An EV from Mazda! That is big news…Indeed, Mazda is not exactly at the forefront when it comes to electrification of the vehicle fleet. There is the MX-30, but that was not exactly a huge success. Too small battery, too little range, too slow charging times: the car was not competitive in any respect. Now there is a second model that will compete with success numbers such as the Tesla Model 3 and the Volkswagen ID7: the Mazda 6e. Indeed, a brand new Mazda6 that is only available as an electric car. At least, here in Europe. Provisional. Because there is something special going on with this electric Mazda. At the Brussels Motor Show, the Japanese proudly took the curtain off the car to show it to the world for the first time, but the global car connoisseur or regular AutoWeek.nl visitor will say: damn, I haven’t seen that car before ? Yes, is the answer. The Mazda EZ-6 has been available in China since April of last year. An electric Mazda built in collaboration with Changan, the Chinese partner of the Japanese. This was unveiled in April last year at the Beijing auto show.Mazda 6eMazda EZ-6But this Mazda 6e has probably been extensively modified.Well, no, actually. At least not visible. We walk two laps around it. Are we missing something? Just ask. “No, although we have made some minor changes to the lighting,” Mazda explains. “Oh and the chair is different: the EZ-6 provides a little more support for the legs. The Chinese like that.” So that’s it for the external features. Just the same car? Almost. The chassis is also virtually the same, except for some minor tweaking that is inherent to the differences between one continent and another. De facto no news here either. Things are getting a little more exciting on the electrical part. The Mazda 6e comes with two batteries. The largest is an NMC battery with 80 kWh, which is also available in the Chinese version. The WLTP range will be 550 kilometers. Fast charging is possible with a not so groundbreaking 90 kW. There will also be a smaller battery with 69 kWh. This is new and is not in the Mazda EZ-6. We do find it as an SUV version of the Chinese brother of the EZ-6 from the Deepal brand. This brand is also part of Changan, the Deepal L7. The SUV is called Deepal S07 and it also has the new 69 kWh battery that also comes in the Mazda 6e. This is not NCM, but a brand new LFP version. The WLTP range of this battery is 479 kilometers. But where an LFP battery can usually charge less quickly, this version has 200 kW. More than double the larger NMC battery. You always get rear-wheel drive. And what about power? Unlike previous generations, this new 6th is not front- but rear-wheel drive. Both versions had one electric motor on the rear axle. And here too we see remarkably that the smaller LFP battery has the advantage. This 258 hp against 244 hp for the 80 kWh version. Not a big difference, but the fact that the version with a smaller battery has more power is quite unique. It has everything to do with the newness of Mazda’s LFP battery, versus the larger NMC version which is older. Inverter and software control of the battery cells, among other things, are considerably more advanced in the smaller battery. With these advantages combined, it quickly becomes clear which variant you should choose. Because only the difference in theoretical range remains, and that is not very big in percentage terms. A warm cockpit. Enough about all that electrical stuff now. What else can you tell? That it is not a sedan like its predecessors. It may not be noticeable because of the design, but the car has a fifth door and is therefore a hatchback or liftback. This is partly because there will be no station wagon. Handy for an easily accessible luggage compartment. And here in Europe we are not really into sedans. In addition to the large trunk, we also find a 70-liter frunk in the front. A practical advantage that should not be underestimated. Also striking: a movable rear spoiler. Not exactly standard in this segment. On the inside, a relatively classic cockpit next to the clean screen violence in many modern EVs. Yes, here too a large touchscreen and a digital screen in front of you, but it does not dominate the entire interior as a whole. Of course, this depends on your interior choices, and you will not see the brown fabrics and leather in this demo on the loafers. But at least it is a bit warmer than many competitors. There is excellent legroom in the back due to the long wheelbase. In any case, the car is on the long side at 4.94 meters. But that does nothing against the high bottom. As in many EVs, you don’t sit comfortably because your feet are too high. The headroom obviously suffers somewhat from the extended roofline, but for the undersigned it was just manageable at 1.83 metres. A luxurious seat, but the bottom is too high. When will the Mazda 6e arrive? And will there be other versions? It won’t be available until next summer, so just be patient. And Mazda has no plans for variants yet. As mentioned, there will be no station wagon. But there will be no PHEV either, while the Chinese EZ-6 is available as a plug-in. Don’t count on a four-wheel drive version either. There is no mention of an SUV version either, but looking at what Chanhang delivers on this platform, we do not consider a CX-5 successor with the same technology to be excluded. Oh, as a bonus, something that is always appreciated in the Netherlands: the car can tow up to 1,500 kilos. Certainly not a given for an EV.
Source: www.autoweek.nl
