Mazda will continue to develop products exclusively for North America, a new report finds. The news comes on the heels of the success of the CX-9 crossover, a model designed specifically for the U.S. market. Mazda created its Annual Advancement Activity program — which spawned the CX-9 — in 2004 to develop regional models based on existing global platforms.
Robert Davis, head of product development and quality for Mazda North American Operations, also revealed that the CX-9 wasn’t even originally planned to be a crossover. “The CX-9 was originally supposed to be a minivan,” he said.
The North American team spotted the trend shift in the U.S. and quickly changed the design plan. From concept to completion, CX-9 development took just 18 months.
Mazda has sold 19,630 CX-9s since its launch in March and sold more than 3,000 examples in October. The CX-9 was also named SUV of the year by Motor Trend magazine.
