Hyundai Names Successor to Retiring Executive : Management: Veteran N. Douglas Mazza takes over for Rod Hayden as chief operating officer of the Fountain Valley auto importer in January.

FOUNTAIN VALLEY — N. Douglas Mazza, a former top executive at American Suzuki Motor Corp., has been chosen to succeed Rod Hayden, who retires as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Hyundai Motor America Inc. at year’s end.

In the interim, Mazza will take over the vacant post of marketing vice president at Hyundai. The longtime import-auto marketing specialist has been working as president and chief executive of a health programs marketing company since early last year.

Hayden’s December retirement had been reported in several trade journals recently and was formally acknowledged Friday by D.O. Chung, chairman of Hyundai Motor America, the Fountain Valley-based importer of South Korean autos.

Hayden had retired early from the top operating post at Mazda Motors of America in Irvine nearly three years ago but was recruited to help stanch a sales hemorrhage at Hyundai. Despite several moves to bolster consumer confidence in the cars--including a free maintenance program--Hyundai has seen its sales sink every year since 1988, when it hit a high of 264,000 units.

“Mr. Hayden has served Hyundai well over the past two and a half years,” said Chung, who was sent to Fountain Valley from Hyundai Motor Corp. in Seoul--the company’s headquarters--in January. He has since replaced Hayden as chief spokesman for the U.S. company. Chung credited Hayden with strengthening Hyundai’s dealer network during his tenure.

Mazza, a resident of Orange, had been a top marketing executive at both American Suzuki Motor Corp. in Brea and Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America in Cypress from 1974 to 1989. From 1989 until early last year, he was executive vice president of a company that developed a stolen-vehicle monitoring device.

Since early 1991 he has headed Feeling Fine Programs Inc., a small marketing-services concern for the health and pharmaceuticals industries.

He could not be reached for comment Friday.

Mazza starts at Hyundai immediately, a company spokeswoman said, and will oversee product planning, advertising, strategic planning, merchandising and market research until he takes over Hayden’s job in January.

The marketing post has been vacant since Thomas Ryan, vice president of marketing, resigned in late February.

Mazza began his automotive career at Suzuki in 1974 as district sales manager for its U.S. motorcycle division. He was national sales manager for the division when he left in 1981 to help launch Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America as regional distribution manager for the western United States. He eventually become national distribution manager for Mitsubishi.

In 1985, Mazza rejoined Suzuki as vice president and general manager of its new U.S. automobile and sports utility vehicle importing, sales and distribution division.