Rear-driven Mazda sedan with six-cylinder engine set for 2022 debut

The 2023 Mazda 6 will see a dramatic change when the new model is unveiled in the first half of next year.

Mazda is set to move to a rear-driven, inline six-cylinder powertrain, under a new plan to position the Mazda 6 sedan as a more premium offering – with the likes of Lexus and Volkswagen firmly in the carmaker’s sights.

While news of the rear-wheel-drive platform has been known for some time, Japanese publication Spyder7 is reporting the flagship Mazda sedan will finally be revealed next year, as the company debuts its ‘Large Architecture’ platform. It will be the first rear-wheel-drive sedan from Mazda since the mid-1990s.

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The new Mazda 6 will reportedly take its inspiration from the manufacturer’s 2017 Vision Coupe Concept – a long, sleek four-door coupe incorporating the carmaker’s Kodo design philosophy.

Mazda has confirmed the next-generation CX-8, CX-9, and CX-5 – possibly to be renamed CX-50 – will all be underpinned by the new platform from 2023, with a choice of either six-cylinder petrol or diesel engines, and the option of all-wheel drive.

Between 2022 and 2025, Mazda plans to bring out five hybrid and plug-in hybrid models, along with fully-electric vehicles. A new dedicated electric platform will follow in 2025, and will form the basis of the company’s future battery-powered models.