The “new” Mazda6 will roll out for its first reveal at the upcoming Los Angeles Auto Show. It’s not entirely new, just re-engineered and refined, which all car companies say about mid-cycle refreshes. But in this case, the new Mazda6 is indeed a rather refined and sharpened car.
KODO Design
Mazda has been making a big deal of late about the Japanese craftsmanship they put into every one of their products. And for a lot of car companies, something like that would be little more than marketing codswallop. In Mazda’s case, it’s actually true. Mazda sweats this refined stuff – things like stitching on leather steering wheels and compound radii on dashboards – all the time. I once met the guy who was in charge of designing the exhaust system for the first generation Miata, and he told me he listened to tapes of various sports cars revving up and down on his commute to and from the Hiroshima factory for the better part of a year to figure out the Miata’s exhaust note. And that was in 1989, and Mazda shows no signs of slowing down in the least.
Fast forward to 2017 and Mazda says they will be rolling out the new(ish) Mazda6 sedan at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show. The Mazda6 is the flagship of their passenger car lineup and the development team had the goal to “enhance the daily lives of people who love cars.” Yeah, I know, automakers can get rather pretentious with this stuff, but that doesn’t mean Mazda is joking about it. The upcoming Mazda6 will incorporate premium details and new engineering concepts and technologies based on what Mazda calls its “human-centered design philosophy.” And, the more I look at this car, the more I believe them. It’s as clean and austere as a Danish couch form 1965, but there’s a curious humanity about it.
The Feels
Mazda says the whole idea behind the 6’s styling is covered by the term “Mature Elegance,” which, yeah, I know, sounds like a dating app for the over-50 crowd. Mazda is, of course, not joking about that either. The design team worked to advance the quality feel of both the interior and exterior. Mazda says this results in “a look of greater maturity and composure.” But I also think they were right in using the word “feel” because the gradual curves on the Mazda6, both inside and out, really invite you to slide a hand along all those arcs for a very long time.
And the materials Mazda uses now really back this up. A new high-grade interior features Sen Wood, a type of Japanese ash that is often used in traditional Japanese instruments and furniture, for an enhanced premium feel. Mazda says the overall design is more “distinctive, premium, beautiful, and dignified, as befits the flagship of Mazda’s passenger car lineup.” I’m not going to argue with that.
Power & Performance
The powertrain lineup for the upcoming Mazda6 implements a bunch of new technologies, such as cylinder deactivation for the SKYACTIV-G 2.5-liter engine for fuel efficiency on long hauls. The turbocharged gasoline engine with direct injection has been added to the lineup in North America. This plant first showed up in the bigger CX-9 crossover, and Mazda says it produces torque on par with a 4-liter V8.
We’ll be the judge of that, and we here at One Automoblog Towers would love to give the blown big block Mazda6 a brisk run around the neighborhood just to be sure.
And since this is 2017, the Mazda6 is festooned with enough high tech gee-gaws to keep a satellite in orbit. For a start there is a wider range of safety technologies on hand. These are said to help the driver identify potential risks and reduce the likelihood of crunching the car or the people inside it. Mazda Radar Cruise Control can now bring the car to a standing stop and take off again when the vehicle in front moves away, which sounds pretty impressive. Also notable is Mazda’s latest 360 Degree View Monitor. All this new stuff works in concert with the car’s previously introduced safety features.
Press Conference Reveal
Mazda will be showing some other interesting cars at the Los Angeles Auto Show, but so far, all they’ve provided is a list and no definite details. A press conference is planned for November 29th at 10:30 am PST. Below is everything that will be on their stand if you happen to be in SoCal and want to swing by and check it out for yourself.
Tony Borroz has spent his entire life racing antique and sports cars. He means well, even if he has a bias toward lighter, agile cars rather than big engine muscle cars or family sedans.
Mazda Exhibits at the 2017 Los Angeles Auto Show
| Models Scheduled for Sale | New Mazda6 sedan (World premiere)
Updated Mazda CX-5 (North American premiere) |
| Currently Available Models | Mazda3, Mazda CX-3, Mazda CX-9, Mazda MX-5 RF |
| Reference Exhibits | Mazda VISION COUPE next-generation design vision model (North American premiere)
Mazda RT24-P prototype race car with Mazda Team Joest livery and driver lineup Mazda MX-5 (Global MX-5 Cup spec) Mazda MX-5 Halfie (A half production car/half racecar demonstration model) |
| Technology Exhibits | SKYACTIV-G 2.0 (gasoline engine)
SKYACTIV-G 2.5T (turbocharged gasoline engine) |
Photos & Source: Mazda North American Operations.
