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Mazda Motor Corp. says it’s making “real-world” fuel-efficiency a core attribute of a brand that mainly touts sporty handling as the Japanese carmaker seeks to lift U.S. volume 74 percent by mid-decade from last year.

Mazda next week begins U.S. sales of revamped Mazda3 compact cars with its Skyactiv engine and transmission that improves fuel mileage by 18 percent, said Robert Davis, senior vice president of U.S. operations. Cars with the powertrain get 40 mpg in highway driving without slowing acceleration, he said.

“It’s not acceptable to us have 40 mpg and sacrifice performance,” Davis said in an interview yesterday. Mazda3 also delivers better fuel efficiency without shedding the spare tire or using a smaller fuel tank to cut weight as rivals have done, he said.

Mazda plans for the new engine, also being added to its CX- 5 compact crossover due next year, and diesel models that arrive by 2013 to speed U.S. growth for the brand that trails Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Motors Corp. and Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.’s Subaru in volume. U.S. sales for the Hiroshima, Japan-based company totaled 229,566 in 2010 and may exceed 250,000 units this year, based on its pace through September. The company’s target is 400,000 by mid-decade. Mazda peaked in 1986 at about 339,000.


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