Mazda 6 2.2 diesel Sport

When I collected the car, I did all the normal things like adjusting the seat and steering wheel to my requirements, setting the internal and external mirrors, zeroing the trip recorder and checking the fuel level. I then set off on a comfortable and relaxing drive home. When I arrived home, according to the trip recorder, I had covered just over thirty three kilometres, but to my utter horror the fuel gauge was indicating half way to the three quarters mark. This was not good, as I intended to take the car to the UK and back and that rate of fuel consumption, scared the daylights out of me. When we reached Rosslare, it was indicating around half full for a distance of 201.3 km.
I filled up at a service station close to the harbour and it took 23.4 litres, which gives a fuel consumption of 25 mpg (11.624 lt/100 km). That was frightening for a diesel, cruising out on the open road. I thus faced two possibilities : One; the fuel tank was not full when I collected the car, indicating that I had not checked the fuel gauge carefully enough, or, Two; the car had a very heavy thirst for fuel.
The next stage of the journey took us from Fishguard to Camberley in Surrey. Most of this journey was on the M4, although there were sections in Wales on the A40 and the A48, before joining the M4. When I got to Camberley, the fuel gauge indicated half full again, so I filled up and heaved a sigh of relief. This time I had covered 408.3 km and only needed 24.3 litres, giving a consumption of 47 mpg (5.951 lt/100 km). This in spite of being held up by an accident for around an hour, with the engine running all the time, as the traffic inched forward then stopped repeatedly. That was much more in line with what I was expecting and the published combined cycle figures for the car.
Diesel tends to froth when you are pumping it into the tank, so if you are in a hurry, it is all too easy, to think the tank is full when the bowser stops automatically, but if you wait for the froth to subside, you can usually still put in quite a lot more.

The Mazda 2.2 diesel, was an ideal car for the journey. It cruises along effortlessly, is comfortable and well appointed and it has a large luggage boot. If you needed even more space, as we did on the outward journey, the 60/40 split rear seat folds flat onto its cushions, thereby increasing space considerably. In its normal mode, the car has 0.510 cubic metres of luggage space and this can be increased to 1.702 cubic metres with the rear seats folded and loading to the roof.
My only concern was that in this specification the car came without a spare wheel. It had one of those plug-in compressors and a container of latex. While this does give you marginally more space, below the luggage floor, it is not an ideal solution, especially when touring. I say this from bitter experience, having been recovered by the AA once before and on another occasion having to continue a long and tiring journey at a snail’s pace, using a Spacesaver spare wheel.

Above left : Normal luggage space ------------------ Above right : Maximum luggage space
Below left : Additional under floor storage ---------- Below right : Rear seat backs folded

In both England and Wales, every tree, every lamp pole, every road associated structure appears to have a speed camera on it. This has absolutely nothing to do with road safety at all, it is all done to take money out of the motorists’ pockets. Out on the open road, if you try to drive at 100 kph (60 mph), you face many difficulties. Sooner or later you will come up behind a motorist driving at a slower speed and with the volume of traffic on the roads, it is very difficult to pull out and pass, especially as the vast majority of the traffic is moving at a fast speed. On the motorways, driving at 120 kph (75 mph), you are still one of the slower moving vehicles.
Performance is not a problem for the Mazda 6 diesel. It has a top speed of 212 kph (131 mph), with 0-100 kph acceleration in 9.2 seconds. In sixth gear it will cruise along effortlessly at 120 kph, with just under 2,000 rpm on the tachometer. The problem arises when you meet that slower traffic and drop down to around 80 kph (50 mph), when in sixth gear the engine will be just above idle speed. You suddenly detect a slight jerkiness, but fortunately the silky smooth gearchange enables you drop down into fourth, which restores the smoothness once again.

Local driving around Camberley, Frimley, Maidenhead and Windsor, including a visit to the national Motor Museum in Beaulieu, plus the return journey to Fishguard, gave an average fuel consumption of around 37 mpg, which again was quite acceptable, as there was a lot of stop/start movement of the evening traffic around Lyndhurst near Beaulieu.
The suspension gave a smooth comfortable ride over a wide range of road surfaces, both Irish and British. The car held the road well and had smooth and precise steering with a sports oriented 2.75 turns from lock to lock. Indeed in many ways it was the perfect grand tourer, with space and comfort for both passengers and their luggage.
It has that premium segment look and feel, yet it is offered at a very reasonable price indeed, considering all it has to offer. Exhaust emissions are 149 gm/km, putting it into Irish road tax band C, which at present rates, demands a burden of 302 euro per year.

The instruments and controls are all beautifully laid out, making them easy to see and to operate, whilst driving. The audio system occupies pride of place in the centre console, with the dual range climate control unit immediately below. There is a digital information panel at the top centre of the facia and satellite controls on the horizontal arms of the steering wheel for a number of different functions. The leather covered steering wheel has an excellent, high quality feel.

Technical data