Gerald Jones Mazda

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Walk Around

The Mazda6 is among the sportiest of the midsize sedans. Visually, it has more personality than the Accord and other family cars. It has a strong front-end treatment that's consistent with other Mazdas. Cat's-eye headlamps and big, multi-element tail lamps enhance the action at each corner of the car.

The Mazda6 benefits from a kind of muscular conservatism inside and out. Everything in, on and under this car makes sense, and it all looks good doing it. The relationship of the lower body to the upper body looks perfect, yet the roof shape is designed for people, not for style. Its sporty profile makes the Mazda6 look smaller than it is.

Mazda last freshened its look for 2006, with new headlamps, revised tail lamps, new front and rear bumper fascia, and new side sills that added more edge to the styling. Headlight housings are clear or smoked-black, depending on model and body style.

The shape of the Mazda6 is truly fetching when painted a hot color. The basic Sport sedan is handsome, and its dual oval exhaust outlets are a nice, sporty touch. The outside door handles are well designed and easy to grab. Sport VE and higher models are accented by a body-color front grille, front and rear air dams, side sill extensions and, on Grand Touring models, clear-lens fog lamps.

The hatchback features an extended rear roof pillar that slopes back into a raised deck lid. As Mazda says, it looks fast even when standing still; and yet casual observers may not notice the difference between the 5-Door and the sedan. Overall length and height dimensions are identical for the two bodies, although the hatchback weighs about 100 pounds more.

Of the two body styles, the sedan offers the stiffer structure. A stiff chassis is a key element to achieving sharp handling and a smooth ride.

Interior

2008 Mazda 6

The front seats of the Mazda6 are comfortable through a wide range of adjustments. We found them suitable for hard driving, with good upper body support and enough lower back support with the optional lumbar adjuster for all-day comfort. Touring and Grand Touring models add cowhide to all the right places, with thankful perforations on the seating surfaces.

The interior is designed to be comfortable for front and rear passengers in the 95th percentile of all body shapes. The rear seats are quite accommodating, whether in the sedan or hatchback. There's more than 96 cubic feet of passenger space inside the Mazda6 sedan, according to the EPA measuring system, and only a fraction less in the hatchback; and that translates to plenty of room for four. You can squeeze in five in a pinch.

The interior design is complemented by carbon fiber, titanium and body-color finishes. Grand Touring models feature electroluminescent gauges that are illuminated in red light, but are conventional white-on-black during the day, with nice, large and pleasing graphics. Switchgear is labeled well, legible during the day and illuminated in red at night. The heating/air conditioning system is easily controlled by three big knobs. The Bose radio does not look upscale, however, with shiny black buttons that are flush-mounted and similar in appearance. The seat heater switches are tucked away on the center console. Lots of open and covered storage is available, and the seat pockets and door pockets are huge. Cup holders are provided in the front and rear center consoles as well as in the door pockets.

The trunk of the sedan measures 15.2 cubic feet, and the compact, lateral-link rear suspension allows for a perfectly flat trunk floor. The trunk lid is designed with hinges that do not impinge on the storage space. The standard 60/40 split rear seat folds to expand luggage space. The release levers are in the trunk for security and the seat backs are spring-loaded so they fold instantly with just one pull of the release.

The 5-Door hatchback's rear liftgate opens to reveal a covered cargo compartment with 22.1 cubic feet of space, nearly 50 percent more than that of the sedan. Cargo space more than doubles to 58.7 cubic feet when the rear seats are folded, which is a hair more (yes, more) than in Mazda's CX-7 SUV/crossover. The 60/40 split seats fold with the touch of a button, and no need to remove the head rests, revealing a nearly flat cargo floor. Cargo tie-downs and two hidden compartments in the side panels add versatility.

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