The Mazda CX-60 and CX-90 mark the Japanese carmaker’s return to building rear-wheel-drive-based passenger vehicles. The first question in car enthusiasts’ minds, of course is, will we get a rear-wheel-drive Mazda 6 successor? After some on-and-off rumors, it looks like it’s on again. We recently reported that Mazda is developing a rear-wheel-drive sedan. This is what I think a rear-drive Mazda 6 would look like.
For its design language, I incorporated the latest evolution of Mazda’s Kodo into a sedan body style. Like the CX-60, our RWD Mazda 6 has cab-rearward proportions. I gave it a fastback roofline and a classic long-hood, short-trunk profile—something we associate with European and Japanese premium sports sedans.
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Up front, it features a more angular version of Mazda’s corporate grille, flanked by slim headlights. Moving to the sides, I kept the creases to a minimum for a neater appearance. The beltline is low and flows straight to the back for a more elegant look. Like the CX-60, our RWD 6 has faux fender vents that also serve as badges to denote what engine is under the hood. At the back, long, slim horizontal taillights emphasize the car’s width.
In terms of size, this is very close to the current FWD model. It measures 4,840mm long, 1,870mm wide, and 1,450mm tall, making it 20mm longer and 30mm wider than the current 6. It rides on the same 2,870mm wheelbase as the CX-60. The variant you see here is equipped 19-inch alloy wheels shod with 255/40 tires.
Our RWD Mazda 6 uses a modified version of the CX-60’s rear-wheel drive-based ‘Large Product Group’ platform. Its longitudinally mounted powerplant is pushed back in the engine bay to improve weight distribution. It features an independent double-wishbone suspension up front and an independent multilink setup at the rear.
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It will be offered with the same engine selection as the CX-60, which course includes the 280hp 3.3-liter mild-hybrid e-Skyactiv-G in-line-six mill. An eight-speed automatic transmission is standard; if possible, I’d give it a six-speed manual transmission option. It will be available in both RWD and rear-wheel-biased AWD versions.
Here’s a little refresher for Mazda’s midsize 6: The current generation was first introduced in 2012. That’s 11 years ago! It carried an early version of the Japanese carmaker’s Kodo design. There have been only three Mazda 6 generations in the model’s 21-year history. The Mazda 6 line succeeded the 626, which was introduced in the ’70s.
If Mazda built this rear-wheel-drive Mazda 6 successor, would you consider it? Let us know in the comments.
