Mazda, I’ve been a happy 2004 owner of a Mazda 6s sedan v6 for 4 years now. I’ll be done paying for this car in February 2009. I’m actively looking for my next car, even though at nearly 90,000 miles, your Mazda 6s has been fantastic and free of any unexpected visits to the repair shop or dealer.

In fact, that’s one of the reasons I purchased a Mazda over a German counterpart like a BMW 3 series. Reliability. No unexpected repair stops. Being able to enjoy driving everyday, without worrying about breaking down on the road and waiting for a tow.

And now I’ve seen your 2009 version of the Mazda 6. And I’m sorry, but you’ve just lost me as a potential customer for this car.

I could talk a little about the bland, generic styling of the 2009 Mazda 6, with its huge wrap-around plastic headlamps and tail lights. I mean, they are beautiful, if you like plastic over metal for your car. But me, I like metal, sorry. I like functionality in my lamps, first, and styling, second. I can’t imagine what the replacement cost for one of those beasts will be the minute it develops a crack from a highway stone.

Styling is subjective (and I understand you made the looks of the car more generic to better compete with the Accord and Camry), however, so I’ll get down to brass tacks.

The new V6 is a beast, and I think you know that. So much so that you decided not to offer a manual? Huh? For so many of us, a manual is a given. We simply ignore any car that doesn’t offer us one. And here you are, following the herd, and not offering a manual on your most powerful engine (thanks Lexus for the cue!). So it’s a no-brainer for folks like me — you’re out of the running. If I want a 4-banger manual, I have a dozen or more cars to choose from and your overweight 2009 6i isn’t likely to engender any excitement in me.

You see, I’m looking for a sedan that is exciting without rubbing anybody’s face in it. I’m looking for an engine that gets good gas mileage and also has decent power. Your 2004 V6 is sadly lacking in low-end torque, so all you had to do was tweak this engine, give it more low-end torque, and maybe bump up the horsepower a few dozen, like 240 or 250. Keep its good gas mileage (I consistently get 25 mpg in mixed driving).

But no, you went in an entirely different direction because of poor sales. You put out an Accord or Camry wannabe. And honestly, I’m not sure what you’re offering that they don’t already. The new Accord looks more aggressive and well-designed, and throw in its legendary reliability and handling. (The new Camry is a mess, but it’ll continue to enjoy sales anyway.) Nice stuff.

Which is fine, but it’s not for me. If I wanted an Accord or Camry, I’d buy an Accord or Camry.

So when it comes time for me to purchase a new car, you’re off my list.

Maybe you’ll come to your senses and tweak the platform in 2010 with a manual on the V6. That alone would help me consider you once again.

Well, it’s that time again…. time to write up my 80,000 mile review of my 2004 Mazda 6 sedan.

I had it in for a major service at around 70,000, where the dealer performed over $1,000 worth of work, including new brakes on the front (pretty typical for a front-wheel drive car), the major 60,000 mile service, and miscellaneous small things. The cost would probably have been half that had I had it done at a local mechanic or such, but I have a good relationship with the local dealer I found who does the servicing.

Just a side-note. The dealer I use to service my Mazda6 is nearly 40 miles from where I live, in a neighboring state. There are 2 closer Mazda dealers. However both dealers stink in terms of their pricing and their attitudes. I will gladly drive an extra 20 minutes to get a dealer who shows me a little respect, doesn’t try and recommend services I don’t need at every chance they get, and treats my times as valuable as their own. Oh, and does so without charging $50 for an oil change. (Don’t even get me started on Volvo dealers!)

Anyway, I knew that bill was coming, because up until about a year or so ago, I put a lot of miles on my car everyday. I’m not a hard driver, but I do like to do more hard acceleration than not and put the car through its paces when the road and traffic allow me to. That, to me, is one of the reasons of getting a car like the Mazda6. So no surprises, and I was happy they could perform all the work in the single day.

