After a long dry spell of modest offerings, Mazda is back in the performance game with a host of new products designed to reinvigorate the company's aging image. Alongside the hot RX-8 and sporty little Mazda3 is the car that hit off the performance comeback, the sizzling Mazda6. Not ones to rest on their laurels, Mazda has introduced two more models to the Mazda6 line: a sleek five-door hatchback and a very handsome sport wagon.
Contrary to popular belief, American's do not hate hatchbacks; what they hate are bargain basement hatchbacks with no power, no style and no options. Volkswagen has known this for years and that is why its GTI continues to sell like hot cakes. With the Mazda6 five-door, Mazda has incorporated all the style and sophistication of the sedan model with the utility of the wagon. The Mazda6 five-door artfully blends the hatch into the rear C-pillar, creating a sedan-like trunk and profile. With the rear hatch open, the Mazda6 five-door provides 22 cubic-feet of covered cargo space; fold the rear seats forward, and that number increases to 58.7 cubic-feet.
Mazda engineers realized that by removing part of the bulkhead from behind the rear seats, they would lose some of the sedans structural rigidity. To compensate for this fact, the five-door receives additional bracing to minimize body flex and shake.
For those who need even more room, the sleek Mazda6 Sport Wagon provides the answer. The wagon, like the five-door, mimics the sedan from the front bumper to the rear door. Unlike the sedan and five-door, the Sport Wagon's beltline (the line between the bottom of the window and the top of the door) continues to rise sharply, creating the illusion of a lowered rear roof line, much like the Audi A4 Avant. We say illusion because once inside, you'll see that the Mazda6 Sport Wagon loses nothing in the way of headroom.
The Mazda6 five-door and Sport Wagon both share the same excellent suspension as the sedan. At the rear, the links and shocks are angled inward, creating a low flat floor with minimal strut tower intrusion. This setup is also responsible for the Mazda6's phenomenal handling response. Both the five-door and Sport Wagon provide outstanding maneuverability, precise turning and razor-sharp reflexes.
A 160-horsepower 2.3-liter engine teamed to a five-speed manual transmission powers the base five-door model. This setup is both economical and fuel efficient, but does not offer the kind of power you need for passing and true performance driving. To get that power, you'll want the optional 3.0-V6. This engine is standard on the Sport Wagon and also comes teamed to the five-speed manual (a four-speed automatic with manual SportShift is optional). With 220-horsepower, the V6 has no problem moving a fully loaded car, though we did feel that low-end torque was not as ample as that of such cars as the Altima and Accord. Even with variable valve timing, if you need power quickly, you'll find the need to downshift when the tachometer is revving below 3000 rpm.
Inside, the Mazda6 is beautifully appointed, with high-grade, soft-touch plastics, rich fabrics and a tasteful blending of brushed aluminum accents and red instrumentation backlighting. From the driver's seat, the position seems perfect no matter what your size and the well-bolstered sport seats will keep both driver and passenger firmly planted; rear seat passengers will find no such side bracing, so they may just need to hang onto each other.
On both the wagon and five-door, the rear seats are designed to fold flush with the seat bottoms without the need to remove the rear-seat head rests; wagon models come with a convenient mesh divider cage panel that runs from floor to ceiling and can be mounted behind the rear seat or the driver seat. Passenger safety is assured by the standard front side impact airbags and the optional side-curtain head airbag that protects both front and rear seat passengers.
Along with its generous standard equipment list, the Mazda6 five-door and Sport Wagon offer a number of options including a sport package with 17-inch wheels, power sunroof, heated leather seats and a six-disc in-dash CD Changer.
