Mazda 6e 2026 Review

Pricing for the 2026 Mazda 6e is yet to be confirmed, but the Japanese brand promises the incoming electric (EV) sedan will start under $55,000 when it arrives in Australia in Q2 2026.

That positions the 6e alongside the most affordable electric sedans, including the Tesla Model 3 (from $54,900 plus on-road costs) and BYD Seal (from $46,990 plus ORCs).

Mazda hasn’t revealed full specifications for the 6e yet – such as the number of variants for Australia – but promises a cabin loaded with luxury and tech. Expect similar inclusions to those offered in Europe, including a big 14.6-inch touchscreen, 14-speaker Sony sound system, tri-zone climate control, panoramic glass roof, heated front and rear (outboard) seats, and a suite of driver assist and safety aids.

What we do know so far is that every Mazda 6e variant coming to Australia will be powered by a rear-mounted single electric motor (190kW/380Nm), paired with a 78kWh lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery.

The Australian-spec LFP battery differs from the two options available overseas (68kWh LFP and 80kWh NMC) and is said to deliver more than 500km of driving range. However, local consumption figures and recharging rates are yet to detailed.

It’s also yet to be revealed if the 6e will inherit the Deepal L07’s sub-par 92kW charging speed.

When the 2026 Mazda 6e reaches Australia next year, it’ll adopt the firmer suspension tune developed for Europe rather than the softer, ‘milder’ set-up of the Chinese-market EZ-6.

Mazda Australia shipped a Euro-spec 6e straight from Germany and let carsales loose at Lang Lang Proving Ground in Victoria for a first taste of what’s coming. And from the driver’s seat, the verdict was… mixed.

The circa-2000kg 6e moves off as silently as you’d expect and while acceleration isn’t brisk, it’s far from underpowered, building speed gradually and confidently.

The standout moment came on Lang Lang’s high-speed banked oval, where the 6e felt remarkably composed. We reached 170km/h – speeds you won’t (legally) hit in Australia but could experience on a German autobahn – and the cabin remained impressively calm.

With minimal wind and road noise, it felt more like 90km/h, showcasing just how stable the 6e is at warp speed.

On a road loop designed to simulate high-speed country driving, the electric sedan’s ride errs on firm, but the passive suspension still offers enough compliance to take the edge off sharper hits. The trade-off is the electric sedan can bring a disconcerting amount of lateral movement on uneven surfaces, leaving passengers unsettled.

Steering feel and feedback were underwhelming, with a default mode that felt much too light and a ‘Sport’ mode that didn’t add much weight.

There’s decent bite from the brakes, which offer a nice linear feel, however that feeling is somewhat hampered by the fact you need to stomp on them unnecessarily hard to achieve that stopping power.

Decent grip levels are thanks to 19-inch alloys wrapped in Michelin e-Primacy tyres, which promise better absorption, reduced harshness control and lower resistance than the Chinese-spec versions.

Meanwhile, the test mule’s high consumption reading of 24.8kWh/100km was likely inflated given the fact it was being driven enthusiastically by an array of drivers.

Ahead of our drive, Mazda detailed the changes made to the European EV in a media roundtable with Alexander Fritsche – a Mazda engineer with almost three decades of experience at the Japanese car maker – responsible for the 6e’s European market development.

Compared to the Chinese EZ-6, Fritsche said the engineers went all-in for Europe: the rear subframe was “completely reworked and remade,” dampers and bushings were retuned, stabiliser bars thickened, and roll control pushed to its “technical maximum” limit to eliminate uncontrolled body movement on the more undulating roads found in Europe.

Fritsche said the team benchmarked cars like the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y – which Mazda engineers found to be “too aggressive” in terms of ride comfort – along with the Volkswagen ID.3 and several Audi models.

Also responsible for tuning its driver assistance systems (ADAS), Fritsche noted engineers reduced the alert sounds and rates of interaction from several driver aids compared to Chinese-delivered versions.

