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Mazda’s first proper electric sedan is here — and it’s built in China, on a Changan platform, priced to undercut the Tesla Model 3 in Australia. The catch for American buyers: you can’t buy it yet, and the reason is written into the U.S. tariff code.
The Mazda 6e — called the EZ-6 in China — is the most serious electric car Mazda has ever built. It is a liftback sedan with a 78 kWh LFP battery, rear-wheel drive, and a WLTP-rated range of 560 km (348 miles). In Australia it starts at AUD $49,990 for the GT trim, roughly AUD $10,000 under the entry Model 3 there. In China, the pure-electric EZ-6 starts around ¥150,800 (about $21,000). Neither price exists in the United States, because the car is built by the Changan Mazda joint venture and shipped only to markets where Chinese-built EVs can actually compete.
The China-Japan car Mazda doesn’t want to over-explain
Here is the uncomfortable truth at the heart of the 6e: it shares its EPA1 platform, electric motor, and battery supply chain with the Deepal L07 (the sedan sibling of the Deepal S07 SUV) from Changan, Mazda’s Chinese joint-venture partner. Mazda tuned the suspension, calibrated the steering, and wrapped everything in its own Kodo design language — the reviewers in the video spent the whole drive praising how it “hugs the road.” But the underpinnings, the battery cells, and the manufacturing line are Chinese.
That is a big deal for two reasons. First, it is the pragmatic path: Changan builds it at scale, so Mazda gets a competitive EV without the billion-dollar factory bill. Second, it locks the 6e out of the U.S. market, where Chinese-built vehicles face a 100% tariff on top of normal duties. The MX-30, Mazda’s previous U.S. EV experiment, was a compliance car with roughly 100 miles of range that flopped. The 6e is a genuinely good car — and American buyers simply don’t get the option.
Specs and pricing: where the 6e actually lands
The 6e GT is a 190 kW (255 hp) rear-wheel-drive sedan with 290 Nm of torque and a 7.9-second 0–100 km/h time. It is not a performance car; it is a fast cruiser with real range. The LFP chemistry means you can charge to 100% regularly without the degradation anxiety of NMC packs, and Mazda quotes about 15 minutes for a 30–80% DC session at its peak 194 kW. It also comes with V2L power-out, 11 kW AC charging, a 14.6-inch central screen, and a five-star Euro NCAP rating.
| Model | Battery | Range (WLTP/EPA) | 0–100 km/h | US-equivalent price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mazda 6e GT (AU) | 78 kWh LFP | 560 km / ~348 mi | 7.9 s | ~$33k (AUD 49,990) |
| Mazda EZ-6 BEV (China) | 68.8 kWh | 600 km CLTC | — | from ~¥150,800 (~$21k) |
| Tesla Model 3 RWD | ~62.5 kWh LFP | ~363 mi EPA | 5.8 s | ~$40–42k |
| Hyundai IONIQ 6 SE RWD | 53–77.4 kWh | ~270–361 mi EPA | ~5.1 s | ~$37–42k |
| BMW i4 eDrive35 | ~67 kWh | ~246–301 mi EPA | ~6.0 s | ~$52–53k |
SIGNAL: The 6e proves the cheap-EV formula works: Chinese scale + Japanese tuning + honest LFP range = a car that undercuts Tesla on price in every market that will let it in. The U.S. tariff wall is the only thing keeping that math from reaching American showrooms.
Driving it: old-world soul, new-world tech
The reviewers’ verdict is refreshingly un-Tesla. There is no aggressive one-pedal calibration — regen is adjustable, and the car coasts when you want it to. The steering is heavy at speed, the body feels planted, and the reviewers described it as a “driver’s car” closer to a petrol Mazda than to the “robotic” feel they associate with Tesla or Xpeng. It is, in effect, an EV for people who don’t like EVs. That’s exactly the customer Mazda has been losing for a decade.
There are warts: voice control is frustrating, the rear styling is busy, and there’s no one-pedal mode for drivers who want maximum regen in stop-and-go traffic. But the core package — range, charging speed, build quality, and a genuinely nice cabin with a Sony audio system — holds up against anything in the segment.
What it means for American buyers
Three takeaways for the U.S. market. First, the 6e’s economics are exactly why Washington’s 100% tariff on Chinese-built EVs exists — and why BYD, Changan, and now Mazda’s JV line all stay out. Second, Mazda isn’t abandoning EVs in America; it plans U.S.-bound EV SUVs (a CX-6e equivalent is expected), likely built locally or in markets outside China to dodge the tariff. Third, if you want a Chinese-platform EV in the U.S. today, your only legal options are a few models built in North America or Europe — or a Tesla, which uses Chinese LFP cells but assembles here.
For Americans, the Mazda 6e is a preview, not a purchase. It shows what a major Japanese brand can do when it stops pretending EVs need to be either expensive or boring — and it raises the bar for whatever Mazda eventually does send across the Pacific.
Is the Mazda 6e the same car as the Deepal L07?
Underneath, largely yes. Both are built on Changan’s EPA1 platform with shared powertrain hardware, and the 6e is produced by the Changan Mazda joint venture. Mazda applies its own suspension tuning, steering calibration, and Kodo design language. Think of it as a badge-engineered platform with genuine brand-specific engineering on top.
Will the Mazda 6e come to the U.S.?
No announcement exists for a U.S. launch of the 6e. Chinese-built vehicles face a 100% U.S. tariff, which would roughly double the car’s price. Mazda has said it will expand EV SUVs in North America; a CX-6e-style model built outside China is the more plausible path.
How fast does it charge?
Peak DC charging is 194 kW; Mazda quotes roughly 15 minutes for a 30–80% charge. AC charging tops out at 11 kW. The LFP pack can be charged to 100% regularly with less degradation than NMC packs.
