Poor Mazda. The Japanese automaker long ago assumed the role of perennial also-ran to market leaders Toyota and Honda, as its lineup of capable but unassuming vehicles just never raised the brand to top-tier status. Sure, there has been the odd product that piqued enthusiasts' interest, such as the rotary-engined RX-7 sports car and the Miata roadster, but those cars have been exceptions, and, despite Mazda's optimistic "zoom-zoom" advertising campaign, the company's recent history has been defined by the anonymous 626, the overlooked and overpriced Proteg, the runty MPV, and the Ford Escape clone Tribute. So, when Mazda started hyping its new mid-size sedan, the 6, our expectations were modest. In the most competitive segment of the market, long dominated by the very capable Honda Accord and Toyota Camry, Mazda needed something special to grab not only our attention but that of the car-buying public. Could the 6 possibly be that car?
To answer that question, we brought the brand-new Mazda 6 along on our annual All-Stars test back in October 2002. On the undulating, twisting two-lanes of Kentucky and Tennessee, the 6 impressed us with its sport-sedan handling and family-car versatility, and we quickly realized that it was definitely no 626 re-dux. It came away from that eye-opening week as the year's only unanimous All-Star. Naturally, when we extol the virtues of a car as highly as we did the Mazda 6's, we feel the need to confirm our impressions via a long-term test.... Read full article