Mazda 6e 2027 review – Australian first drive

Price and features – Does it represent good value for the price? What features does it come with?

9 / 10

Mazda has done a very impressive job positioning the 6e in what is a highly competitive electric mid-size sedan market. While sedans may be unpopular in general, the Tesla Model 3 and BYD Seal are keeping the segment alive.

The 6e range begins at $49,990, plus on-road costs, for the standard GT grade, while even the fully loaded Atenza starts at just $52,990.

BYD recently reshuffled its Seal line-up, so it starts at $52,990 and stretches to $61,990 for its flagship Performance grade, while Tesla’s range starts at $54,900 and rises all the way to $80,900. Mazda has clearly set its sight in wooing customers away from the established duo.

Mazda hasn’t stripped out all the equipment either to hit that price, it’s still very well equipped. The GT comes standard with 19-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry, tri-zone climate control, ambient lighting, heated and ventilated front seats, a 14.6-inch central touchscreen and a 10.2-inch digital driver display plus a 14-speaker Sony audio system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Stepping up to the flagship Atenza adds leather and synthetic suede seats, a two-tone leather-wrapped steering wheel and more synthetic suede on the dash and doors.

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Design – Is there anything interesting about its design?

8 / 10

As mentioned earlier, the 6e shares a lot in common with the Deepal L07, but to look at it, it’s unmistakably a Mazda.

It’s a clear evolution from the brand’s conventionally powered models, but still retains a family look. Chief designer Yoshito Iwauchi made the trip to Australia to present his creation to the local media, and he highlighted the historical inspiration for this radically different car for the brand.

It’s the first rear-wheel-drive sedan for Mazda since the 929 disappeared more than 25 years ago, while Iwauchi and his team took elements from the 626 (the active rear spoiler) and RX-7 (rear tail-lights) to complete the design.

Whatever they did worked, because the 6e won the 2026 World Car Design of the Year award.

However, when it comes to the interior, it’s a good thing for Mazda that Deepal doesn’t currently sell the L07 in Australia, because the difference between the two is less stark.

The upper element of the dashboard, along with the two large screens carry over unchanged, while Mazda has tweaked the steering wheel and the lower half of the dashboard fascia.

There are other hints to its Chinese origins, such as the ‘multi-purpose’ buttons on the steering wheel, which are a popular option on Chinese vehicles, but overall it does feel like a Mazda and there is a prominent Mazda logo on the steering wheel.

Practicality – How practical is its space and tech inside?

7 / 10

This is another area where there has been some influence from Changan/Deepal, with the 6e joining the long list of cars to all but abandon physical buttons. Almost every function, including climate control and the sound system, run through the multimedia touchscreen, or Smart Entertainment My Room, as Mazda calls it.

Obviously over time you’ll get used to it if you own one, but it still feels counter-intuative to make people scroll through multiple menus on a touchscreen and then beep at them for not paying attention to the road, as the safety systems in the 6e tend to do.

The other issue with the interior is having the batteries mounted under the floor, combined with the sloping roofline to give it a coupe-like silhouette, means that cabin space is compromised, especially in the back. Knee room is adequate but foot space and head room are both tight for adult backseat passengers.

This is both strange and a bit of a missed opportunity for an EV, which typically offer more cabin space thanks to the lack of a mechanical powertrain.

Perhaps also because of the batteries under the floor, I couldn't quite find my ideal seating position as a driver, which is very unusual for a Mazda. The brand traditionally offers good ergonomics and adjustment.

As for cargo space, the boot measures 337 litres with all seats in use, but can expand to 1074L if you don’t need to carry rear passengers and lower the seats. As a handy bonus, there is a Mazda first ‘frunk’ (aka, under-bonnet storage) that adds a bonus 72L and is an ideal spot to store your charging cable.

Under the bonnet – What are the key stats for its motor?

7 / 10

Mazda has kept the powertrain simple, using Changan’s electric motor and battery technology for both the GT and Atenza. Specifically a single, rear-mounted motor which produces 190kW of power and 290Nm of torque.  

A rear-wheel drive sedan with nearly 200kW of performance certainly sounds like something Australian motorists love, at least in the past, so perhaps Mazda can tap into that market again.

There is no all-wheel-drive grade currently available and it's unlikely anytime soon, as even the SUV sibling, the CX-6e, is only available with the same single-motor, rear-wheel-drive powertrain. 

Efficiency – What is its fuel consumption? What is its driving range?

8 / 10

The 6e is powered by a 78kWh lithium-iron-phosphate battery, which Mazda claims is good for an impressive 560km of range.

Mazda claims that with DC charging the battery can be replenished from 30-80 per cent in as little as 15 minutes.

