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Feel Alive. This is the sentiment everyone seeks when traveling. To escape the mundane aspects of life and embark on new adventures. That’s why the slogan on the license plate during my test drive of the 2019 Mazda6 Signature immediately resonated with me.
I had the opportunity to test drive the Mazda6 Signature for five days while leaf peeping through the mountains of Colorado. I was beyond excited to get behind the wheel of this 6-speed sport mode with a four cylinder SKYACTIV-G 2.5T turbo engine, which made it a breeze to navigate the elevation climbs I’d experience. I knew I was in for a treat when I was picking up the car and the valet driver said, “Is this car yours? I kept walking past it and saying, ‘Man, this is a NICE car!” I quickly learned that he was correct.
Here are five things that I loved about the 2019 Mazda6 Signature and helped add to my sense of feeling alive during my recent trip through Colorado!
Active Driving Display
I’ll admit, when I first pulled out on the road, I found the Active Driving Display to be distracting. While this is likely due to the fact that I had never driven a vehicle with this technology, I can say that it quickly became my favorite feature.
What is Active Driving Display, you ask? It’s an innovative feature that allows drivers to see important information without having to look away from the road ahead. Located above the dash, Active Driving Display is a semi-reflective screen that displays real-time information through the windshield and in front of the driver, allowing you to keep your eyes focused on the road. It shows speed, navigation instructions and alerts from various safety features such as lane departure warning, traffic sign recognition, lane keep assist, and smart city brake support. If you’re someone who’s prone to speeding tickets, I was particularly impressed by the accuracy of the speed sign recognition, which would update the speed limit of the road I was on in real time.
Fuel Economy
In my book, good fuel economy is the most important feature of a quality road trip vehicle. The Mazda6 gets 23 miles per gallon city, 31 highway, and 26 combined. Having driven a total of 1,000 miles on a course that was about 70% mountain terrain and included a few dirt roads, I was surprised to finish my trip with an impressive 31.4 MPG! You can’t complain about that kind of performance.
Safety Features
Navigating unfamiliar roads in new destinations can sometimes be a bit daunting. As a solo traveler, I sometimes battle sleepiness and being easily distracted by beautiful scenery, which makes safety features that much more important to me.
One feature that I especially loved was the 360° View Monitor, which utilizes four separate cameras to give the driver an accurate picture of the car and its immediate surroundings around the car. This came in handy when I encountered a few spots that were a tight squeeze for the Mazda6, but the display was so accurate that I had no problem and was able to be aware of any potential hazards around me.
360° View Monitor
The rearview backup camera was a pleasant surprise. This may seem like a standard option on most vehicles today, but the wide field of view on the Mazda6 Signature was vastly superior to any other car I’ve driven. As someone who has been known to be a bit careless when backing up, this feature left me feeling confident and safe when in reverse.
Rearview Camera
Let’s take a second to talk about the radar cruise control. I didn’t even realize what this feature was until I was on the open highway. Basically, while in cruise control, the vehicle slows down or speeds up by using millimeter-wave radar at speeds from 18-90 mph to maintain following distance to vehicles ahead of you. I was a little nervous about letting the car take over when you are traveling at a high rate of speed when I first tried it, but once you get used to it, it really is a fantastic feature. Maintaining proper driving distance between cars is a huge pet peeve of mine, so this technology was a revelation.
A few other safety features that I always appreciate are the blind spot monitoring, the lane departure warning system, and tire pressure monitoring. And two that might seem silly, but I really enjoyed: the high beam control, which automatically turned high beams off when another vehicle was approaching. And the auto fold side mirrors, perfect to avoid getting hit by another car or just navigating tighter spaces and, quite frankly, it just looked cute when they tucked in.
Auto Fold Side Mirrors
Sound/Music
Again, as a solo traveler, a very important feature for me is a quality sound system and the associated technology. Long drives and late nights often require entertainment, that’s why I loved the Bose 11-speaker audio system. While radio signal was spotty (you know, remote mountain driving), I was more than pleased with the minimal time it took to connect my phone via Bluetooth, pull up my Spotify playlist, and navigate the mountain roads with all of my favorite music at my disposal. The convenient multi-function Commander control knob on the center console allows you to control the Infotainment Center from the right side, eliminating the need to reach up to the dashboard to operate the SiriusXM Radio, the Navigation System, or switch on your favorite podcast on the 8″ color touch-screen display.
8″ Touch-Screen Display
Multifunction Commander Controls
Interior Features
Cozy, super comfortable leather seats, and everything easily in reach — the comfort of the Mazda6 Signature is second to none. The interior featured nice parchment Nappa leather sport seats, while the black leather-wrapped steering wheel offered cruise, audio, and Bluetooth controls. The heated front seats and heated steering wheel were the perfect answer for a few very cold Colorado mornings. As soon as you get behind the wheel, you’re immediately greeted by the centrally mounted 8-inch full color touch-screen display. A feature that I really enjoyed on the touch-screen display was the notification of the next cross street, cutting down on missed turns in unfamiliar locations.
In addition to the comfortable front seats, there was ample room for passengers in the back seat and plenty of trunk space for my suitcase and all of my camera equipment.
There’s a lot to recommend with the 2019 Mazda6 Signature. The vehicle is fun, sleek, looks just as fancy as far more expensive imports and is reasonably priced for a 5-seater sedan with tech and comfort to spare. To be quite honest, I was sad I had to give it back!
2019 Mazda6 Signature Details
Fuel Economy: 23 City / 31 Highway
Engine: SKYACTIV-G 2.5T DOHC Turbo
Price: Starting at $35,100
https://www.mazdausa.com/vehicles/mazda6
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