2001 Mazda Millenia Reviews

The Mazda BT-50 boasts good looks and solid Isuzu engineering, so how does it measure up as a tradie's tool-of-trade in cab-chassis form?

The little Yugo hatchback made by now long-gone Serbian brand Zastava Automobili appears to be making a return to a market that's increasingly being dominated by new Chinese brands, and in another twist, it won't be electric.Made from 1980 to 2008 the Yugo was popular in the United States, India, Egypt and Eastern Europe. The little car was also sold in Australia before Zastava Automobili ended operations.The Yugo brand, however, has been bought by German university professor, Dr Alexander Bjelic, who plans to resurrect the small hatch that's yet to be named.While a production version is still far off, Dr Bjelic used the recent 2025 Munich Car Design Event to show off a concept version. The catch is, it's a tiny scale model in a plastic box for now with Dr Bjelic aiming to have a full-size prototype ready for the 2027 Belgrade Expo. The model shows off the little hatch’s retro-cool looks with a modern twist on the Yugo hatch. The futuristic looks may be reminiscent of a tiny version of Hyundai's Ioniq 5 electric SUV, but Yugo says its upcoming car will be powered by an internal combustion engine. The brand said an electric variant may also become available at a later point.The original Yugo hatch was known for its affordability but had a poor reputation for reliability and build quality. While the car was sold in Australia along with 76 other countries, it's uncertain whether the resurrected version will be sold in Australia.If the Yugo hatch did make it Down Under it would be up against fierce tiny rivals such as Volkswagen's Polo, the Skoda Fabia, Toyota Yaris, Suzuki Swift, MG3 and Mazda2.Still, if Yugo can price the car lower than its competitors and arrive with a design that looks as good as the concept then it could be onto a winner. 

In another very clear sign the end of the world is nigh, Mazda has filed a patent for an electric Mazda MX-5 it appears. It's devastating news for anybody who appreciates the perfection that is the MX-5 or indeed anybody who appreciates life at all. 

Mazda has updated its popular CX-60 family SUV and added two additional grades, lowering the model’s entry price by more than $10,000.

Mazda is strengthening its investments in China, proving yet again how integral the country is to the future prosperity of global automakers.

Fresh from its debut at the Shanghai auto show last week, Mazda’s new EZ-60 SUV has already registered a staggering 10,060 pre-orders in China just 48 hours after it was listed on the brand’s website, according to local reports.Its momentous pre-order tally is especially strong for a non-Chinese car brand, and it reflects the insatiable desire for electric and range-extender vehicles in the world’s largest automotive market.Co-developed with Chinese auto conglomerate Changan, the EZ-60 electric SUV rides on the same EPA platform as the Deepal S07 (currently on sale in Australia) and will go on sale in China in electric and range-extender variants.Despite the EZ-60’s Deepal S07 sibling arriving in Australia in full-electric guise late last year, Mazda has yet to confirm its own version for local showrooms, where the brand remains without an electric model. The EZ-60's sedan sibling, the EZ-6e, is heading to Europe and the UK as the Mazda6e and is likely, though still unconfirmed, to land on our roads in the near future. It could be expected that the EZ-60 will follow a similar route.If the EZ-60 continues to be a strong seller it could help it break out of China and into Western markets. An SUV would be a much bigger seller for Mazda in Australia than a sedan.The range-extender variant of the EZ-60 will pair a 1.5-litre petrol generator motor, outputting 72kW, with a 190kW electric motor and a 31.7kWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery from CATL. Electric-only range is claimed at 160km.Details for the full-electric version still remain unconfirmed.Inside, Mazda has embraced a technology-forward approach with a central 26.5-inch 5K display that integrates the driver’s instrument display, infotainment and climate functions.Voice and touch controls have been favoured over physical ones, including for the rear passengers.The EZ-60 will line up at 4850mm long, 1935mm wide, 1620mm tall and with a wheelbase of 2902mm, making it longer than a Tesla Model Y and BYD Sealion 7.

Mazda’s popular but aging CX-3 is poised to adopt the brand’s latest electric and plug-in hybrid technology when its next generation lands in 2027, and with it, a more contemporary design.In the form of fresh digital renders, Japan-based Bestcar has given us a unique insight into how the new CX-3’s design may evolve alongside its new powertrains.Overall, the new generation hasn’t been envisioned as a radical departure from the current CX-3, with much of the popular small SUV’s silhouette and body shape following the same winning formula.That said, it adopts Mazda’s new design language as championed by the new EZ-60 electric sedan, with sharper LED headlights, a smaller, more angular front grille, and body-coloured front bumpers and panelling.The changes are echoed at the rear with sleeker LED tail-lights, flat rear panelling, alternate M-A-Z-D-A badging and a body-coloured rear bumper.Body-coloured panelling remains uniform along the side of the vehicle, replacing its predecessors black plastic wheel arches and housing newly designed alloy wheels.Powertrain details of the upcoming CX-3 remain under wraps for now, however, as reported by BestCar, the CX-3 is expected to be offered in plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and battery-electric guises.The former is expected to utilise Mazda’s revived rotary engine paired to a battery pack for a range-extender set-up, as is the case on Mazda’s MX-30 SUV sold in Japan.Best known for its use on the two-door RX-7 coupe, rotary engines are favoured for their compact size and fewer moving parts, which equates to a smoother, quieter ride. Mazda believes that makes them ideal on a plug-in hybrid.Production of the new CX-3 is poised to commence in 2027 at Mazda’s facility in Thailand, a growing production hub for the brand, with Australia all but certain to be a key market.The current Mazda CX-3 was first launched in 2014 with sales commencing in Australia the following year.Despite its decade-long tenure, the CX-3 remains one of Australia’s best-selling small SUVs, clocking some 4337 sales to March this year, comfortably outselling the Toyota Yaris Cross, Hyundai Venue and Kia Stonic.

