Mazda refers to their particular design philosophy as “KODO Soul of Motion,” embodying the company’s attempts to imitate the fluidity of organic life and, therefore, grant every vehicle a kind of “soul.” Mazda designers view every car as a work of art, attempting to appeal to customers not just through functional design, but by finding that special something. Mazda achieves this by having design teams participate in something called Exploratory Preparation, in which they craft and mold a variety of shapes in order to experiment with which shapes inspire an emotive response in others.

Ultimately, Mazda’s KODO Soul of Motion philosophy is less about individual models and more about the big picture. “The job of a designer is… to make sure that when our cars are lined up together, the line-up fascinates customers,” says Mazda’s Design Division General Manager and Executive Officer, Ikuo Maeda.