• The Mazda ICONIC SP concept car marries a dual rotor generator with an EV powertrain.
•Revealed at the 2023 Japan Mobility Show it is a compact sports car concept for a new era.
•At the 2024 Top Gear.com awards the Mazda ICONIC SP was named EV Concept of the Year.
The Mazda ICONIC SP has claimed the coveted EV Concept of the Year title at the 2024 Top Gear Electric Awards. Revealed last year at the 2023 Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo, the ICONIC SP is a concept car that marries together a dual rotary engine with an EV platform and drivetrain – a powertrain model that made its production debut with the Mazda MX-30 R-EV – a car that last year also scooped a Top Gear Electric Award, taking the Innovation Award in 2023.
A compact sports car concept designed to highlight Mazda's continued commitment to the creation of products that satisfy customers' love of driving in an era of electrification, the ICONIC SP's unique proportions and low centre of gravity are achieved by placing the rotary power generator unit as close to the centre of the car as possible.
Commenting on the ICONIC SP's award, Top Gear, Associate Editor, Tom Ford, said: 'the ICONIC SP isn't some pretentious designer onanism that requires a 10-page backstory explanation, this is just a pretty and evolutionary take on Mazda's future, with a nod to its past. Among a slew of new electric car concepts, it is the one we want to see make production as it is.'
Unveiling the concept last year, Mazda President and CEO, Masahiro Moro, said: 'we are determined in the age of electrification to keep the joy of driving alive and the Mazda ICONIC SP, with is dual rotary power generator EV powertrain, is our dream solution. A dream we will work hard to launch. Adding, 'Mazda will always deliver vehicles that remind people that cars are pure joy and an indispensable part of their lives.'
The technology concept of the two-rotor rotary EV system is designed to deliver a highly scalable engine with a flexible layout that has the ability to burn a variety of fuels, including hydrogen, making it a Mazda unique technology that is ideal for sports car packaging. And if the battery is charged with electricity derived from renewable energy, it is possible to drive in a virtually carbon-neutral state.
Commenting on the Top Gear award, Mazda UK, Managing Director, Jeremy Thomson, said: 'award recognition is always great but it's particularly good to see the editorial experts at Top Gear appreciating a concept car and the future vision for good to drive and beautiful cars that our engineers and designers envisage.'
Photo credit: Mazda posted on conceptcarz.com
