2006 Mazda MAZDASPEED6

Review

Whole Lotta Speed

Its hard to decide where to start with this car. It does so many things so well that its difficult to begin with any one thing.  Speed? Got it. Style? Check. Comfort? Yup. Practicality, efficiency? If thats what youre into. Value? For what I want to spend money on, it doesnt get much better.

It was quite an amazing experience, and brilliant as much for its imperfections as for its obviously endearing features. For example, before I even made it to the nearest highway, I had stalled once and nearly stalled another two times because of the crazy clutch. It is by far the strangest clutch Ive ever experienced. Whats so weird about it? It starts off light, then suddenly gets very heavy right at the clutch point, then it goes all light and fluffy again. As embarrassing as the unexpected difficulties were when first adjusting to a quirky clutch (not to mention admitting them to any audience), learning to hold the clutch right at the cusp of engaging it when holding a hill or just getting ready to launch from a standstill was something I had a hard time letting go of when I had to return the car. The old truism that the greatest challenges make for the greatest rewards never rang, uh, truer.

Lets backtrack a bit now and start with the usual suspects that bear the brunt of making a lasting impression on us notoriously short-memoried journalists.

The 06 Speed6 features all the updates that the standard 06 6 receives, which include the refreshed grille with one single dominant cross bar supporting the Mazda logo and revised headlamps and tail lamps. To distinguish the Speed from the everyday 6, Mazda filled in the gaping air intake under the grille with black honeycomb pattern plastic.  And the hood itself bulges like a skintight shirt on a ridiculously juiced bodybuilder. While freakishly appropriate in an aesthetic sense, it is a functional compromise to accommodate the massive intercooler sitting right on top of the engine, and made necessary by Mazdas high-strung turbo. It was both scary and unnerving and almost grotesque from certain angles, but need is need and need for speed outweighs that small aesthetic disruption.

Overall the Speed6 is something like an anti-WRX STi. No big wing, only a slight decklid spoiler; no fancy gold rims, just a set of massive 18-inch pale, almost-white alloys wrapped in low profile Pirelli Snowsport tires for ultimate winter performance. This is a grown-ups boy racer, with all the work done by Mazdas dedicated tuning shop (I guess otherwise known as speed, which would make a nice contrast with VWs fast, if youve seen the latest TV spots), no assembly required. According to Mazdas press release, "Exterior styling eliminates all traces where high performance is overstated, favoring instead a sophisticated look that resonates well with those who appreciate mature refinement."

Of course, mature refinement not being one of my strong suits, I tried to overwhelm the tires and break them loose at every stoplight, not just because of my nervous clutch releases but also just because I could. Well, I could try, and it is easier said than done, thanks to Mazdas all-wheel drive system, which redirects power as necessary when the front wheels start to spin loose. Then came the snow and the fun became controlled power slides around corners on abandoned streets and donuts in empty parking lots. Oh yes, me and my Speed6 had a fun week together (whoa, every time I look back at the word Speed6, it looks disturbingly similar to Speedo... yuk - I apologize for any unwanted images that may be developing in your fragile minds).

Where was I before I dove off into that unnecessary tangent? Oh yeah, style. The refined style of the exterior makes way for a shockingly upscale environment in which to plant ones derriere (insert Speedo joke here). My personal and overwhelming favorite aspect of the interior was the white and black leather seats. Gorgeous. I wouldnt expect anything better in a $70K luxury flagship, at least as far as color matching is concerned.

The leather itself was a smooth, durable feeling leather with heating function, but I could not stop telling people about how much I loved looking at the two-tone leather seats. If I had it my way I would have them removed and placed alongside my favorite household seat - the giant black leather La-Z-Boy. They didnt just look good, though, they also provided miles of stress free support and mindless comfort. After the highlight of the seats and leather, the centre stack was suitably dressed in touches of piano-black lacquer mixed with graphite-patterned plastics and satin silver trim, more technical than luxurious, and appropriate for the Mazdas sporting nature. But the seats, man, were those seats gorgeous.

