2016 Mazda 6 vs. Nissan Altima

4351 Views 4 Replies 5 Participants Last post by gaiusgracchus, Jan 1, 2016

valleyguy

Discussion Starter · Jun 23, 2015

I've had my '16 6 GT for about a month now and have settled into it nicely. I had to go out of town and rented a new Nissan Altima for a week, put over 300 miles on it. Here's my impressions.

Handling of the 6 is worlds better than the Altima, so is the ride comfort and isolation from bumps. Big worry I had with the 6 GT was road, wind and engine noise, as there were a lot of quips criticizing the 6 for this, particularly with the 19 inch wheels. I have to say the 6 is quieter than the Altima, especially the engine noise, and road noise is more noticeable in the Altima. I was surprised. Not to say its not a nice car, but the interior is not up to the Accord and the 6.

I can't understand why they sell more Altimas than the 6. Maybe less dealers?

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mifannning

· #2 · Jun 24, 2015

valleyguy said:
I've had my '16 6 GT for about a month now and have settled into it nicely. I had to go out of town and rented a new Nissan Altima for a week, put over 300 miles on it. Here's my impressions.

Handling of the 6 is worlds better than the Altima, so is the ride comfort and isolation from bumps. Big worry I had with the 6 GT was road, wind and engine noise, as there were a lot of quips criticizing the 6 for this, particularly with the 19 inch wheels. I have to say the 6 is quieter than the Altima, especially the engine noise, and road noise is more noticeable in the Altima. I was surprised. Not to say its not a nice car, but the interior is not up to the Accord and the 6.

I can't understand why they sell more Altimas than the 6. Maybe less dealers?

I, too, was initially concerned about engine, wind and tire noise on my 2016 GT. Happy to say that I am pleasantly surprised. But I also quickly swapped out the OE Dunlop tires for 19' Michelin Pilot Sport AS3 tires and they vastly improved ride, comfort and handling. (Spoiler alert: I work for Michelin.)

As for why Altima sells more, it's probably advertising, dealer locations and comfort with the Nissan brand. Mazda has a bit of maverick in its DNA and so it isn't as mainstream as Datsun?, whoops, Nissan! My 2 cents...

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Alborz

· #3 · Jun 24, 2015

Interesting comparison and good to know.

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Mr.Mojo

· #4 · Jun 24, 2015

In my area, they have great deals on Altimas. I think that's why you see so many of them. The reliability of the Altima is rated below average but the 6 is way above average.

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gaiusgracchus

· #5 · Jan 1, 2016

We were hesitant to get a Mazda since they were well known for noisy rides. They did work to fix the problem with the 2015's, so it is nice to hear they are better than before.

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