I picked up my Mazda6 TS2 2.2d 163 estate a couple of weeks ago and have since clocked up around 1300 miles on a family holiday to the Highlands, so I thought I might have a go at writing a little review for those who may be interested.
I love the looks of the car. Granted, having come from owning a Picasso anything would look good. However, I think the lines of the car look clean, and it’s one of the few cars that I have owned that can carry a roofbox on top without looking like an ugly beast. (Incidentally, we passed a Passat on the M74 parked on the hardshoulder, with just the base of his roofbox fixed to his roof. That explained the piles of clothes in the carriageway – glad I use a ratchet strap on my box just to make sure!)
The engine seems smooth to me and isn’t noisy at all in my opinion. The 163 horses pull very well indeed. I would have liked a 185 Sport version but on reflection don’t think the extra 22 horses would have made much difference. Gearbox and clutch are lovely – nice light clutch and precise gearchange.
It has Michelin on the back and Pirelli on the front – tyre noise doesn’t seem to be an issue.
According to the ‘puter, it did 46mpg overall, which isn’t too bad for a fully laden car with a box on top.
On the twisty roads in the Highlands the car performed well. I even managed to keep up with some of the locals! Fully loaded with the box on top there was a noticeable difference, but then again I didn’t increase to tyre pressures as recommended in the manual.
Inside is a nice place to be. Cloth interior, which doesn’t show any sign of its mileage. Enough toys for me and the automatic climate control works a dream. We managed to fit 3 adults, 1 toddler and associated luggage / toys / food / pushchair etc etc with no problems.
Annoyances? None so far. I’m glad I made the change.
Just need to get my friendly Eastern Europeans at the local Dobbies to give it a spit and polish to remove bits of Scotland from the inside...
|
Nice review DB. How many miles has it done?
I loved visiting the Highlands last year, my 130hp diesel Mondeo came alive on the roads there.
|
90k when I bought it. Full Mazda history including the all important timing chain check (and subsequent change).
I love Scotland. This year we stayed near Glen Affric and loved it. While we were there we went walking next to a pony trekking school that turned out to be the subject of a BBC2 documentary last Thursday about crofting. We've previously been to the Ardnamurchan peninsula, Loch Lomond, Pitlochry and the borders. I'd love to go further north than Inverness, but I think we reached the limits of our 17 month old's patience with the 8 hour journey we had last week!
|
Mazda6 - short review - Dave_
