ge4633127271503977670
Bruce Newton5 Dec 2014
NEWS

Mazda to beautify BT-50

Polarising one-tonner to wear Mazda's Kodo design language as part of 2015 update

Mazda's controversially styled BT-50 work ute will get a new look as part of a significant update due in the second half of 2015.

The BT is technically twinned with Ford's Australian-developed Ranger, but sells at roughly half the rate, despite Mazda leading Ford in every other segment they both contest here.

Publicly, Mazda Australia executives say the BT lags behind because they do not compete for large fleet and rental orders, but privately they have conceded the look has also been an issue. The suggestion is the BT's smiling face is not macho enough for the tradie market.

The facelift, which is also expected to include at least some of the significant equipment updates Ford has also ready signalled will come to the updated Ranger due in mid-2015, will adopt elements of Mazda's 'big mouth' Kodo design language, which now features acoss the rest of the range.

"The facelift will change the way the car looks and you wouldn't have to think too hard to realise it will adopt some of this Kodo design language," confirmed Mazda Australia marketing director Alastair Doak at a media briefing in Melbourne yesterday.

"So we keep it in the Mazda family as much as we can in terms of design without doing a whole new truck."

Added Mazda Australia PR boss Steve Maciver: "When you see the updated car you will definitely see more cues of the passenger car range coming through ... we think it will be a pretty good looking truck."

Doak also confirmed the BT-50 equipment level would be boosted at the same time as the exterior is overhauled.

"We will have some new tech in our car but let's wait and see. Obviously that car has been a co-development with Ford, but there are some differences in equipment and there will continue to be."

The BT update is part of a significant roll-out of new Mazdas in 2015. Facelifts of the mid-size Mazda6 sedan and and wagon and top-selling CX-5 medium SUV arrive in quarter one, the all-new CX-3 small SUV in quarter two, followed by the BT-50, the fourth-generation MX-5 and, potentially, the new Mazda2 sedan later in the year.

We have covered off previously what to expect from the Mazda6, CX-5, CX-3 and MX-5. And, as reported here, Mazda is looking for a record result next year on the basis of this influx of new metal.

Doak went to some lengths to defend and explain the styling of the current BT.

"We always went into that wanting a bold design that said Mazda and if we had done a different design it may not have fittted in with the rest of our range.

"We were involved in the design process of that car, we did research in Brisbane two years before the car went on sale when it was still at clay model stage. And the designer was based in Melbourne for two years.

"That car was designed the way it was designed very deliberately ... to do it any other way it wouldn't have been a true Mazda."

He also made it clear the BT-50's sales performance was acceptable to Mazda.

"We have been very happy with the sales of BT-50. When we launched, the previous generation was very old and we only sold single-cab at $20,990 and $19,990 and the mission for this model was to shift that volume into double-cab and we did that very successfully."

Despite that sales pump-up he also forecast a move by Mazda to pitch the BT-50 to small business owners in an effort to boost sales.

"BT-50 represents an area for growth ... we are in sixth position in the ute segment and hopefullly next year we can move from there," he said. "To that end we are looking at what we can do in the fleet sector. We don't do large fleet and we are not going to do large fleet. What we are talking about is small business fleet and how we can maybe package some things around that sort of business.

"But we will never be number one in that segment because we don't do large fleet, we don't do rental, we dont do any of that type of business."

Doak predicted a decline in large fleets, with more emphasis on small fleets and user-chooser buyers, which was why Mazda was focussing in that direction as a way of growing BT-50 sales.
He also argued large fleet deals would eliminate Mazda's opportunity to make a connection with customers.

"We see the market in some ways coming round to our way off thinking to some extent I guess," he said.  "Our whole business is around people who do have an engagement with their car, who are interested hopefully in driving a car – or at least being interested in how their car looks or being seen in the car because it looks cool.

"So that's where we want to be. We want to have some sort of engagement with the customer and we don't think we can get that if you turn up and get handed the key and yours is number 57 in line.

"That's not the business we are in."

Share this article
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalistsMeet the team
Stay up to dateBecome a carsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Looking for a tradie car?Get the latest advice and reviews on tradie car that's right for you.
Explore the Tradie Hub
Tradie
Disclaimer
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.

If the price does not contain the notation that it is "Drive Away", the price may not include additional costs, such as stamp duty and other government charges.
Download the carsales app
    AppStoreDownloadGooglePlayDownload
    App Store and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.
    © CAR Group Ltd 1999-2024
    In the spirit of reconciliation we acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.