2017 Mazda 6 vs Toyota Camry

What's the difference?

The Mazda6 GT wagon looks stunning and is great to drive, but it doesn’t have the cargo capacity of rivals such as the Passat and Superb. As for the GT grade, I’d be looking at the Touring instead – it’s about $5K less and you’re only really missing out on the proximity key, which is great, but not $5K great. Good on you for considering a wagon, too. It’s the thinking person's alternative to an SUV.

Yes, it will be hard to shake the longstanding 'vanilla' reputation, and some will hate the fact it's no longer built in Australia. But those who do jump into the driver's seat of the all-new Camry will be pleasantly surprised.

The Mazda6 sedan is a good-looking car, and even as a wagon it’s appealing, with that sloping roofline, those curvaceous wheel arches and long bonnet. The shape isn’t new either – sure there have been updates, but this model came out in 2012 and it doesn’t look out of date. 

Can you tell it’s a GT from the outside? No. Well yes, but only by the wheels and headlamps – the GT has 19-inch alloy wheels and LED headlights, but so does the top-of-the-range Atenza.

Inside, the Mazda6 GT wagon’s stylish cabin has a premium feel with leather seats and an excellent fit and finish. All the touch points throughout the cockpit are soft or padded, and all the controls, from the paddle shifters to the climate buttons, are perfectly placed and feel refined.

There are spots where the cabin is showing its age – that head-up display once seemed cool but now appears dinky and the display is tiny and antiquated by Volkswagen and Skoda standards these days.

How long is the Mazda6 wagon? It might not look like it, but the wagon is shorter end-to-end than the sedan. The dimensions don’t lie; the wagon is 4800mm long, the sedan is 4865mm.

Compared to its rivals, the Mazda6 wagon is 110mm longer than the Subaru Levorg and 33mm longer than the Passat wagon, but 71mm shorter than the Mondeo wagon and 61mm shorter than the Superb wagon.

Don’t be fooled, though, longer doesn’t mean it has a bigger cargo area - all will be revealed in the practicality section below.

There's two designs to choose from, standard or sporty, and both look like the current car in the same way the Hulk looks like Bruce Banner. There are similarities there, sure, but everything's gotten bigger, more distorted, and more aggressive. 

The grille on the standard car, for example, which used to sit safely in the middle of the bonnet, now extends not just to the natural edges of the car, but beyond them, with the Camry taking on snowplough dimensions when viewed front-on.

Sharp creasing now carves a new shape into the bodywork, which meets a newly designed rear-end, of which the crazy squiggle of the rear lights are a particular standout.

For our money, though, the Sport model is the far more resolved package. That massive grille is just the wrong side of sensible, pinched in the middle but extending out to the four corners of the bonnet, giving the Camry a proud and jutting jawline that looks more than a little like a smiling alien from Predator.

The bonnet split that frames the badge now stretches all the way to the edges of the car, joining new and thinner headlights that sweep back into the body. Viewed rear on, you'll find flared rear arches, four exhaust tips and a little spoiler on the boot lid. 

Either way, though, you'll find the roof is 25mm lower, while the bonnet is now 40mm lower - both of which give Australia's most sensible car a lower, sleeker, faster profile. Very un-Camry indeed.

Inside, the Camry's a huge departure from the vehicles currently prowling Australian roads. Toyota's keen to shift the Camry into a more premium space, and the cabin is definitely a reflection of that.

Beyond that though, it's just kind of cool. Especially the smooth and swirling dash that looks architecturally designed, and gently points the key controls toward the driver.

Look around though, and there are still some cut-price nasties, not least of which is the hard plastic strip that houses the power-window buttons that looks like it's been transported from the early 2000s.

Nobody buys a wagon by accident. You get a wagon because you’ve preempted regular situations when you’re going to have to carry stuff. Lots of stuff. Wagons are basically utes with a roof for people that don’t get dirty.

So not much point in getting a wagon if the cargo capacity doesn’t meet your requirements. The Mazda6 wagon has 506 litres of boot space, while the sedan version has 474 litres. Yes, that sounds like the wagon is small, but the big hatch opening and being able to fold the seats down opens up a 1648-litre cargo area.

