The Best Midsize Mazda Cars 2023
Mazda doesn’t offer any midsize sedans for the 2023 model year but you have a few other options from current and past model years! Click here to learn more.
Written by Jason Tushinski
Reviewed by Jessica Barrett
Table of Contents
If you’re just dying to get your hands on a midsize Mazda sedan, you’ll have to look to the used car market. Mazda last offered a midsize sedan in 2021—the Mazda 6. The 2023 Mazda 3 compact sedan is the closest thing to a midsize sedan that Mazda currently offers.
Jerry
, the car insurance
super app, has put together this handy guide to the 2021 midsize Mazda 6 and the 2023 compact Mazda 3—your best options for moderately sized cars from the Japanese automaker’s recent lineups. We’ll also compare these Mazdas to other comparable midsize sedans, and give you some tips on how to save on Mazda car insurance costs
.2021 Mazda 6
Not to worry—we here at Jerry do know what year it is. That said, Mazda decided not to offer a midsize sedan in either 2022 or 2023, so we’ll have to go back in time to review Mazda’s last midsize sedan—the 2021
Mazda 6
.If the Mazda 6 is the last midsize sedan the Japanese automaker ever makes, it will have gone out on a high note—the 6 is a classy and stylish ride, with a fun and perky drive, sublime handling, and a whisper-quiet cabin. It's great for families and was easily the best-looking family sedan to roll off the line in 2021.
Pricing
The 2021 Mazda 6 had a starting MSRP of $25,470, which was on the lower end of the midsize sedan scale. The top-tier
Mazda 6 Signature
trim started at $36,895, which inched this 6 closer to luxury territory.Performance
While neither the base Mazda 6 nor the top-trim Signature 6 will set hearts on fire, your drive will be fun no matter the 6 you have.
The base Mazda 6 sports a 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder engine with 187 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque. An optional turbocharged 250-hp 2.5-liter inline-four was also available, but you’ll have to look to see if you can find a turbo 6 on the used market.
Despite the Mazda 6’s decent (but not great) power, both engines supply a perky ride that’s fun, smooth, and shifty. An excellent six-speed automatic transmission is standard across the board and offers fluidity and control when shifting. Handling is uncommonly good for a family sedan—and the Mazda 6 hops from 0 to 60 in just over 6 seconds.
Fuel economy
Fuel economy is top of mind for most drivers today, and those seeking a value-packed midsize sedan are no exception. The 2021 Mazda 6 offers solid fuel efficiency, with the base engine getting 26 mpg in the city, 35 mpg on the highway, and 29 mpg combined.
If you can find a 2021 Mazda 6 with a turbocharged engine, your fun quotient will go up but your gas mileage will drop slightly. The turbocharged 2021 Mazda 6 gets 23 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway. Combined, you’ll get 26 mpg in the turbocharged Mazda 6.
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Interior and tech
Step into the base trim of the 2021 Mazda 6 and you might think you’ve just sat down in a much more expensive sedan—the Mazda 6 has an impeccably appointed interior, with stylish materials, a beautiful cabin design, a minimalist aesthetic, and easy-to-use controls. Besides its sharp looks, the cabin remains practical with folding rear seats and standard plug-in Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
If you find yourself with an upper trim Mazda 6—such as the Carbon Edition, the
6 Grand Touring
, or the aforementioned Signature trim—you’ll enjoy leather upholstery, fancy stitching, increased driver-assist technology, and wireless Apple CarPlay.Safety and reliability
You’ll be safe in the comfy confines of the 2021 Mazda 6, which comes standard with a slew of driver-assist technology, including forward collision warning, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic monitoring. Lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist weren’t standard, but they were available as options.
The 2021 Mazda 6’s safety bonafide did not go unnoticed—the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gave the 2021 Mazda 6 a five-star safety rating, while the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) tabbed the 6 as a 2021 Top Safety Pick+.
RepairPal bestowed a solid 4/5 reliability rating on the 2021 Mazda 6, while J.D. Power gave the 6 an 83/100 reliability score.