After 80,000 miles, the Mazda 6 is still nearly like new although it’s going on 4 years old come February. Some minor scratches on the paint, but very typical of a 4-year-old car that is regularly washed and taken care of. The only annoyance that has developed in the last 5,000 miles is a slight squeaking somewhere around the moonroof. I think it’s the sunglasses compartment, which is plastic and seems a little on the loose side. I may have the dealer look into it during the next dealer-based service appointment… which I’ll probably wait until 100,000 for. (I take it in for oil changes at a local oil change shop which is reliable and of good quality every 5,000 - 6,000 miles or so.)

The 2004 Mazda 6 with a 6 cylinder engine definitely doesn’t have the low-end torque and power you’d like in a 6 cylinder. I hear the 4 cylinder is actually better in this department, which I wish it had more of. You don’t really get good torque on this engine until about 4,000 RPMs or so.

Still no serious problems with my Mazda6, nor serious complaints. It remains a fun sports sedan and one I would seriously consider purchasing again when this one hits 120,000 or so, or needs serious repairs in the future.

Well, I’m about to hit 60,000 on my Mazda 6 4-door sedan, and I’m happy to say that I’ve continued to have zero issues with this car. It has performed flawlessly, mechanically, and I am rarely happier than when I’m behind the wheel and on an Interstate revving it up. It handles high speeds with ease and I never feel like the car is going to twitch or do something I can’t predict. It is completely stable and reliable, two things I look for in my drive. The Mazda6 has performed admirably.

One hiccup I had was in tinting the windows in Massachusetts. Like most states, there is a legal limit on how dark certain windows’ tint can be. I had “legal” tint placed on all the windows except the front windshield. However, when it came to inspection time, it was deemed “illegal” (and has since been removed). What happened? Well, apparently the car’s factory windows come with a certain degree of tint already baked in. How much that is exactly, I can’t say (looks like it might be about 7-10%). When added to the legal tint number, it made the windows illegal. Good tinters should know each car’s manufacturer tint level, but mine didn’t. Yours may not either. So just be aware of that if you go to tint your Mazda6.

The only other minor flaws to emerge in the car have been in the interior. The fit and finish remain generally good (I have a black leather interior), but the leather is clearly creased on the driver’s seat, despite regular care and maintenance of the leather. The steering wheel has a mark on it where my ring scraped against it over time and use (which I suspect is fairly common) in the Mazda 6. I’ve also scraped up the silver finish on the console a bit, another common malady of the Mazda6. These are not the end of the world, as I’ve had the car for 2 1/2 years now in fairly regular, daily use. But I do take care of my cars, so that only goes to show you that even if you’re careful, you’re going to run into similar issues with your Mazda 6.

I still love it and as long as I have no serious mechanical issues with the car, I will continue to recommend the Mazda6 without reservation!

You know, I haven’t written a significant amount about the Mazdaspeed 6 because, frankly, I was disappointed with what Mazda gave us in this car.

It’s a car that has an MSRP of upwards of $26,000 (with the optioned-out Mazdaspeed6 going for an astounding $29,000!). But c’mon, no leather on the “base model?” It’s still a 4-cylinder turbo trying to compete against the likes of Audi and Acura in this price territory, and the refinement and interior just isn’t up to par to those two (at this price range; at $5-8,000 less, it’s very competitive).

It came in fourth place in a recent Car and Driver comparo of 5 cars. Not good. The review complained of the economy interior, the loud freeway cruising noise, and the stiff suspension. Hey, that stiff suspension makes it grippy, but our American roads need a little more give in order for an everyday car to be enjoyable. I think this also speaks to the car’s negatives:

Although the Mazda’s as-tested price was third highest, it was the only ride without a sunroof, the only one lacking leather upholstery, and one of two lacking power adjustability of the front seats.

Sorry folks, I want all 3 of those things. I was looking at the Mazdaspeed6 for my next ride in another year or so, but unless it fixes these issues and drops a few grand from the price, I’ll be looking at other brands far more intently.