After 5 Million Users, How Does Changan Mazda Answer "Still Mazda"?

Amidst the clamor of the Chongqing Auto Show, the theme of the Changan Mazda booth appeared remarkably simple — "Still Mazda". Behind these four words lies far more than a catchy slogan. For a joint venture brand caught in the vortex of fierce competition in the Chinese market, the words "Still" serve both as a declaration to protect the brand's soul and an honest response to real pressure. How to respond to drastic changes in the market landscape while inheriting a century of brand genetics is itself an extremely difficult balancing act. The phased answer given by Changan Mazda is to uphold global standards on the product side and deepen emotional connections on the user side. Using the dual-wheel drive of "Product + User", it seeks its own rhythm in a market under pressure.

From a product perspective, Changan Mazda is undergoing a profound identity transformation. It is no longer just a production base for Mazda in China; as its executives stated, Changan Mazda has become Mazda's global new energy vehicle design, R&D, manufacturing base, and export center. The upgrade of this strategic positioning means its products must withstand testing from the world's most rigorous markets. The debut of the EZ-6 and EZ-60 precisely embodies this logic. Both models are built according to China-Europe dual five-star safety standards. The EZ-6 secured 5 authoritative safety certifications, including C-NCAP and E-NCAP, while the EZ-60's battery safety meets new national standards and European standards ahead of schedule. This "over-standard" execution of safety standards reflects a product mindset oriented towards the global market — not taking the lower limit of the domestic market as the standard, but the upper limit of the international market as the benchmark.

Achievements at the design level add more convincing footnotes to these global standards. The EZ-6 won the "2026 World Car of the Year Design" award, becoming the first Chinese new energy vehicle to receive this honor. The EZ-60, with the unique achievement of winning 8 world-class design awards simultaneously, proved the vitality of Mazda's design language in the electrification era. Design has always been the core tag distinguishing the Mazda brand from other Japanese competitors. During the electrification transformation, this design advantage was not diluted but gained recognition from international authorities. For a joint venture enterprise attempting to rebuild brand identity on the new energy track, the significance is self-evident.

Verification of handling performance is even more intuitive. In the 6-day, 910-kilometer China New Energy Vehicle Rally Championship, the unmodified factory pure electric EZ-60, facing competition from 27 brands and 100 participating cars, ultimately took the championship in the SUV category for the circuit race and the runner-up in the overall rally results. The significance of this event lies not in the ranking itself, but in proving that electrification has not weakened Mazda's "human and horse as one" handling genetics. Given that most participating models were extended-range or plug-in hybrids, the victory of the pure electric model illustrates Changan Mazda's expertise in chassis tuning and three-electric system matching. This "factory verification" conducted through extreme events moves users who truly care about driving pleasure far more than any marketing rhetoric.

More noteworthy is that Changan Mazda's global step has taken a substantial stride. It became the first domestic joint venture new energy vehicle enterprise to secure whole vehicle certifications from the EU, UK, and Australian markets. At the end of May, more than 80 overseas dealers from Europe, Australia, and Thailand specially visited the Nanjing factory and gave high praise for production processes and quality control systems. These facts show that Changan Mazda's "Global Car" positioning is not promotional rhetoric but is being converted into actual export orders and recognition in overseas markets. In the domestic market, the EZ-60 has consecutively topped the sales of joint venture new energy medium-sized SUVs for 7 months. This achievement is particularly remarkable given the fierce competition in China's new energy vehicle market.

However, solidifying product strength is only half the solution. In the era of stock competition, how to establish an emotional bond with users that goes beyond transactions is a common issue facing all brands. Changan Mazda's choice is to implement the "User+" mindset from concept into a series of tangible and participatory actions. The 5 million user base accumulated in the Chinese market is both the brand's most valuable asset and the most fertile soil for user operations. The series of user co-creation activities launched in 2026 are attempting to convert this asset into sustained brand vitality.

The "Wish Journey" lets the brand truly enter users' lives in the form of "Users Make Wishes, Brand Provides Support"; "Owner Story Collection" presents 11 real stories, showcasing the diverse faces of the Mazda owner community — there are public welfare experts who have donated to poor primary schools for 7 consecutive years, love leaders who have organized car clubs to care for special needs children for 4 consecutive years, and couples who met through Mazda. The value of these stories lies in transforming the brand image from an abstract Logo into concrete people and emotions. When users discover resonance with the brand that goes beyond the product itself, loyalty gains a solid foundation.

The "Joy Mazda Creator" and "Nationwide Broker" programs go further, transforming users from passive consumers into co-creators and ambassadors of brand value. A share from a "Gen-Z" EZ-60 owner is quite representative: as a novice involved in creation, she received full help from fellow car owners and staff. This experience based on community mutual aid builds user affinity and trust towards the brand far better than any ad placement. Meanwhile, the second season of the "Green Seedling Plan" entering universities and the launch of the EZ-60 National University Modification Design Competition show Changan Mazda's long-term vision in cultivating future potential users — through in-depth exchanges with young students in design and intelligence fields, the brand is planting seeds in the hearts of the younger generation.

At the level of social responsibility, Changan Mazda also incorporates users into the action system. Since 2015, the public welfare accumulation of building 12 Hope Primary Schools in Yunnan with a total investment of over 10 million yuan has formed a considerable public welfare foundation. The "Every Kilometer Has Goodness" public welfare action launched in June of this year converts every user trip into a public welfare fund, creating a direct link between brand public welfare and user behavior. This design cleverly binds brand value communication with user daily behavior, making public welfare no longer a solo act of the enterprise, but a common narrative of the brand and users.

Returning to this specific node of the Chongqing Auto Show, Changan Mazda's booth layout and promotional policies also reflect this "Product + User" dual-track thinking. On one hand, the collective debut of the MX-5, EZ-6, EZ-60, and the EZ-60 Horse Year Edition showcases a complete product matrix ranging from classic fuel sports cars to new energy SUVs, signaling that the brand has not severed historical heritage during electrification transformation. On the other hand, the simultaneous launch of the 618 Mid-Year Grand Sale, with national subsidies plus factory subsidies plus exclusive sets, lowered the threshold for users to buy a car, while the promise of "Battery Lifetime Self-Combustion Compensation, Unlimited Mileage, Unlimited Owners" attempts to eliminate the deepest safety concerns of new energy users. These measures respond to market pressure with actual benefits while maintaining the bottom line of brand value.

"Still Mazda" is a challenge because it requires enterprises to find a precise balance point between persistence and change. Over-persistence may lead to disconnection with the market, while over-change may cause the loss of brand soul. Changan Mazda's current strategic choice — forging products with global standards and deepening relationships through user co-creation — demonstrates a pragmatic evolutionary path. It does not attempt to subvert Mazda's century-old genetics, nor does it shy away from the waves of electrification and intelligence, but attempts to continue the "human and horse as one" driving philosophy on the new technical platform, and extend this philosophy from products to every touchpoint of user relationships.

The market will not grant preferential treatment simply because a brand has sentiment, but a brand with a clear strategy and willingness to invest for the long term will eventually find its own place in fierce competition. Changan Mazda's "Product + User" strategy seems to remain an effective solution idea at present. The key lies in the strength of execution and the precipitation of time.