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Consumer Reviews for the Mazda 5
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Choose your niche
dougiesc, 01/21/2015
2014 Mazda 5 Sport 4dr Minivan (2.5L 4cyl 6M)
Definitely a niche car, best suited for a family of 4 plus groceries or luggage. It works for us, but if you really need the passenger or luggage space, go with a full-sized minivan. This isn't it. It is basically a 4-seat wagon with a couple of child-sized extra seats in the back--which you can't use if you carry much luggage. However, the usual three-passenger sedan bench seat is … replaced with two full captain's chairs and a table/platform for drinks, books, whatever. The car is solid and quiet. Good adult leg- and head-room (except for those pesky far-back seats). It is cheaper than any full-sized minivan, gets somewhat better fuel economy, and is more maneuverable.
[UPDATE 1: To update my review -- the Mazda5 remains a niche car, possibly so tight a niche that Mazda discontinued it. I like how it drives, how the seat fits me, how maneuverable it is. I don't have to step up (i.e., SUVs) or step down (i.e., most sedans) into it. It's a great car for long trips. But it does not replace a full-size minivan, either for the amount of things it can carry or store, or for the number of seats (the rear seats remain useful mainly for the munchkins, and ours are usually folded down, making the car effectively a large hatchback). I have, in fact, gotten a roof rack for carrying home all those 4x8' sheets of plywood. My daughter's Odyssey surprisingly beats it for actual highway fuel economy (not city economy). Will I keep it? Yes. Would I get one again? Well, there I'm not so sure.]
[UPDATE 2: So I traded it in at five years. For me that's a quick turnaround--I've kept cars as long as 19 years. The main reason was that it was too much a "niche" car. The rear seats weren't very useful, except in rare instances, and the lack of a center seat in the second row meant that a fifth passenger had to sit in the back, taking up valuable storage space. There were other things. I wanted a back-up camera and a better sound system. And since we're getting on in years I thought an automatic transmission would be a good change. So I've gotten a Honda HR-V, which I'll review anon.]
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