A SURGE in demand from private and fleet customers has led Mazda to bring forward the on-sale date for its revamped Mazda6.

Petrol versions of the popular family range will hit showrooms in the next two weeks with diesels to follow during May.

The new 19-strong range features refreshed exterior and interior styling, more equipment and a raft of technical enhancements that improve fuel economy by up to 6.4% and cut CO2 emissions by up to 6.1%.

ŠFans of the ‘6’ will have a choice hatchback and estate body styles, six engines – three petrol, three diesel – and S, TS, TS, and Sport trim grades.

ŠImproved fuel economy, lower road tax bands and reduced Benefit In Kind costs will bring valuable savings.

Prices have been increased by an average of 4.8% and range from £16,990 to £23,445.

A Sport 2.0-litre petrol model with Mazda’s five-speed automatic transmission is introduced after dealers reported a demand for a top of the range model with this specification.

The upgraded Mazda6 achieves fuel economy average improvements of 3.2 and 4.1% for petrol and diesel, plus CO2 emissions reductions that average 4.4 and 4.8%. Š