Is This Our First Look at the All-new Mazda 6 EV?

Mazda’s Chinese joint venture has released some teasers for a new electric sedan it plans to unveil at this year’s Beijing auto show – possibly a new generation Mazda 6?

Changan Mazda is preparing a new model for the major Chinese auto show, one of three new electrified models the joint venture plans to launch after the CX-50 Hybrid in the domestic market.

According to reports from overseas, this new model heading to Beijing is an electric sedan that is said to be the successor to the current Mazda 6. The teasers hint at a redesigned version of Changan brand Deepal’s existing SL03 electric sedan.

Is this our first look at the all-new Mazda 6 EV? — **Deepal SL03**

Mazda recently trademarked the name “6e” in Europe and EZ-6 in China, further fueling speculation that this new model will replace the aging current-generation Mazda 6, which was first introduced in 2012.

It’s unclear whether the Mazda 6e and EZ-6 are versions of the same vehicle or two completely different models. Since Changan Mazda – like most Chinese joint ventures – primarily develops vehicles for the Chinese market, this could be either.

The joint venture recently confirmed that it intends to actively promote the export of vehicles produced in China, while exploring opportunities to collaborate with other car manufacturers abroad.

Based on Changan Mazda’s product teaser for the launch of the CX-50 HEV at the Shanghai Motor Show last year, the new sedan for China will also offer a plug-in hybrid powertrain.

The Deepal SL03 offers a range extender version that uses a 1.5-liter gasoline engine, an electric motor and two available lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) batteries made in-house by Changan New Energy.

Mazda currently offers a range extender in the form of the MX-30 R-EV, which, like the Deepal SL03, operates as a series hybrid rather than a parallel hybrid.

The 55 kW 830 cc Wankel engine in the MX-30 R-EV only generates charge for the 125 kW/260 Nm electric motor and does not directly drive the wheels. The claimed electric range is 85 km with a 17.8 kWh lithium-ion battery.

While the EZ-6 may be a redesigned product from Changan Deepal, the Mazda 6e for Europe and other international markets – if it is a separate vehicle – could be one of the first vehicles to run on the new SkyActiv Scalable EV Architecture of the Japanese company is based.

Mazda is expected to introduce this architecture between 2025 and 2030.

The company has already confirmed that it will launch “multiple products” on its new dedicated EV architecture by the end of the decade, along with a range of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric models based on the scalable SkyActiv multi-solution architecture should come to market.

Further details are expected to be announced ahead of the Auto China event in Beijing, which begins on April 25. Stay tuned CarExpert for our reporting.