Trim levels
The 2021 Mazda 6 was offered in six trim levels: the Sport, Touring, Grand Touring, Grand Touring Reserve, Carbon Edition, and Signature trim. The Sport and Touring trims offered plenty of nice amenities including dual-zone climate control, rain-sensing windshield wipers, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. The
6 Touring
also added a sunroof, extra USB ports, and heated front seats.Things get more fun on the Grand Touring and
Grand Touring Reserve
trims with the turbocharged engine, Bose stereo, and steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters. The Grand Touring Reserve also got bigger wheels, adaptive headlights, leather upholstery, a heads-up display, and a rear spoiler.Find yourself in the rarefied air of the Carbon Edition or Signature trim, and you’ll experience a near-luxury ride. The Carbon Mazda 6 sports a unique gray exterior paint, red leather upholstery, and stylish gray stitching. The top-trim Signature gets a striking dark gray exterior trim, ambient interior lighting, a navigation system, a 360-degree camera to aid parking in tight spots, and extra driver-assist features including automatic emergency braking, and driver-attention warning systems.
Competitors
So how did the 2021 Mazda 6 measure up against the top midsize sedan competition from 2021 and some of its current 2022 and 2023 midsize competitors? The table below lays it all on the line:
Model | MSRP range | Base powertrain | Fuel economy | Safety ratings | Reliability ratings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
$26,070 to $33,285 | 176-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder w/eight-speed automatic transmission and standard FWD | 22 mpg city/31 mpg hwy/25 mpg combined | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick+ (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 83/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$25,985 to $37,915 | 192-hp four-cylinder w/ten-speed automatic transmission and standard FWD | 44 mpg city/41 mpg hwy/43 mpg combined | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick (IIHS) | 4.5/5.0 (RepairPal), 82/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$24,955 to $36,305 | 191-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder w/8 speed dual-clutch automatic and standard FWD | 28 mpg city/38 mpg hwy/32 mpg combined | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 82/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$23,421 to $37,402 | 180-hp 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder w/eight-speed automatic transmission and standard FWD | 24-29 mpg city/32-38 mpg hwy | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick+ (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 84/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$25,995 to $35,695 | 188-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder w/continuously variable transmission and standard AWD | 25-28 mpg city/36-39 mpg hwy | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick+ (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 82/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$26,185 to $32,585 | 180-hp 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder w/eight-speed automatic transmission and standard FWD | 25-27 mpg city/33-37 mpg hwy | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick+ (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 82/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$27,040 to $34,615 | 203-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder w/eight speed automatic transmission and standard FWD | 22-28 mpg city/33-39 mpg hwy | 5 stars (NHTSA) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 82/100 (J.D. Power) | |
$25,415 to $38, 715 | 182-hp 2.5-liter four-cylinder w/continuously variable transmission and standard AWD | 24-27 mpg city/32-35 mpg hwy | 5 stars (NHTSA), Top Safety Pick+ (IIHS) | 4.0/5.0 (RepairPal), 80/100 (J.D. Power) |
MORE: Mazda 6 engine oil capacity
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2023 Mazda 3
We know—the 2023
Mazda 3
is *not* a midsize sedan. But in our defense, Mazda didn’t make things easy on us by not offering either a 2022 or a 2023 midsize sedan. We’re just working with what we’ve got, folks.That said, the 2023 Mazda 3 compact sedan is a zippy ride that trails the 2021 midsize Mazda 6 in length by just nine inches. Otherwise, the Mazda 3 is quite similar to the dearly-departed midsize 6 with a premium, quiet cabin, sharp looks, and uber-fun performance and handling
The newest Mazda 3 is equipped with a decent 2.5-liter inline four-cylinder engine with 191 horsepower, but splurging for the top-tier
3 Premium Plus
gets you the much-punchier turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four engine with 250 horsepower and either a 6-speed automatic or manual transmission. MORE:
Are Mazdas good cars?
How to save on Mazda insurance
Whether you’re looking to insure a midsize or a compact Mazda, things can get pretty pricey when you’re looking to protect one of the high-end trims. That doesn’t mean you have to pay high prices for a good insurance policy! Use
Jerry
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Is a Mazda 3 hatchback a midsize car?
Nope—like the Mazda 3 sedan, the Mazda 3 hatchback is listed as a compact car. Mazda has no midsize cars in its lineup for both the 2022 and 2023 model years.
Does Mazda have a midsize SUV?
Yes, Mazda has a mid-size SUV: the three-row midsize CX-9, highly regarded for its practicality and its road manners.
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