You are correct, I'd read that the 6MT was going to remain available for all non-turbo trims. But a quick browse shows unavailable on the Touring.

Will be interesting if the G70 comes in sub-35k. But I doubt that'll be for the G70 Sport. With the Brembos & such, I expect it to be in the upper-30s.

Agreed; I would of course order up leather (as long as it isn't that 1950s retro diamond pattern, not at all to my taste), the Brembo brakes, and pretty much every other option except NAV and an Automatic transmission.

Assumptions:
I expect all G70s to have leather/leatherette (higher trims to get Nappa Leather)
NAV I'd expect to be standard.
Brembo likely exclusive to the Sport, with either RWD/AWD 6MT/8AT (6MT RWD only)

A loaded Stinger Premium runs just a hair over $40k, curious if that's a possible indicator of atop trim 2.0T G70?
I expect a 3.3TT G70 to easily reach into the $50k range

FFS, I'm working on it :D. Leaning heavily to the turbo 6, once they are finally here. Looking no Autotrader, a good amount have been delivered on the west coast & a couple in Oklahoma. GT Rs are supposed to get here before Signatures.

Had a very brief test dive in a 2018 Mazda6 GT. Love the interior layout & still have a good amount of back seat space. Was just a GT, so missing some of the gadgets on the GT R & Signature.
The car had a range of 5 miles, so was pretty much running on fumes, so I didn't get to get a good feel for the power, but the little spin around the block felt promising.

Another dealer is supposed to be getting a couple GT Rs this week. Waiting to decide until I see a Signature in person, to decide if I like the Chestnut leather.

Was your test drive in the turbo model?

Also make up your damn mind, you're almost worse than me at deciding what to get next. My decision is imminent too.

:nod:
GT, GT R & Signature are the new 2.5T

Hoping to make a decision by the end of May, inventory availability dependent, this month if the right one gets in stock & the deal is right.

Local dealer called me last night as a blue 6 Signature was being brought off the truck.
Due to go take a look at it today at lunch :wish:

Leaning more toward the Deep Crystal Blue over Machine Gray on the 6.

Very curious to hear your thoughts and impressions after seeing it in actual metal. Wondering if you'll be able to take and post some pics?

FWIW, definitely would take blue over gray.

:salute:
Will do my best to get a few photos.
Really interested to see the chestnut interior in person. I know the Auburn on the CX9 looks very different in photos than it does in person. Both of which are :ugly: IMO. I've read that the chestnut is darker than it looks in most photos/video.

Definitely a better test drive than the GT I drove at another dealer.
Salesman had me up on the highway, and followed it up with some decent back roads. 15-20 minutes behind the wheel.
Love the Deep Crystal Blue, and am a big fan of the Chestnut leather. Will have to see what the wife thinks of it.

IMO, the first photo best shows the color of the Chestnut interior.

https://s20.postimg.cc/k1ee8hlel/20180501_122605.jpg
https://s20.postimg.cc/ffia057l9/20180501_122558.jpg
https://s20.postimg.cc/ffia04kfx/20180501_122434.jpg
https://s20.postimg.cc/cy6isv899/20180501_122441.jpg
https://s20.postimg.cc/ru520g48d/20180501_122447.jpg

Definitely not a fan of that poop brown interior...

Is that the only choice for the Signature trim?

Chestnut (brown) & Parchment (light tan) are the only options on the Signature.
GTR & GT get Black & Parchment options, but with a light tan headliner/pillars.
Touring & Sport are Black or Sand.

Trying to decide if the price increase is worth it on the Sig. I do like the black headliner & Sig-specific gauges. The frameless mirror is nice, 360 cam not sure how often would get used. The F&R parking sensors can be added to the GTR, and I'm sure the frameless mirror is a near plug-n-play swap.
May have them & another dealer price fight on a GTR, all comes down to numbers.

Weighing options. The GTR has a nice almost $2k discount on it where the Sigs aren't getting much discount.
May jump on the GTR at another dealer that came off the truck on Friday, before they add dealer options on it.

I'm usually not that picky about interiors, but i have to agree. Looks like poop. So many cool interior colors out there today, but I can't say this is one of them.

Love the exterior color though.

Spent some time in a GTR after work. Think it's a winner. Has everything except the frameless rearview mirror, 360 cam, parking sensors & nappa leather.
Did a bit of night driving & the adaptive headlights work nicely & the adaptive cruise is interesting, takes a bit of faith to trust it to come to a full stop.
The surprising thing is that the car doesn't feel fast/quick. It doesn't push you back in the seat, but wastes no time getting to speed. Definitely deceptive.

