If you don’t need a vehicle the size of an SUV, you should seriously consider this car – Mazda6 Diesel Wagon.
Hello, it’s Bob Aldons, The Car Guy reporting in from Bundaberg where I’m reviewing the magnificent Mazda6 Diesel Wagon. It’s been frustrating at times on the drive here. Most of the way from Gympie to Bundaberg is a single sealed lane but with plenty of overtaking lanes.
Whilst the heavy trucks – singles and B-doubles do their best to accommodate drivers, motorhomes and caravan drivers don’t seem to have too much of a clue. Doing 80 or 90kph in a 110 zone does absolutely nothing but try the patience of other drivers to get around these folk. But I do understand their reluctance to meet the speed limit. Most are inexperienced when it comes to large heavy vehicles, let alone those that are buffeted by winds.
The fact is in the overtaking lanes, drivers have to accelerate to 120kph or more to get past. And I’m not bagging the generally older folks driving these vehicles, they’re entitled to their space, but they do need to be mindful of the traffic they’re holding up.
And there are plenty of these larger vehicles on the M1 and A1 roads heading north and south. So at least be aware. Slow down entering the overtaking lanes and please keep to the left and not drive aimlessly in the right lane. It’s for overtaking!
So, onto the Mazda6 Wagon. Be in no doubt that there’s been a massive increase in the sale of SUVs over the last 10 years. As the price of these vehicles have dropped and the option of a 2WD has entered the market, the sales of larger wagons have not only stalled but plummetted. And from my viewpoint, there’s just no good reason for that happening.
This Mazda6 Wagon has more room than an equivalent SUV (Mazda CX-5 for example), particularly in the cargo area.
It’s smoother on the road, gets better fuel economy and well, it’s just better.
What is it? This is Mazda’s luxury low riding station wagon. It’s a very comfortable 5-seater with loads of space. A 2.2 diesel engine does the job admirably but also has the choice of a petrol engine.
The Competition: Probably a difficult question to answer, as I think that the serious competition is all the SUV’s on the market in the medium class. Vehicle for vehicle, I suppose you’d look at diesel wagons such as Mercedes Benz C220d ($65900), Audi A5 Allroad ($71800), Volvo V60 Wagon ($57990) and BMW 5 series Touring ($92990) against the Mazda6 GT wagon at $46390. Prices quoted are excluding dealer delivery and state government statutory charges.
Price: Mazda Australia gave me the Mazda6 GT wagon to drive which is about $51000 drive away in Queensland. It’s a fairly significant drop in price from the European examples, but certainly not in equipment. In my opinion, the Mazda6 Wagon is world class and specs very well in comparison.
At The Front
The Mazda6 wagon is a sleek svelte looking vehicle and certainly, way in front of the wagons I drove as my personal car years ago. The engine in this Mazda6 GT is a 2.2 litre inline 4 cylinder 16 valve DOHC inter-cooled twin turbo diesel engine with i-stop.
It’s mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission and produces 140Kw of power.
In simple English, the car has oodles of power and a silky smooth gearbox. It makes driving a pleasure, particularly on the 4-hour run to Bundy. Headlights are LED with Adaptive Front-lighting System (AFS) and auto on/off function, whilst the tail-lamps and daytime running lights are LED too.
Down The Side
There’s absolutely a huge amount of both active and passive safety systems in all Mazda vehicles and this mazda6 wagon is no exception. I generally include features that I feel will help you decide on a particular vehicle but if you need to investigate further, here’s a link to the Mazda Website
The Federal Governments Green Vehicle Guide still stipulates the laboratory test procedures.
I achieved 5.4 litres per 100km in the real world which was spot on the combined rating shown below. If I took the highway number, the number is undercooked by 12.5% which is still pretty reasonable.
Bring on real-world testing, please.
I drove the Mazda6 around Redcliffe for 3 days and then hauled it to Bundaberg and back, a distance of nearly 800 kilometres.
And I did this on less than a tank of fuel. The Mazda6 wagons fuel tank capacity is 62 litres and as you’ll realize is perfectly acceptable for around town driving as well as highway use.
Although Mazda6 was tested by ANCAP in 2012, in my opinion, the advance in safety equipment would see it retain its 5-Star rating
I generally use RACQ Insurance to give you a guide as to what you’ll pay for your annual comprehensive car insurance. Conditions precedent for this cover are:
- A male driver over 60 years of age, having held a license for over 10 years
- Bronze member of RACQ with 2 other insurance policies
- Has paid cash for the car for private use with the car parked in a garage overnight and another quote for business use
- The driver resides in postcode 4019
- The car is fitted with an engine immobilizer
- 1 at fault claim in the last 3 years, with no license suspensions
- Rating 1 currently having held that rating 1 between 5 and 9 years
- No driver under 25 will use the vehicle.
