Mazda 6

I had a 2008 Mazda 6 2.0TS 6 Speed as a hire car while on business while in the UK. Firstly the cabin is well well put together and everything was within easy reach. The model I had was equipped with a few options dual climate, 4 x electric windows, cruise control, electric mirrors, steering mounted controls etc. I found the radio controls fine to use but the display in the center of the dash very difficult to use as it was only 1 line display. Plenty of space in the car and lots of cubby holes for phone etc. There is also a AUX socket in the center arm rest which is useful if you have an ipod. I dont know about navigation with the ipod connected if it is already difficult to scroll through radio stations.

The model I drove had a 6 speed box which wasnt the greatest. Gears were very close together and lacked feel. While driving around town noticed the clutch "cluncked" into place even when you are especially carefull with it.

Performance was a disaster. Found this car extremely sluggish. in order to get some performance from the engine you have to go right up the rev band it also doesnt rev that high only to about 6500 revs. This is especially noticeable on the motor way and when cruising in sixth gear. In order to over take you need lots of time in which the car will very slowly pick up speed even with foot down. It doesnt get much better either when you drop a gear to 5th to speed up the process. My own everyday car is a 2003 130bhp VW Passat tdi and its acceleration would leave the mazda 6 in its wake!

Handling is quiet good, very direct steering. The ride is quiet rough though. One thing I didnt like was the manner in which the cruise control was set up. When cruise was "on" a amber cruise light appeared on the dash, when the cruising speed was set it turned to green. I found the amber "stanby state" can be slightly distracting especially driving at night.