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2014 Mazda6: Introduction

An Extended Stay With The Sexy Six
The new-for-2014 Mazda6 sedan is more than just a pretty face. For Mazda, it marks the company's best effort yet at competing in the highly competitive midsize sedan segment, all the while staying true to the brand's core value of offering high levels of driver involvement above all. We certainly came away impressed after our first drive of the sleek Six in France last fall, and we knew right from the start that this would be a car we'd want to spend a lot of time with back here at home.
So with that in mind, the folks at Mazda graciously agreed to loan us the fully loaded Soul Red tester you see here for a one-year stay in the Autoblog long-term garage. Because of how important this car is to the segment, and to Mazda as a brand, we know there's going to be a lot to talk about it over the next 12 months. Right now, though, allow us to introduce you to the newest member of our long-term family.

Junkyard Gem: 1989 Mazda MX-6 GT Turbo

The Mazda MX-6 is best-known in the United States as the sibling (or maybe first cousin) of the Ford Probe, which almost became the successor to the Fox Mustang. The MX-6 and Probe were well-engineered and very quick for the era, but never enjoyed great American-market sales success. Here's a rare first-generation MX-6 GT that I photographed last week in a Denver self-service yard. 145 turbocharged horsepower was pretty good for 1989, when a new Honda Prelude Si had 135 horses and the far more expensive BMW 325i ($24,650 for the 325i coupe versus $14,499 for the MX-6 GT Turbo) had 168. This one doesn't have the optional four-wheel steering, but it does have the three-way adjustable suspension. If you drove a turbocharged car in 1989, you needed a nine-band equalizer with analog sliders on the radio. It was the law. It's not rusty, but at 205,575 miles it's worn out. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The Japanese-market version was known as the Capella C2, and it boasted some great TV commercials. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. "A better value in high-performance luxury sports coupes comes from our intense commitment to your total satisfaction." As always, the US-market TV ads are less interesting than their Japanese counterparts. Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1989 Mazda MX-6 GT Turbo View 21 Photos Image Credit: Murilee Martin / AOL Auto News Mazda Coupe Classics

Recharge Wrap-up: BYD sales surge, new Mazda MX-5, plug-in VW Passat

BYD has enjoyed a tremendous leap in sales since last year, according to Want China Times. Sales from January to April were ten times that of the same period last year, with much of the credit going to government subsidies for clean cars. BYD claims, though, that battery production is limiting the number of vehicles it sells, and that by increasing that production capacity, it will see even more success. BYD's Qin plug-in hybrid, introduced in December, has already sold 4,500 units with another 8,000 orders already placed. Read more here. Mazda will reveal the fourth generation of its MX-5 roadster in September. To celebrate the car's 25th anniversary, the all-new two-seat convertible will debut during simultaneous private events in Spain, Japan and the US on September 3 and 4. Furthermore, the new Miata will be the center of a more public event in Barcelona on September 6. For fans in the US, Mazda will hold a Miatas at Mazda Raceway event from September 5 to 7. The 2016 MX-5 promises to continue to offer a lightweight, balanced design for fun and efficiency. The new Volkswagen Passat will feature a plug-in hybrid version. Volkswagen confirmed the Passat PHEV for Europe at the model's unveiling at the Volkswagen Design Centre in Potsdam, Germany. The plug-in Passat uses a 154-horsepower TSI engine and an 80-kilowatt electric motor for a total output of 208 horsepower. With a full charge, it can travel up to 31 miles on electricity alone. All versions of the eighth-generation Passat use stop-start and regenerative braking. Read more at Green Car Congress. BBC warns that the costs of charging an electric vehicle in the UK could surpass those of fueling a gasoline engine. Not so fast, says The Green Car Website. While the BBC cites charging services like Charge Master introducing fees for rapid charging making it cost about as much per mile to drive as traditional internal combustion engines. The Green Car Website points out that most people usually charge at home for much less, that paying for rapid charging is still not that expensive and that the BBC article misses the point about EVs, anyway. See the BBC article here or click here to read the rebuttal. News Source: Want China Times, Mazda, Volkswagen, BBC News, The Green Car Website via Charged, Green Car Congress Green Mazda Volkswagen Green Automakers Electric PHEV recharge wrapup qin