The dealer & I are a bit off on trade value, so that's the next step.

Thx for sharing your thoughts and for posting those pics!

Can't say the chestnut interior is my cup of tea, but I'm a fan of the Mazda6 overall. No, it's not a rocket-ship, but glad they've put forced induction an that 2.5L, which only cranked out 187hp when naturally aspirated.

I do wonder if Mazda can actually deliver what they advertised in terms of power? 350hp out of a blown 2.5L I4?!?

https://www.earnhardtmazda.vegas/blo...onomy-ratings/

That poop color interior isn't that pretty. The car looks great though!

Yep, must be a typo.
227/310 on 87 and 250/310 on 91. Definitely curious if it's a noticeable difference.

OVTuning is already working on a CX-9 tune that bumps things up around 80-100lb/ft at 2k RPM & 50lb/ft overall, and 50-60hp. Also backs off the torque limiters in low gears, and reduces boost taper at the top end.

93 octane :drag:

Yes, too good (typo) to be true :sad:

Mazda only lists the 250/310 figure on 91. Not sure if there is additional benefit to running 93.
But, 93 is the most common around here 87/89/93.

You can bet your bottom dollar aftermarket tuners will come up with new tunes which wring every last erg of potential power from 93 AKI fuel.

:nod:
As mentioned above, OVTune is already in progress on the CX-9, which should make the 6 a quick turnaround.
Also forgot to mention that they bump the peak boost to 23psi over the OE 18psi.

A bump from 18 to 23 psi should effectively bump the output from ~250 to ~320 hp.

Dealer just called, a couple days of silence on my end & they've added $1,500 to my trade.
May try to swing by VW this afternoon & give a GTI a spin (thanks @SamDoe1). Will have both kids, so would get a solid look at how the back seat room is.

God, I love turbos! :goldcup:

Patience pays. Very nice. :wink:

Hope the kids like it, too!

Posted this in Sam's GolfR thread, but took a spin in a GTI SE DSG last night. Was really surprised that my kids had sufficient back seat room. Even more surprising is that it seems like it has better rear leg room than a Ford Fusion :confused:. When I drove the Fusion Sport earlier this year, my 3 yr old's legs were touching the back of the driver's seat.
Wondering if I should try the 6MT? The DSG didn't seem to shift as quickly as it's mentioned in reviews at higher RPMs in manual mode, but was plenty fast at normal driving in auto

Went today & took a Mini Clubman S for a spin, and was much less impressed than I was with the GTI. The 8AT didn't feel nearly as peppy as the VW, and it didn't seem as responsive. On top of that, they're tough to find what you want in dealer stock, since there's 250k combinations per vehicle available. I priced one out & it's around $3-4k more than a GTI Autobahn.

So, my current short list is the 6 GTR, and a GTI Autobahn, with the Accord 2.0T in a far 3rd.
My agent can't quote my on the GTR, since it doesn't exist in their system yet, and the MSRP estimate he gave me was higher than the premium on the F150 :shrug:

Anyone have a VW connection in TX? :wish:

Both my wife and my younger brother had/have 6-Speed manual GTIs; both were/are an absolute blast to drive, and both have plenty of room for our (then) two teen-aged kids and my brother's three kids ranging from 6 to 13.

Did you change the drive mode in the car to race or sport (the R and GTI have different modes), totally changes how the transmission shifts. I'd only buy the 6MT if you have to have a manual. Otherwise, the DSG is the better way to go by far. Either way, it's a great little car that's practical and easy to live with while being a hoot to drive.

In regards to a VW connection, I can send you the info for the guy I bought mine from...but he's in Buffalo NY lol. I'm sure they'd ship but it's probably not worth the hassle unless you want to make an adventure out of it.

I didn't play with the drive modes too much, apart from figuring out that the DSG & drive mode are independent of each other.
I think most of the drive was in Sport on the drive mode & the DSG.

Going to try to get a drive in an Autobahn this week, if the dealer by my office has one in stock. Then I'll look into our TrueCar discount via my office, or Costco.

Seriously? The Automatic GTIs are awfully boring to drive; almost like being a passenger in your own car.

To be fair, you have declared more than one time that you'll never own an automatic anything.

Given Houston traffic at times, the DSG has good appeal; especially with it being quicker than the manual.

This is just a reality anywhere with any semblance of traffic. Manuals are the most fun, but autos have a higher floor of BS.