Looks like a snub choptop version of the CX-7. Nice looking.

A-ha, Mazda's Demio surfaces again...

Optimize + lighten it as did Mazda with the Demio and you'll have a +40mpg gasoline commuter for the US market.

Jack, nice to see you've taken my advise...so far.

Read the part where it says "concept" and "gauge public reactions." They can pre-view in the European autoshows all they want, it does not mean us North Americans will ever get to drive these cars.

The European and Asian car markets are already full of small fuel efficient cars (and trucks) that could be fueled with what we could produce domestically (whether oil or biofuels). Many of these cars are built by divisions of the Big Three so that's not the hold up.

What's keeping these cars out is the need to trade oil in US dollars. If you stop importing OPEC oil they wont support your dollar.

So the European arm is taking charge of small car development.

Pardon me but wasn't that the point of Jac Nasser's Ford 2000 re-structuring? To put each area of global vehicle development with the Ford arm with the most direct experience?

Oh dear. Re-rewind. So what precisely WERE they doing for the last few years? Oh yes, losing money!

Nice concept though!

ai_vin, sorry I didn't mean to come off like a jerk. I guess I'm just taking issue with the idea that the main cause of our gluttonous use of oil here in the US is complicity of some ruling political/economic cabal, with middle east oil sheiks, although maybe that was not what you were asserting at all. If I recall the statistics correctly, the US only gets less than 20% of its oil from the middle east. The majority of middle east oil is going to Europe and Asia. I will certainly cede that certain players such as Saudi Arabia certainly do hold undue political and economic sway, but I think the underlying problem is cultural more than anything else. The same mindset that causes far too many Americans to charge $6000 for a 60" flat screen TV to a high-interest credit card, is what causes many of us to reject practical and economical vehicles that are popular in other parts of the world in favor of huge SUVs, diesel pickups, seen as some sort of perverse status symbol. Of course auto manufacturers are more than happy to sell us these high margin vehicles, and politicians are too frightened of a public that cries like a stuck pig when gas prices exceed $1.50, to ever raise gas taxes to the levels that will actually curb consumption, as is done, for example, in Europe.
It would be nice to blame the problem on a simple conspiracy, which could easily be ended if we just elected the right leader(s). That way we wouldn't have to take personal responsibility for our own lifestyles. The truth, unfortunately, is much more 'Inconvenient' than that. Better technology isn't going to help us much if it is wasted making huge SUVs and big trucks more efficient, if people who would have previously purchased a sedan decide to 'upgrade' to a larger and slightly more consuming vehicle because it now has a 'green' image. Likewise, even smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles such as those available in Europe and Japan won't help much if people decide that the increased fuel efficiency justifies increased commuting distances. The status quo will continue as long as everyone continues to pass the buck and point the blame finger at everyone but themselves. We need to make the reduction of energy in general, and especially petroleum, a personal, community, national, and global issue.

Bob; No worries.
And no i don't think its all some grand conspircy, but it is a factor. And while its true the US only imports 20% of its oil from OPEC the real point is ALL the other countries that buy oil on the international market use the USD - not their own currencies. (Its the old domino effect theory that really scares the Whitehouse)

The Iranian oil bourse?
Check the recent history;
In 2000, Iraq converted all its oil transactions under the Oil for Food program to euros - when the US invaded Iraq in 2003 it returned oil sales back to the USD.

Iran planned to open an oil bourse in euros in 2006 but having watched what happen next door AND hearing the sabres rattle in their direction (you remember all the talking heads on CNN giving reasons why Iran should be next? Remember when that was?) well the Iranians were smart enough to put the opening on hold.

Venezuela supported Iran's plan and what happened? More sabre rattling broadcasted around the world on CNN and Foxnews.

ai_vin, just to reiterate, what I originally said was "the US only gets less than 20% of its oil from the middle east"(not OPEC). To show what I mean, using the latest numbers (for May) in the link provided by jack, 26.3% of our imports came from the middle east (Yemen, Syria, Oman, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar,Libya, Kuwait, Iraq, and Algeria.) I threw Libya and Algeria in for good measure. However, we produce about 40% of our oil domestically, so 26.3*0.6 = 15.78% of the oil we used in May came from the Middle East. If you run the numbers for OPEC, you get about 53% of total imports, and a little less than 32% of the total.
I constantly hear right wing nuts complain that the increase in the price of gas is an OPEC conspiracy, and left wing nuts will tell me its all a Bush/Exxon conspiracy. The current price of energy is due to increased demands coming especially from India and China, coupled with speculation and investor worries about the future of supplies due to declines in so many places, as well as conflicts in places like the middle east and Nigeria, combined with the nationalization of supplies notably in Russia and Venezuela. This is not a temporary situation that will change with the next president. The days of cheap oil are over.
As for the idea of "domino effect," I personally don't put much stock in it. My guess would be that trading occurs in dollars because the US is the worlds largest economy, it is viewed as having stability (why do you think the Chinese peg their currency to the dollar?), and has for a long time been the default currency for international trade. The introduction of the Euro could challenge that to some extent, but just because one commodity starts being traded in Euros instead of dollars doesn't mean "it will all come crashing down." Plenty of countries and economies are doing just fine without having their currency "propped up" by petroleum. What keeps our economy going is the same thing that keeps Canada, Europe, and Japan's economy going. We have a stable industrialized nation with lots of resources and lots of consumers, and that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
For those who wish to believe our current energy crisis is the result of some grand conspiracy, the best solution is probably to sit in the parent's basement, venting their rage on various blogs. For the rest of us, the best course of action is to do our best to reduce our own energy consumption, and try to help our friends and family do the same. There's a lot of low hanging fruit!

Fool.