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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 16 JULY 2017 IV Motoring MAZDA ascended the podium again this week at the Aalto Theatre in Essen, Germany to receive the "Red Dot: Best of the Best" prize for the Mazda MX-5 RF and its KODO – Soul of Mo- tion design. It was the second time a fourth-generation "ND" MX-5 won the top accolade at the annual Red Dot product design contest. Launched in Europe earlier this year, the RF (retract- able fastback) edition of Mazda's legendary roadster repeats the success of the soft-top version, which captured the same hon- our in 2015. "This is very gratifying for all of us at Mazda after the enormous effort that went into the RF," commented Mazda Europe's design director Kevin Rice, who accepted the award. "The current MX-5 generation was an exercise in innovation on both a design and a technologi- cal level to uphold more than a quarter century of rich Jinba Ittai driver-and-car-as one tradition. The RF takes this a step further, deepening the ownership experi- ence with the fastback styling and flexibility of a highly unique retractable roof. The result is an undeniably elegant rendition of Jinba Ittai in an MX-5 for all seasons and situations." An imaginative symbiosis of form and function, the RF features a three-piece power retractable hardtop whose 13-second opening or closing sequence is a spectacle in itself. It thus combines all-weather coupé practicality with the hair- in-the-wind spirit that inspired the original MX-5 introduced in 1989. And with the same aggressive face, strong stance, short over- hangs and underlying SKYAC- TIV Technology as the soft-top "ND", the RF delivers all the fun drivers of the world's best-selling two-seater have come to cherish. The jury of 39 designers, pro- fessors and journalists bestowed "Best of the Best" honours – re- served for the most exceptional designs – on only 102 of the 5,500-plus entries to the 2017 Red Dot product design contest. Mazda has now won six Red Dot prizes for its KODO-based models: The Mazda CX-3 and Mazda2 collected awards in 2015 (alongside the soft-top MX-5) after the Mazda3 and Mazda6 took home accolades in 2014 and 2013, respectively. Criteria for the Red Dot competition include innovation, functional- ity, ergonomics, symbolic and emotional content, self-explan- atory quality and ecological compatibility. Award-winning products, chosen this year in 47 categories including cars & motorcycles, will be on display at the Red Dot Design Museum Essen for five weeks and have earned the right to bear the "red dot" symbol. One of the world's larg- est product competitions, Red Dot was initiated in 1955 by the Essen-based Design Zentrum TESLA Motors' first mass-market car, the Model 3, started rolling off the line this month, two weeks earlier than planned, Elon Musk, the company's chief executive, said this week. Musk said on Twitter that pro- duction would increase quickly, with 100 Model 3s produced in August and 1,500 or more in Sep- tember. He said that he expected the company to be able to pro- duce 20,000 per month beginning in December. The Model 3 is a critical test for Musk and his ambitious plan to turn Tesla into a producer of mass-market electric cars. Until now, the company has produced luxury cars in relatively small numbers, typically sell- ing them for $90,000 (€81,400) or more. In 2016, it made about 85,000 vehicles. General Motors, by contrast, produced more than nine million cars and light trucks. But the Model 3 will be priced around $35,000 (€30,600). Musk envisions the new car reaching a much wider range of customers and has said he expects it to push Tesla's output to 500,000 cars a year in 2018. In June, Musk told shareholders that Model 3 production was set to begin in July at the company's assembly plant in Fremont, Cali- fornia, although he stopped short of saying when the car would be available in volume. He has said Tesla is working to automate its assembly plant fur- ther in an effort to increase output for the Model 3. He also said at the shareholder meeting that the company was beginning to think about additional assembly plants. "There is no room at Fremont," he said. "We are bursting at the seams." Tesla has had discussions with Chinese officials about opening a plant near Shanghai. China ac- counted for about 15 percent of Tesla's revenue in 2016. To prepare for the addition of the Model 3 to its lineup, Tesla built a gigantic $5 billion factory in Nevada to produce batteries for the company's electric cars. Tesla has also bolstered its coffers. Ear- lier this year, it raised $1 billion through offerings of stock and debt. A Chinese internet giant, Tencent Holdings, acquired a 5 percent stake in the company. The company needs the extra capital because it continues to post losses in most quarters. In the first quarter this year, Tesla lost $397 million, compared with a loss of $282 million in the same period a year earlier. The compa- ny's revenue more than doubled, however, to $2.7 billion. Investor optimism about the Model 3 has pushed Tesla shares up about 67% this year. On Friday, shares closed at $361.61. The company has a market value of $59 billion, about $7 billion more than General Motors and $15 bil- lion more than Ford Motor. Mazda MX-5 RF receives highest Red Dot honour Tesla's first mass-market car, the Model 3, hits production this week The Tesla Model 3 will be priced around €30,600, reaching a much wider range of customers The Model 3 is a critical test for Musk and his ambitious plan to turn Tesla into a producer of mass-market electric cars