EV Obsession Is a Missed Opportunity to Lower Emissions, Mazda Says

November 03, 2025

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by Michael Taylor (Forbes) The Vision X-Coupe is Mazda's latest push into renewable fuels, with executives calling the push into EVs unrealistic. -- Japanese auto maker Mazda has slammed industry and legislative obsessions with battery-electric vehicles for stopping the search for more creative ways to lower CO2 emissions.

The company’s Chief Financial Officer, Jeff Guyton, told the media at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo that renewable fuels were a viable answer to CO2 emissions from the auto industry, but that EV obsessions kept getting in the way.

The American executive argued that it was a “fundamental mistake” for governments to focus exclusively on the zero-tailpipe emissions that EVs offer rather than legislating for more realistic goals that consider whole-of-life emissions.

“If our society spent half as much time talking about biofuel as we are talking about electric vehicles, even a portion of the time we spend talking about electric vehicles…" Guyton said.

“I mean, wouldn’t it be great if we could apply a reduced carbon or carbon-neutral fuel to all those cars that are running around on the streets already? There’s more than a billion cars on the planet today,” he argued.

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Guyton insisted a broadened focus that included renewable fuels could bring about faster CO2 results by dramatically lowering the emissions from the world’s existing passenger and commercial vehicle fleets, without forcing customers to buy new EVs.

“EVs are not carbon neutral, they’re just zero carbon at the tailpipe,” Guyton explained.

“The fundamental mistake we made as a society was not looking at the wheel-to-wheel energy life cycle.”

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Mazda President and CEO Masahiro Moro insisted the microalgae absorbed CO2 while storing oils in their cells - oils Mazda extracts to refine into carbon-neutral fuel.

“In our research on microalgae, we succeeded in producing over one liter of fuel from a 11,000-liter culture tank in about two weeks,” Moro said.

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"Once the fuel is extracted, the remaining microalgae is rich in nutrients, such as protein, which can be upcycled into food products or organic fertilizers.

"Now let’s talk about CO 2 capture. Exhaust from internal combustion engines contains CO2 at concentrations significantly about 350 times higher than in the atmosphere. To address this, we at Mazda developed a groundbreaking technology called 'Mazda Mobile Carbon Capture’ that efficiently pulls CO2 directly from exhaust.

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“This fuel could go in any car; it doesn’t have to go in a special Mazda engine,” Guyton insisted.

“It’s a powerful way to address the installed vehicle base.”

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Mazda used the Tokyo show to launch two models: the plug-in hybrid Vision X-Coupe, with 160km of EV range and 800km of overall range. Mazda also used the reveal of the Vision X-Coupe to push its microalgae-derived, carbon-neutral fuel, complete with what it calls Mobile Carbon Capture to reduce CO2 as it is driven.

It also launched the Vision X-Compact, with a strong focus on AI at the user interface, but most attention was on the first public showing of the all-new CX-5 production SUV, with combustion and hybrid power.

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The third generation of the CX-5 will start life with a 2.5-liter gasoline engine and will be on sale across Europe late this year.

It will mate the 2.5-liter mtoro to a 24 Volt hybrid system, with brake-by-wire, and it delivers 104kW of power and 238Nm of torque in both front- and all-wheel drive configurations. READ MORE

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Excerpt from The Standard: Guyton said Japan's dependence on imported energy has long shaped Mazda's pragmatic approach to emissions reduction – an approach that values efficiency and reuse across all technologies rather than betting solely on battery-electrics.

"Japan imports substantially all our raw materials and our energy. Japan has always been focused on reuse, recycling – use less stuff, use less energy," he said.

"So whatever the form is, there's a very rational approach of using less energy. So EV doesn't… you know, we have to make our electricity here. A lot of it comes from fossil fuel. That doesn't really save the planet."

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Mr Guyton's comments come at a time when governments globally, including in Australia, are tightening emissions regulations. Locally, the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) takes effect from 2025 and is designed to accelerate the rollout of EVs.

However, Mazda remains one of the slowest movers in the EV space. Its first dedicated electric model, the MX-30 Electric, was discontinued in several markets due to poor demand, and the upcoming Mazda 6e will be its first fully electric sedan in Australia.

Mr Guyton's criticism of the industry's EV obsession with tailpipe emissions echoes growing sentiment among Japanese automakers that EV mandates overlook regional energy mixes. He said Mazda's focus will continue to be on reducing emissions across multiple technologies, including hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and alternative fuels.

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In Japan, Mazda has signed on to joint research programs exploring synthetic and algae-based fuels capable of running in traditional combustion engines. The company says these fuels could help existing vehicles achieve carbon-neutral operation, offsetting emissions without requiring new infrastructure.

