SOTW: Mazda MX-6

Shed sends Riggers back to his childhood (cue wavy-line flashback sequence)

A very personal Shed this week - and one that will no doubt divide opinion like a, well, like an opinion-splitting thing. But I like it, and sometimes you just have to go for a bit of what you want.

So without further ado let SOTW present the Mazda MX-6 - one of Mazda's forgotten sports cars and a much-underrated 90s coupe.

Now, I have a well-known soft spot for a bit of Japanese metal (anyone who knows how much money I ended up throwing at my old 200SX will tell you that), but the MX-6 holds a particularly dear place in my automotive heart. And for the oddest of reasons.

Back in the early 1990s, when I was old enough to want to drive, but still far too young to even imagine being 17, I remember reading an issue of Performance Car with an article in it about a club for 'young drivers'.

It was basically an organisation that allowed the teenage children to have a go at driving on private facilities (ie disused airfields) in the cars of their understanding/indulgent/ridiculously brave parents. I desperately wanted a go.

One of the lads featured in the article was a 15-year-old driving his dad's MX-6, and who reached speeds 'in excess of 100mph' when he took the author of the article for a ride-along. I thought he was possibly the coolest person on earth at that point. At the age of 10 I was impossibly jealous and, from that day to this, I have hankered after a go in an MX-6; something I've still not managed to achieve.

This particular example seems pretty tidy and, while its 2.5-litre 24-valve V6 might generate just 164bhp for the front wheels, it is at least connected to the wheels via a manual gearbox and could hit almost 140mph flat out.

The seller isn't exactly forthcoming with information, but provided 'low mileage' means something sensible, this white GT seems like quite a bit of car for the money, with a decent spec count and a full year's MOT.

It might not have the glamour of an RX-7 or the reputation of an MX-5, but I reckon that, as a fast cruiser, this often-overlooked coupe is pretty damn cool. At least that's what my 10-year-old self would say...