Six straight questions
This Q-ship would be even cooler as a five-door or wagon, eh?
I know, I know! But Mazda's engineers will argue that being a serious sports sedan--all-wheel drive, a six-speed manual, and 274 horsepower from a 2.3-litre blown four, I'll have you know--they needed the increased
rigidity of the four-door format. In fact, because of some additional bracing in the trunk, there are no fold-down rear seats as in the cooking Mazda6 this car is based on.
Hang on a sec: you said 'blown four'. What, no vee-six?
Mazda says they don't need it. According to the folks in Hiroshima, their new direct-injection technology applied to this four banger is the cat's pajamas for balancing fuel economy and performance. As you may have already guessed, fuel squirts directly at the spark plug for improved atomization and increased burning. And Mazda went with a relatively small (61 millimetre) diameter turbo for better low-end response as well.
Mazdaspeed6 doesn't suffer turbo lag when you're quickly
on or off the throttle. If you're looking for that traditional turbo kick, it's absent with this engine. Working your way swiftly through the gears of the standard six-speed stick, there's a purposeful push in your back instead of a kick in your pants. You don't need to shift that much because the turbocharger delivers much of its boost from about 2500 r.p.m., and the engine provides 280 pound-feet of torque at only 3000 r.p.m. This is not a bad thing, as the gear box's throws are very tight, and it's easy to miss a gate if you're hurrying too hard. That said, the fact this sportiest of Mazda sedans also weighs nearly 1,700 kilograms means it's under-six-second 0-100 kilometres per hour is really impressive and makes the Mazda quicker than some premium, AWD sports sedans like Audi's A4 3.2.
Um, Mazda hasn't much experience with all-wheel-drive performance cars, have they?
Don't you remember the 323 GTX pseudo rally car from the late '80s? No? Admittedly, it's been awhile. But the new Mazdaspeed6's system is very up-to-date, designed more for on-the-road performance than mud slinging. From the front transaxle, a three-piece driveshaft carries power to an electromechanical wet-clutch pack in the back where you'll find a reinforced limited-slip rear differential from the Mazda RX-8. Steering
angle, lateral g-forces, throttle position, wheel slip and yaw rates are all monitored by the system's computer. Appropriately, the system can proportion up 50% of the torque either front or rear.
Sounds very technical, but how does it perform as a sports sedan?
The Mazdaspeed version retains the regular Mazda6's multilink setup, but with stiffer springs and shocks, a little larger anti-roll bars, and denser bushings. Mazda says the aforementioned steel reinforcements behind the rear seats and in the cowl increase the body's twisting rigidity by 50%. The way this car stays glued to bad pavement only substantiates Mazda's numbers. The interior isn't all that different, but then again, the donor Mazda6 wasn't a bad place to start. The seats are more bolstered, and my test car had the optional black/white interior colour scheme. Some all-wheel-drive cars suffer numbness in the steering department, but the Mazda provides just enough weight at the wheel. However, more feel would be appreciated. Where the AWD shows its value is in its ability to make the driver of this car think it's being driven by its rear wheels. Mid-corner stabs at the throttle moves power to the rear axle--et viola--power slides on call and understeer be gone! I was able to drive this car earlier in the year when there was still snow on the roads, and the balanced chassis combined with the sophisticated AWD system made this a hoot to toss in the white stuff.
This Q-ship would be even cooler as a five-door or wagon, eh?
I know, I know! But Mazda's engineers will argue that being a serious sports sedan--all-wheel drive, a six-speed manual, and 274 horsepower from a 2.3-litre blown four, I'll have you know--they needed the increased
 |
| (Photo: John LeBlanc) |
Hang on a sec: you said 'blown four'. What, no vee-six?
Mazda says they don't need it. According to the folks in Hiroshima, their new direct-injection technology applied to this four banger is the cat's pajamas for balancing fuel economy and performance. As you may have already guessed, fuel squirts directly at the spark plug for improved atomization and increased burning. And Mazda went with a relatively small (61 millimetre) diameter turbo for better low-end response as well.
Mazdaspeed6 doesn't suffer turbo lag when you're quickly
 |
| (Photo: John LeBlanc) |
Um, Mazda hasn't much experience with all-wheel-drive performance cars, have they?
Don't you remember the 323 GTX pseudo rally car from the late '80s? No? Admittedly, it's been awhile. But the new Mazdaspeed6's system is very up-to-date, designed more for on-the-road performance than mud slinging. From the front transaxle, a three-piece driveshaft carries power to an electromechanical wet-clutch pack in the back where you'll find a reinforced limited-slip rear differential from the Mazda RX-8. Steering
 |
| (Photo: John LeBlanc) |
Sounds very technical, but how does it perform as a sports sedan?
The Mazdaspeed version retains the regular Mazda6's multilink setup, but with stiffer springs and shocks, a little larger anti-roll bars, and denser bushings. Mazda says the aforementioned steel reinforcements behind the rear seats and in the cowl increase the body's twisting rigidity by 50%. The way this car stays glued to bad pavement only substantiates Mazda's numbers. The interior isn't all that different, but then again, the donor Mazda6 wasn't a bad place to start. The seats are more bolstered, and my test car had the optional black/white interior colour scheme. Some all-wheel-drive cars suffer numbness in the steering department, but the Mazda provides just enough weight at the wheel. However, more feel would be appreciated. Where the AWD shows its value is in its ability to make the driver of this car think it's being driven by its rear wheels. Mid-corner stabs at the throttle moves power to the rear axle--et viola--power slides on call and understeer be gone! I was able to drive this car earlier in the year when there was still snow on the roads, and the balanced chassis combined with the sophisticated AWD system made this a hoot to toss in the white stuff.