The Passat wagon isn’t as long as the Mazda6 wagon, but its cargo capacity is 650 litres, or 1780 litres with the seats folded flat. The Superb has an enormous 660 litres or 1950 litres with the second row folded. The Levorg’s cargo area is smaller than the Mazda’s, with 489 litres, and so is the Mondeo’s, with 488 litres.

Cabin storage is good with two cup holders up front and two in the back. There’s also a large centre console storage bin and bottle holders in the doors, too.

As for humans, I’m one of those (but a tall one at 191cm) and I can sit behind my driving position with about 20mm of space. Headroom is also good back there.

The Mazda6 wagon’s coupe styling looks great, but the rear door opening is smaller because of it and I noticed this meant bending more to put my toddler into his car seat.

The Camry is still officially a medium-sized sedan, but its ever-growing dimensions must surely be pushing the boundaries. 

This new model is between 30mm and 46mm longer overall, and the wheelbase is up 50mm, than the current model. They don't sound like massive gains, but the result is a genuinely huge cabin, especially in the backseat where legroom is impressive, even behind tall front-seat riders. 

Up front, there are two cupholders in the central storage area, along with a host of USB and power sources hidden on the driver's side of the cabin. Backseat riders share another two cupholders hidden in the pull-down divider that separates the rear seat, and there's room in every door for bottles.

A design change has seen the hybrid battery storage shifted from the boot to under the rear seat, unlocking an extra 30 litres in storage in the spacious boot, but detailed storage information is not yet available.

While Toyota is yet to confirm any concrete pricing for the incoming Camry, the forecast is pain ahead for budget-conscious shoppers.

Toyota executives admit they have been “artificially” propping up the Australian factory by discounting the current Camry fairly heavily - a practice they'll be putting a stop to come November. The translation is that the sharp drive-way pricing deals that help shift the current model will be no more. 

Toyota's executives are also keeping mum on pricing and specification details for now, but they've made no secret of their intention to shift this Camry into a more premium (and more expensive) space, and so, our cars will arrive well kitted out from a design and technology standpoint.

Inside, a 7.0- or 8.0-inch touchscreen, depending on the trim level, does miss out on Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, but has been set up to ape a traditional smartphone's layout, and will work with things like 'Hey Siri' or 'Ok Google'.

Cheaper models will get a small digital screen in the dash, while the top-tier cars will arrive equipped with a 7.0-inch TFT nestled in amongst the traditional dials.

Finally, a whopping 10.0-inch head-up display is available, too, with the extra real estate capable of beaming much more detailed information than the usual speedometer reading. 

The Camry will ride on 17-, 18- or 19-inch alloys, with a space-saver spared tucked into its large boot.

The Mazda6 GT wagon is available with a diesel or the 2.5-litre petrol engine which was in our test car. Producing 138kW of power and 250Nm of torque, the engine is smooth, quiet and has plenty of oomph.

This is a front-wheel-drive car and the transmission is a six-speed automatic. 

The Camry will arrive with three engines, though we've only tested one, which begins with the four-cylinder, 2.5-litre entry-level petrol engine carried over from the current model, and tops out with a new V6 option that will produce 222kW at 6600rpm and 356Nm at 4700rpm, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission.

But nestled in the middle of those two is the new hybrid unit we've tested here, which is the engine Toyota thinks will become the best-selling option in Australia - helped along by fleet sales from Government departments eager to shrink their environmental footprint. 

The 2.5-litre hybrid will produce 131kW at 5700rpm and 221Nm at 5200rpm (modest enough increases on the current model), and is paired with a CVT auto. The electric motor can add as much as 88KW and 202Nm, but the hybrid set-up means maximum power from both the electric motor and petrol engine is never available all at once, and the engine's maximum output is listed at 155kW.

Mazda says the wagon with the 2.5-litre petrol engine and six-speed auto should use 6.6L/100km when driven on a combo of urban, country and city roads. Our car spent most of its life with us in the city and our trip computer was saying we were averaging 10.2L/100km. 

Fuel figures are yet to be officially confirmed for all but the hybrid engine, which will sip a miserly 4.5L/100km on the claimed combined cycle, helped by a new 'coasting' function which slips out of gear when it can (like when you're approaching a traffic light) to save fuel.