Above the main HVAC and radio controls was a thin readout screen that gave about all the information I could process with outside and desired temps plus heating functions, CD and track number and time in the usual Mazda red-on-black color scheme. Gauges were similarly patterned in red on black and featured a big speedo (dont go there) and tach with ancillary engine temperature and fuel gauges in the outer corners. In front of the instruments was a leather-wrapped (black only) steering wheel perfectly filled out and offering fingertip controls for radio, cruise control, etc.

Getting out on the road, while tricky at first, quickly became a regular pleasure as I took it out more frequently than your average tester. Getting to know the clutch became a mission that rewarded my patience and concentration with nice, tight throws plus a little bit of that firm, notchy resistance you expect in a sport-oriented car.

After mastering (okay, maybe master isnt quite the word, but give me a break) the gears, I learned what a beast I had to unleash from under the bulging hood. Its 274-horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque were ready from so low in the rev count (okay 3,000, but I consider that low), that it became hard to even tell that a turbo was kicking in, therefore quick shifts were rewarded with muscular acceleration.

Counter to expectations of a turbocharged engine, power seemed to dry up after 4,500 to 5,000 rpm, where the torque band just seemed to fall off abruptly even though I wanted to keep it up in the 6s to hear the engine and turbo whine in submission. As my editor and driving guru pointed out, this engine was really missing out on the variable valve timing that would have kept the power coming well past its current drop-off point.  Of course, the turbo is mated to Mazdas 2.3 four-pot, so getting too fancy is not necessarily worth the investment for a mature and slightly subdued sports sedan. I can only imagine what it would be like with a second profile making the most at high revs and launching this car into the battle for all-wheel drive turbo supremacy with the STi and Evo. But that wouldnt really be very mature, now would it?

And that really typifies the Mazdaspeed6s mission: fun, but without any desire to really muck it up with the juvenile delinquents out there. Theres no loud, obnoxious body kit or overbearing exhaust, just self-assured poise, balance and power on demand, up to a certain point. Its balance is truly stellar thanks to upgraded roll bars and suspension, keeping the car level during aggressive, not-so-mature maneuvers. And while its all-wheel drive system provides sure-footed launches, it quickly met its match in some recently fallen snow I had the good fortune to encounter.

The one last thing I feel obligated to mention, despite the fact that Im not a fan of long, exhaustive price or feature comparisons, is its astoundingly low price. Starting at $27,995, nothing, absolutely nothing comes close to matching its power, size, performance and fun bundled up in a midsize sedan (other than a HEMI-powered Charger R/T - but its a little larger than midsize despite its low price - Ed). Never mind the fact that its interior is crossing the luxury threshold, Mazda could have outfitted it in Fisher Price kiddie chairs and a Barbie vanity play table and the car would still be worth the price of entry because you could easily afford to upgrade the chairs and décor. Throw in the two-tone leather and the intelligent key system (the key fob is credit-card sized, but thicker) and this is a steal, because then you definitely can keep the interior as is. If you want a feature-laden review, check out Trevors in the Road Test Archives, or go dig up a feature list at Mazdas website, but I still cant wrap my brain around how many luxury features they packed into this sporty model. It has its problems and shortcomings, as any car will, but at that price, they are all forgivable, and even occasionally endearing.

All in all, it is its contradictory nature that I so loved about the Mazdaspeed6. It is very mature in design and purpose, yet it absolutely brought out the immature hooligan in me. More responsible drivers might be able to take all that power and keep it in check, but the little red devil on my right shoulder quickly skewered and dispatched the little Doogie Howser angel (yeah, I picture my little angel guy as Doogie Howser... so what!) on the left. Maybe one day when Im all grown up Ill drive the cars the way the manufacturers intended. Until then, Id be more than happy to pass the time with an evil little Speed6.