Mazda CX-6e vs Toyota bZ4X

The Toyota bZ4X 2WD claims 591km on the WLTP cycle, the longest of the pair, dropping to 517km for the dual-motor AWD. The Mazda CX-6e GT claims 484km, falling to 468km in the Azami on its larger 21-inch wheels. The gap is the more striking because the Mazda carries the bigger battery, 78kWh to the Toyota's 74.7kWh. The difference is efficiency: the bZ4X uses 138Wh/km against the CX-6e's 189. Real-world range sits below both lab figures, as it does for every EV, but the Toyota is the one that goes further between charges.

It splits by where you charge. On a DC fast charger the Mazda CX-6e peaks at 194kW and claims a 10-to-80 per cent top-up in about 24 minutes, where the Toyota bZ4X peaks at 150kW and takes roughly 45 minutes. At home it reverses: the bZ4X accepts up to 22kW on three-phase AC power, double the CX-6e's 11kW, so it refills faster overnight on the right supply. If your week is mostly home charging, the Toyota's AC rate matters more; if you road-trip and lean on public fast chargers, the Mazda's quicker DC stop is the one to have.

The Mazda CX-6e opens at around $56,990 driveaway for the GT and $59,990 for the Azami, below the Toyota bZ4X's $61,320 driveaway 2WD and $73,920 AWD. Both back the car with a five-year warranty and an eight-year battery warranty. The ownership picture is clearer on the Toyota for now: it publishes capped-price servicing at about $180 a visit, roughly $900 across five years on a yearly or 15,000km schedule. Mazda had not confirmed CX-6e capped-price servicing costs at launch. On entry price the Mazda wins; on known running costs the Toyota is the surer quantity.

On independent testing the Toyota bZ4X is ahead: it holds a five-star ANCAP rating with an 88 per cent adult-occupant and 86 per cent child-occupant score, and eight airbags. The Mazda CX-6e has not been crash-tested by ANCAP at launch, so it carries no star rating. That is not the same as unsafe. Every CX-6e grade comes standard with autonomous emergency braking, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, a driver attention monitor and a 360-degree camera. But if an independent safety score is central to your decision, only the Toyota can offer one today.

The Mazda CX-6e makes the bigger statement. Both grades fit a 26.45-inch 5K touchscreen with a head-up display standing in for a conventional instrument cluster, a panoramic roof and heated and ventilated front seats. The Toyota bZ4X runs a more conventional 14-inch central screen with a separate 7-inch driver display and no head-up unit, and reserves ventilated seats and a fixed panoramic roof for the dearer AWD. For sheer cabin theatre the Mazda wins; buyers who prefer a simpler, familiar Toyota layout may not mind the plainer approach.

Only the Toyota bZ4X. Its range tops out with a 252kW dual-motor all-wheel-drive grade that also lifts braked towing to 1,500kg and sharpens the 0-100km/h time to 5.1 seconds, against the single-motor 2WD's 167kW. The Mazda CX-6e is rear-wheel drive on both the GT and the Azami, with a single 190kW motor; Mazda has deliberately declined a dual-motor version at launch. So if all-weather traction or outright pace is on your list, the bZ4X AWD is the only one of the two that can answer it.

For a household making its first switch from petrol, the Toyota bZ4X is the easier car to recommend. Its 591km 2WD range and leaner energy use take range anxiety off the table, its 22kW home charging suits driveaway charging, and its five-star ANCAP rating gives the independent safety reassurance a family car should carry. Toyota's dealer and service reach adds to the confidence. The Mazda CX-6e is the more generously equipped cabin for the money and well worth a look, but a first-time buyer leaning on range and a proven safety score will sleep easier in the Toyota.

On entry price the Mazda CX-6e wins; on proven ownership the Toyota bZ4X earns its premium. The CX-6e is the cheaper way in, opening around $56,990 driveaway with a 26.45-inch screen, a head-up display, a panoramic roof and ventilated front seats standard. The entry bZ4X 2WD has none of the head-up display, panoramic roof or ventilated seats; the dearer AWD adds the roof and the ventilated seats, though no bZ4X offers a head-up display. The bZ4X costs more at $61,320 driveaway but answers with the longer range, the leaner running costs, a five-star rating and Toyota's track record for resale and after-sales. If the saving and the standard kit win you, the Mazda makes the stronger value case; if you weigh proven ownership and resale, the Toyota earns its premium.

For the buyer who covers big distances, the two trade blows. The Toyota bZ4X starts with more range, 591km to the Mazda CX-6e's 484km, so it needs fewer stops in the first place. But when you do stop, the Mazda is the quicker to fill: 194kW DC and a 24-minute 10-to-80 charge against the Toyota's 150kW and roughly 45 minutes. For a long day the bZ4X's bigger buffer and efficiency usually win out, but if your routine is short, frequent fast-charge stops, the CX-6e's quicker splash-and-dash is the one that saves time.