Apex predator. In biology, it's the name given to creatures at the top of the food chain, the ones that hunt and devour other animals, but are never prey themselves. Before humans and guns came along, great white sharks, lions and grizzly bears were all undisputed apex predators.
In the world of high performance sport compacts, the term apex predator applies to vehicles that hunt and devour corners in a similar fashion. Over the last few months, a handful of new models have laid claim to this title, notably the Chevy Cobalt SS, VW GTI and Honda Civic Si, but that was before the arrival of the Mazdaspeed3.
After long negotiations with Mazda North American Operations (MNAO), Sport Compact Car secured the exclusive North American test drive of the 2007 Mazdaspeed3 during the "final production confirmation" at its premier track facility, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (MRLS) in Monterey, California. This was a very big deal for both of us. Mazda has granted exclusive first drives to other magazines in the past, but has never invited a journalist out to what is normally a closed-door, top secret session. We've never done anything like this before, either.
The Program
Mazda runs a tight ship. As one of the smaller manufacturers in the auto industry, there is no other way to get things done. Factory performance programs like Dodge SRT, Toyota Racing Development and BMW's M division employ dozens if not hundreds of engineers and specialists around the world. Mazdaspeed's North American operation has only three full-time employees, with another dozen or so supporting program engineers in Japan.
I'm learning all this from Tod Kaneko, the US manager of Mazdaspeed, as we drive up to Monterey to meet up the five other Mazda folks who have set aside this weekend for the final shakedown of the Mazdaspeed3.
Kaneko is something of a legend in the sport compact industry. He's a former Garrett turbocharger engineer with a background in Indy Car, CART, IMSA and various other factory motorsports development programs. He also has a long history of turbocharger design and development. Before that, Tod made his name on the streets of Southern California that gave rise to the whole import racing and sport compact scene. His two other crewmembers' resumes are just as impressive; Derrick Ige, Mazdaspeed's marketing specialist, is the former manager of Metal Crafters, the noted concept car builder. Ige also served as crew chief for Dan Gurney's All American Racers Indy Car program and did stints at Penske and Nissan factory racing teams. The other member of the team is Takahiro "Koby Jr." Kobyakawa, one of the original Mazdaspeed engineers from Japan and the son of Mazda legend Takaharu "Koby" Kobyakawa - the lead engineer on the FD RX-7 and Le Mans-winning 787B race car.
Ige couldn't make it for the weekend, but along for the test are Koby Jr., Mazda PR Manager Jeremy Barnes, Mazdaspeed Accessory engineer Jonathan Butts, Mazda-Japan test driving ace Masami Katakura, and some guy you might have heard of named Dave Coleman. More on these jokers later.
The Car
The Mazdaspeed3 is based on the Mazda3, the compact sedan and five-door hatchback duo that has been the company's bread and butter since 2004. We've praised the standard 3 for its exceptional value and practicality, yet despite its solid handling, it has never been at the top of our list of performance front-drivers. But that should all change when the Mazdaspeed3 comes out it in September of this year. This car will be the mightiest front-wheel drive vehicle in the sport compact kingdom by a wide margin, boasting about a 50bhp and 70ft-lb torque advantage over its current rivals. It should be noted that Dodge boasts 300hp for its, as yet unreleased, Caliber SRT-4. But we're getting ahead of ourselves - let's first take a look at what it takes to turn a Mazda3 lamb into a Mazdaspeed lion.
Three conditions must be met before a vehicle receives the Mazdaspeed designation. First, it must have styling that sets it apart from the standard version. Specifically, there must be significant functional external design differences noticeable from 50 feet, per a mandate laid down by Mazda's executive vice president, Robert Davis.