We’ve all seen the car commercials – you know the one where a sleek, beautiful vehicle is speeding along a magnificent ocean coastline. Well, I lived it. At least in my mind, that is exactly what I looked like when I test drove the Mazda6 Grand Touring!
On a rare couples getaway to Central California, my husband and I drove the Mazda6 from LA to Carmel Valley. Although the Pacific Coast Highway is undeniably one of the most amazingly picturesque drives, I must admit as locals we usually skip it to save time. But this was an opportunity to savor our getaway, and test out what this mid-sized sedan could do on notoriously windy, narrow roads with me behind the wheel. I must admit this car fit me like a glove and took the roads with ease.
Definitely a driver’s car, I entrusted the Grand Touring’s features for a splendid road trip! The interior had a luxurious look and feel with cream colored leather seats. The Mazda6 Grand Touring is loaded with hands-free features to help keep your eyes on the road.
With vehicle seating for five, our family of three had room to spare. The car feels spacious. My 6′ 3″ husband could comfortably recline his seat all the way to the back seat. Man, was he lucky during our drive to Central California! It really does feel like the perfect mid-sized family car, and I felt cool behind the wheel. There’s nothing wrong with soccer mom cars, but with one kid I don’t need a minivan. This car oozed coolness, and on top of that was sturdy and good on gas with 26/38 MPG City/Highway. I felt safe driving in both urban and rural conditions. Not surprisingly, this car is a Top Safety pick award winner for highway safety.
An Infotainment system sits on the dashboard, to keep your eye street level. I actually spent time scrolling through all of the options. there are a ton of choices to scroll through. The control knobs were a little hard to maneuver while driving. My husband handled the entertainment. We listened to my favorite channel 80s music for most of the ride. There is also a CD player, Sirius, navigational system, USB ports, and Bluetooth.
This ride had many more updated features than I am accustom, and it was hard to say goodbye. I found myself relying upon the blind side detectors on the highway, and the lane departure alerts were great for our long drive. The car is also equipped with a day/night rear view mirror which was easy on the eyes at night. The air conditioning kicked butt, and was certainly tested to its maximum with SoCal’s high summer temperatures. I could relax and know that my car was programmed to keep me comfortable, and on course. And a simple feature that I love is keyless entry. I am completely spoiled by the keyless entry, and can never look at my prehistoric car keys the same way again.
The only distraction I had was the HUD display, and I was able to turn it off. The feature can be found int he Infotainment system. It does reset itself when you turn off the car. I found that I was constantly looking at the display which takes away from the purpose of the feature. My other criticism is the design of the compartment in between the seats. The shape of the compartment was weird, and made it hard to comfortably rest my arm. Now I like arm rests. But honestly, the arm rest is a minor issue. I absolutely loved this car and would definitely consider a Mazda in the future.
Zooming around in this was thrilling. This car is a win in my book!
