Mazda's Kodo design philosophy

Introduced in 2010, Mazda's unique Kodo design philosophy and its ability to breathe vitality into the car has been the driving force behind the multiple award-winning styling of the current Mazda range.

With the pleasure of ownership a key principal of Mazda's Sustainable Zoom-Zoom 2030 long-term development vision, Kodo design remains central to the company's desire to constantly improve the brand and push design quality to the level of art.

Whilst the Mazda MX-30 explores new aspects of Kodo design, the Mazda3 and CX-30 build on Mazda's current design successes, retaining the vitality of Kodo whilst targeting greater styling prestige through the elegance and purity of a minimalist aesthetic, which removes all unnecessary elements.

The three key elements of Mazda design are known to the Japanese as Yohaku or Ma: The beauty of empty space, Sori: Curves with poise and balance and Utsuroi: The play of light and shade.

"We used Yohaku or Ma for both the exterior and interior of the CX-30," explains Jo Stenuit, Design Director for Mazda Europe. "It is based on our second phase of Kodo, which is all about creating emotional designs with the fewest possible elements. Basically, going back to the roots of good car design: Only use the elements you really need and fine-tune them the best you can."

"On the exterior, the best example of Ma on the CX-30 would be the front. Unlike many other brands, we kept the design very simple, without adding unneeded 'cool' elements. The empty space around it stages the few elements even more powerfully and creates a better focus on those elements, like the front headlamps," Jo added.

Inspired by the purest traditions of Japanese art and the beauty of space between objects, the foundation of future Mazda elegance will be dynamic proportion, a classical silhouette and an artistic manipulation of light that relies on the uniquely hands-on approach of the company's designers and craftsmen.

Only through hundreds of hours of painstaking clay sculpting and painting work has it been possible to hone the perfect balance of tension, power and constantly changing reflections inherent in the muscular shoulders, elegant curves and sweeping, concave surfacing of the latest generation of Mazda design.

Creating such controlled vitality - a form both beautiful and thoughtfully simple - requires immense degrees of time, discipline and craftsmanship. Yet it is fundamental to the uniquely Japanese elegance of Mazda's next generation design vision, in which the ownership experience is further enriched by the presentation of the car as art.

As each new car is revealed, new elements of Kodo can be seen, as with the MX-30. And it will continue to evolve over time, creating some of the most beautiful cars on the road today.

"Future product will continue to evolve Kodo design," concludes Jo Stenuit. "The MX-30, the Mazda3 and the CX-30 will help inform future design as will the RX-Vision and Vision Coupe concept cars. The design is a constant evolution, the design teams across the world discuss it every day and continue to enhance, refine and sculpt for future product."