Introduced in 2010, Mazda's unique Kodo design philosophy and its ability to breathe vitality into a car has been the driving force behind the multiple award-winning styling of the current Mazda range. Launched in 2019, the Mazda3 was the first vehicle to showcase the latest developments in the company's ground-breaking Kodo design language - a more mature rendition targeting greater styling prestige through the elegance and rigor of a minimalist, less-is-more aesthetic inspired by the purest traditions of Japanese art and the beauty of space between objects.

Only through hundreds of hours of painstaking clay sculpting and painting work has it been possible to hone the Mazda3's unique design that creates subtle undulations of light and shadows gliding over the car’s smooth body, giving birth to a natural and powerful expression of vitality. Creating such controlled vitality - a form both beautiful and simple - requires immense degrees of time, discipline and craftsmanship. Yet it is fundamental to the uniquely Japanese elegance of Mazda's nextgeneration design vision, in which the ownership experience is further enriched by the presentation of the car as art.

Mazda has enjoyed many successes at the World Car Awards, which is an annual contest adjudicated on by an 86-member jury of automotive journalists from 25 countries. The 2020 World Car Design of the Year accolade is the latest in a long line of awards garnered by the Mazda3, which include the 'Red Dot: Best of the Best' in the 2019 Red Dot Product Design awards, 'Supreme Winner' of the 2019 Women's Car of the Year awards, and 'Small Hatch of the Year' in the 2020 UK Car of the Year awards.