New Mazda5 Sport/Auto Owner
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07-24-2011 | 08:10 PM
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Joined: Jul 2011
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From: Southern California
New Mazda5 Sport/Auto Owner
I bought my 2012 Mazda5 Sport/Automatic in May of 2011; and in 2 months I have put 4,000 miles on it, and my wife and I love it more and more each day. I have noted that most of the negative comments about the car (performance, styling, gas mileage, etc.) are from non-owners. Here are my observations...
Best Car Ever for small families or empty nesters! I see the "emply nester" ads for the Toyota Venza, but I believe the Mazda5 has it beat--if for nothing else than the 6 seats rather than the usual 5. And then there's the difference in price! The options on the seating/hauling are excellent! The main reason I first considered the car was for the 6 seats. Yes, the back two are best for children, but my 6 foot son climbed back there to check it out. As he put it "I would't want to go on a family vacation back there, but it wouldn't be all that bad to go across town to dinner." My sentiments exactly, as you can't take 6 people if you don't have seats (and seatbelts) for 6! It works! And for four adults, each has their own seat with armrests and cupholders, and a bunch of room for luggage--much better than almost any other small car. But you do make a choice for hauling stuff--it's either 6 passengers and no stuff, or more stuff and fewer passengers. This last week I went with my son on a family vacation, and went out with 2 adults and 1 child, and a lot of tents, chairs, food, etc. I came back with 2 adults and 3 children, but less stuff--but I still brought back an ice chest, 2 chairs, a tent, 2 sleeping bags with bedding and pillows! And for those who care, I got better than 30 miles to the gallon on the trip (60 to 65 mph) with the air conditioning on!
Lets talk about mileage. I am getting 20 to 23 miles per gallon in town (Southern California) with the air conditioning on. It's more like 20 if I really put my foot into it, but always at least 20 and most often 23. The 5 speed automatic is just astonishing. If you are trying to save gas, you can get all the way up to 50 mph with less than 2000 rpm's on the tach. More normal acceleration is easily attainable with 2500 rpm's. The interesting part is if you put your foot into it, you can go over 4,000 rpms in each gear, and get very fast acceleration. I bought the automatic sport as I thought I would be using the "manual" shifting option a lot based on automatics and sticks I have owned over the years. But I actually am using it very little, as the transmission shifts right where you would want it to, depending on the acceleration you want to achieve--when you let up a little on the accelerator--perfect, smooth shifts! The car actually down-shifts automatically as you accelerate out of a corner or on a hill without jamming your foot down on the accelerator--just as you would want to do if you had a stick. Very impressive.
I purchased the Sport Automatic model, as it has all the options I really needed. My car looks great without the spoiler and the lower body moldings. Yes, I would have liked leather, but the nylon seats are really nice! You slide in and stay put, with easy to maintain fabric. It feels really good! Beyond that, the car has cruise control, power windows, power door locks with remote, vanity mirrors on both sides, a nice stereo (that can plug into my smartphone), temperature-set automatic heat and air conditioning (it works great), excellent power steering, 4 wheel disk brakes, and mag wheels. I would like to note here that some reviews complain of a harsh ride on the Mazda5, but with the Sport's 16" wheels (rather than the 17" found on the the Touring models), I believe I get a better ride with the deeper tire profile--you'll note that both tire outside diameters are the same. The handling is great (especially for a wagon), the sliding doors are super nice for adults and kids alike (even adults with disabilities can get in the back seat easily). All these features are "options" on many cars, I don't feel like I'm driving an "economy" car at all.
I would highly recommend this car to all who need it's multi-talented features. As one of my kids said "This isn't a car -- it's a Transformer!" It has economy or plenty of power--you choose. It can haul a lot of stuff or a lot of people -- you choose. Great quality everywhere; it's solid, comfortable (high seating positions) and easy to drive. The only other Mazda I ever owned was a second-hand GLC wagon many years ago. Mazda ads said the "GLC" stood for a "Great Little Car". That car was indeed a "GLC", but I believe the Mazda5 is an even better "Great Little Car". If you have questions, I will answer them to the best of my ability at mccrjk@gmail.com.
