LA MOTOR SHOW: Sizzling new Mazda6

The wraps have come off the upgraded, now turbocharged 2018 Mazda6 sedan under the bright lights of the Los Angeles motor show at the LA Convention Centre.

Like a jab of Botox, or a nip here and a tuck there, the car's updated exterior design gives the ageing mid-sizer a fresh lease on life and looked right at home in LA, where facelifts and implants are as common gridlock on the 405 freeway.

Coming to Australia early in the second half of 2018 (think August or September), the new model is expected to rise in price over the existing model, which currently starts at $32,490.

Managing director of Mazda Australia, Vinesh Bhindi, told motoring.com.au it was too early to talk about pricing but said "I suspect there will be a price change, especially with the turbo engine."

Top-spec Mazda6 Atenza and GT models will be fitted with the CX-9's turbocharged 2.5T engine, which outputs 170kW/420Nm, but regular models are also expected to go up in price thanks improved standard equipment.

"It's a significant facelift. It will be competitive and offer good value for money but in terms of how much the price will change, it's too early to say," said Bhindi.

The Mazda Australia boss confirmed the Mazda6 wagon will remain part of the upgraded range, but don't get your hopes up about an all-wheel drive version of the car.

"We won't see it yet, but the wagon is there to stay in our market. We also have AWD versions of the Mazda6 in other markets, but it's not for Australia," said Bhindi.

"I don't think there is demand for all-wheel drive [in Australia]," he added, observing that only two blokes really want it.

"I'll be one, you'll be the other," he laughed.

New look, engine and tech
The revised 6's new look has been dubbed "mature elegance" by Mazda and with Nappa leather, Japanese Sen wood inlays and other luxury in evidence, the term premium was bandied about at the LA launch like a beach ball at a Hollywood pool party.

However, the changes go beyond the car's redesigned interior and exterior.

The feisty new 170kW turbo-petrol engine joins the line-up, while improved sound insulation, improved ride comfort and better interior materials are claimed to deliver a more upmarket experience than before. The cabin is claimed to be all-new except for the steering wheel and some trim pieces.

The six-speed automatic transmission returns for active duty and the five-seat, front-drive sedan will maintain its sizable boot and roomy rear seats.

All models will come standard with full-speed radar cruise control, which automatically adjusts the car's speed when it approaches another vehicle from behind. It can accelerate and brake autonomously in slow-moving congested traffic, stopping and starting when necessary.

The 2018 Mazda6 gets lane-keeping assist (mild automatic steering), traffic sign recognition and intelligent speed assist too.

There's a digital head-up display projected onto the windscreen, 360-degree parking cameras, plus an improved 8.0-inch infotainment touch-screen display.

Even the seats have been renovated, now wider and softer with sculpting designed to keep occupants' spines in the "natural S-shape humans use when standing".

Mazda6 Atenza goes deluxe
The best stuff has been saved for the range-topping Mazda6 Atenza model, which rides on 19-inch alloy wheels and gets ventilated, air-conditioned front seats – a first for the Japanese car-maker.

Atenza models also get a customisable 7.0-inch digital instrument display, not to mention brown Nappa leather seat upholstery and Japanese Sen wood accents.

Rev-heads will be keen to hear about the new 2.5-litre turbo engine -- the first turbo-petrol engine in a Mazda6 since the all-wheel drive Mazda6 MPS of 2005.

The second deployment of the engine after the CX-9, the new 2.5-litre turbo four will be available only in the top-grade Mazda6 GT and Atenza models. But if you feel the need for speed, you'll have to spend up, with prices expected to eclipse the current range-topping $48,240 Mazda6 Atenza 2.2 turbo-diesel sedan.

The 2.5T generates exactly the same output as the CX-9, but that SUV weighs significantly more than the Mazda6, so the latter should be faster. It will also be more efficient than the CX-9, which consumes 8.4L/100km while emitting less CO2.

On top of the 2.5T two other engines will be offered. The 2.2-litre turbo-diesel remains available in Touring models and above, along with the non-turbo 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine. The latter features cylinder deactivation, essentially shutting down the first and last cylinders in certain situations (40-80km/h) to save fuel.

All models retain G-Vectoring control, a torque-vectoring system designed to improve the car's cornering dynamics and stability. Ride comfort has also been improved, says Mazda, to provide a smoother driving experience.

The levels of noise, vibration and harshness have been dialled down thanks to several reinforcements across various chassis components. The steering rack has been "rigid-mounted" to the chassis, delivering improved steering feel and response, claims Mazda.

Mazda6 keeps on trucking
Four model grades will be retained for the new Mazda6 -- Sport, Touring, GT and Atenza -- but Mazda is still finalising specification levels and pricing as it negotiates with the factory in Japan.

"We'll keep the four models we have right now, but what upgrades are in each model are yet to be confirmed. We're not shrinking the range offering but not expanding either," Bhindi told motoring.com.au.

The mid-size car segment remains huge in North America, with the likes of the Subaru Legacy/Liberty, Toyota Camry, Nissan Altima and Honda Accord selling in droves, hence the Los Angeles debut. Australian tastes have shifted toward SUVs, however, leading to the decline of the medium passenger car market.

Despite remaining the second best selling car in its segment behind the Camry here, sales of the Mazda6 have started to slide both in Australia and globally.

However, while the volume-selling Mazda3 will jump the queue when it is renewed ahead of the Mazda6 in early 2019, the Japanese car-maker has signalled its intention to follow up yet another Mazda6 facelift with an all-new model previewed by the Vision Coupe concept at last month's Tokyo show.

And Mazda Australia's MD says there's still life in the medium car market Down Under.

"It may not be significantly large compared to where it was decades ago, but I think there is still interest in sedans. We do 200-250 Mazda6 sales per month in Australia. We think it'll maintain that level," said Bhindi.

"But really, in the future, it depends on whether the sedans are taken in a direction that makes them more appealing in terms of design and packaging down the track."