十。

    相比之下，马自达的表现最多也只能用“差强人意”四个字来形容。马自达也曾经有过几次辉煌的时刻，比如转子发动机曾给它带来的技术光环，财务危机时还曾获福特“注血”。另外它的Miata跑车多年来长盛不衰，今年已经是推出的第25个年头，是马自达旗下的标志性车型。但是即便福特CEO马克•菲尔茨曾在1999年至2002年间担任马自达日本公司的CEO，也不足以令马自达更进一步。目前马自达的销量在美国汽车市场各大品牌中排名第16位。

    马自达之所以缺乏冲劲，可以追溯到一系列原因上头。首先是它的设计变动得太频繁了，难以吸引主流消费者。其次是它的广告又换得太不频繁了。马自达的所谓的Zoom-zoom理念自从2000年到现在就没变过。

    近些年的各大经济事件也没有帮上马自达的忙。另外，作为一个小型车专业户，油价的不温不火也给马自达拖了后腿。此外马自达的大多数车型都是在日本本土生产的，定价自然也受到了被高估的日元影响。

    马自达在美国表现最好的一年还要追溯到1986年，当时美国总统还是里根，那一年它卖出了379,843台车。最差的一年是2009年，也就是金融危机最严重的那一年。美国推出的“旧车换现金”刺激政策让本土厂商大受其益，而马自达当年只售出207,767台车。

    现在马自达虽然已经制定了雄心勃勃的销量目标，但它是否已经充分做好了实现甚至打破这个目标的准备？说起来，马自达还是有很多有利的方面：

    • 它的产品线平衡得比较好。在整个美国市场上，轿车和皮卡的销量大致平分秋色，而马自达的轿车和跨界车型的销量也大致各占一半。

    • 马自达的轿车和跨界车各有一根“台柱子”：首先是紧凑级家轿马自达3，一年前刚刚全面改款；其次是小型跨界SUV马自达CX-5，其销量在推出第二年后显著提升。《人车志》杂志指出：“在产品方面，马自达的出拳力度远远超出了它的重量级，它的成就让人吃惊不已，就好比当年的道格拉斯居然击败了拳王泰森。”

    • 马自达在其“流”设计理念（灵感取自风与水）失败以后，又采取了“魂动”设计理念（试图表现力量与速度的运动张力），事实证明“魂动”设计理念要更加受欢迎。马自达车型的前脸也不再模仿鱼嘴设计。

    • 另外马自达还成功地改进了发动机、传动和悬挂技术，以进一步优化燃油经济性，并且给这套总成贴上了一个“蓝天创驰技术”的标签。

    不过还是有分析师对马自达的发展前景表示怀疑，比如Edmunds.com的分析师乔纳森•曼达尼奇指出：“马自达凭借‘蓝天创驰技术’，强调提高燃油效率，的确在近年来对该品牌起到了一定的帮助，但也只是勉强保持了马自达的竞争力，而没有起到继续推动它向前发展的作用。”

    这个评语可能评价得很恰当。作为一个小厂商，必须能够开发小众市场。在这一点上，斯巴鲁凭借四驱技术就做得相当不错。另外宝马也在各大豪华品牌中成长为有钱一族的宠儿。

    目前，马自达已经成功跻身为汽车爱好者青眼有加的品牌。但它对潜在客户的追逐断断续续不成章法，而且它拉拢消费者的能力也受到了渠道网络的影响。要想朝着它的目标全速前进，它还得在那个10年不变的Zoom-zoom广告之外另想新招。（财富中文网）

    译者：朴成奎

    Once Japan’s ugly duckling—anybody remember the Brat or the Baja?—Subaru has capitalized on the boom in compact crossover SUVs by combining its proficiency in all-wheel drive with smart marketing. As a result, Subaru has climbed into a solid fourth place among Japanese manufacturers, and now ranks 10th among all brands in U.S. sales.

    In contrast, Mazda has, at best, been idling in neutral. Mazda has had its moments – the technology halo from the Wankel rotary engine, a financial lifeline from Ford Motor , a long-lived and a well-liked signature model in the Miata roadster, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. Even Ford CEO Mark Fields’ stint from 1999 to 2002 as CEO of Mazda Japan wasn’t enough to get Mazda moving. It currently ranks 16th in U.S. sales.

    Mazda’s lack of momentum has stemmed from a variety of factors. It changed design strategies a bit too often to attract mainstream customers and didn’t change its advertising often enough. Its “zoom-zoom” tagline has been around since 2000.

    Larger economic events didn’t help. A small car specialist, Mazda has been held back by moderate gasoline prices and, with most of its manufacturing Japan-based, by the pricing demanded by the over-valued yen.

    Mazda’s best year in the U. S came back in 1986 when Ronald Reagan was president, when it sold 379,843 cars. The bottom came 2009 during the depths of the recent recession. While domestic manufacturers feasted on the Cash for Clunkers program, Mazda succeeded in selling just 207,767 cars.

    Is Mazda now ready to break out and hit the ambitious sales targets that have been set for it? It has many positives in its favor:

    • Its lineup is well-balanced. In an overall U.S. market where sales of cars and trucks are nearly evenly split, Mazda sells neatly as many crossovers as cars.

    • It has two tent-pole models, one for each side of the sales lot: The compact Mazda3, a peppy compact that was all new a year ago, and the CX-5, a small crossover whose sales have climbed sharply in its second year on the market. “Mazda is punching well-above its weight class when it comes to product,” wrote Car and Driver. ”Its achievements are nothing short of shocking, like Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson.”

    • After its ill-fated experiment with its Nagare (“inspired by wind and water”) design philosophy, it has adopted Kodo design (intended to embody the tension of power and speed in motion), which is proving more popular. The front ends of Mazda cars no longer resemble the mouths of fish.

    • And Mazda has successfully promoted a combination of engine, transmission and suspension technologies aimed at optimizing fuel economy by packaging them under the “Skyactiv” label.

    Yet analysts remain skeptical. “The company’s focus on increased efficiency with ‘Skyactiv Technology’ has helped the brand in recent years, but it has merely allowed Mazda to stay competitive rather than propel forward,” says Edmunds.com analyst Jonathan Mandanici.

    And that comment could apply as well to Mazda. As a small manufacturer, it has to be able to exploit niches. Subaru did that successfully with all-wheel drive and, among premium manufacturers, BMW has thrived as the makers of cars for well-heeled enthusiasts.

    To date, Mazda has succeeded in becoming the car company for car lovers. But its pursuit of potential customers has been inconsistent and its ability to reach them has been hampered by its distribution network. To get up to full speed, it will take more than zoom-zoom.