2005 Mazda MAZDA6 Review (continued)
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Walkaround

The Mazda6 represents one of the sportiest exterior designs in the mid-size sedan class. Visually, it has more personality than the Accord and more spunk than the Camry. It has a strong front-end treatment that's consistent with other Mazdas. Cat's-eye headlamps and big tail lamps that feature multi-element designs enhance the action at each corner of the car.

The Mazda6 benefits from a kind of muscular conservatism inside and out. Everything in, on and under this car makes sense, and it all looks good doing it. The relationship of the lower body to the upper body looks perfect, yet the roof shape is designed for people, not for style. Its sporty profile makes the Mazda6 look smaller than it is.

The shape of the Mazda6 is truly fetching when painted a hot color and accented by Sport-level trim, which includes a body-color front grille, gray headlight bezels, clear-lens halogen fog lamps, dual oval exhaust outlets, front and rear air dams, and side sill extensions. These bits are available on base and Grand Touring models. The outside door handles are well designed and easy to grab.

The hatchback features an extended rear roof pillar sloping rearward into a raised deck lid. As Mazda says, it looks fast even when standing still. Casual observers may not notice the difference between hatchback and the sedan.

The wagon features aggressive styling, though it doesn't look as sporty as the hatchback.

Interior Features

The front seats are comfortable through a wide range of adjustments. We found them suitable for hard driving, with good upper body support and enough lower back support with the optional lumbar adjuster for all-day comfort. The Leather Package ($1,240) adds cowhide to all the right places, with thankful perforations on the seating surfaces. The Mazda6 interior is designed to be comfortable for front and rear passengers in the 95th percentile of all body shapes.

The rear seats are quite comfortable, whether sedan, hatchback or wagon. There's more than 96 cubic feet of useable space inside the Mazda6 sedan, according to the EPA measuring system, and that translates to plenty of room for four, or five in a pinch.

There are half-liter cupholders in the doors and in both front and rear center consoles, and lots of other open and covered storage. The seat pockets and door pockets are huge. Our only complaint is that the interior door handles lacked heft.

The interior design is complemented by carbon fiber, titanium and body-color finishes. The optional electroluminescent gauges are illuminated in red light, but are conventional white-on-black during the day, with nice, large and pleasing graphics. Switchgear is labeled equally well, legible during the day and illuminated in red at night.

The sedan's trunk is a good size at more than 15.2 cubic feet, and the trunk lid is designed with hinges that do not impinge in any way on the storage space. The compact, lateral-link rear suspension allows for a perfectly flat trunk floor. The standard 60/40 split rear seat folds to expand luggage space. The release levers are in the trunk, a plus for security and convenience, and the seats themselves are spring-loaded so they fold instantly with just one pull of the release.

The rear liftgate of the hatchback opens to reveal a covered cargo compartment with 22.0 cubic feet of space, nearly 50 percent more than that of the sedan. Cargo space more than doubles to 58.7 cubic feet when the rear seats are folded. As in the sedan, the 60/40 split seats fold with the touch of a button, and there is no need to remove the head rests for a near-flat cargo floor. Cargo tie-downs and two hidden compartments in the side panels add to the hatchback's versatility.

The rear compartment of the wagon provides 33.7 cubic feet of luggage space with the rear seats up and a generous 60.4 cubic feet with them folded. Adding greatly to its utility are a retractable cargo cover shade and a barrier-type net, or dog fence, that emerges from the floor and attaches to the interior roof. Tie-downs are provided.