This week I was sent a 2017 Mazda 6, so that I could review it from the dad’s perspective. Perhaps my top priority in featuring vehicles on my website is always this:

How much seat space is there in the very back seat if an adult has to sit back there?

After all, you never know when you might need to fill the vehicle to full passenger capacity, but have to work around two child car seats.

That was definitely the case this weekend as my mother-in-law was in town from Sacramento.

It was her, my wife, our 7 year-old son, our 21 month-old daughter, and myself in the vehicle as we made our way to our town’s favorite restaurant, Viking Pizza Co. (in Spring Hill, Tennessee).

The drive was only about 3 miles away. On the way there, I drove, and my wife sat in the back seat sandwiched in-between our 2 kids; with my mother-in-law sitting up front. On the way back, my wife and I swapped places.

I made this video to demonstrate exactly how I fit into the back seat in this situation. But at 5′ 9″ and 171 pounds, I was surprised at how “unsmooshed” I felt back there. My head didn’t even graze the roof.

It’s also worth bringing up that the 2017 Mazda 6 has an unsuspecting amount of truck space! I was nearly able to fit my guitar back there longways; with plenty of room to spare on both sides. So if you’re planning on taking this car on a road trip, you can afford to pack heavy.

For some, the “volume knob” for the stereo may be difficult to find. That’s because, to my knowledge, there’s not one. Just simply use the volume buttons on the left side of the steering wheel.

On a similar note, should you find any difficult finding the fuel door release, just look a little lower.

As for gas mileage, it averages 30 miles a gallon; 27 in the city and 35 on the highway. The model featured here on my blog, which is basically fully loaded, has a total MSRP of $34,695.

Okay, there’s your briefing.

Be on the look-out for more blog posts I have in store on the 2017 Mazda 6. Thanks for reading!