Best Car Ever for small families or empty nesters! I see the "emply nester" ads for the Toyota Venza, but I believe the Mazda5 has it beat--if for nothing else than the 6 seats rather than the usual 5. And then there's the difference in price! The options on the seating/hauling are excellent! The main reason I first considered the car was for the 6 seats. Yes, the back two are best for children, but my 6 foot son climbed back there to check it out. As he put it "I would't want to go on a family vacation back there, but it wouldn't be all that bad to go across town to dinner." My sentiments exactly, as you can't take 6 people if you don't have seats (and seatbelts) for 6! It works! And for four adults, each has their own seat with armrests and cupholders, and a bunch of room for luggage--much better than almost any other small car. But you do make a choice for hauling stuff--it's either 6 passengers and no stuff, or more stuff and fewer passengers. This last week I went with my son on a family vacation, and went out with 2 adults and 1 child, and a lot of tents, chairs, food, etc. I came back with 2 adults and 3 children, but less stuff--but I still brought back an ice chest, 2 chairs, a tent, 2 sleeping bags with bedding and pillows! And for those who care, I got better than 30 miles to the gallon on the trip (60 to 65 mph) with the air conditioning on!
Lets talk about mileage. I am getting 20 to 23 miles per gallon in town (Southern California) with the air conditioning on. It's more like 20 if I really put my foot into it, but always at least 20 and most often 23. The 5 speed automatic is just astonishing. If you are trying to save gas, you can get all the way up to 50 mph with less than 2000 rpm's on the tach. More normal acceleration is easily attainable with 2500 rpm's. The interesting part is if you put your foot into it, you can go over 4,000 rpms in each gear, and get very fast acceleration. I bought the automatic sport as I thought I would be using the "manual" shifting option a lot based on automatics and sticks I have owned over the years. But I actually am using it very little, as the transmission shifts right where you would want it to, depending on the acceleration you want to achieve--when you let up a little on the accelerator--perfect, smooth shifts! The car actually down-shifts automatically as you accelerate out of a corner or on a hill without jamming your foot down on the accelerator--just as you would want to do if you had a stick. Very impressive.
I purchased the Sport Automatic model, as it has all the options I really needed. My car looks great without the spoiler and the lower body moldings. Yes, I would have liked leather, but the nylon seats are really nice! You slide in and stay put, with easy to maintain fabric. It feels really good! Beyond that, the car has cruise control, power windows, power door locks with remote, vanity mirrors on both sides, a nice stereo (that can plug into my smartphone), temperature-set automatic heat and air conditioning (it works great), excellent power steering, 4 wheel disk brakes, and mag wheels. I would like to note here that some reviews complain of a harsh ride on the Mazda5, but with the Sport's 16" wheels (rather than the 17" found on the the Touring models), I believe I get a better ride with the deeper tire profile--you'll note that both tire outside diameters are the same. The handling is great (especially for a wagon), the sliding doors are super nice for adults and kids alike (even adults with disabilities can get in the back seat easily). All these features are "options" on many cars, I don't feel like I'm driving an "economy" car at all.
I would highly recommend this car to all who need it's multi-talented features. As one of my kids said "This isn't a car -- it's a Transformer!" It has economy or plenty of power--you choose. It can haul a lot of stuff or a lot of people -- you choose. Great quality everywhere; it's solid, comfortable (high seating positions) and easy to drive. The only other Mazda I ever owned was a second-hand GLC wagon many years ago. Mazda ads said the "GLC" stood for a "Great Little Car". That car was indeed a "GLC", but I believe the Mazda5 is an even better "Great Little Car". If you have questions, I will answer them to the best of my ability at mccrjk@gmail.com.
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