Earlier on in the week JOE was invited to check out Mazda’s all-new flagship model, the Mazda6. The only problem was that we had to go to Portugal to drive it… which wasn’t actually a problem at all.
When I arrived in Lisbon airport with a couple of other Irish motoring journos we were met by ‘the Mazda girls’, who were worthy of being on ‘Portugal’s Next Top Model’. Looking back, the girls must have been a sign of good things to come.
After a brief lunch we were brought straight down to the VIP section of the underground car park where at least 20 Mazda6s in all shapes and sizes lay in wait for a test drive – it really was like being a kid in a candy store. The next step was to sign in and take off. The only thing we were told was to make our way from Lisbon to the Tróia Peninsula, which is 15-minute boat ride south of Setubal. How you got there was up to you.
I hopped into the 2.2-litre Diesel wagon with the 6-speed manual gearbox, which is expected to be the big seller here in Ireland, and in fairness, I wouldn’t be surprised if it did do well. It looks great, handles like a dream and with the Mazda6 starting at €28,745, it’s positioned nicely against the competition.
The route I took to the peninsula was a nice long drive that brought me on some tight winding roads and on some sparsely populated highways, so there was plenty of room to really open up the Mazda6 and test it’s capabilities.
The car drove absolutely brilliantly. Its brakes, gears and steering were all extremely responsive without being overbearing; there’s nothing worse than a car that practically drives itself. It also took off like a bat out of hell when I had to drop a gear in order to overtake a long artic lorry, and I was past the truck before I even noticed.
As for the looks… it’s drop dead gorgeous. Mazda really hit the nail on the head with this one. Everywhere we went little Portuguese men and women stopped to stare as we drove by, probably assuming that it was a Jag or something similar – in fairness, it could easily pass off as one. Keep your eyes out for them on Irish roads over the next few months and you’ll see what I mean.
The stunning features on the 6 are all thanks to “KODO – Soul of Motion”, a design theme inspired by the movements of animals in the wild. It features the signature wing grille that gives the car a sporty, masculine edge, but it’s not so aggressive that it might put off perspective families thinking of trading in for a new car.
Overall the trip was great and it was nice to drive a great car on traffic-free roads to see what it could really do. However, that certainly didn’t alter my overall opinion on the Mazda6. If I could have my choice of keeping one car that I’ve test driven here at JOE it would probably be the Toyota GT86, but the Mazda6 definitely comes in at a close second.
We’ll be getting the brand new Mazda6 later on in the year for a good proper test, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled for that one.
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