2005 Mazda RX-8 Review

As long a history as the Mazda 626 had behind it, it was clearly lost during its last life cycle. Along with the common sedan symptoms of being softly suspended and styled to obscurity, the 626 was underpowered with either engine, none too comfortable, and stuck at the lower end of the quality rankings. It's easy to get away with ignoring emotions in the family sedan segment, but neglect people's needs and you're done for.

Two years ago, Mazda got to work addressing all of the above. It's rare for a conventional bread-and-butter car to get such a thorough redesign, but the Mazda 6 shares next to nothing with its predecessor. One side-by-side glance reveals two new engines packing 30 and 50 more horsepower, two new transmissions, a more serious suspension, a striking new body packing more space in every area, and two superfluous digits trimmed from its name. The Miata, which was about to collapse under the weight of Mazda's far-fetched "zoom zoom" campaign, finally has some company. Nevermind what the four doors say; this is a family car made to make its driver feel young again.

It works: after my first spin in this Mazda, this 24-year-old editor stepped out feeling about 12. Like 9% of new vehicles these days, our test car had three pedals on the floor. The one on the left was the problem. While age and wear will probably improve the situation, the 6's clutch pedal has long throws and a vague engagement point that make it easy to stall. The engine's low-rev silence and the throttle's slightly late response compound the problem by leaving the driver a little uninformed. Among the five staffers who drove the car, four choked the engine at least once. (The record: three stalls in 30 seconds.) Including this Mazda, only three sedans in this class offer a V6 with five on the floor, and clutches like this could take it down to two.

The 6's stick at least lets some pleasure flow to the right hand. The throws are moderately short and feel firm, if a little notchy and resistant. One staffer, spoiled by the daily shifter nirvana of his Honda Prelude, found it less smooth than what he's used to.

Handling is where this Mazda - indeed, all Mazdas - comes alive. No shortcuts were taken; this wasn't a simple fill-the-shocks-with-concrete job like Nissan or GM might take. Instead, the 6 stands as the only other entry besides the Honda Accord with double wishbone and multilink designs filling both ends of the car. The steering is as fast as they come (just 2.5 turns from lock to lock) and aside from being a little light, just might pass for German. The wide turning circle makes parking harder than it should be, and the 215/50R17 tires are responsible for the fair amount of rumble that gets through, but thanks to decent noise filtering and a capable suspension, passengers are mostly shielded from outside forces. The disc brakes - now antilock on all models - stop the car on a dime.

To make a long story short, Mazda's 6 feels a lot like Mazda's 3, and is the better for it.

But the Mazda faithful hoping for purity will want to brace themselves. That V6 under the hood may sport two cams, 24 valves, and variable valve timing, but beware of shock when peeling off that Mazda engine cover. Though the valve timing was Mazda's contribution, you've likely seen this engine before, probably wearing a "Duratec" badge. The 6 has plenty of soul, but its heart belongs to another: the Ford Taurus.