PARIS MOTOR SHOW: Mazda6 details revealed

Full details of the redesigned Mazda6 have been revealed at the Paris motor show, where the all-new mid-size sedan and wagon made its global debut before going on sale in Australia in the first quarter of next year.

Mazda Australia has high hopes the re-engineered 6 will attract more sales than its predecessor – which is averaging around 500 sales per month – and in the process leapfrog Honda’s Accord Euro to become Australia’s second most popular mid-size model, behind Toyota’s Camry.

“We’d be delighted if we did 600 a month with the new model,” said Mazda Australia national marketing manager, Alastair Doak.

This is despite the fact the new Mazda6 will not be available as a hatchback, which currently comprises a dominant 40 per cent of sales, nor with a manual transmission, which accounts for less than five per cent of the current sales mix.

The company’s Australian arm confirmed it had “lengthy early discussions” with its Japanese head office about the discontinuation of the 6 hatch, but says local research has since shown potential buyers are satisfied with a smaller line-up that includes a redesigned four-door sedan and wagon.

The Mazda6 sedan currently attracts less than 30 per cent of sales and is bettered by the wagon, which claims about a third of all sales.

“Clinics have shown customers are overwhelmingly happy with the new range,” said Mr Doak, who added that the availability of an automatic diesel model for the first time should see diesel sales grow considerably from less than 10 per cent with the current, manual-only offering.

He added that a host of new technologies would attract buyers to the new Mazda6, which shares the same SKYACTIV chassis and engines as the successful CX-5 soft-roader which Mazda launched to much acclaim earlier this year.

Like the CX-5, the Mazda6 includes the Japanese car maker’s latest 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engine and six-speed automatic transmission, but will also come with a new 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine.

Both the new petrol and diesel engines will be accompanied by a range of fuel-saving technologies, including idle-stop, and Mazda’s ground-breaking capacitor-based i-ELOOP regenerative braking system.

The combination will see the Mazda6 diesel deliver class-leading fuel consumption, its European specifications claiming a Toyota Prius-like 3.9L/100km, with CO2 emissions of 104g/km.

However, this figure applies only to the low-output diesel engine matched with a manual transmission, a combination that won’t be available in Australia, where fuel consumption figures are calculated based on the heaviest variant – not the lightest, as in Europe.

Australia’s most fuel-efficient Mazda6 will instead be the diesel automatic, which in Europe consumes 4.8L/100km as a sedan and 4.9L/100km as a wagon. Mazda is yet to reveal the new model’s Australian figures but, given the significantly heavier CX-5 consumes 5.7L/100km, expect the 1420kg diesel auto sedan to consume an estimated 5.0L/100km - less than the Camry Hybrid (5.2L/100km).  

The diesel produces 129kW at 4500rpm and 420Nm at 2000rpm, while the SKYACTIV-G 2.5-litre direct-injection petrol engine develops 138kW and 250Nm. That’s 10 per cent more power and 11 per cent more torque than the outgoing petrol engine, but slightly less than Europe’s 141kW/256Nm due to our lower-octane 91 RON standard unleaded.

The petrol model’s fuel consumption will also be slightly higher than the European figures of 6.3 and 6.4L/100km for sedan and wagon respectively, but 0-100km/h acceleration and top speed will be similar, meaning 7.8 seconds and 223km/h for the sedan, and 7.9 seconds and 220km/h for the wagon.

The Mazda6 diesel sedan, meantime, will hit 100km/h in 8.4 seconds on its way to a 216km/h top speed, while the wagon should manage 8.6 seconds and 215km/h.

The Mazda6 sedan rides on a significantly longer 2830mm wheelbase and is longer overall at 4865mm, but the wagon rides on a shorter 2750mm wheelbase and is 4800mm long. Width is identical for both cars at 1840mm, but the wagon is 30mm higher at 1480mm. Mazda claims class-leading rear seat leg and knee room.

The sedan’s aerodynamic drag coefficient is a class-leading 0.26Cd (wagon: 0.28Cd) and its boot capacity is 489 litres (wagon: 522 litres, extending to 1664 litres with the rear seats folded), while the wagon’s load length is about 80mm shorter at 1113mm (1873mm with the rear seats folded).

Suspension is via MacPherson struts at the front and multi-link at the rear, steering is rack-and-pinion, while braking comprises 297mm ventilated front discs and 278mm solid rears. The standard wheel size is 17-inch with 225/55 tyres, but 19-inch alloys with 225/45 tyres will be optional.

Also likely to be optional in Australia are a host of advanced safety technologies grouped under the banner ‘i-ACTIVSENSE’. They include Mazda Radar Cruise Control (MRCC), Forward Obstruction Warning (FOW), Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS), Rear Vehicle Monitoring (RVM), High-Beam Control System (HBC), Adaptive Front-lighting System (AFS), Smart Brake Support (SBS), Smart City Brake Support (SCBS) and a reversing camera.

Other new Mazda6 equipment will include headlight-integrated LEDs, 11-speaker BOSE surround sound system, eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, four new body colours (Soul Red Metallic, Blue Reflex Mica, Meteor Grey Mica and Jet Black Mica), 3.5-inch trip computer display in the instrument cluster and a 5.8-inch touch-screen infotainment system.

Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site…