Do Ponies Eat Sushi? Mazda Motor Denies Report It Will Produce Mustang

TOKYO January 15, 2003; Japan's Mazda Motor Corp. Thursday denied a media report that the company will start producing Ford Motor Co.'s Mustang sports car.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported in its Thursday morning edition that AutoAlliance International Inc., a 50-50 joint venture between Mazda and Ford, will begin producing the Mustang in 2004. The joint venture plant will produce around 150,000-200,000 Mustangs a year, the newspaper said.

"Ford Motor hasn't yet made any announcement concerning production site or volume for the Mustang. It seems that this article is based on reporter speculation," the Japanese car maker said in a statement.

By extension, the report that Mazda will produce the Mustang via the AutoAlliance International partnership isn't correct either, the company added.

Ford Motor has a 33.3% stake in Mazda.