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Any car called Speed has to live up to the billing.

The limited-edition MazdaSpeed6 does just that.

Slip on the safety belts, and not just to help keep you planted properly behind the steering wheel at all times after setting off for some spirited play.

If you don’t slip on the belts, the warning starts to beep, then steps up to a quicker beat as well as higher pitch, and then breaks into a nonstop wail until you buckle up or pull over to the shoulder, grab a baseball bat and demolish the electrical system.

Find the Belt Minder, which chimes-stops-chimes-stops for infinity in Ford vehicles, annoying? It’s music to the ears compared with the Speed6 system.

The MazdaSpeed6 is the product of Mazda’s performance operations. Like AMG at Mercedes and SVT at Ford, the role Speed plays is to gives consumers the ultimate expression in performance for its individual models.

The first example was the Protege in 2003, followed by the MX5 in 2005 and now the Mazda6 for 2006. This fall the Mazda3 gets a Speed version as well.

Mazda says Speed6 is the sports sedan for performance enthusiasts and those who whisper “zoom zoom” all day. It’s a new entry for 2006 and only 5,000 enthusiasts, give or take, will get their hands on one.

It is set off from the regular Mazda6 sedan with a sportier decor that includes a novel grille, front and rear fascias, sills, fenders, hood and rear lip spoiler and metal faced gas/clutch/brake pedals. We tested the Grand Touring model with black leather seats and Mazda’s version of keyless entry and start, which isn’t offered in the regular Mazda6.

Rather than a long metal key, there’s a thin sheet of plastic that looks like a credit card with door lock/unlock symbols added. Keep the card on you when you slip into the cabin and simply turn the plastic handle attached to the steering column and you’re ready to go.

The same “key” is used on the Miata MX5 and the CX-7 midsize crossover, which comes out in April.

The Mazda6 comes with a choice of a 2.3-liter, 160-horsepower 4-cylinder or a 3-liter, 213-h.p. V-6. The Speed6 comes with the 2.3-liter 4, but it’s a 274-h.p. direct-injection turbocharged version, and it packs a punch.

Almost imperceptible turbo lag as the speedometer needle races up.

Touch the pedal with a little force, and you’re pressed into the leather cushion supporting your back. The more force on the pedal, the deeper you melt into the seat.

You don’t experience (politically correct term for enjoy) the same burst of energy from a hybrid or any vehicle burning E85, the mixture of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline that’s supposed to clean the air even if it drains from your tank more quickly than the 10 percent ethanol blend in regular unleaded.

MazdaSpeed6 celebrates the days when low zero- to 60-m.p.h. times were held in higher regard than high zero- to 60-m.p.g. readings.

The mileage rating still is a decent 19 m.p.g. city/25 m.p.g. highway, but premium fuel is required for optimum performance.

Wasting fuel the grandkids could someday use? Perhaps. Sorry Jac, Ashley, Haylie and Taylor, but by the time you get your licenses, hydrogen will be the fuel of choice and corn can return to the function God intended: roasted on the cob, covered in sugar as cereal or liquefied in a brown bottle for grandparents to enjoy before bed. Sorry farmers.

The 2.3-liter 4 is teamed with only a 6-speed manual transmission, a short-throw job to help ensure that every ounce of torque is put to work. Or dare we say play?

To complement the power, a high-tech split-torque all-wheel-drive system is standard. The system adjusts torque front to rear for optimum power to each wheel while quickly reacting to any wheel slippage to keep you in control and pointed in the right direction.

In sharp corners or turns, it feels as if there’s a metal bar under the car that has been slipped into a slot in the pavement. There’s no wiggle in high or even low-speed maneuvers.

The system also incorporates sensors for real-time data on steering angle, yaw rate, lateral G forces and engine status to determine road surface and driving condition to automatically select normal, sport or snow mode to provide the most power and traction.

High-performance summer tires are standard, but considering the usual Midwest climate at this time of the year, the test car was shod with Bridgestone Blizzak radials with special tread compounds designed to master rain and snow.

They certainly provided excellent road grip, on the straight-aways and into and out of the corners and turns. But the Monroney label failed to list the optional price.

If you live in the Snow Belt, winter treads are a must.

Mazda spokesman Jeremy Barnes said an all-season tire can be substituted but isn’t recommended because the summer tires offer the best handling on dry roads, winter tires the best handling on snowy roads.

The MazdaSpeed6 also comes with four-wheel independent suspension, stiffer shocks and springs, thicker stabilizer bars, four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock, dynamic stability control and traction control.

Even with all these items, winter tires are a must. Summer tires dance all over the road in the snow. And summer treads make a mountain out of even a slight incline that’spacked with light snow.

Base price is $29,925. Only options added were a $700 power moonroof; $40 wheel locks; a $40 cargo net for the trunk which, as most cargo nets do, grabbed the pen out of the pocket and the wristband on the watch and serves no useful purpose other than getting in the way; a $60 shock sensor alarm that’s set off if someone should try to tow it away; and a $2,000 navigation system that pops out of the dash at the push of a button. Taking a pass on the cargo net and navi system will not only save you $2,040 but also your sanity.

Standard equipment includes automatic climate control, heated power seats, heated power mirrors, power windows and locks, rear-window defroster, Bose audio with controls on the steering wheel and six-disc CD changer, side-curtain air bags and power outlet.

Thankfully, the seats are supportive and offer very good lateral support, which is needed for a car as energetic as this one.

Rear seats offer decent room, and trunk space is ample. But the rear seat backs don’t fold to expand cargo capacity.

Hauling, in this car, doesn’t mean carrying luggage.

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2006 MazdaSpeed6

Price as tested: $32,765

Wheelbase: 105.3 inches

Length: 186.8 inches

Engine: 2.3-liter, 274-h.p., turbocharged 4-cylinder

Transmission: 6-speed manual

CITY: 19 m.p.g.

HWY: 25 m.p.g. highway

THE STICKER

Base price: $29,925

$2,000 Navigation system

$700 Power moonroof

$60 Shock-sensor alarm

$40 Cargo net

$40 Wheel locks

Add $560 for freight

PLUSES

– Defines zoom, zoom.

– Takeoffs are spirited and handling is excellent, thanks in part to the AWD system.

– A Mazda6 that’s even more fun to drive.

MINUSES

– Requires only premium fuel.

– Offered with only manual transmission.

– Limited-edition model.

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Read Jim Mateja Sunday in Transportation and Wednesday and Friday in Business. Hear him on WBBM Newsradio 780 at 6:22 p.m. Wednesdays and 11:22 a.m. Sundays.

jmateja@tribune.com