Car Q&A: 2017 Mazda6 Grand Touring

2017 Mazda6 Grand Touring | getinmymouf.com

This post is made possible through a partnership with the awesome folks at DriveShop and Mazda, who provided us with a vehicle to test drive for a few days. You can follow the conversation on social media with the hashtag #DriveMazda.

Specs

MSRP (as tested): $34,350
MPG Estimate: 21 city – 27 highway
Engine: Skyactiv-G 2.5L 4-Cyl Engine
Power: 184 hp | 185 lb-ft of torque
Transmission: 6-Speed Automatic
Color: Machine Grey Metallic (exterior) / Parchment Nappa Leather (interior)
Options: GT Premium Package (regenerative braking system, active grille shutters, shifter LED accent lighting, bright finish interior trim, Nappa leather-trimmed upholstery, heated rear seats, heated steering wheel, steering wheel w/ unique stitch, black headliner)

For more info, click here to view the 2017 Mazda6 Brochure.

We spent a mostly rainy week with the 2017 Mazda6. Sure, we wished the weather was better, but the Mazda6 still made the most of running errands, commuting to work, and chauffeuring a labradoodle around town. Although we didn’t have an opportunity to take any fun road trips or long weekend drives, the Mazda6 did make for a solid daily driver.

With features galore, for example excellent handling and surprisingly good gas mileage, we were excited to sit down with this beautiful automotive creation for a quick Q&A:

Get in my Mouf (GIMM): Should we discuss the elephant in the room first?

Mazda6: Not sure I follow you…

GIMM: I test drove a previous version of you–2015, I think–and came very close to making a purchase.

Mazda6: Way to make this awkward interview right out of the gate. Why didn’t you?

GIMM: It just wasn’t a fit at that time–Look, I wanted to address it, but let’s not dwell in the past.

Mazda6: For the record, you brought it up. Why don’t you go ahead and ask what my favorite food is. This is a food blog. That’s your schtick, right?

GIMM: We’ll get to that, but I wanted to first ask you about the Lane-Keep Assist. It’s a pretty slick safety feature that autocorrects the steering wheel if you start to drift out of a lane.

Mazda6: Apples. That would be my favorite food.

GIMM: Okay. That’s jumping ahead a bit–

Mazda6: Crisp and juicy. They can be sweet, tart, or both. It’s a breakfast food, it’s a dessert, it’s a snack. What can’t an apple do? As a vehicle that’s what I aspire to be. I want people to think of me as being as versatile as an apple.

GIMM: Judging by your reviews on Edmunds, Car and Driver, and Motor Trend, I think it’s safe to say people are viewing you a versatile option. Speaking of safe, the Lane-Keep assist is a nice feature that–

Mazda6: Sure I get solid reviews from all the pros, but you know what really gets me psyched? The people. That’s who I do this for. Read these reviews.

GIMM: Yes, I have read those. We prepare pretty thoroughly for our interviews.

Mazda6: Of course you do. Anyway, when I read things like “Best car out of 12 that I have owned” it makes me feel like I’m truly making a difference out there. When people go car shopping, too often they have to sacrifice something–budget, performance, options. But, I feel like I do a pretty good job of minimizing those sacrifices. I help people realize that they can have it all in one vehicle: Race-car like handling, high-tech safety features, luxury-car comfort, impressive fuel economy–all combined in a family sedan that looks “sexy as hell”. That last description is an actual quote from a reviewer.

GIMM: Of course it is. Anyway, speaking of high-tech safety features–

Mazda6: *Sighs* Yes, the Lane-Keep assist is cool. If the driver is distracted, it allows me to temporarily take control of the steering wheel to ensure the car doesn’t drift out of the lane.

GIMM: You like to be in control, don’t you?

Mazda6: This interview is over.

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Disclaimer: As noted above we were provided this vehicle courtesy of DriveShop and Mazda. Other than being allowed to test drive this vehicle, we were not provided any monetary compensation for this post. All opinions and fake interviews with inanimate objects remain our own.

Holiday, Recipes

White Chocolate Cranberry Popcorn

As much as we like to complicate things, sometimes you need to keep things easy. That’s what White Chocolate Cranberry Popcorn is all about. An easy snack, for a busy season.

The recipe stems from one of our family’s favorite holiday cookies: The White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie. So simple, yet so addicting, the White Chocolate Cranberry Cookie would cause a civil war if it were absent during December.

The only downside is that you have to actually make cookies. Sure, baking cookies isn’t hard, but it is time consuming and there always a bunch of dishes you have to clean afterwards… Seriously, why would anyone bake cookies ever?

Ah, right. Because cookies are awesome.

Anyway, White Chocolate Cranberry Popcorn, on the other hand bridges the gap between a wanting a sweet, salty, tangy snack and actually having to spend the time to make it. It’s a win, win, win, win, win.

