The 6 has been another reasonable success story for a Mazda brand looking to seriously expand its share of the fleet market.

The mid-life refresh of the upper medium model sees it come down a BIK band thanks to CO2 dropping from 149g/km to 142g/km for the most powerful of the three diesel hatchbacks – the 180hp model – while the 163hp version also now sits at 142g/km and the 129hp 2.0-litre is down from 147g/km to 138g/km.

The exterior changes polish up what is already one of the more striking upper medium models, while interior alterations still leave a cabin lacking in the more premium feel of many rivals.

But Mazda normally scores well on the cost per mile front, thanks to decent residual values. In this case a 34.2% figure – very good for the volume upper medium segment – leads to a 55.4p result.

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Mazda 6 2.2D 180hp 5dr Sport
P11D price £22,612
Model price range £16,995-£23,445
Fuel consumption 52.3mpg
CO2 (tax) 142g/km (20%)
BIK 20/40% per month £75/£151
Service interval 12,500 mls
Insurance (1-50) group 25
Warranty 3yrs/60,000mls
Boot space min/max 510/1702 litres
Engine size/power 2184cc/180hp
Top speed/0-62mph 132mph/9.2secs
On sale May 2010
Score 7/10
Verdict Huge, but a touch lacking
on ride quality and refinement