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That approach aligns with Mazda's "multi-solution" strategy, which avoids betting on a single propulsion technology. Rather than chasing headline-grabbing EV targets, the company is positioning itself as a technology pragmatist that's willing to follow the market but not at the expense of affordability or practicality.

In Australia, that stance could resonate with buyers who have seen new-vehicle prices rise under NVES and infrastructure strain due to early EV adoption. Mazda remains one of the top-selling brands locally, with its CX-5 and CX-60, CX-70, CX-80 and CX-90 SUVs still dominating petrol and diesel segments.

As Mr Guyton put it bluntly: "Using less energy in some form – well, that's sensible." READ MORE

Excerpt from Jimboomba Times: Mazda says the prototype fuel can be refined from algae harvested in controlled tanks, using about 1000 litres of water to produce one litre of fuel every two weeks. The current process is slow and expensive, but the company believes it proves the concept is technically viable.

While some automakers have backed e-fuels synthesised from captured CO2 and hydrogen, Mazda's approach focuses on biological carbon recycling using living organisms to convert atmospheric carbon into energy-rich oil, which is then turned into fuel.

Mr Guyton added the company's ultimate goal is to make such fuels not just carbon-neutral but carbon-negative, meaning the production process removes more CO2 than the vehicle emits.

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"While other people are talking about carbon neutral, we are talking about potential for carbon negative, if it's done the right way," he said.

"So that, you know, the more you drive, the less greenhouse gas there is. Wow, that's kind of an interesting idea."

The research is part of Mazda's long-term "multi-solution strategy," which combines electrification with ongoing investment in cleaner combustion technologies.

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In Australia, where the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) will penalise higher-emission cars from 2025, Mazda's push for alternative fuels could help extend the lifespan of its petrol line-up while meeting stricter CO₂ targets. While the brand's first electric passenger car, the Mazda 6e, is due soon, full battery EVs remain a low priority.

For Mr Guyton, the algae program is a logical counterpoint to the government's EV-only focus. READ MORE

Excerpt from Car Expert: Speaking to Australian journalists at this week’s Tokyo motor show, Mazda CFO Jeff Guyton revealed the company has developed a prototype exhaust-mounted capture device that can store about 20 per cent of a vehicle’s carbon dioxide output in a dedicated tank.

“The exhaust from an engine is really CO2-rich. It’s a target-rich environment to grab CO2 from,” Mr Guyton said.

“In the vehicle environment… we can then capture that carbon and be able to use it. Maybe it’s an exchange. Maybe, when you fuel the car, you exchange a filter or a substrate, and that thing — maybe that CO2 — is something which you can sell.”

Mazda plans to test the technology publicly in an endurance racing car later this year, collecting data under full-load conditions before deciding whether it could be scaled for road use.

“We are developing the tech, but what we have prototyped so far is very promising, and we are going to be demonstrating that in an endurance race later this year… we’ll get data from that race car during racing conditions,” he said.

According to Mr Guyton, the system captures around one-fifth of emitted CO2 by drawing exhaust gases through a drying process and binding the carbon to a crystalline zeolite substrate.

“You have hot exhaust gas coming through the pipe… the system sucks away a portion of what’s going out the tailpipe. It dries it, so that there’s basically CO2 left, and then there’s a kind of crystalline structure in our prototype made of zeolite… about 20 per cent of the CO2 that would otherwise go out stays in the device.”

While Mazda hasn’t disclosed when or if the technology will reach production, the concept points to a different path for cutting vehicle emissions – one that could extend the life of internal-combustion engines even as electric vehicles (EVs) gain political backing.

The captured gas is stored in a small onboard tank, which would eventually need to be swapped or emptied. Mazda says the spent CO2 could potentially be repurposed as a raw material for recycled plastics or industrial processes.

Mr Guyton suggested the company’s early work with carbon-based composite materials showcased at Tokyo in the Vision X-Coupe concept could link directly with this research.

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It’s a typically Mazda-style innovation: small-scale, pragmatic, and focused on incremental real-world benefits rather than sweeping promises. Mr Guyton admitted the company doesn’t have the resources to chase every new technology at once.

“It’s not big. I mean, we’re a small company, true. So our mindset is, Mazda can do anything, we just can’t do everything all at once,” he said.

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It’s an idea that may not fit the political narrative but could prove more achievable in markets like Australia, where energy generation is still far from carbon-neutral and EV infrastructure remains patchy.

Mazda’s next challenge will be to prove the system can function reliably in mass-market cars without adding excessive cost or weight.

For now, it remains an ambitious laboratory experiment, one that captures the company’s determination to make internal-combustion technology part of a cleaner future, rather than a casualty of regulation. READ MORE