Perfect for Christmas Morning snacking, or for holiday light tours, this popcorn will make you forget about all those big brands that make a living selling over-priced popcorn in gift boxes.

Snack hard this holiday season.

White Chocolate Cranberry Popcorn

Ingredients

3 Cups of Popped Popcorn (One bag of microwave popcorn, if you want to keep things easy)
1/2 Cup of Dried Cranberries, minced
1 Tablespoon Powdered Sugar
One 4 oz bar of White Chocolate, roughly chopped
1/4 Cup Christmas Sprinkles
Pinch of Salt (more or less depending on how salty your popcorn already is)

Instructions:

Make the popcorn according to the instructions. Seriously, no judgement on using microwave popcorn.
Toss the minced cranberries in the powered sugar – This will help separate the cranberries and allow them to stick to the popcorn better.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then spread out the popcorn on the sheet and top with the cranberries.
Put the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and heat on high for 45 seconds. Stir and heat for another 20 seconds and stir again – All of the chocolate should be melted.
Drizzle the melted chocolate over the popcorn and cranberries, then sprinkle the sprinkles on top and mix well.
Let the mixed popcorn sit in the refrigerator for about five minutes to set up.

Reviews, Travel

Tacos & Pie in LA: Crystal was Right

Ever since our first trip to Los Angeles in 2010, there are two restaurants that our friend Crystal recommended that we try.

For whatever reason we just weren’t able to work these two food unicorns (foodicorns?) into our trip.

Finally, after about six years and five trips, we decide that we would not leave LA until we made it out to these two must-visits. With a 2016 Mazda CX-9 Signature (check out our car Q&A here) loaner courtesy of DriveShop and Mazda ready to transport us to food heaven, we were ready to ride in style and hunger. But mostly hunger.

2016 Mazda CX-9 Signature | getinmymouf.com

Ready for tacos.

We should have listened to Crystal sooner, because these two restaurants will go down as places that we will force other people to try and that we will write about in letters to our grandchildren…or in a blog to strangers.

ALRIGHT ALREADY! WHAT ARE THE RESTAURANTS?!

The first foodicorn: Guisados

For those who don’t speak Spanish, guisados translates to “stew” and oh, boy does Guisados stew! They stew all the stew.

They stew so hard.

Tender stewed meats and vegetables on fresh-made corn tortillas… What more can you possibly ask for? One thing I’d ask for is a mini taco sampler so I could try a bunch of tacos at once.

Guess what? They got that, too.

Pleasing to carnivores, vegetarians, and pescatarians alike this is one taco party everyone is invited to. Bring your kids, bring your friends, bring your dog–I don’t think they let dogs inside due to health code regs, but if you have any leftovers–wait, what am I saying? There shall not be any leftovers! In fact, you probably won’t order enough the first go around, which will force you to do the walk of under-ordering shame back up to the register.

Embrace the shame, because it dissipates with each bite.

The deep flavor and succulent fillings will have you waking up at night in cold sweats wondering why you can’t get tacos like this back home.

And not stopping by a Guisados is no longer a valid excuse because they have five locations around Los Angeles including The OG in Boyle Heights, Echo Park, Downtown LA (or DTLA if you’re cool), West Hollywood, and Burbank.

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The second foodicorn: The Pie Hole

It all started with a t-shirt.

In a not-so-subtle way of hinting that we should probably eat at The Pie Hole, Crystal sent me one of their t-shirts.

Not only was it a constant reminder of the pie that needed to eventually be consumed, but it was an amazingly soft and durable shirt. It’s a t-shirt MVP year after year. First ballot t-shirt hall of famer.

If the pie was half as awesome as the shirt, expectations would be met.

Instead expectations were destroyed.

The turkey pot pie was so comforting that it felt like a warm labradoodle sleeping next to you on a couch. Thanksgiving came early this year and in the best form: Pie.

That crust, though. So buttery, flaky, and the perfect thickness. I’d love to eat my way out of a sleeping bag made of that crust.

Tina’s breakfast veggie hand pie was also so delicious you’ll wish humans had bigger hands (to inflate the average size of hands, which would then in-turn increase the size of hand pies).

I should’ve channeled the dark side and ordered a slice of EVERYTHING, but I found some restraint in my back pocket and we shared a slice of Earl Grey Tea Pie. A unique pie for sure, with a subtle flavor of earl grey tea, crunchy pistachios, creamy filling and…oh…that….CRUST.

Much like Guisados, it took us so long to visit The Pie Hole that they now four locations around Los Angeles, one in Orange County, and one in freaking Tokyo! So, if you’re in DTLA, Pasadena, Hollywood, or Glendale grab a slice and open your pie hole.

