Mazda Taiki reflects one possible direction for a future generation of Mazda sports cars aimed at helping create a sustainable society. The fourth concept car in the Nagare design series, Mazda Taiki further evolves the “flow” theme to establish a breathtaking presence that clearly distinguishes it as the culmination of the series, and to visually express the atmosphere – called taiki in Japanese – that wraps the Earth in its protective belt. The next-generation RENESIS (“16X” rotary engine) sets new standards for environmental and driving performance and serves as the base for pursuing the sports packaging that is synonymous with the Mazda name and unbeatable aerodynamic performance. From stem to stern the Mazda Taiki concept represents the culmination of the Nagare design series, while standing as a life-size icon indicating the road to the Mazda sports cars of the future.(Designed by Mazda Yokohama Design Studio)To give form to the concept of a next-generation Mazda sports icon that operates in harmony with our planet’s environment, the challenge became to create “a design that visually expresses the flow of air”. This inspired the image of a pair of Hagoromo – the flowing robes in Japanese legend that enable a celestial maiden to fly – floating down from the sky.. The lower of the layered hagoromo flows from the front fenders to the sides, where it wraps under the body and gracefully curves up at the rear. The other hagoromo flows from the hood through the shoulder lines it etches, past the unique independent rear fender design, and lends a seductive curve to the rear deck. The fusion of these flowing upper and lower surfaces not only creates a visual depiction of flowing air, well-toned appearance, as well as creating a sense of floating lightly on air. The design also achieves an excellent drag coefficient of 0.25 and zero lift.

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