CARS / January
CARS / January
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raised, and the steering is now rigidly mounted to
better transfer those minute mid-corner corrections
we’re constantly making.
The manner in which the anti-roll bars are
attached has also been adapted to help smooth
suspension travel. The dampers have increased in
diameter to improve ride comfort, and the rear
top mounts are now made of urethane to further
improve the damping characteristics.
There are more changes – too many to list here –
but the upshot is that the 6’s likeable dynamics
remain. The steering is enjoyably direct, the car’s
nose keen to tilt into bends with a generous but
orderly measure of roll. You’re invited not to grab this
chassis by the scruff but to flow it through direction
changes. Too much pace and it’s the vertical control
The MAZDA 6
The Mazda 6 has undergone
the third and most far-
reaching facelift since the
attractive mid-size saloon
went on sale six years ago.
Publicity photos
Mazda has also made
improvements to
sound insulation
Not that the Mazda 6 shouts
particularly loudly about it. The mesh of
the grille sits a touch deeper, its chrome
surround now extends outwards to
underline revised LED headlights, and
the lower front bumper has been re-
profiled, but overall Mazda has resisted
tampering too eagerly with the car’s
gracefully ageing features. Safer to make
more subtle changes such as mounting
the wide-bore exhaust tips a fraction
further apart for more ‘stance’.
Under the bonnet things are different,
because this updated 6 marks the
debut of Mazda’s direct-injection
2.5-litre SkyActiv-G engine. It’s making
an appearance because the company
anticipates – naturally – a slight shift in
its sales composition from diesel to petrol,
and it wants to offer buyers greater choice.
The new engine is naturally aspirated
and already serves diesel-averse
Americans who own the mammoth CX-9
SUV and its smaller sibling, the CX-5.
It also features cylinder deactivation,
operating just two of its four combustion
chambers under light throttle loads.
This range-topping 2.5 is joined by
subtly revised versions of the existing
2.0-litre SkyActiv-G engines – of 143 bhp
and 163 bhp – and is mated solely to
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Mazda’s six-speed auto gearbox, which
uses paddle-shifters mounted on the back
of a thin-rimmed steering wheel.
WHAT’S IT LIKE?
Inside it’s surprisingly plush, with a 7-inch
TFT screen on the instrument binnacle,
Nappa leather for the seats, and wood
trim apparently ‘modelled on the pillars
of ancient Japanese temples’. Mazda
has also tried to exaggerate the width
of the cabin, not least by extending the
air vents into the door trim and making
the ventilation panel wider and slimmer.
No longer does it feel as though you’re
stepping into a lowered CX-5.
The operation of the electric seats
is still offensively loud, mind, and the
infotainment system still asks you to
wade through clunky menus, even if
the resolution of the screen is now
acceptably sharp. You might expect
a company known for its engaging
sports car to position the driver more
comfortably, too. For taller drivers there’s
neither enough reach-adjustment in
the telescopic steering column nor
scope to set the lightly bolstered seats
satisfactorily low. The driving ergonomics
are otherwise straightforward and the
cabin uncluttered.
On the outside, top-of-the-range
models get 19-inch alloys with a ‘ghost-
chrome’ finish (a similar treatment is
applied to the grille) and gloss-black rear
bumper trim. You might also go for the
Soul Red Crystal paint of our test subject,
which Mazda claims is now brighter
and applied more deeply than before. It
looks superb.
There are reasons why you might
want your petrol-powered Mazda 6 to
tout more than just the 165 hp offered
by the most powerful 2.0 unit, not least
because this excellent chassis deserves it.
The front-driven 6 has always exhibited
nimbleness, changing direction easily
and neatly with steering that’s unusually
delicate, direct, and feelsome by the
standards of the class. In fact, it can be
difficult not to start judging it against
more illustrious machinery, like the
BMW 3 Series, rather than its natural
rivals such as Ford’s Mondeo and the
VW Passat.
Mazda has nevertheless made
alterations to the car’s MacPherson strut
front suspension and multi-link rear, both
of which continue to use passive dampers.
To achieve more linear steering, the front
steering knuckles have been lowered,
while the mount of the lower arm is
that gives up first, the body beginning to bob out
of time with the contours of the road, but by that
point you’re likely asking too much of a front-
driven executive saloon. Overall it’s a competent,
characterful steer.
Mazda has also made improvements to sound
insulation and, in terms of tyre-roar and engine
noise, the 6 is impressively muted at a cruise. There
seems, alas, more wind noise than before, although
this could well be because it’s now that much
more apparent.
This atmospheric 2.5-litre engine requires more
commitment than drivers of torque-rich turbodiesels
will be accustomed to – no surprise there. Peak
torque arrives only at 4000 rpm, with 195 hp arriving
at 6000 rpm, and so brisk progress isn’t simply ‘on
tap’. However, whereas those turbodiesels become
downright lifeless at high revs and its 2.0 range-mate
is eventually neutered by the car’s tonne-and-a-half
mass, the 2.5 never feels less than respectably quick,
with Sport driving mode further honing an already
sharp response to throttle inputs.
It’s a shame Mazda doesn’t offer the 2.5 with
the six-speed manual. There’s little wrong with the
shift quality of the automatic, but the light, precise
action of the manual option will be missed. Moreover,
the clutch action is conveniently devoid of heft – as
befits an everyday kind of car – and yet the brake
and throttle pedals are thoughtfully placed for rev-
matching during downshifts. Hardly the stuff of class-
leading sales, but to us it’s the sort of thing that makes
the ownership experience that much more satisfying.
SHOULD I BUY ONE?
If you care about driving and your reasonably
priced saloon must sup unleaded petrol, the
Mazda 6 makes a strong case for itself. For a
front-driver it’s not only unusually satisfying but
satisfying full stop. We have some doubts about
this 2.5-litre engine, however. It doesn’t spin out
quite as sweetly as the 2.0, and when it does, the
additional thrust comes at a disproportionate cost
to fuel consumption. With the top-spec 6 you’re also
obliged to have the six-speed automatic gearbox,
which seems a shame when the manual alternative
is so good to use. To us, the sweet-spot would be
a manual 2.0-litre car with around 180 hp, but
unfortunately that doesn’t exist.
The 6 is therefore worthy of four stars if you go
for the more powerful 2.0-litre variant in a high
specification. The interior feels more sumptuous
than ever, and the standard specification is
generous. It’s a smart, comfortable, spacious saloon
(or estate) that stands out among staid rivals both
for its design and handling. bo
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