MAY 2019 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 135Our carsMazda 6 Tourer
Month 7The story so far
A family car with a sports car’s
powertrain, on a good day
+Tidy handling; lag-free engine;
no SUV nonsense- Slow and a bit dull; and I still
want to kick the door in every
time it locks itself
Price £31,695 (£32,495 as tested)
Performance 2488cc 4-cyl,
192bhp, 8.1sec 0-62mph, 139mph,
Efficiency 41.5mpg (official), 33.1
(tested), 156g/km C02 Energy cost
17.8p per mile Miles this month
1346 Total miles 12,999LogbookFord Fiesta ST
Month 5The story so far
Bite-sized hot hatch brilliance, with
super-playful chassis and quick-
thinking steering accentuated by
our car’s optional limited-slip diff
+ Relatively bargainous price; how
can a three-pot engine feel this
powerful?- Solid-sprung ride quality; overly
huggy Recaro seats
Price £21,995 (£24,890 as tested)
Performance 1499cc turbo 3-cyl,
197bhp, 6.5sec 0-62mph, 144mph
Efficiency 47.1mpg (official),
44.1mpg (tested), 136g/km CO2
Energy cost 13.6p per mile Miles
this month 760 Total miles 4799LogbookVW Up GTI
Month 4The story so far
Although last month’s exposure
to others outside the CAR team
involved several negatives,
everyone agreed it’s fun
+Mid-range torque; sound; nuclear
heated seats; terrier-like handling
and charm- Lack of wheel reach; noise on
motorways; flat seats; lumpy ride
Price £14,055 (£15,230 as tested)
Performance 999cc turbo triple,
113bhp, 8.8sec 0-62mph, 122mph
Efficiency Official mpg 58.9; our
mpg 44.7; 129g/km CO2 Energy
cost 13.1p per mile Miles this
month 823 Total miles 4106LogbookAudi A6 Avant
Month 3The story so far
Entry-level diesel version of Audi’s
slick and techy new A6 estate fitted
with a suite of comfort-orientated
extras
+Audi build quality; roomy; quiet
and refined- It’s a diesel estate
Price £40,740 (£46,805 as tested)
Performance 1968cc turbodiesel
4-cyl, 201bhp, 8.3sec 0-62mph,
149mph Efficiency 60.1mpg (official),
38.8mpg (tested), 124g/km C02
Energy cost 15.2p per mile Miles
this month 951 Total miles 3189LogbookSlips down
easily
We’re 13,000 miles into our time
with the Mazda 6 Touring, and
although I may be some way short
of falling in love with it, there’s no
denying that the Mazda has gone
about its business with no fuss.
Logic says it’s the right car for
me. As a photographer I carry a lot
of stuff in the car, always ready for
the unexpected. And compared
to an SUV, a lower-riding estate
gives a much better position for an
automotive photographer, not to
mention being easier to get heavy
gear into and out of.
And yet, and yet... part of me
wishes I was still in my previous
car, the more charismatic (and very
roomy) Peugeot 5008. Maybe the
solution would be Mazda’s high-rise
equivalent, the CX-5.
ALEX TAPLEY
Worth everypennyLong-term tests tell you plenty
about a car but the picture’s always
different when you’ve bought one
for real. Just as my friend Lawrence
has done; the silver car pictured
alongside CAR’s blue one is his ST.
‘I was such a fan of the old car I
almost didn’t want to like the new
one,’ he reflects, ‘but it all works so
well. Although I do prefer the old
four-cylinder engine...’
He’s still running his in; our
fully loosened-up car feels a shade
quicker, and rides almost as well
despite its inch-bigger wheels.
Lawrence’s is a mid-spec ST-2 to
our top-line ST-3 but feels just as
luxurious thanks to a judicious
sprinkling of options (and it has the
heated steering wheel ours misses, a
quirk of being an early-build car).
JAMES TAYLORGetting adroitwith AndroidRemember Maps & More? It was a
portable nav system Up buyers used
to be able to get as an option until- After that, VW made M&M
an app instead as so many folks
have big smartphones now. But why
bother, when phone users (ie all of
us) already have Apple CarPlay or
Android Auto at their disposal?
The Up’s absence of any
infotainment has provided the
perfect prompt to immerse myself
in Android Auto. It’s mostly great:
easier access to my Spotify playlists
or podcasts, a choice of Waze or
Google Maps for nav, and Google’s
Assistant for reading out messages,
to which I can then voice-dictate a
reply – even on WhatsApp. Handy
for a switched-on millennial.
JAKE GROVES
@_jakegroves
My car won’ttrust meTwo things need turning off on
the A6, the first easy – a pulsing
throttle intended to tell you to stop
accelerating. Annoying, but easy
enough to permanently neutralise.
But lane-keeping assist, although
it can be disengaged, reactivates
each time you start the car. With
it on, the steering tries to stop you
crossing white lines unless you
indicate, and feels leaden like a flat
tyre. The off button is hard to find
by touch, meaning some potentially
dangerous eyes-off-road time. If
you move out to overtake a cyclist
without indicating the steering
will fight you; and returning to the
correct lane after overtaking a car
can be thwarted by the A6 wanting
to keep you in the wrong lane.
BEN BARRY
@IamBenBarry