Mazda’s ‘thing’ is making cars that are fun to drive – the company takes this seriously, and when a new car is launched they devote a lot of time explaining the pains they went to in making the car engaging to pilot.

And the effort seems to pay off; Mazdas really are good to drive, and the Mazda6 is no exception.

Steering is smooth, well-weighted and accurate, the engine is responsive and has a sport mode (which is actually sporty), and the six-speed auto gets the drive to those front wheels well. There were times, though, that the front wheels would lose traction - especially from a standing start on a hill.

Handling is good and the ride is comfortable, too. Although the lower profile tyres on the GT grade (225/45 R19) do mean you’ll feel the bumps and cracks in the road more than the thicker-walled tyres on the lower grades.

And finally, a wagon will almost always be better to drive than an SUV, and that's because it has a lower centre of mass and that gives it superior handling. Just like a car. Because that's what it is.

It's hard to think of a city less suited to the sensible shoe-wearing Toyota Camry than the hipster heartland of Portland, Oregon - a city filled with people that devour the weird and wonderful with the same ferocious appetite they apply to flannelette clothing and deconstructed soy lattes.

And yet it's here, in the hills 40km from the centre of town, that Toyota throws us the keys to its newest hybrid. Clearly, then, this is no ordinary Camry. 

The Camry of old was all about practicality, dependability and fuel economy, but Toyota's engineers now glow with pride when they talk about a 30 per-cent increase in torsional rigidity, or the new double-wishbone rear suspension. Phrases like "lower centre of gravity" and "engaging drive" pepper the media briefing.

And while a relentless downpour, combined with fog so thick it clung to you like spiderwebs, meant truly putting this new and surprisingly agile Camry to the test was reserved for folks a whole lot braver than me, if our brief test drive on some twisting rural roads is any indication, then signs are hugely positive for this new Camry.

The revised suspension will be offered in two tunes; a softer, more billowy standard setting, and a sportier version that is right on the money in terms of striking a balance between sporty and supple, while still soaking up dodgy road surfaces with little fuss. And it's the latter than best showcases the engineering work that's gone into this new Camry.

Even in the wet, when the tyres were only too happy to relinquish their grip on the road surface below, it's easy to tell that this will be the best-driving Camry yet - even if that's not the tallest mountain to climb. 

Is it the sportiest, most athletic offering you could spend what will likely be $30,000 and up on? No. But that's not what its customers are likely to actually want, and it does feels connected to the road now in a way it hasn't in the past. The steering has an open line of communication with the front wheels, too, and the Camry feels agile enough in bends.

The hybrid Camry was the only vehicle available to test, but it will be joined in Australia by a V6-powered version that will make better use of these new found dynamics, and at a glance, seems more suited to Australia's palate.

But those who opt for the hybrid (and Toyota's hoping that's lots of you, given they're tipping it to become the best seller), will find it surprisingly capable of getting up to speed. Stay light with the pedal and you can waft around in a pure EV mode for limited distances, too.

But all this talk of dynamics is likely a moot point for the Camry's target audience, most of whom are are unlikely to set off in search of a mountain pass, the red mist gathering in their line of sight. Fortunately, then, the Camry remains quiet (except for the occasional drone of the CVT) and comfortable on the road in everyday driving.

And while our test drive was too brief and too wet to deliver any kind of definitive verdict, it did paint a rosy picture for the Camry's local launch in November.

“Safety is standard”, says a Toyota executive at the Camry's international launch. And we're happy to report that's more than just empty platitudes.

Every Camry will get seven airbags, a reversing camera and parking sensors as standard, but will also get a pre-collision warning system with AEB, active cruise control, hill start assist and lane assist with an active steering system that will tug the wheel if it senses you drifting out of your lane.

Higher-spec models will add blind spot monitoring and rear-cross traffic alert.

The Mazda6 wagon is covered by Mazda’s three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. Servicing is recommended every 12 months or 10,000km and is capped at $305 for the first service, $333 for the second, $305 for the next, then $333 and back to $305.

While specifics are yet to be confirmed, expect the Camry to be covered by Toyota's standard three-year/100,000km warranty. But in good news for customers, we're expecting the Camry to score the same service intervals as its C-HR sibling, extending the time between service centre visits to 12 months or 15,000km, instead of the six months or 10,000kms on most other Toyota cars.