Only after discarding the manufactured teen-idol image he had long outgrown did country-tinged balladeer Ricky (a.k.a. “Rick”) Nelson finally strike pay dirt. After years of grudgingly toeing the pop-star line did the country-rock pioneer pen his 1972 hit, “Garden Party,” featuring the experiential chorus: “But it’s all right now, I’ve learned my lesson well/ You see, you can’t please everyone, so you’ve got to please yourself.”
Forty years later, that sentiment seemingly resonates with Mazda, a company whose best products (the Miata, the RX-7, the RX-8) always seem to come when ignoring the status quo. By the company’s own admission, the previous-generation 6 suffered a slight identity crisis at the hands of committee decisions and raging envy of roomier sedans. This time around, with virtually every model in the segment (the Nissan Altima, the Honda Accord, the Ford Fusion, the Chevrolet Malibu, to name a few) freshly redesigned and aiming for the top of the charts, Mazda has wisely chosen to go its own way—we’ll spare you the classic-rock metaphor on that one—with the 2014 Mazda 6 sedan, building precisely the car its engineers and product planners envisioned.
Coming to America?
Mazda let us loose in a few “late, late preproduction” European-spec cars equipped with Skyactiv diesel and gasoline powerplants. The gas-powered 6 won’t make its way to our shores until January 2013, and the diesel has yet to be confirmed for our market. Mazda wouldn’t outright deny the possibility of bringing over the diesel engine, however, and we fully expect it to be offered here in the 6 and the CX-5.
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According to Mazda, the 2.2-liter’s compression ratio of 14.0:1 is the world’s lowest in a production diesel engine. This enables the adoption of an all-aluminum block, lighter engine components, and optimized combustion timing. We had only a few hours with the engine, but we came away convinced that it could make a run at dethroning VW’s TDI as the mass-market, family-sedan compression-ignition king. Bring it, Mazda.
The direct-injected 2.5-liter, 16-valve Skyactiv gasoline engine that is confirmed for the States performs with equal aplomb, exploiting its higher-rpm capabilities to produce 189 hp at 5700 rpm. When called on to perform downshifts, the six-speed auto responds smartly and delivers 189 ft-lb of torque at 3250 rpm, hustling the vehicle with relative ease. (We estimate curb weights to ring in at 3200 to 3300 pounds.) Only in the direct shadow of the diesel does the gasoline engine feel a little anemic, and that’s primarily at low rpm. A balance shaft is employed to quell vibrations, and in contrast to the diesel, the gas engine features an ultra-high compression ratio for its engine type (in this case 13.0:1). Don’t tune out just yet, spendthrifts—Mazda says it will run fine on regular-grade fuel when it arrives here in the U.S.
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Calibrated for linear, easy-to-control application, the throttle enables smooth getaways in both manual- and automatic-equipped cars. There’s a kickdown detent in the accelerator pedal’s travel at about 95 percent; hold steady or back off slightly, and the transmission will stay in the current gear. It’s great for maintaining speed around increasing-radius or blind corners. Of course, one could just engage manual mode and select gears with the shifter or wheel-mounted paddles, but we’ll take increased vehicle control however we can get it.
The manual gearbox is said to have been tuned with the Miata’s in mind. According to Mazda, the throws are shortened slightly and shifter length reduced by almost two inches compared with last year’s Mazda 6 self-shifter. Overall, the new transmission has been lightened and modified for less friction in pursuit of improved fuel economy. In use, it snicks from cog to cog smoothly and intuitively, with enough mechanical feel remaining that you don’t forget there’s a box full of gears on the other end.
The electrically assisted steering is nothing if not consistent; from lock-to-lock, it responds in a perfectly linear fashion that makes navigating long sweepers a joy. Mazda engineers say they placed their primary focus on initial turn-in and self-centering when honing the steering, and they redesigned the steering knuckle to improve component rigidity without, they say, compromising other characteristics.
Braking displays similarly well-balanced characteristics, with pedal travel directly commensurate with the vehicle’s speed reduction. Top-of-pedal response is crisp, and you can dial in the desired rate of deceleration with precision.
The cars we drove wore summer tires on 19-inch wheels, and Mazda tells us the North American–market 6 is still undergoing final tuning and testing, in part to optimize the suspension for all-season tires. Company reps reassured us repeatedly that the chassis tune for the U.S. will remain at least 98 percent identical to its European counterparts, which is good, as the damping characteristics of the strut and twin-tube suspenders offer a nearly perfect blend of feel, comfort, and control. One concern: On coarse pavement, road noise transmitted to the cabin could be shockingly loud. We’re left wondering if owners will need to pick up some earplugs to go with their snow tires in the winter, although the all-season rubber might quiet things down, too.
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Animal Instincts
According to Mazda, the new 6 is the purest expression yet of the brand’s Kodo design language. Compared with the androgynous styling of most cars in its segment, the 6’s aggressive fascia and front fender bulges look positively butch, and its profile displays more character lines than Johnny Depp. Mazda chief designer Akira Tamatani told us the fascia was designed to look like an animal that’s crouched and ready to spring forward, and the front fender bulges represent shoulder muscles and the power to grip the road. The 6 is the first Mazda to incorporate LEDs and a halo ring into the headlamp units, and both add an upmarket air.
The
styling theme continues inside, with most lines sweeping rearward.
Generous applications of soft-touch plastics accent a clean, fairly
minimalist cabin that we rather like. An eight-way-adjustable driver’s
seat makes finding the optimal driving position a cinch. Rear-seat
passengers benefit from extra knee- and footroom made possible by
thinner front seatbacks and widened openings under the front seats. A
trio of round gauges (the rightmost is an info screen) appears front and
center in traditional fashion. Although the Tom Tom–sourced nav
system’s graphics appeared to be improved over those in our current long-term Mazda CX-5, we enjoyed using it far more when ignoring the 5.8-inch screen and simply listening to the turn-by-turn voice guidance.
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Yeah, but What About…
We’ll have to wait for the inevitable comparison test to fully tease out the facts, but we can tell you that in comparison to the excellent new Honda Accord, every input in the 6 requires slightly more effort and feels sportier. And whereas the Honda seems to float on the road, the Mazda feels more intimately involved with the tarmac.
U.S. pricing won’t be released until closer to the car’s January 2013 release date, but we expect it will fall in line with the competition and start in the low-$20,000 range. As it stands, our first impression shows that the 2014 Mazda 6 delivers on the company’s familiar slogan while simultaneously breaking some new ground.
Sadly, Rick Nelson’s “Garden Party” never arrived at a similarly optimistic conclusion, rather pessimistically containing the final line, “If memories were all I sang/I’d rather drive a truck.” Had Nelson waited two more years to complete the song, he’d have seen Mazda unveil its quirky, irrepressibly upbeat rotary-powered pickup, one that surely would have had him reaching for his eraser.
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