The Mazda 6e Is A Rear-Drive, Electric 6 For Europe

We were quietly sad when the Mazda 6 died off in 2023. It wasn’t particularly exciting (not since the hot first-gen MPS version, anyway), but it was handsome, well-made, reliable, quite nice to drive, and something at risk of disappearing altogether: a simple, unpretentious, no-BS saloon car.

Well, there’s good news: it’s coming back! This time, though, it’ll be fully electric, and sold as the 6e. If the car you see here looks familiar, that’s because it is: it was originally unveiled at last year’s Beijing Auto Show as the EZ-6, a new electric saloon for the Chinese market.

Mazda evidently took heed to the positive reception it got across the world, though, because it’s now confirmed the EZ-6 is heading to Europe with a more familiar badge.

While China gets both full EV and plug-in hybrid versions, Mazda has so far only confirmed pure electric versions for Europe. There’ll be a choice of two powertrains, the first of which prioritises performance over range. It’ll use a 68.8kWh battery for a quoted 300-mile range, while its 254bhp motor will allow it to hit 62mph in 7.6 seconds.

A longer-range version will get a beefier 80kWh battery, giving it a quoted 345-mile range. The tradeoff will be slightly less power – 241bhp, dropping the 0-62mph time to 7.8 seconds. Both versions make 236lb ft of torque and support DC rapid charging, with the smaller battery capable of being topped up from 10 to 80 per cent in 22 minutes on a suitable charger.

Some further promising news is that the 6e is rear-wheel drive, and European-spec cars will have a specific tune for the suspension, braking and steering developed by Mazda’s team in Frankfurt.

What really caught our attention in the first place, though, was how pretty the EZ-6 is, and that’s kept very much intact for the European version. It gets frameless doors, aero-friendly 19-inch wheels, and that truncated rear end that hides a 330-litre boot. There’s a 70-litre storage area up front, too.

The bright, airy interior is as we saw on the EZ-6 too, and while it looks lovely, we’re a bit concerned by the lack of buttons. Everything’s handled by a 14.6-inch infotainment screen and 10.2-inch instrument cluster, although there does at least seem to be a decent amount of shortcut keys along the bottom.

The 6e will go on sale in mainland Europe later this year, before arriving in the UK in the first half of 2026. It’ll join the curious MX-30 as Mazda’s second full EV in Europe, although the company’s gamble not to go all-in on electric appears to be paying off as wider EV sales fluctuate. Mazda says it’ll join a broad lineup of mild hybrids, PHEVs and full EVs.