hi i used to have a 2009 mazda 5 van . i just bought a new 2012 mazda 5 van . theres a big differnt between the 2009 and the 2012 mazda 5 van . number one being the seats. there wider and are as not as firm as the seats in my 2009 mazda 5 van. a + for long trips. the heated seats work all the time from warm to hot to warm back to hot.. the dash is super easy to read . every thing is in eye contack . so you dont have to take your eyes off the road to read the clock or temp and other funtions .. for me the suspension is super much better than my 2009 mazda 5 vans suspension.. the 2012 suspension has that sports car feal.. yet the ride is very nice . the van is more quite.. not much road noise my 2009 van was not as quite as the 2012 mazda 5 is and the 2.5 motor is a big + over the 2.3 motor ...the 2.5 motor pulls hills like they were not there .it has way better passing power.. i dont yet know the milage i have a 2010 mazda 6 with the 2.5 motor and i had to drive it 6,000 miles befor i got good milage the break in time seems longer for me on the 2.5 motor .. on the new look for the mazda 5 . it looks way better in person .. than in the pictures on the web . the new look makes the van look longer . i do like the new look . i realy like the new 2012 mazda 5 van.. if you can ..i would say buy a 2012 mazda 5 van good luck spencerfvee

 

We are still and completely in the 2011 model year. How could you have bought a vehicle that has not been produced yet?

 

Good point!! Mazda scrapped the 2011 model 5 and went to the 2012 model, though I don't know if they are released yet.

 

hi mazda jumped the year 2011 and went to 2012 on the mazda5 there is no 2011 mazda 5 there are not that many 2012 mazda 5 at the mazda dealers right now.. my dealer had to do a dealer trade to get me my mazda5 van i was the first one to buy one from my dealer... they went on line to find a dealer that had one in stock most of the mazda5s i wanted were still on a ship and were not in the USA yet it took two days to get my mazda5 van i do know one thing they go great in the snow we got 5 inches of snow today here in ohio spencerfvee .....quote=virgin1;115887]
We are still and completely in the 2011 model year. How could you have bought a vehicle that has not been produced yet?

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True I haven't been on the Mazda USA site in a while now, but that seems completely silly!!
It must either be an advertising or legal (damned lawyers again) thing?

 

I'm late to the conversation, but have a similar situation...

I just went through purchasing a 2010 Mazda5 after having twins. Fitting two convertible seats was simply impossible in my Jetta.

Anyway, it fits my needs perfectly. Most importantly, our Britax Marathon seats fits perfectly and it's easy to load the kids. I'm 6'3" so I needed legroom/headroom, and I have plenty. I can't put my seat the whole way back, but I don't really need to.

I wanted the Mazda5 over other minivans because it's shorter (live in a city, on street parallel parking) and because of the price and good gas mileage.

 

that's why we like it... it can haul everybody around and still get in and out of tight spaces

 

I just bought a 2012 '5 and I have 4 children ranging from 6months and 13 years. My two youngest sit in child seats in the back row and the two oldest sit second row. Even with the sliding doors and the second row seats slid forward, it can be a "twist" getting the babies in and out of the rear. My older children are five footers and it is to tight in the 3rd row for anything long distance, but have ample room in the second row. The car is a 6sp Sport and my wife and I love it. It feels sporty and accelerates well, almost like a 3.0 liter V-6 I was used to in my Ford 500. It registers 160mph on the speedo, but I reserve it to maxing out at probably 120-130mph. If you can live with the cars smaller stature and approx $10,000 lower price than the real mini vans, I think you will be pleased!

 

I failed to mention in my reply that the slider doors are light and easily opened and closed. For the savings with the mazda, I could not justify the extra expense of different makers power door option. If I remeber right the 2012's do have navigation in the topline models, but then again, that price begins to negate the price savings. I was hard pressed to find a brand new, fuel efficient "micro van" or sedan for the cash price of under $17,000 with power everything, air and tilt/cruise and most importantly seating for 6 and more than 28mpg. Car and Driver claimed upto 33mpg in their testing...just a thought.