Take the Wheel of Dog-Friendly Mazda 6 #DriveMazda

For our trip to Fort Myers we rode in the 2016 Mazda 6 Grand Touring in Soul Red. The Mazda 6 Sedan is definitely a cure for the common drive combining the style and comfort of a luxury sedan with the power and handling of a sports car.

Mazda goes the extra millimeter so you can go the extra mile.

The 2016 Mazda 6 is made with Mazda’s Skyactiv Technology, a holistic, ground-up approach to re-engineering each component for the ultimate in efficiency, performance and emissions.  By creating a lighter and cleaner engine, Skyactiv Technology lowers emissions and increases fuel efficiency and performance.  We were impressed that the Mazda 6 Grand Touring gets an average 32 miles per gallon with an average 40 miles per gallon on the highway.

The Mazda 6 is powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that gave the sedan a surprisingly quick acceleration. We found the automatic engine to be quiet and smooth as it shifted gears.

Mazda’s craftsmanship shines in the details.

The interior design of the 2016 Mazda 6 Grand Touring is styled with clean lines, quality materials and easily accessible displays and controls.

The 8-way power driver seat with power lumbar support and seat memory made alternating between two drivers quick and simple. The 6-way power passenger seat was easily adjustable too and reclined back so far that I could get some pats and scratches from the front passenger.

Legroom is not an issue in the 2016 Mazda 6. Both front and rear passengers will find plenty of it as well as headroom. The back seats are comfortable and can easily seat 3 people – both big and small dogs will find there is plenty of room too.

The 7-inch touch screen mounted display makes accessing the navigation, radio, Bluetooth technology as well as USB inputs a breeze. For safety purposes, the touch-screen display can only be accessed via the controls on the steering wheel or from the main control knob on the center console while the car is in motion.  All gauges and displays are clear and easily seen and the brightness can be adjusted accordingly.

Mazda has your back, your front and your sides too.

Standard safety features for the Mazda 6 Grand Touring include antilock brakes, traction and stability control, 5 passenger 3-point seat belts, front seat side airbags, full-length side curtain airbags, active front seat head restraints, rearview camera, blind-spot monitoring as well as rear cross-traffic monitoring.  Our Mazda 6 also came with Smart City Brake Support which is a frontal collision mitigation system.  It works by using an infrared laser sensor at the top of the windshield to detect an imminent collision and then automatically brakes the car to stop (at low speed) if the driver doesn’t react.

The 2016 Mazda 6 earned a Superior rating from IIHS, the highest rating, for Front Crash prevention when equipped with the Smart City Brake Support.  The 2015 Mazda 6 was named the Top Safety Pick Plus by the IIHS when equipped with the Smart City Brake Support system.

The Mazda 6 also includes Latch Child Safety Seat anchors in the back seat. For pet parents who use Sleepypod’s original ClickIt Safety Harness, this is where the seat restraints will attach so your pup will be safely buckled up!

Mazda 6 Grand Touring is a cure for the common drive.

We enjoyed driving the 2016 Mazda 6 Grand Touring – a stylish, classy mid-sized sedan that has a sporty road feel and exterior design. We believe the Mazda 6 would be a great sedan for families with children and/or pets.

Zoom-Zoom. Drive Mazda.

Oz the Terrier would like to thank friends at Drive Shop for giving us the opportunity to test drive the 2016 Mazda 6 Grand Touring during our Florida West Coast adventures.