I
n the world of eccentric Japanese car makers,
Mazda is perhaps the most unpredictable and wilful. Take the Pathfinder XV-1: a Series 1 Land Rover knock-off, only even more goggle-eyed, especially when painted Kermit green, as many were. In the 1960s, a tiny run of these 4x4s left a Mazda plant in what was then Burma. Even today some Mazda execs won’t believe the XV-1 really existed unless you show them physical evidence.
If the XV-1 was at least functional, the Parkway 26 was the oddball concept that made production. With a glasshouse to rival that of The Shard, this three-tonne, 25-seat minibus was hauled along by, of all things, a gutless two-rotor Wankel. To make progress it had to be caned so remorselessly that two 70-litre fuel tanks were needed. Agoodold reciprocating engine of 1000cc was also called for if you wanted to power the air-con. Talk about a vicious cycle. Just 44 were made.
All of which is to say that, for Mazda, developing a big-capacity oil-burner from scratch and launching it in Europe amid the continent’s prevailing anti-diesel sentiment is a perfectly normal thing to do. Its new 3.3-litre straight six appeared a year or two ago in the CX-60. That car was a mid-sized SUV with an interesting interior, quietly engaging handling and a conspicuously poor ride, thanks in part to an overdamped back axle. We rather liked the longitudinal motor, though. Depending on driveline, it came either with 197bhp and 332lb ft (rear-wheel drive) or 251bhp and 406lb ft (allwheel drive) – both modest outputs given the displacement, in return for easy drivability and efficiency. It duly delivered both.