CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

So as many now know, I am the proud owner of a new 2006 Acura TSX. However, before I made the plunge to get the TSX again, I made sure to try at least a few other cars to make sure that I was making the right decision. A couple days before getting the TSX, headed to one of the only Mazda dealers in the area that had a Mazdaspeed6 they were allowing test drives on. They had gotten two in and sold one of them right away.

The car I drove was a Mazdaspeed6 Sport, which is the base package. This did not have the keyless ignition system and leather seats, which was fine by me, since I felt that those weren't particularly necessary in a sport sedan. The car was silver, which looks okay, but really brings out the plastic trim bits used in the front and rear bumper. From the outside, the car looks rather good. The stance is powerful and purposeful, but the rear is a little awkward with the bumper that seems to extend a little too far from the body.

When I got in, my first impression of the interior was that it was pretty decent. The dash paneling was relatively good material, the center stack was no longer the hideous silver material, and the gauges were a sporty, although not particularly easy on the eyes, shade of red. The HVAC vents did indeed remind of a GM product though. Seating was comfortable and the shifter fell to hand very nicely. The steering wheel, on the other hand, felt thinner than the TSX steering wheel and felt cheap. The headliner and sunshades also looked rather cheap and flimsy.

Firing up the engine, the turbo motor roared to life without hesitation. Exhaust note is rather meek for a car with 270 turbocharged horses. Clutch engagement was very near the top of the clutch travel, but felt somewhat unnatural and odd to me for some reason. The shift throws were good and relatively short, but you won't mistake this for a Miata or S2000 shifter anytime soon.

On the road, power delivery is excellent. Torque is readily available down low and power seems to build continually up to about 5000 rpms (I didn't get any room to get it much higher). The AWD system is totally transparent in its operation, except maybe ocassionally at low speed. I had one particular moment during the drive during a very low speed corner when I could feel the car wanting to plow for just a moment before following through with my intended path. Steering, however, was a tad overboosted and felt a little unnatural, though tracking and the ratio of the rack where very good. The steering feel felt an awful lot like that of the new IS. Brakes were as good as advertised and brought the car to a stop with confidence.

Ride comfort was surprisingly good too. Road aberrations were properly damped and road noise didn't intrude an awful lot. Suspension seems well sorted and provides good handling characteristics with a stiff, though not harsh ride. It is definitely stiffer than the TSX suspension, but does almost as good at job damping the rough stuff.

Overall, my impression of the car was positive. It is really a no nonsense sport sedan with very few things thrown in to add weight. Structure was solid and handling is very good, though the weight of the car is still very evident in tight corners at speed. The car lacks many amenities one expects at this price point, but makes up for it, for the most part, with its powerful engine and AWD system. If you're looking for a good, solid, sport sedan and can do without certain things like fold down rear seats, this car is a really good choice. Just make sure you understand going into it that this is no luxury sedan, or even entry level luxury sedan, by any measure. If anything, it is a much more mature version of a car like an STi or Evo. I would say it slots in well between the STi/Evo and the much softer VW Golf R32.

Positives (+)
-good power and handling
-solid feel
-comfortable, no nonsense interior

Negatives (-)
-no fold down rear seats (could not be done due to additional bracing)
-exterior look not for everyone
-unknown reliability

Items that I wish showed up on the TSX:
-Auto up/down on all windows
-Mute button for the stereo
-Tires

Value: While this particular car is a good sport sedan value initially, it may not have much value in the long term. Residual values on it are exceptionally poor (39% after 4 years as compared with around 54% for the TSX) which doesn't seem to show much confidence in price retention.

GIBSON6594

Thanks for the write up CG

hans007

a friend of mine who drives stick is getting a mazdaspeed6 in about a month. seems like a good car especially for him. at first he was thinking of getting an is250 then he found out it didnt have the greatest steering feel and cost 10 grand more than a mazdaspeed6. i do think that a certain type of person gets a mazdaspeed6 and a certain person gets a tsx.

i mean a mzs6 with nav costs quite a bit more than an 06 tsx and still doesnt have say bluetooth or as nice an interior, or as nice a nav. i think the tsx for me is the ideal car. according to my trip computer history my average mph is an apalling 22. thank you los angeles traffic.... and well in that kind of traffic i'd take the tsx auto that i have 99 times out of 100 over the mzs6. that 1 time would be the day it was snowing in LA, or i decided i wanted to be a racer and/or there was no traffic.

for my friend though he will love it. he used to drive a ford escort zx2 manual that he spent about $1500 modding up. he has some fetish for ford products. and seriously he modded up a ford zx2 with all performance mods. that type of person gets a mazdaspeed6. my friend is a high school math teacher too... he'll be the coolest math teacher.

Bilybobjef

The MazdaSpeed6 does have fold down rear seats. See this thread on another forum http://forum.mazda6club.com/index.php?showtopic=43583

I've been watching this car closely and am just waiting for my dealer to call to say he has one in to test drive. Thanks for the review

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Hmm....interesting. Looks like Mazda didn't intend for the latches to be accessible, but I suppose you could go through the effort to do it. However, those two braces are gonna make it a serious PITA to carry anything of any real size. So from a practicality standpoint, I think it should still not count as having fold down rear seats.

Bilybobjef

I was just going on more of a technicality than practicality. I think I've used my fold down seats once and a pass through would have done (projector screen). But yeah I agree with you that they are handy when you need them and it would have done well to have legit fold down seats in the 6

waTSX

Nice review. As good as the MazdaSped 6 sounds, it must not've been good enough to get you out of the TSX. Once again we see that sheer HP alone does not a balanced package make.

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Honestly, driving the two cars back to back, the Mazda is definitely more powerful, but doesn't feel are refined overall. Plus, the amenities of the TSX along with it's excellent value and reliability were huge selling points.

As I mentioned in the review, the appallingly low residual after 4 years really brought a response when it was revealed to me. Plus, the sales team at Mazda was pushy.

waTSX

I cross-shopped the 6 before I bought my TSX, and though I did like the car, I also thought the sales team was pushy (Tacoma, WA). I got mucho calls imploring me to buy the car.

Needless to say, I don't respond well to being pushed.

Mazda option packages are confusing, too.

San-AnT

saw it. liked it. then i walked back outside and fell in love with a black 04 tsx. so i got into my car and went home.

swirlie

One thing that bugged me about the rear was the exhaust finishers. You don't notice it from a distance, but once you actually look, the big shiny exhaust finishers are actually part of the BUMPER and not even part of the exhaust!! You get regular steel pipes (not even shiny pipes) that poke through the fake, shiny "tail pipes" bumper. It's VERY apparent once you're within a couple feet. There are BIG gaps. That just makes it look cheap to me.

tsxflexer

The Mazdaspeed 6 is nice but you cant compare an AWD Turbo to a FWD NA car. A more fair comparison for the mazdaspeed 6 would be against an Audi A4.

kenzo

Or a Subaru Legacy GT.