Motor
09-13-2010, 11:46 AM
Pickup Preview: Mazda Teases New BT-50 Truck (http://rumors.automobilemag.com/6684061/news/pickup-preview-mazda-teases-new-bt-50-truck-should-it-come-to-the-us/index.html)
Compact pickups haven't been part of Mazda's North American lineup since late last year, but small trucks continue to play a large part in the company's success in other global markets. It's no surprise to see the company excitedly tease the debut of the new BT-50 pickup, which is scheduled for the 2010 Sydney Motor Show in early October.
Mazda's release breathlessly calls the BT-50 an "active lifestyle vehicle," insisting it "overturns the image of a conventional compact pickup truck." Perhaps, assuming that stereotype portrays small pickups as boxy, stodgy appliances. Mazda's preview sketch shows us a shapely vehicle, complete with an angular front fascia, a raked front windscreen, and curves typically seen only on sport sedans.
Will that aggressive look be lost in the jump from sketch to sheet metal? We doubt it. Development of the BT-50 was split between Mazda and Ford, which is using the new T6 platform to underpin the next-generation global Ranger. As a result, we've had the chance to see plenty of these testers up-close here in North America. Despite the requisite camouflage, we can see the finished product will bear a remarkable resemblance to what lies beneath the vinyl wraps and padding.
Ford may have whittled down its stake in Mazda, but the two companies linked together for the new compact pickup trucks. Both the BT-50 and the next Ranger will be largely identical, apart from minor styling differences between the two. Several powertrain options are reportedly under consideration; turbo-diesel engines are almost a given, but we've heard rumblings that a Ford EcoBoost engine -- a turbocharged, direct-injection gasoline engine -- may also be part of the roster.
Despite the fact that the T6 is billed as a global truck platform, don't expect to see either the BT-50 or the new Ranger here in the U.S. Ford once pondered bringing the T6 Ranger to North America, but killed the idea earlier this year. The trucks will, however, be sold in Australia, Asia, Europe, and South America, but we can't help but think a stylish, competent small truck could succeed in the U.S.
http://image.automobilemag.com/f/news/pickup-preview-mazda-teases-new-bt-50-truck-should-it-come-to-the-us/30425041+w750+st0/mazda-bt-50-preview-sketch.jpg
So far, so good.
Compact pickups haven't been part of Mazda's North American lineup since late last year, but small trucks continue to play a large part in the company's success in other global markets. It's no surprise to see the company excitedly tease the debut of the new BT-50 pickup, which is scheduled for the 2010 Sydney Motor Show in early October.
Mazda's release breathlessly calls the BT-50 an "active lifestyle vehicle," insisting it "overturns the image of a conventional compact pickup truck." Perhaps, assuming that stereotype portrays small pickups as boxy, stodgy appliances. Mazda's preview sketch shows us a shapely vehicle, complete with an angular front fascia, a raked front windscreen, and curves typically seen only on sport sedans.
Will that aggressive look be lost in the jump from sketch to sheet metal? We doubt it. Development of the BT-50 was split between Mazda and Ford, which is using the new T6 platform to underpin the next-generation global Ranger. As a result, we've had the chance to see plenty of these testers up-close here in North America. Despite the requisite camouflage, we can see the finished product will bear a remarkable resemblance to what lies beneath the vinyl wraps and padding.
Ford may have whittled down its stake in Mazda, but the two companies linked together for the new compact pickup trucks. Both the BT-50 and the next Ranger will be largely identical, apart from minor styling differences between the two. Several powertrain options are reportedly under consideration; turbo-diesel engines are almost a given, but we've heard rumblings that a Ford EcoBoost engine -- a turbocharged, direct-injection gasoline engine -- may also be part of the roster.
Despite the fact that the T6 is billed as a global truck platform, don't expect to see either the BT-50 or the new Ranger here in the U.S. Ford once pondered bringing the T6 Ranger to North America, but killed the idea earlier this year. The trucks will, however, be sold in Australia, Asia, Europe, and South America, but we can't help but think a stylish, competent small truck could succeed in the U.S.
http://image.automobilemag.com/f/news/pickup-preview-mazda-teases-new-bt-50-truck-should-it-come-to-the-us/30425041+w750+st0/mazda-bt-50-preview-sketch.jpg
So far, so good.