Review: 2016 Mazda6 GT – Part 3
The interior of the Mazda6 GT has changed significantly for the 2016 model year. I would say that Mazda hit all the right notes on these changes except for one minor point which I will get to in a second.
The front seat is power adjustable in 8 ways, heated and very comfortable. I should note that the front passenger gets the same treatment.
The drivers door has controls for the locks and windows along with the mirrors.
The puddle lights add a touch of class to the Mazda6.
Audio is provided by Bose and it sounds great.
All the controls for the electronic overseers as well as the controls to pop the trunk, pop the hood and open the gas tank are to the left of the steering wheel. You can also see the dead pedal (thank you Mazda) and a cubby for spare change.
The instrument panel is clear and easy to read in most lighting conditions. Plus you can tweak it to show the info that you’re interested in.
The steering wheel has redundant controls for audio and phone along with the controls for the cruise control. I found the size fine, but my wife felt that it was a bit too big for her hands. It’s not heated which is weird for reasons that will become clear shortly.
Something that is new for the 2016 model year is this heads up display that puts speed and other relevant info right in the line of sight of the driver. I’ll go into more detail in part 4 of this review, but I have to say I like the fact that it’s there.
The center console has the 7″ touchscreen (up from 5.8″), HVAC controls (dual zone), and the Start/Stop button.
Further down you see the controls for the Mazda Connect infotainment system, the electronic parking brake, shift lever, Sport mode switch to the left of that as well as a space to put your phone that is a non-slip surface as well as being soft so that it will not scratch your phone.
You get a pair of cupholders up front.
It works well to hold a Venti sized coffee from Starbucks. One thing that I do note is when you have something in the cupholder, it makes using the HMI Commander switch in front of it difficult to use.
One nice touch is that there’s a cover that slides from the right to cover the cupholders.
You get a deep storage area that doubles as an armrest. In it you get two USB ports and a AUX in for audio along with a 12V jack.
There’s a decent sized glove box for you to hide stuff in.
There’s a good sized moonroof that allows you to let in some sunshine.
The back seats are a nice place to be. Two adults will fit easily. Three adults may be a bit of a stretch though.
If you don’t need to seat three people, you can use these cupholders. Plus the the controls for the rear seat heaters are back here. Seeing as Mazda put in rear seat heaters, one wonders why the steering wheel isn’t heated.
There are HVAC vents for the rear passengers.
The trunk is fairly big, plus you can flip down the 60/40 seats easily using the levers on either side of the hinges. Speaking of the hinges, you’ll note that they’re boxed in so that they don’t crush everything that’s underneath them.
As you can see, the haul from our weekly grocery trip leaves plenty of room for other stuff.
There’s a handle on the trunk that allows you to close the trunk and keep your hands clean.
This chrome plate protects the bumper when you’re loading/unloading the trunk and adds an additional touch of class.
The interior lighting is bright. As you can see here, it does a fantastic job of lighting up the interior of the Mazda6 GT.
All the surfaces that you touch are soft. Plus the fit and finish is excellent. Everything that the driver could possibly need falls easily to hand as well. In short, almost everything interior wise is well thought through. The absence of a heated steering wheel given that the rear seats are heated is a minor omission, but one worth noting. But other than that, the interior of the 2016 Mazda6 GT is well executed.
Tomorrow I will discuss the technology that comes in the 2016 Mazda6 GT. Stay tuned!
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