Hiroshima, Japan - Remember the Mazda6? Mazda’s large and rather classy looking sedan was dropped from the South African market last year due to a lack of demand locally, but it is soldiering on happily abroad and soon there will be a new version, sporting a turbo engine.
Although it’s more of a comprehensive update of the third-generation Mazda6 of 2012 than an actual new model, Mazda says that its large sedan has been “thoroughly re-engineered” and it will also offer turbopetrol power for the first time since the second-gen MPS.
This will come in the form of Mazda’s new 186kW 2.5-litre turbopetrol engine that was introduced in the recently redesigned CX-9 SUV. It has yet to be seen whether the model will receive all-wheel-drive or if the motor will make its way under the bonnet of other Mazda models such as the CX-5 and Mazda3.
Mazda will also offer an updated version of its 2.5-litre normally activated 'Skyactiv' petrol engine, now featuring cylinder deactivation.
Mazda has only released two pictures of the revised Mazda6 sedan ahead of its scheduled debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show at the end of the month, but we do get a peek at the new front end, featuring a large grille with a chrome surround that juts into the headlights.
Mazda also supplied an interior picture, showing a redesigned dashboard that now features Japanese Sen Wood and other upgraded materials.
But will the updates be enough to convince Mazda SA to give its large sedan another try on our market? It’s not impossible but we wouldn’t hold our breath.
