Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by petrol engines and utilizing the 4-door sedan body style within the same 'Large family car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (4 x 4 for the Lexus and front in the case of the Mazda). The first one has a Toyota-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 6-cylinder, 24-valves 260hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 192hp engine designed by Mazda.

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. Moving further on, let's take a closer look at some additional safety-related facts. Both vehicles belong to the large family car segment, which is generally a good thing safety-wise, but it doesn't do much to help us decide between the two. Furthermore, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, Lexus IS offers a considerable difference of 19% more metal.

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that both brands display similar results in faults and breakdowns, at least on all of the models level. These are the results of an independent reasearch, while our visitors describe reliability of Lexus with an average rating of 4.9, and models under the Mazda badge with 4.4 out of 5. Some independent research have also placed IS as average reliability-wise, and 6 is more or less at the same level.We should definitely mention that owners of cars with the same powertrain as Lexus IS rank it on average as 3.0 out of 5, exactly the same as the other one.

Lexus is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 1.6 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 209 kilometers per hour, 14km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy an obvious choice would be Mazda 6, averaging around 6.3 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (45 mpg), in combined cycle. That's 103% difference compared to Lexus IS!

Lexus appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Lexus IS offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. When it comes to performance, both vehicles provide similar experience, so I wouldn't point any of them out. Mazda 6 is in a different dimension economy-wise, and many people will find that crucial. It's not difficult to say then that if I'd need to make a choice, it would definitely be the Mazda. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among more than 12.000 different ones in our database.