With so many features fitted as standard on our Mazda6, it’s too easy to be distracted by all the shiny things.

The only factory options available on the 2.2D Sport Nav are metallic paint, upgraded leather trim (leather-faced seats are standard), and the safety pack.

Everything else is standard, which means heated front seats, TomTom navigation, and reversing camera with steering guide as well as proximity sensors.

Many things to look at and that perform a valuable role.

One item that doesn’t seem to be fitted is a hill-holder function.

This is particularly useful when waiting at junctions on an incline because it means that after using the foot brake to stop, when releasing it the driver has a short time in which to select a gear and set off before the car rolls back.

It has become an increasingly common feature in cars during the past 10 years or so.

It shouldn’t be a difficult feature to include on a car as it would be part of a package of technology available with the ABS/ESC.

I suspect Mazda might not have included it because of the i-Stop stop-start system which would encourage people to save fuel by using the system as much as possible and applying the handbrake when at junctions.

The trouble is some pauses at junctions are too short to want the i-Stop to activate.

There has been more encouraging news in its fuel efficiency. The most recent tanks of fuel have returned more than 55mpg. Still short of the official combined figure, but we’re getting close.