Mazda Plans Upgrades as CX-90 and CX-70 Sales Tumble

Turning a Profit

It’s been an interesting year for the automotive industry, with a lot of contributing factors (politically, economically) shifting consumer trends and buying behavior. Basically, what we used to believe was sacrosanct and a matter of fact was actually variable. We’ve seen the first-half sales and profit figures across the industry, and it’s producing some interesting results: brands that once struggled are now in the green, while previously comfortable brands and segments have slipped sales-wise.

Mazda has just reported its first-half 2026 earnings, and the report shows both positive and negative indicators.

Profits Up, U.S. Sales Slump

Automotive News reports that according to Mazda’s fiscal first-quarter report, the Japanese automaker finally returned to profit. Specifically, the brand was able to reverse and recover losses from last year’s U.S. tariffs by netting $202.6 million in the months of April to June of 2026.

However, there was a major slip in sales in a major market: the U.S. Mazda’s American operations focus on the large utility vehicle segment, which was hit hard by the import tariffs and then the repeal of the incentives that previously benefited the plug-in hybrid powertrains. As a result, sales of the Japan-made CX-90 and CX-70 fell, the former dropping 24%, and the latter dropping further by 29%.

Upgrades On The Way

Brand CFO Jeffrey Guyton says the situation is unacceptable, and they remain focused on growing their large-platform business. According to Guyton, to help rebound sales, the automaker is planning to double down on its safety campaign, which, if you don’t know, is Mazda’s strong suit these days, earning multiple safety recognitions from the IIHS and more.

He also said that Mazda is currently developing “a number of product enhancements” that should help sales increase again. No details or timelines were mentioned as to when the upgrades would be implemented. Currently, the U.S. sales leader for Mazda is the newly redesigned CX-5, and it was also just given the top safety recognition from IIHS.