On test, the system seems to have done a decent job, because the 6e’s ADAS interruptions were few and far between.

Inside, the 6e feels every bit Mazda, with materials that come across as properly premium and plush. Practicality is solid for a sedan too: the boot offers around 460 litres, and there’s even a 70-litre frunk – big enough for an adult to sit in.

Since our brief drive, Mazda Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi confirmed to carsales that even more tweaks to the suspension, steering and brake feel will be made ahead of the 6e’s official arrival, which is a good thing as you’ll soon find out.

Even without being told the 2026 Mazda 6e shares its foundations with a Chinese model, there are clues it isn’t a ground-up Mazda product.

Some are subtle, others less so; particularly in the cabin. For example, modern Mazda owners will notice the familiar font used across the infotainment and instrument displays has been replaced with a more generic typeface.

The digital speedometer’s numbers are the only place Mazda’s signature font shows up—which is odd, because it doesn’t match the rest of the cabin. It’s a tiny detail, but for anyone with OCD, it’s the kind of thing that’ll drive them a little insane. Small touches like this would make the 6e feel more authentically Mazda.

The large, tablet-style central screen also feels typical ‘Chinese EV’ rather than Mazda, as do the flush exterior door handles – which are very frustrating to operate.

They extend when the car is unlocked but retract again after a short period, even if the vehicle remains unlocked, leaving you to awkwardly press one end while pulling the other. Many modern cars use this handle design, but few have been this fiddly to operate – although the Leapmotor C10 is one notable exception.

An electronically extendable rear spoiler can be activated through the touchscreen or automatically when you unlock the car with ‘Welcome’ mode set up, where it’ll pop up to greet you. Either way – and this is entirely subjective – it looks painfully awkward from most angles up close, even if it offers some aerodynamic benefit at high speed.

On the move, the cabin is mostly quiet, though noticeable wind noise from the driver’s side (LHD) mirror annoyed. Outward visibility isn’t ideal either: narrow glass, the oversized central display, and a bulky rear-view mirror combine to restrict the forward view.

Finally, the steering wheel looks like it was designed by someone who’s never driven a car. The buttons at 9 and 3 o’clock stretch almost to the rim’s edge, so if that’s your natural hand position, you’ll probably bump the shortcut (left) or voice assist (right) buttons while driving.

Even at 10 and 2, you’ll likely bump those buttons mid-corner. They sit so close to the rim, and their elongated, raised shape means even a light graze on the edge will trigger them.

In my case – several times – it was voice assist, which brings to life a little AI helper that’s annoyingly persistent. Even when you tell it to go away (i.e. ‘cancel’), it says goodbye and then waits a second before adding something like “let me know if you need anything”. Just go away!

The 2026 Mazda 6e is shaping up as a promising machine and should stack up well against rival EVs like the Model 3 and Seal, thanks to a competitive (under $55K) price point and decent level of standard equipment.

Mazda’s worked hard to make sure the 6e doesn’t feel like a rebadged Chinese car, but it still needs polish if it wants to deliver the iconic sportiness the brand is known for—because dynamically, it doesn’t feel like a Mazda.

Nor does it feel quite like any of its closest rivals, which won’t be a bad thing for those wanting a slightly more plush-riding EV.

Again, this is a first taste, and we’re told local fine-tuning is still taking place, so we’ll have to reserve full judgement until we can get behind the wheel of a right-hand drive production version early next year.

Either way, Mazda executives told carsales this week it’s received at least 2000 expressions of interest for the 6e, suggesting there’s plenty of interest in its next EV.

2026 Mazda 6e at a glance: 
Price: TBA, estimated under $55,000 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Second quarter 2026 
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 190kW/380Nm 
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 78kWh lithium-iron phosphate 
Range: TBA, estimated more than 500km
Energy consumption: TBA
Safety rating: Not tested

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