Mazda’s flagship CX-90 SUV, and one of its newest additions to the brand’s line-up, has been quietly treated to a price-drop of thousands of dollars.

People movers were never cool in Australia, but that’s changing as our evolving tastes take us out of SUVs and into little buses.

In 2025 branding means way more than a hot iron mark scorched into a steer’s backside.It’s about a brand’s personality, reputation and your interactions with it. What it says about you. What it delivers. How it makes you feel. A visual identity, a design style… and a million other things.   And there are automotive brands in the Australian new-car market that have strategically built solid brand equity over many decades.Current market leader, Toyota began dipping its corporate toe into global export waters by shipping cars here in the late 1950s. And other Japanese makers like Honda, Mazda and Nissan followed it in conquering initial hesitancy by steadily investing in strong retail networks, pushing product improvement and focusing on a positive customer experience.Ford has built its global brand around everything from the Model T and its revolutionary assembly line to pumped up muscle cars and victory at Le Mans. While here it embedded itself in the local landscape via a manufacturing presence spanning close to a century and regular victory at Mount Panorama.And more recently, relative newcomers like Hyundai and Kia have moved rapidly from cheap and (mostly) cheerful to innovators that repositioned the concept of value and quality in the local market.All of which led to large pockets of ‘rusted on’ brand loyalty. The concept of ‘Ford and Holden families’ started to diminish from the moment the latter departed the scene in 2020 (if not before), but Toyota’s reputation for value, durability and affordable ownership has seen it maintain a legion of never-say-die fans.Same for Ford, Mazda, Mitsubishi and others. But I'd argue a turning point was when, after an initial false start through a private importer in 2013, MG set up as a direct subsidiary in 2017.Great Wall had landed as the first Chinese car brand in the Aussie market in 2009, but MG 2.0 was different. Even if its ‘Since 1924’ positioning stretched credulity, its products were better than expected and pricing was ultra sharp.Sharp enough to encourage budget-focused new-car buyers, even used-car prospects, to give the brand a go.With the introduction of new-generation products in the early 2020s sales took off like a rocket, and it’s here that my ‘That’s a good idea’ theory kicks in.I reckon executives at rival Chinese car brands, keeping an eye on MG’s increasing success Down Under, all had the same ‘good idea’ at the same time. Namely, let’s get into Australia and grab a piece of that action. Hence the subsequent arrival of Chery in 2023, itself a factory-backed restart after an initial import-distribution arrangement broke down back in 2011. Followed by the flood gates opening, with BYD, Deepal, Geely, a ramped up GWM, JAC, LDV, Leapmotor, Smart, Jaecoo, XPeng and Zeekr all jumping in with Aion, Avatar, Jetour, Lynk & Co, Skyworth and others waiting in the wings.Doesn’t matter which category you’re talking about - white goods, sporting equipment, hi-fi - if one fresh competitor enters a mature market, it’s likely to be met with reluctance, even contempt by existing brand loyalists.But if near enough to 20 newcomers blaze into market at the same time, clearly something seismic is going on and it feels like you’d be missing a trick if you didn’t at least investigate the rapidly changing competitive landscape.Give them the benefit of 20/20 hindsight as well as a time machine and it’s not certain all the new brands above would currently be making an Aussie entrance.But multiple triggers have been pulled with retail network deals done, head office staff recruited, parts warehousing set up, service and sales training completed and marketing campaigns launched. So, in a mature market, early movers like MG, Chery and GWM have the advantage and more recent arrivals will need to find a way to win over buyers… fast. And it’s a fair bet the ever-impactful lever marked price will be pulled on a regular basis.Some of the newcomers as well as more than a few existing legacy brands will be forced into a price war. Like it or not, loyalty comes under pressure when the incentive is enticing enough and with a cut-price cage fight likely to take place sooner rather than later not everyone will leave the octagon alive.Stand by for new-car buyers tempted en masse into ‘unbeatable deals’ that mean brand loyalties will be stretched beyond breaking point. The shake out from this looming war of attrition will be huge.