Better Get Inline: Mazda likely to bring 3.3L I6 hybrid to Canada

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Leave it to Mazda, one of the industry’s last automakers largely going its own way and not swallowed up by a corporate overlord, to march to the beat of a different drum. News from the continent confirms Mazda is expected to soon introduce an inline-six hybrid and – get this – has its roots in rear-wheel-drive.

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Zoom-zoom, indeed.

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According to reports from Autoblog and Aussie mag CarExpert, spox for Mazda Australia spilled the beans on the long-rumoured mill during media availability while announcing the not-for-Canada CX-60 crossover. Apparently, suits in the room confirmed the new 3.3L turbocharged inline-six with 48V mild-hybrid technology will eventually wend its way to North America, though they refused to say when or in what vehicles.

We do know the company has eyes on introducing CX-90 and CX-70 crossovers at some point in the not-too-distant future; with electrification rapidly becoming popular in that segment, it makes sense for the powertrain to ultimately land in those vehicles.

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But just because the CX-60 isn’t coming to Canada doesn’t mean we don’t know what to expect in the -70 and -90 variants. Our own ace writer Sami Haj-Assaad traveled to Germany earlier this year to sample the -60, finding it to bear many of the sporty and sharp-handling characteristics which have become Mazda hallmarks in recent years.

He noted it wouldn’t be fair to prejudge the larger CX-90 on any test of the CX-60 – likening it to reviewing a Subaru Ascent by driving a smaller Forester – though it is logical to think the entertaining dynamics found in that littler rig are a good harbinger of what’s to come in Mazda showrooms around these parts next year. Expect all-wheel-drive to be standard equipment, though its platform should have a longitudinal engine and rear-drive roots.

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While it is unclear exactly which engines will appear in Canada, know that the 2.5L PHEV sampled by our writer is rated at 320 horses, while the 3.3L mild hybrid being reported on today is suggested to make approximately 40 fewer. This may seem backwards, though it is worth noting total engine displacement is not always an omen of total output. Our source in Oz speculates the inline-six can handle more power but is subject to various states of tune depending on the market in which it is being sold. We shall see.

Last month, Mazda sold a total of 4,896 vehicles in Canada and has shifted 40,011 units so far this year. Its biggest seller by far is the CX-5, accounting for roughly half that volume.