02 Feb 06
Instead of coming off the power early and smoothly, you have to force yourself to keep the power on - thus keeping the 4WD system in Sport mode. If you do this, then the MPS will throw itself through the corner with impressive levels of grip. But just as soon as you think that you and the MPS are working as one, it'll let you down, throwing you into oncoming traffic with some nasty understeer, only then to reward you in the next corner. It'll be a good while before you completely trust the system to do what it should.
In a performance car, you need to be able to trust handling characteristics and know your car's abilities inside-out. Anyone driving a powerful front-wheel-drive car will soon learn where the grip levels end and understeer starts. Similarly, any Evo or Impreza driver knows that, unless they're doing something really stupid, their car's inherently strong levels of grip will get them out of any tricky situation.
The unpredictability is the Achilles heel of the Mazda 6 MPS; it's certainly quick, but it's let down by that four-wheel drive system. The rest of the car is pretty good - the engine is strong, with a good spread of power throughout the rev range, although it can be a little vocal at times. And while the visual tarting-up may not be to everyone's taste, it is better than an all-out rally replica with vents, scoops and wings aplenty.
Although in its swansong years now, a Mondeo ST, or even a Vectra VXR, would reward a performance-hungry rep much better. Both of these would handle themselves better than the 6 MPS, but perhaps more importantly, would do exactly what you'd expect at any opportunity. Getting to lunch on time - as I did, in the end - would be an easier, and more enjoyable, experience.
