Mazda’s marketing campaign wants me to experience that certain “emotion of motion;” the idea of being united with the road. Well, considering the ease with which I forgo my children’s normal bedtime to zoom around marveling at the Christmas lights, I’d say they’ve succeeded.
I willingly weave through multiple neighborhoods while listening to Christmas music through the standard Bose speakers, succumbing to my son’s wishes to get a closer look at an “even better, brighter house.” Now if only I would have thought to bring the hot chocolate and marshmallows, I might be able to call myself a super-mom. Yeah, right, in my dreams! Super-whirlwind is more appropriate.
At night, I immediately dim the red-lighted dash, which my husband refers to as the “angry dash.” It is the holiday season, after all, but I also find this red annoying. As a matter of fact, I’ve read that the color red is hunger-inducing … now I can blame my covert haphazard binging of leftover Halloween candy (a sacrifice I am only willing to make for the sake of my son and his oral health, of course) on this phenomenon.
The interior of the Mazda6 Sport Wagon is outfitted in a tasteful manner. At first glance, I feel as though I’m in a luxury vehicle. It just has that look! Upon closer inspection, I realize that the features are simple and basic. Apparently, Mazda style does not mean forgoing elegance for cost. Speaking of cost, I am reassured to learn that the Mazda6 comes standard with dual front airbags, side airbags and side air curtains.
The exterior of the car has clean lines. I like the back, which has that sporty sleek wagon look, not to be confused with the antiquated station wagon concept. Esthetically speaking, the front of the vehicle and the 18-inch rims, exude a bit more muscle than I care for, but then, that’s just personal preference.
I squeeze three child car seats (two car seats and one booster) into the back of the Mazda6. Utilizing the top tether anchor in the ceiling, I install the middle car seat, and find that the plastic cover to this anchor is stiff and difficult to open. Luckily, I don’t break a nail tinkering with it. Not that I have blazing red lacquered nails or anything; that’s a thing of the past. The thought only stirs up brief memories of electric nights and cosmopolitan life in the big city, or am I talking about my dreams again? Sometimes it’s so hard to differentiate!
I try to store my sunglasses in the overhead console, and realize that they don’t fit (I guess they have just a little too much curvature). My husband is happy to use the space for his shades instead, and I opt to keep mine in the upper fuzzy-lined portion of the center console. Below this top console compartment, I find a larger space outfitted with a power outlet, which is suitable for all of my “techie” accessories.
I also love the CD compartment in the front dash, which fits my standard-sized daily planner perfectly, a bulky must-have item that I dread toting along, especially because it usually ends up littering valuable floor space. I also make a mental note that a book could be neatly kept in this area.
When opening the small glove box, I am pleased to find that Mazda stores the owner’s manual in an easy to contain zippered case. I also appreciate the driver and passenger side door compartments, which cleverly include bottle holders.
Inspecting the roomy “way-back,” I find a cargo area net that can be used as a separator between the trunk and the rest of the car. My family toys with the idea of dogs, and if we had them, I would definitely make use of this net. In reality, however, I’m just not ready to add dog hair riddance to my list of chores.
All in all, the Mazda6 Sport Wagon is a good, solid, all-around wagon, although I wish it had more of those life-enhancing, mommy-utilitarian features I so desperately need and enjoy.
*For more information on the Mazda6 and its safety features visit Cars.com.
LET’S TALK NUMBERS LATCH Connectors: 2 Seating Capacity (includes driver): 5
IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS THAT COUNT Storage Compartments (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Fair Cargo/Trunk Space (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Ample
SENSE AND STYLE Family Friendly (Not Really, Fair, Great, Excellent): Fair Fun-Factor (None, Some, Good Times, Groove-On): Some
