"Not Competing for the Top, But for the Right", Changan Mazda's "Sober" Smart Driving Philosophy

At the Changan Mazda booth in Hall 3 of the Chengdu Auto Show, crowds were gathering. Mazda fans are focused on a "Mazda with LiDAR", and the MAZDA EZ-60 LiDAR Edition has officially started pre-sales.

As a brand with driving control genes deeply ingrained in people's hearts, Mazda still wants to be the "Driver's Car" in the smart driving era. Not competing for the best in smart driving, just doing what's right in smart driving, letting more people own good cars.

When competitors are competing on "count of cities opened for urban NOA" and "smart driving takeover rate", Mazda's approach appears somewhat "out of sync", but also exceptionally "Mazda-like".

Not Competing for the Best, Only Competing for the Right

"Now the whole industry is racing on smart driving parameters, computing power, and radar quantity, almost becoming standard equipment in the Chinese market." Facing this follow-up from "Auto Talk", Minoru Fujihashi, Vice President of Auto Marketing & Sales and General Manager of the Sales Branch of Changan Mazda, answered straight to the point.

Minoru Fujihashi pointed to the MX-5 on the booth and said: "It condenses Mazda's brand core: pursuit of driving pleasure, beauty of design, handling texture, riding comfort, and globally unified quality and safety standards." In his view, whether it is EZ-60 or EZ-6, both are models that integrate this brand DNA. "Users generally recognize their driving comfort, handling texture, and reassuring safety performance."

"For Mazda, the driving fun of 'Human-Machine Integration', driving pleasure and safety, is the unchanged fundamental." Fujihashi emphasized, "Smart driving is not a replacement for driving, but an upgrade and empowerment based on this."

Behind this statement is Changan Mazda's calm review of the industry's trend of "stacking computing power, competing radars, racing on parameters". Fujihashi believes: "Whether it is smart driving or human driving, the most primary thing for a car is still safety. Every decision of smart driving ultimately relies on excellent mechanical quality, a good chassis, good handling, to be executed safely. Good smart driving is not letting smart driving drive for you, but letting smart driving make driving safer for you."

The core logic of this smart driving philosophy is clear and restrained: not competing for the "best" in parameters, but competing for the "right" in user experience.

Double Experience Without Discount

What is the core positioning of the EZ-60 LiDAR Edition? The answer given by Fujihashi is "Double Experience Without Discount". "When users drive themselves, they can feel handling fun comparable to fuel cars, the car moves as they wish; in scenarios like high-speed long-distance, urban commuting congestion, the LiDAR smart driving system can provide reliable assistance, reducing driving burden."

This is exactly the core difference between Mazda and other brands. "Many brands' smart driving ideas turn the car into a simple commuter tool, turning users from 'drivers' into 'passengers'; but Mazda's idea is, whether personally controlling or enabling smart driving assistance, users can always feel smooth, controllable driving texture."

Since the launch of EZ-60 in September 2025, it has successively won the sales champion of joint venture new energy medium SUVs for 7 consecutive months. In terms of design, its signature 9 air duct aerodynamic design deeply integrates "Kodo" aesthetics and aerodynamics, successively winning German iF, Red Dot, American IDA and other 8 global top design awards. In terms of handling, after undergoing road tests in 9 countries globally, totaling 9 million kilometers, it was evaluated by owners as "The EV that feels most like a gas car when driven".

In terms of safety, 7-horizontal 5-vertical cage body paired with 86.5% high-strength steel proportion, passed the industry's first full-vehicle collision, rollover, immersion triple limit challenge, winning TOP Safety Top Safety Certification.

The arrival of the EZ-60 LiDAR Edition is exactly to complete the puzzle of advanced intelligent driving assistance on this solid foundation.

LiDAR On Board But Not Showing Off Skills

The EZ-60 LiDAR Edition takes one LiDAR as the core perception base, paired with 11 HD cameras and 12 ultrasonic radars, achieving full-scenario capability upgrades from driving, parking, and active safety three dimensions.

In terms of driving assistance, the new car achieves full coverage of highway and urban pilot navigation. Highway pilot supports autonomous lane changing, obstacle avoidance, on/off ramps within 0-130km/h speed range; urban pilot covers 0-80km/h main road scenarios, benefiting from end-to-end technical architecture, system response is faster, decisions more coherent. Cutting-in scenarios recognized at millisecond level, smooth avoidance, construction sections and illegally parked vehicles can achieve continuous S-shaped avoidance, intersection green light 0.8 second quick start. Class-exclusive "Cruise Companion" function, select target vehicle can stably follow the car.

Parking scenarios are also comprehensively upgraded, covering over 300 types of parking spaces. New "Door Close Parking" function, narrow parking spaces can get off and automatically complete parking; supports memory parking.

In terms of active safety, EZ-60 LiDAR Edition carries 25 active safety functions. Front stationary vehicles can be braked to stop up to 110km/h speed, longitudinal pedestrians up to 90km/h braking stop, suddenly appearing pedestrians, crossing vehicles within 50km/h speed can be effectively handled. AEB and AES braking yielding integrated, emergency braking and steering avoidance can be triggered synchronously under dangerous conditions.

In terms of hardware configuration, the new car carries 3nm automotive grade flagship intelligent cockpit chip. Fujihashi specially emphasized a detail: "Smart driving status visualization real-time sync, transparent interaction without taking over driving, users can take control anytime." The system will tell you in advance what it wants to do, will not wrest the steering wheel from you.

A "Listening to Advice" Adjustment

This pre-sale, EZ-60 LiDAR Edition launched "10 yuan deposit, daily expansion 100 yuan, up to 3600 yuan deduction" pre-sale rights.

Talking about this welfare strength adjustment, Fujihashi frankly said: "Last year Shanghai pre-sale we also launched expansion money activity, user feedback was very good, but there are also many users saying 6-month waiting cycle is too long. This time we absorbed past experience, end of September new car will launch, pre-sale cycle about 1 month, so we took the daily expansion amount from 10 yuan to 100 yuan."

From 10 yuan to 100 yuan, rose 10 times; from 6 months to 1 month, cycle significantly shortened. This is a pragmatic adjustment based on user feedback. "Let early-ordered users truly enjoy the benefits." Fujihashi said.

As the strategic fulcrum and export center of Mazda's global electrification, Changan Mazda has become the first domestic joint venture new energy vehicle enterprise to simultaneously obtain EU, UK, Australia three major markets full-vehicle certification.

Fujihashi introduced, EZ-6 began exporting from last year, first landed European market, this year will expand to Australia, Thailand and other regions; EZ-60 export work is also progressing steadily, this year second half will successively land Australia, Southeast Asia and European market. Currently Mazda EZ-6 (Overseas version Mazda 6e) has been exported to over 20 countries and regions globally.

"These two models from R&D beginning were global car positioning, China is the core market, at the same time facing global sales." Fujihashi said, "Changan Mazda Nanjing Factory is Mazda global new energy model R&D and manufacturing base."

Conclusion:

Amid the noise of the Chengdu Auto Show, Changan Mazda's booth has a special temperament. When almost all brands are competing on parameters, stacking hardware, this century-old brand chose a "special" road – not competing for "Best", only competing for "Right".

This is not conservative, but a kind of sobriety. In the interview with Fujihashi, heard is not resistance to smart driving, but is "who smart driving serves" deep thinking. Smart driving is not making driver become passenger, but making driving safer, easier; Smart driving is not replacing control, but empowering control.

Some cars are for looking at parameters, while some cars, are for experiencing. EZ-60 LiDAR Edition is exactly belonging to the latter!