I was all excited to get a new 2005 Mazda 5 so I headed down to the dealer that got 2 in just before the 4th of July weekend. My wife and I recently had our first child, a little girl who is now 6 months old. We've got a 1991 Jeep Wrangler and a 2001 Mazda Protege. We needed something a little bigger that we could grow into. The Mazda 5 looked to be perfect.

So, we talk to the guy and he points us to the 5. It looked very sleek from the outside, a little small, but nice. Then, we opened the side door and took a peak in. Urgggh, what a letdown. The interior is very cheap looking and the space is crammed. Certainly NOT what I had envisioned based on the online pictures. Its as if it were made for a family of dwarfs, Snow White eat your heart out, the Mazda five is ideal for car pooling the 7 dwarfs! When I got in the drivers seat, it was crammped. The seat was tight(I'm a big guy, wide shoulders and 6'2" tall). My arms hung wayyy over the right side arm rest and I felt like a sausage. Then, when you look at the dash, its cheap. I've seen prizes at those 25 cent carnivals that have more appeal and style. Why did Mazda do this to such a potentially nice ride(for dwarfs). It was a total letdown. The 2nd row seats don't give you much leg room unless you slide it ALL THE WAY back, and if you do that, the 2rd row has ZERO leg room. I really wouldn't call this a 3 row seating vehicle. Basically, if you need the 3 rows, then you should go with the not-much-bigger MPV(although the MPV would seem like a Greyhound bus compared to the 5).

I did take it for a drive and its rides NICE. Very NICE, actually. Its responsive, turns effortlessly, quiet on the highway, stops easily. Overall, like nearly every Mazda, its a dream to drive. This, however, could NOT make up for the crammped seating and cheap interior.

What was my family to do? Well, the 2005 Mazda Tribute. We had been thinking the Tribute all along, but really got attracted to the Mazda 5. The Tribute has LOADS of front passnenger legroom, shoulder room, and head room. The second row has the same. The cargo area behind the 2nd row is actually quite large. The Tribute will fit my family of 3 perfectly, and give us room in the next 5 years to add a couple more kids.

i still havent seen one in person,..anywhere...where abouts are you from?

Oh, hush! :-) (Sorry, don't know how to use the emoticons yet)
It's not that tight inside - my husband and I find it to be quite roomy and great for us. Admittedly, some of the interior bits feel cheap, but I can deal with that (some of the interior bits on the Hondas look/feel cheap too) - most notably the sunvisors are plastic-y with small, unlighted mirrors on them - that I would like to see changed for 2007. The front passenger seat needs an armrest - the middle row and the driver's side have rests, but I consider those to be minor.

Things I love about my Mazda5:
-Tiptronic
-Navigation
-Handling
-SPACE!!
-How the headrests go down and up on all seats
-The lovely little straps to pull the seats down
-Height adjustment on the driver's seat
-The storage bins in the middle row
-The cool flip-out cupholder and storage basket for the middle row

The dogs will love this car. Just someone tell Mazda to stop calling it a "mini-minivan" - it's cooler than that. Much cooler. It's not just a family car, it's a fun go around play outside car.

Okay, I'm sure I can think of more I love, but I'm supposed to be doing work right now. Then I can go for another drive in my spiffy new 5!

I think you took this to the extreame


This vehicle is SWEEEEET for the money,Sweet for the average JOE and his family.

This vehicle is nicely put together sitting on the Mazda 3 frame and using the same engine and transmission.

This vehicle is also the only one in its class!!!!!!!


Cant beat it for the money.

I took the 5 for a test drive too, and after a few hours of goofing around with it and seeing what it can really do, I ended up buying it. I also own a 2003 Mazda Protege. I am waiting on my mazda dealership to send me my new 5. Hopefully I will get it soon. [:@]


^ lol apparently we have the same signature.

I can see why someone tall would have issues with this car, but as a mom with an 8 year old and 4 year old, I can say with certainty that a car like the Mazda 5 will be able to meet family needs that a car like the Tribute never can.

First, 3 passanger seating for a back seat is NOT the same as 3 car seat seating. It look a lot of creativity and shopping around to eventually fit 2 boosters and a 5 point harness seat in the back seat of our Mazda Sedan. This isn't much easier in your average SUV. Simply put, a car seat takes up more room than even an overweight adult, because it is a rigid, and not flexible, form.

Second, it doesn't take long for a parent to realize that it would be really nice to be able to transport more than your own children. Play dates, car pools, school outings ... all these events require adding a safe seat for an extra child or two. With children now in car seats until age 8 or 80 pounds, there is a good chance that extra seat involve a child's safety seat.

We haven't bought the Mazda 5 yet, but intend to. I like the adjustible headrests, and having a locking shoulder belt for every passenger. With safety seats in place, riders for the 3rd row will have to use the center pass, but my kids don't have any trouble taking that route. My main concern is how close the 3rd row is to the rear window, but this is far from the only people mover type vehicle with that issue.

My kids love this car in the showroom. They prefer it to the larger Minivan we recently rented for a vacation.

And I prefer the Mazda handling.

Also cool ... you can get this car with a 5-speed. 5 speeds are, simply, more fun to drive. Better gas mileage, too.

My main wish? A car this size should be getting better mileage than is posted. Wouldn't this car be great as a hybrid? But, it still beats most minivans, and the price is excellent.

If they put an arm rest on the passenger front seat , it would hinder console features.

We bought a 5 about a month ago and already have 1500 miles on it. Needless to say we love it! Drives like a car, holds stuff like a minivan, and looks much cooler than an SUV! It's the perfect urban family truckster. We can park it anywhere, it's nimble and quick off the stop light, very versatile, and more fun than a practical vehicle should be. It's the only "minivan" with a manual!!

We replaced a 626 with the 5 and we're surprised that it's, in fact, shorter! It gets the same mileage as the 626 (we're averaging 30 mpg) and holds Mom, Dad, two kids and Grandma and Grandpa--no sweat.

We looked at it after a great review by Warren Brown in the Washington Post in July. Even he liked it and he doesn't like much.

Our dealer had several in stock here in Alexandria VA so they're out there. Don't believe your dealer if he can't get you one quick--he'd rather sell you an SUV that nobody wants with gas at $3.599/gal.

Mazda has hit a homerun with this one!

We also have a 2003 Protege with 30K that has yet to see the repair shop. Zoom, Zoom!

I am selling my Scion xB for a Touring Model Mazda 5 with a manual tranny. It will take 2 to 3 months to arrive, so that gives me plenty of time to sell the Bread Box. ;)