When you strike gold, dig deep and dig fast, for it won't be long before those other guys rush in and start helping themselves to your discovery. Subaru had over a year to enjoy its self-made jackpot known as the Impreza WRX, a car whose particular formula of fast, cheap, practical fun had it flying off the shelves in late 2001 like miniature American flags. Eventually, Mitsubishi stepped in with the Lancer Evolution, which quickly became the biggest success they've got going to this day.
Now Mazda wants in. Figuring three might be a crowd with those two duking it out at the rally-racer end, Mazda thought it might try frying a bigger fish: Subaru's Legacy GT. Hey, when you're Mazda, you gots to choose your battles wisely, and anyway, its 6 already has a well-earned reputation for being the raciest family transport capsule around, so why not expand on that?
So Mazda got to work, stiffening the structure and suspension (torsional rigidity's up 50%), upping the horsey herd to 274, and slamming them to the ground through the first all-wheel-drive system seen on a Mazda car since the 1991 Protégé. A new hood, wheels, lights, and everything else you'd expect is all there, and more critically, all Mazda. To clarify: the sexed-up 6 is virtually free of Ford pollution, with no Taurus V6 to be found and construction taking place in Hofu to prevent build quality from falling flat as a rock.
And there you have it: the next level of mid-priced mid-sized sedan performance.
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