Wheels Australia — August 2016

40 WheelsMag.com.au

Mazda patents innovative ‘G-Vectoring Control’

Mazda 6 GVC

REMEMBER the Energy

Polariser, a collection of

crystals in an engine-bay

box that did a bunch of

‘stuff’toBrocky’sHDTVL

SS Group A and VL Director

back in 1986/87, without the

actual hard evidence to prove it?

Well, you could be forgiven for

thinking that Mazda’s G-Vectoring

Control (or GVC) – a purely

software-driven device that aims

to enhance on-centre steering

connection and turn-in response

(see p24) – somehow fits into

thesamecategory.Butthistime

the Japanese have the data to

back up this intriguing, almost

subversively effective technology.

OurtestcarisacurrentMazda

6 Atenza auto petrol sedan,

re-jigged with a dashboard button

to allow GVC to be turned on and

off, enabling a direct comparison.

Traversing a course outlined

by witch’s hats, with a straight

oneithersideandawetcornerat

oneend,wesetthecruisecontrol

FIRST
OVERSEAS
DRIVE

to 29km/h and start lapping.

Sticking tight to the orange hats,

we perform two laps with GVC

turned off, and another two with it

switched on. And then repeat the

process, swapping between each

mode with greater frequency.

Guiding the wheel with my

fingertips, the difference is

immediately, if subtly, obvious.

Where the standard mode

transmits little connection through

the wheel at straight-ahead and

throughthefirstphaseofturn-in,

GVC sparks a connection, enabling

easier, crisper placement, and less

understeer through the wet corner.

Given there are no hardware

changes, how can GVC possibly

reduce understeer? Simply by

removing the guesswork. Without

any real feedback until you’re

already in a corner – a criticism

byWheelsof Mazda’s current

SkyActiv product – the driver

tends to apply more steering lock

than required, which promotes

understeer,eventhoughthe

difference between each arc (GVC

on and off) isn’t huge.

Weperformasimilarexercise

on gravel, where the difference is

even more marked. Without GVC,

my line is messier, no matter how

precisely I try to drive the 6.

What I wasn’t expecting was

to notice a difference on faster,

relatively straight roads. The

deadness of the standard electric

system,andthedriver’sability

to ‘chase’ the steering either

side of straight ahead, vanishes

whenGVCisoperating.Wheel

movements become smoother and

youfeelmoreintunewiththecar.

There will definitely be sceptics.

Some colleagues claim they can’t

tell the difference, but Mazda has

thedatatoproveit–smoother

inputs, less wheel movement, and

the resulting tighter cornering

line on slippery surfaces and less

passenger body movement.

Come next month’s updated 3,

we’ll soon know for sure.

NATHAN PONCHARD

Not everyone can appreciate GVC’s virtues, or even feel the difference PLUS &

MINUS

Subtly improved, and of greater worth the further and harder you drive

Model

Engine

Max power

Max torque

Transmission

Kerb weight

0-100km/h

Economy

Price

On sale

Mazda 6 Atenza ‘GVC’

2488cc 4cyl, dohc, 16v

138kW @ 5700rpm

250Nm @ 3250rpm

6-speed automatic

1501kg

7.6sec (tested)

6.6L/100km

$45,390

2017

New school

The US-spec 6 we drove was

deemed the only current

Mazda whose chassis set-up

was good enough to work

effectively with G-Vectoring

Control. When GVC begins

rolling out across Mazda’s

global SkyActiv range next

month (in the updated 3),

it will be accompanied by

a comprehensive chassis

re-tune. The system will be

standard across the board,

without the switchable

arrangement of the pre-

production cars we drove.

And it may arrive during

model-year updates, so

expect the MY17 Mazda 2

and Mazda 6 to follow.