Moral of the Story: When a friend demands that you eat at specific places in the city in which they live, listen to him or her. Think of all the tacos and pie slices we could have eaten if we had heeded Crystal‘s advice? Roughly forty tacos and ten slices of pie (based on ten tacos and two pie slices per trip).

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Disclaimer: As noted above we were provided a vehicle courtesy of DriveShop and Mazda. Other than being allowed to test drive this vehicle, we were not provided any monetary compensation for this post. All opinions remain our own.

Car Reviews

Car Q&A: 2016 Mazda CX-9 AWD Signature

Specs

MSRP (as tested): $44,915
MPG Estimate: 21 city – 27 highway
Engine: Skyactiv-G 2.5 Turbo Engine
Power: 250 hp @ 5,000 rpm | 310 lb-ft @ 2,000 rpm
Transmission: 6-Speed Automatic
Color: Sonic Silver Metallic (exterior) / Auburn (interior)
Options: Navigation System and Sirius XM Satellite Radio

For more info, click here to view the 2016 CX-9 Brochure.

Look, you don’t need me to convince you to check out the 2016 Mazda CX-9 AWD Signature. Plenty of experts have already written enough praise about this vehicle to make you want to trade in that ’98 Explorer for something far more fun. Oh, you want me to list the experts? Fine. Car and Driver gave it a perfect five star review. Consumer Reports called it the “Driver’s Choice”. Maybe an “A” grade from Edmunds is what you’re looking for.

Rather than listen to one more person rave about this piece of four-wheeled vehicular art, we thought it would be better to go straight to the CX-9 itself on what the spotlight is like. While spending some time eating tacos and pie in LA, we sat down in the CX-9 for a quick interview:

Get in my Mouf (GIMM): You’ve received quite a bit of accolades over the last year. From your design, to interior craftsmanship, to performance. What are you most proud of?

CX-9: Definitely the performance. Looking good is nice, having all the bells and whistles is great and all, but first and foremost, I’m a vehicle. My fleet’s motto is “Driving Matters” for a reason. It ain’t “Comfortable Seats Matters.” But, without sounding too boisterous, my seats are very comfortable.

GIMM: Yes, they are–And beautiful in that Auburn color. Seeing as how you pride yourself in performance, what are some of your favorite roads to travel on?

CX-9: Easy one. I’ve spent most of my time in California, so definitely the PCH.

GIMM: You and I actually spent a bit of time on the PCH in Malibu together.

CX-9: And that was nothing! Next time you’re out here, I’ll take you up further north into Santa Barbara and up to the holy grail of driving at Big Sur.

GIMM: You mention Big Sur–We’ve previously driven on that road with a Mazda CX-3 and I think most people think of sports cars or smaller vehicles to get the full experience of the road. Being an SUV, how would you like to change people’s minds about the “big and bulky” SUV stereotype?

CX-9: It’s more difficult than simply telling them. To break the stereotype, they really need to meet me. Sit behind the wheel and let the performance do all the talking. Look, I enjoying doing interviews like this, but what really brings me joy is getting out there to meet people and change minds. I encourage any of your readers who may be undecided about SUVs to just take an hour or so to visit their local dealer and give the CX-9 a shot.

GIMM: You mentioned the fact that you’re based in California, home to some of the most amazing food in the country. I know you don’t eat human food, but is there any genre or dish that you wish you could eat?

CX-9: Tacos.

GIMM: Nice choice – Any particular type?

CX-9: No. I spend a lot of time in Los Angeles, so I see a lot of taco stands and my drivers are always tossing bags of tacos in the back seat. They smell so amazing. One time someone spilled carnitas juice on my floorboard. That was as close as I’ve gotten to tasting a taco, but it made me wish I was a human for a second.

GIMM: Getting back to bells and whistles, you do have quite a few. The Bose stereo system is pretty sweet – What’s your favorite type of music to rock out to?

CX-9: I’m partial to television and movie soundtracks – Stranger Things is a recent favorite and of course Drive. It makes me feel like I’m one of those famous cars in the film industry. And with my performance, the driver can easily pretend they’re in an action movie.

GIMM: While obeying all traffic laws.

CX-9: Absolutely.

GIMM: I want to wrap things up by talking about dogs. What are you thoughts on having a dog in the car?

CX-9: I can tell you’re trying to push me into saying something bad about dogs and how I get frustrated with their loose hair clogging up my vents and getting stuck to my carpet.

GIMM: I wouldn’t dare.

CX-9: The truth is that when I see their heads hanging out the window, tongue flapping in the wind, and wagging tails, it’s all worth it. Dogs get it…the performance, the thrill of driving (or riding in this case). The fun and exhilaration of exploring the world, one road at a time. That’s why driving matters.

GIMM: Now that’s how you end an interview!

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