Is this goodbye? Mazda6 faces axe as Japan ceases sales and ends production of the Toyota Camry rival

The Mazda6 looks like it could disappear from Australian showrooms after a Japanese newspaper reported that Mazda will stop selling its mid-sized sedan and wagon in Japan and will also stop production of the model at its Hofu plant - the same factory that supplies the Australian market. 

According to the Chugoko Shimbun, the Mazda6 will continue to be assembled elsewhere and sold in some Asian markets.

A Mazda Australia spokesperson told CarsGuide that the report was not what the company had in its plans.

"The report is not what we (Mazda Corporation) have announced," the spokesperson said.

"We will announce for future product plans at an appropriate later date. Mazda Australia also cannot comment on speculation."

If the Mazda6 does end up facing the chop in Australia it’s probably the least surprising news you’ll read all year. Over the past decade we’ve watched sales of SUV completely swamp those of sedans and station wagons.

Last year the total number of SUVs sold in Australia was 679,462, compared to 211,361 passenger cars which includes sedans, wagons and hatchbacks.

Sales of the Mazda6 for 2023 amounted to 1528, which was a good result compared to 338 Hyundai Sonatas, 677 Volkswagen Passats and 1395 Skoda Octavias. Only the Toyota Camry could boast decent sales of 10,581 thanks to it’s popularity among fleet buyers.  

During the 2000s in Australia the Mazda6 was continually in the top five best-selling cars and despite the growing popularity of SUVs Mazda has always persisted with selling the model here. This is despite other markets such as the UK and the US axing it from their line-ups.

The current Mazda6 is in its third-generation which debuted in 2012 and while it has been updated with new styling, engines and safety equipment over the years, it hasn’t been replaced with an all-new model.

Last year when CarsGuide asked Mazda Australia’s Managing Director, Vinesh Bhindi, how long the Mazda6 will remain on sale, he told us that the company would hold onto the model as long as it could, but admitted buyers were turning to SUVs.

“Mid-size sedans globally, is not where the market is,” Bhindi said. 

“The market has, for a period, been looking at SUVs. More recently the priority is the drivetrain, and electrified drivetrains, so when you look at the priorities of Mazda Corporation and what we’ve been told, it is SUVs, it is electrified powertrains.

“From a Mazda Australia point-of-view - as long as Mazda makes a Mazda6 - we’ll offer a Mazda6 to Australian consumers. In terms of a next one in the future, it’s a bit hard to comment on when we know the priorities are the appropriate drivetrains and SUVs.”

It’s not as though the loss of the Mazda6 from the Australian line-up will hurt the company’s bottom line. Sales of Mazda’s SUVs are healthy with 23,083 CX-5s sold in 2023. 

Mazda is also rapidly adding to its SUV portfolio with the recent addition of the CX-60, CX-90 and CX-80 also soon to arrive.

Last year Mazda announced the axing of the CX-8, CX-9 and MX-30 from its Australian line-up. If the Mazda6 is next to go the brand will still have nine models on offer locally including the BT-50 ute, Mazda3, Mazda2, CX-60 and MX-5.

In the Australian 2023 sales charts Mazda came in second place having sold 100,008 vehicles. That put Mazda ahead of Ford, Kia and Hyundai but behind Toyota with 215,240 sales.