Looking For better ingress and egress from my next car.

Mike, thanks for the advice. As a former Legacy owner (09') I was happy with the vehicle, but when my lease was up it was no contest between the M6 and the newer Legacy. One minute behind the wheel of the CVT Legacy and I knew it was not for me (trans very noisey). New Legacy is a bit better, but styling?, come on this is 2016, not 2006. I'm sure this car is pictured next to "bland" in the dictionary. Actually agree the Forester is an ideal ingress-egress car but frankly cheap interiors (compared to Mazda, at least) rule it out for me.

I'm pretty well decided on keeping my M6 for a while after lease is up.
Really like the look of the Koeru (CX-6?) and it looks like it should be priced right around where the M6 is.
500X has cuteness going for it as well as that euro mistique, but I agree that the Mazda brand is head and shoulders above it. Sorry, but I apparently am the only person who thinks the CX-3 is butt ugly since its styling has had rave reviews and CX-5 is just typical SUV styling which I basically dislike. Will be anxiously awaiting the debut of the CX-6. My research has suggested auto show debut in the next few months (Shanghai, NY?) and possible onsale date somewhere by year's end. Haven't seen anything specific on US debut.

Len

Mike:

I think it's fair to say the Mazda 6's styling is a lot better than the Legacy though a lot of other midsizes are starting to look similar. My problem with the CX-3 is the floating roof makes it look like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Another major styling gripe that has taken over the industry, black or dark gray wheels. No offense, but most black wheels (unless they have a bright lip) look like a car riding on steelies after the hubcaps fell off. You also can't see the design of the wheels that you spent a friggen fortune for. The gray? Looks like a major epidemic of brake dust hit the wheels. But what do I know.

What other cars do I think are stylish. Not many, but I do like the attractive but a bit overstyled Q30, the Nissan Qashqai (soon to be sold here, I understand), and the gorgeous, but unobtainable DS (Citroen) C5. Volvo S90 is a looker too. In the end I can't afford most of these so back to reality.

By the way, it's nice that a stylish reasonably priced car like the Mazda 6 has plenty to offer above styling. Mileage for a car of this size is amazing (get 38 on road trips) also love Blind Spot and Cross Path features as well as commander switch (not available on most other cars). Would people really rather use a touch screen or should I say finger print collector to operate infotainment.

I've driven some CVTs that were tolerable so I can't say that it's a complete deal breaker. It's just that the CVT in the Legacy I tested back in 13' (when I leased my M6) was awful.

Pretty much decided on keeping my Mazda 6 when the lease expires June 1. I figure 12 months further down the road some choices I 'm interested in will be available such as the new CX-4 and the US version of the Nissan Qashqai. Also would expect to build up some equity which could provide a down payment or cash back if I decide to lease again.

Disappointing news today about what I had hoped could be my next car, the Mazda CX-4. While it's to be introduced next month at the Beijing Auto Show it apparently will be a China only vehicle for now.

Seems to make little sense. Firstly, why was the Koeru concept (mirror image of the CX-4) shown in Frankfurt last year if it's production sibling is only going to be sold in China. Secondly this endless talk about this vehicle being a new paradigm in cuvs (sleek coupe like) and having a world class new NVH suppression system rings hollow when this is being told to journalists in the West when the car is apparently years away from being sold in this part of the world. My plan was to wait a year or so after my lease expires, but now I wonder. Really not seeing anything I want right now, but wondering whether I should just look for a really good deal and compromise on my wants and needs. In the end I'll probably buy my current M6 off lease just to buy some time since the car runs great and is low mileage. Still very disappointing given my enthusiasm for this future vehicle.

Your point may have some validity, but marketing budgets should spread the word about something different or special about your vehicles. After years of pushing Skyactive, and designing very attractive cars Mazda still has barely made a dent in sales compared to some far less appealing choices. So it seems that they had a chance here to offer something special for the market that would catch the public's fancy and management has pretty much described this car in that fashion. So bury it where no one in the western world will see it for a few years and that certainly should boost your sales momentum worldwide.

Sorry, but the CX-5 is a "bland looks like every other" type CUV. The CX-3 is cramped and to my eye at least, plain old ugly. Still love the 6 but I'd love it a lot more if I didn't have to throw my back out every time I get in and out of it.

I know I'm just venting about getting enthusiastic about a new vehicle and then having the rug pulled out from under me. At this point I think I'll put my decision on hold and revisit it in about a year. Who knows, by then Mazda may have thought better of sequestering this product.

Thought I'd log in and update my thoughts on my next car. I did indeed buy my Mazda 6 off lease and based on the current situation will probably be keeping it for at least another year.

There are some vehicles that I'm interested in that have recently been introduced or will be out within a year or so. I'm specifically impressed with the new Jeep Compass which will be out this coming spring. Very stylish with the black roof option and sized about perfectly. Nothing great on mileage and 2.4 Tiger Shark isn't much to write home about. Good news from my perspective is Aisen 6 speed available (Japanese branded) on FWD which would be my choice. Heard so many complaints about the 9 speed.

Other problem is FCA in general. Reliability and service is problematic so do I want to go from a car that in 3 1/2 years was trouble free to something potentially much worse? Also have seen the Nissan Kicks introduced in Latin America a B segment CUV. Kind of a better looking Juke with many upscale features. A bit is missing as I see no center arm rest at least in that market. Built in Mexico so likely to come here but nothings been said yet. 18 months after Automotive News said the Qashqai was coming here there hasn't been one word about it. Not holding my breath on that one either.

Looks like not much is out there that appeals to me. Have written off the CX-4 as never coming here. In fact a Mazda honcho said they needed something special to appeal to the Chinese market since it's
extremely competitive. Guess the rest of the world isn't. New CX-5 looks just about the same as its predecessor so I'd be surprised to see Mazda's sluggish sales turn around much from that.
Will look at the Compass when it comes out, but it seems I'm on hold for a while.

Definitely going to give it a year at least. Potentailly relocating to the west coast (SoCal) in a year or so. Question of driving my current car out there or getting something new beforehand.

But it will be late 17 or early 18 before I do this. So the bugs out of the Jeep may influence that decision if it's still in the running. BTW, I think the Nissan Kicks is a direct competitor for the Toyota CH-R. Can't imagine why they'd cede that market to Toyota when they have a strong potentiual competitor. It should replace the Juke, though for some reason Nissan wants to keep selling it here.

Went to the NAIAS yesterday. For me the car of choice there was the Nissan Qashqai (Sorry hate the Rogue Sport moniker). Funny, apparently Nissan doesn't think Americans are capable of pronouncing Qashqai, but Canadians are since they are keeping the name in Canada.

Car is perfect size with easy ingress and egress (a priority for me) and an interior much nicer than its price point would suggest. Even has soft touch on the center console something I didn't see on any vehicel I sat in at the show. Expect it will have good mileage and the only drawback would be the CVT. Not familiar with Nissan's CVT performance. Noted somewhere online that the 2.0 engine may have stop-start technology. Something I'm not crazy about.

U.S. version will be made in Japan. Not a bad thing Still on hold for a year or so, but this vehicle clearly is the front runner.