Who else almost spat out their morning tea upon seeing Mazda’s Iconic SP concept car, unveiled overnight in Tokyo?
I reckon it could be the prettiest concept car of the last five years. Maybe the last decade. To me it looks like the work of an Italian carrozzeria. Pininfarina, perhaps.
![Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper](https://www.the-intercooler.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/mazda-iconic-sp-4-l-1024x683.jpg)
It previews a future Mazda sports car and while the accompanying press release references the MX-5 no fewer than 10 times in a few short paragraphs, to me it seems more like a successor to the RX-7 and RX-8 than Mazda’s best-selling roadster. It’s a coupé, for one thing, and much bigger than an MX-5 (265mm longer and 120mm wider), far heavier at 1450kg and much more powerful, too. More on that in a moment.
![Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper](https://www.the-intercooler.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/mazda-iconic-sp-3-l-1024x683.jpg)
The Iconic SP is as wide as a Toyota GR Supra, only fractionally shorter and comparable in terms of power and weight. I could do without its overlapping twin round taillights, but in every other regard it looks flawless to me. Could its pinched waist, tightly wrapped bodywork, paper-thin arch/tyre clearance and very low bonnet possibly survive the journey from show stand to showroom? A production model, if it happens, is unlikely to look so arresting.
![Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper](https://www.the-intercooler.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/MazdaICONICSP-JMS20236-1024x576.jpg)
The car’s powertrain is particularly interesting. It uses a twin-rotor Wankel engine to recharge a battery, which in turn powers an electric motor (or motors; Mazda hasn’t said) producing 365bhp. The rotary engine can burn any suitable fuel, including petrol and synthetic fuels, as well as hydrogen, meaning carbon-neutral running. Mazda already has a similar powertrain in production in the MX-30 R-EV crossover, so it’s no flight of fancy.
![Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper](https://www.the-intercooler.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/mazda-iconic-sp-5-l-1024x661.jpg)
The advantage of this sort of range-extender hybrid setup is that the car needn’t carry an enormous battery, helping to keep weight down. There will be packaging benefits too, because there’s no need to accommodate a large combustion engine, a gearbox or a propshaft running the length of the car. Mazda calls this powertrain its ‘dream solution’ for future sports cars, saying it’s a dream it will ‘work hard to launch’. I really hope it does.
![Mazda’s Tokyo showstopper Mazda Iconic SP](https://www.the-intercooler.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/MazdaICONICSP-JMS20232-1024x576.jpg)