The premium quoted online by RACQ Insurance is: Private Use – No Finance: $490.02 with a $750 excess
Variations from the information above may result in different outcomes. Check online with RACQ Insurance for your own particular quote.
Drivers Side and Front
If you’re looking for a very comfortable drive, MAzda6 should be on your shopping list. Mazda owners will find a very familiar cockpit and driving position. Sensibly Mazda retains the family look and feel. Overall the style and design of the MAzda6 Wagon is excellent. Comparing this vehicle with all the others, I think that Mazda comes out on top irrespective of the badge
Towing
Forget about towing anything too large or heavy. The braked capacity of this Mazda6 Wagon is 1,600kg and unbraked you’re only towing a small trailer or tinnie. Towball download is 120kg
Warranty and Service
Congratulation to Mazda Australia. After being a bit of a laggard in relation to warranty, Mazda recently upgraded to 5 years with unlimited kilometres. However, Mazda stipulates that the service intervals on this diesel Mazda6 are 12 months or 10,000km, whichever comes first.
In saying that, the Mazda capped price service plan is very reasonable. 5 services will run out at $1708 or an average of $341.60 per service. As I say continually, my firmest advice is to continue to have your Mazda serviced by an authorised dealer at least for 1 year beyond the warranty expiry. It might be a bit corny, but no-one knows your Mazda better than a Mazda dealer.
On another note, you don’t need to take your car back to the selling dealer. Your closest Mazda dealer will provide the same service quality as the dealer who sold you the car. Check out my recommendations in the where to buy dealer list below.
Where to Buy
This Mazda6 Wagon was supplied by Mazda Australia.
One of the biggest dilemmas is about choosing a dealer to purchase your new car from. To compile my recommendations, I use Google. Just type in the brand name (Mazda Dealer Brisbane for example) where the brand is the one you’re considering and the location (Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast etc) is the one where you reside.
In all cases, I only include those dealers who have a Google Star Rating over 4 and a minimum of 20 reviews. It pays to look through the reviews – you’ll find honest and compelling comments from actual people who deal with the dealer. If I’ve indicated None Recommended, that simply means that there are no dealers in the area of focus which comply with the Star Rating and Minimum Reviews. Best to look elsewhere even if you need to drive a distance.
Northside: Grand Prix Mazda Caboolture 4.2 Stars from 51 Google Reviews
Southside: Oldmac Mazda Springwood 4.4 Stars from 176 Google Reviews
Eastside: Oldmac Mazda Cleveland 4.4 Stars from 66 Google Reviews
Westside: Ipswich Mazda 4.2 Stars from 82 Google Reviews
Gold Coast: None recommended
Sunshine Coast: Sunshine Coast Mazda 4.2 Stars from 80 Google Reviews
Bob Aldons is the owner and founder of The Car Guy, reviewing cars, reporting on Car Industry Matters, Car Tech and the world at large. He’s spent the last forty years immersed in the automotive industry from salesman to the owner of a 7 brand multi-franchise dealership. Bob knows cars.
Find One
If you’re hunting around for a great price on your next new car, you should call the auto expert, Bob Aldons from Car Business. My company, a car Broker, Car Buyers Agent or Car Buyers Advocate based on the north side of Brisbane, will return your inquiry within 24 hours and make the process of buying a new car easy and stress-free.
Are you tired of salesperson tricks? I protect you from the pressure exerted by car dealer’s salespeople. There isn’t any obligation – just a pretty significant saving.
You’re where? Seriously, my services are available for you in any Australian state and territory: from Darwin to Hobart, Cairns to Perth. Car Broker Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, and Darwin – I’m available when you need me to be.
Whether you’re a small fleet or a large national fleet, Car Business will go to work and get that price down. Lower new car prices are my goal. So you’ll get the best prices from us rather than hoping you can help yourself.
If I can’t get you the best new car price, better than you can get yourself from a car dealer, we won’t charge you any fee. No Saving, No Fee. – that’s what you should expect from a car buying expert.
Car Business WILL save you money on your next new car purchase – guaranteed
The Australian Road Safety Foundation is a not-for-profit organization whose charter is to reduce serious accidents on our roads through training and education. Car Business donates to the ARSF for every car we sell. If you’d like to support this worthwhile foundation, donate to the cause, become a member today or just buy your next new car from Car Business
Mazda CX-5 – In Their Own Words Mazda Range Achieves 5 Star Rating – In Their Own Words