Energy consumption is rated at 15.9kWh/100km and we saw a return of 17.9 during our mostly open road test drive, which is a good result for the 6e.

Driving – What's it like to drive?

7 / 10

Obviously a major part of the appeal of the 6e will be that it is not an SUV. If people are interested in an electric Mazda SUV, they’ll need to wait for the CX-6e in a few months.

But given Australia’s traditional love of sedans, particularly rear-wheel drive ones, there is certainly an opportunity for the brand to try and find those buyers out there looking for an SUV alternative.

Certainly the lower, more aerodynamic body helps with range, as the CX-6 SUV has a much lower claim of just 484km. So for those looking for an EV that can stretch itself between stops at the charger, the 6e has appeal there too.

As for the way it handles itself on-road, the 6e has a lot to live up to based on the reputation of the petrol-powered Mazda6. Obviously it is not a sports sedan, and Mazda doesn’t claim it is, but it is nice to drive on a winding road.

Australian-specification models get a firmer, European-developed, suspension tune (rather than the softer Chinese set-up) and it rides well without being particularly plush and pampering. The car is responsive, but the steering lacks the kind of feel and feedback that made the Mazda6 a benchmark in its class.

The performance from the motor is good, obviously with 190kW it’s not rocket ship fast, but it does the job you expect of a mid-size sedan. If you want an electric sedan that is ‘ludicrously’ quick, then you’ll need to look elsewhere and spend a lot more money. 

Safety – What safety equipment is fitted? What is its safety rating?

6 / 10

Unfortunately, the driving experience is compromised quite significantly by the active safety systems and how they are calibrated.

On the plus side, Mazda has included all the usual safety features, including autonomous emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist, blind spot monitoring, vehicle exit alert and a 360-degree camera.

But somewhere in the creation of the car between Changan and Mazda, the calibration and integration of the systems hasn’t reached the level we’ve come to expect from the Japanese brand.

Poorly calibrated active safety systems are certainly not unique to Chinese cars, but there are some particular quirks to the 6e that do feel very familiar to the newer Chinese brands.

Perhaps the most obvious of this kind was the ‘sharp curve ahead’ that the car repeatedly, but seemingly randomly, warned us about during our drive. The sharpness and distance of the ‘curve ahead’ seemed to have no logical pattern, but even the presence of such a warning raises serious questions. If this system is useful to you as a driver, it suggests you are not paying enough attention to the road ahead, through the windscreen, and perhaps shouldn’t be driving in the first place.

And it should be difficult for you not to be looking at the road ahead, because the driver attention warning system was borderline hyperactive during at least part of our test drive. Regardless of sunglasses on or off, shade or bright sun on my face, the attention warning kept beeping - despite my eyes being firmly fixed on the road ahead trying to dodge the countless potholes on the roads around Byron Bay.

The adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assist is another example. For starters, it uses the incredibly annoying modern trend of counter-intuitive activation, largely unlabelled buttons and then you use the gear selector to start cruise control because it’s cheaper than putting more buttons on the steering wheel.

Once it’s active, the lane keeping assist is incredibly reactive and busy, repeatedly moving you within the lane to the point my co-driver asked if I was ok to drive. 

Mazda assures us these systems can be switched off, but that only serves to make these safety items ineffective. Instead, Mazda needs to fine-tune them to improve both the driving experience and the overall safety of the 6e.

Which is not to suggest the car is unsafe, simply that having all of its safety systems working correctly is better than turning them off so they stop annoying you.

Despite all this, Mazda says a five-star ANCAP score is anticipated, as it scored five stars on a Euro NCAP test. However, it should be noted that was to the soon-to-be-superseded 2025 test protocols and ANCAP has not yet applied its official rating to the 6e at the time of publication.

Ownership – What warranty is offered? What are its service intervals? What are its running costs?

7 / 10

Having effectively soft launched with the MX-30, Mazda Australia headquarters has undertaken a nationwide program to get their dealers and service centres up to speed for this new generation of EVs.

With over 180 dealers and service centres spread across Australia, and with its experience in the market, Mazda should provide one of the better ownership experiences in the business.

The 6e may be built in China, but it’s covered by the same five-year/unlimited km warranty as the rest of the Mazda range, with the battery getting eight years and 160,000km of extended coverage.

Service intervals for the 6e are every 15,000km/12 months, whichever comes first, and the car is covered by a seven-year/140,000km capped-price servicing plan. However, if you think EVs are cheap to service because they have fewer moving parts, the plan totals $2846 over seven years, which is only slightly less than Mazda’s petrol-powered CX-5, for comparison.

Verdict