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Mazda 6:
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Good points:
Value, ride, room, interior features, gas mileage, and shift linkage
Needs improvement: Heavy trunk lid, backseat room, power, turning radius,
readouts, resale, and torque steer
When we review cars they usually fall into three categories. First, those
instantly feel comfortable. Secondly, those vehicles that defy us to find
something good to say about them. Finally, and this is where the Mazda 6 fits
nicely, vehicles that slowly grow on you. The saddest part is that because it
takes time for these cars to make their attributes known many people pass them
by because they only have an opportunity to take a short ride. It is interesting
that both the 6 and the Mazda RX-8 did not make initial good impressions on us,
but ultimately both proved to be stellar values and enjoyable vehicles.
Essentially the bottom line is that the Mazda 6 is comfortable, roomy, and well
priced but it does not overwhelming in any one area. Perhaps that is damning it
with faint praise, but the Mazda is in a very competitive market where the Honda
Accord, new Ford and Toyota Camry are active players. Somehow the Mazda 6 seems
to split the differences among those cars by offering either room, performance,
or pricing that they can not match in one way or the other.
Mom’s view: What grabbed my attention immediately was the spoiler on the
rear deck. It gave the car a racer image that the engine could not back up so
why bother? In addition, it weighs a lot which made it extremely difficult for
me to raise the trunk lid with one hand. In other words, the Mazda 6 and I were
not making friends. Adding to the negative image was a large turning radius that
made getting into tight parking spots a difficult proposition. There was also
the very long trunk and it lacked a cargo net. So when the grocery bags fell
over the only way for me to retrieve them was to fold down the rear seat.
Things didn’t get
any better when I could not read the HVAC readouts with my polarized sun glasses
and got tired of having to decipher the barely legible dials. Even when the
temperature was set at a comfortable level the system didn’t want to behave.
However, after a few days I had mastered the controls learned to park the Mazda
without fuss and was becoming enamored with its quiet ride and effortless to
shift five-speed manual transmission. The 6 was becoming very user friendly.
Indeed, I was growing possessive of it making sure I had the keys safely hidden
from the others after I was through with my evaluations.
Although the body lean of the Mazda was too much to make it a worthy canyon
runner, the 6 was competent enough to make me at ease when mountain driving. The
strong safety features augmented that feeling. Although the steering is fairly
precise, when you accelerate strongly there is noticeable torque steer. In
normal driving this is not experienced at all.
In terms of safety items the new Mazda S has four-wheel disc brakes,
whiplash-reducing front seats, ABS with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution, and
traction control with optional side airbags for front occupants and full-length
side curtain airbags. The government test scores Mazda got mixed reviews with
the best ratings coming in front impact crashes.
Overall, the 6 was more fun to drive than its competition, especially with the
great shifting transmission and nice soft clutch.
Young working woman’s view: An ample supply of standard equipment
on the base Mazda 6 makes it a noteworthy consideration. You get a
tilt/telescoping steering wheel, air conditioning, six-speaker CD stereo,
steering wheel redundant audio controls, cruise control and power windows,
mirrors and locks. Stepping up to the smooth V6 brings with it the 220
horsepower engine, 17-inch alloy wheels, and automatic climate controls. I think
that the base four-cylinder engine has enough power for me with 160 horsepower.
The 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine moves 60 more horses under the hood. I found
the five speed standard transmission painless to live with, but the four-speed
automatic would probably be my first choice for daily commuting. The problem was
that the larger engine carries with it a big premium.
The most
interesting options are the luxury Package with leather upholstery, a power
driver seat, very difficult to read reddish electro luminescent gauges, and
heated seats and rear view mirrors. The Sport Package adds fog lights, an
underbody kit, fake titanium interior trim and a very heavy rear spoiler.
We got around 24 mpg with the V6, but could have done better. The 18-gallon fuel
tank makes for a 400-mile cruising radius. And, during those cruises the Mazda
was very undemanding to live with. However, when you have to make high-speed
transitions moves the chassis displays a need for more strength.
As a businesswoman I always am aware of the competition and with the Mazda 6
there is plenty. The best selling Ford Taurus, Toyota Camry, Nissan Altima, and
our favorite, the Honda Accord are just some of the models priced similarly to
the Mazda. And, the Mazda’s back seat is not as roomy as most of the others.
60/40-split rears seat folds down if you need additional space, but the trunk is
very spacious with a 17.6-cubic-foot capacity.
So why buy the Mazda 6? The ride, handling, and unique look separate it from the
others. The steering feel is about average, the suspension is accepting of large
bumps and tries it best on curves, and the car is fairly quiet on highways. Add
to that one of the better warranties, the Mazda comes with a four year, 50,000
mile package while most of the others have the more sedate three year, 36,000
offering.
I would buy this car because it fits into my price range, looks sharp, gets
reasonable gas mileage, has good safety scores, and takes regular gas. I would
buy the base "i" model and get them to throw in a cargo net.
Young unemployed male’s view: Yep, got laid off. Tell me again how great
the recovery is when all the other guys around me are struggling to find work
that pays more then minimum wages. Worse, the public colleges have all increased
their tuition. And, to top that off, my singing group was performing at the
House of Blues in Las Vegas when we were told that the next attraction wanted to
come out and we were sent packing. Not even a complimentary room. Now you know
what kind of mood I am in so keep that in mind when I tell you the Mazda wasn’t
bad. The engine was peppy, gas mileage acceptable, room for plenty of items I
can no longer afford to use such as my snow board, an agile feel, good brake
touch, and it has good looks so when I park it in the Human Resources parking
lot to get my unemployment check it doesn’t look like I’ve hit bottom.
Dad’s view: I could not stand the gauges. The red lighting was impossible
to read with sunglasses on and at night the thin font make a quick check
impossible for me. I also had a great deal of trouble reading the climate and
radio controls where the words and the finish blended together in the same
fashion as that on the Infiniti G35. I also questioned the dial placement so far
ahead of the readout. Take a good look at the photo of the dash area and note
how the temperature and station readouts are high on the dash and the controls
knobs low. Very confusing and difficult to decipher.
I don’t have
anything positive to say about the optional rear spoiler. It added a great deal
of weight to the rear trunk lid and took away from the rear visibility. I didn’t
think it added anything to the good looks of the Mazda.
In daily travels our 220 horsepower V6 was efficient and only when it was pushed
did you notice its limitations at low speeds. The transmission shifter was
exceptional. It was excellent and made heavy traffic situations easy although I
wished the clutch had a little more feel to it. The car is practical, fairly
inexpensive to maintain, and is nicely finished. There are some nice touches
such as strut-type lid hinges that don't fold into the trunk space,
uncomplicated to fold down rear seats, and lots of little storage spaces.
Living with the Mazda exposed some problems that we did not notice at first. The
opening is too small for large items, the rear seats do not fold flat, the
steering wheel does not have enough range of movements, and the rear doors don’t
open wide enough for easy access. These are small issues, but they can be
annoying.
Recently, Edmunds had a test of ten family sedans. They had everything from
Korean cars to American and Japanese competitors and decided that the Accord was
the best followed by the Mazda with the Camry in third. We could have saved them
a lot of time since we arrived at that conclusion a long time ago. However, we
are The Car Family and these vehicles are our specialty.
Family conference: The Mazda 6 is well done and deserving of attention.
It offers that difficult combination of utility, ride, economy, and looks. If
the more pedestrian looking sedans are boring to you, the Mazda should be
experienced in both six and our cylinder models.
Written by The
Car Family |
