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Mazda5 Test Drive - What Did You Think?
Have you taken a test drive in a 5? Post your reviews here.
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I agree with you on the cargo volume. If you use the 3rd row, you have room for a couple of duffle bags or grocery bags. No more.
I test drove a Mazda5 with three healthy adults in the car. A/C was on. The engine noise was quite loud and I could hear and feel the strain on the engine. Ultimately you get what you pay for: I dont expect to get a V6, 200+ HP engine for less than $20K.
This vehicle has some strengths but it also compromises on a host of issues: engine torque, comfort (no window tint and front passenger arm rest) and safety. It is unclear what crash safety rating this vehicle will earn. It is also unclear if Mazda used the steel/iron bars in the doors. Not using the bars, lowers the door weight and "makes it easy to slide the door with a slight touch" as stated in the Mazda press release/web site.
"I agree with you on the cargo volume. If you use the 3rd row, you have room for a couple of duffle bags or grocery bags. No more."
I'm was also a bit dissapointed at the lack of cargo space with 3rd row up, but after looking at several suvs with 3rd row seating they too were a bit tight on space. Considering the overall size of the vehicle it's to be expected. Alternative is to get the roof rack installed when it becomes available, or a more compact stroller.
My drawbacks with the Mazda5 are the seat material and no air vents for the second or third row seats. I was hoping for leather in my next vehicle, but can understand why Mazda isn't offering it yet in this car and it's not something that I have to have. Can anyone (especially folks who have bought the car) tell me what they thought of the nylon material that Mazda is using in the 5. Our other cars with cloth have a more velour material rather than the polyester. I test drove the car during a week when we were having 90 degree heat. After being in the car only 10 minutes (with the AC running), the backs of my legs were sweating. That hasn't happened before in either of our current cars with the velour cloth. Is that something that happens often with the polyester, or do you think it's because the material is black, thus more heat absorption? I wonder if it will cause the sweating when the temps are in the 70s and 80s because it's polyester or if that was just because it was an extremely hot week. Any insight?
Also, I'm concerned about not having vents for the back passengers. I don't want them to be hot in the summer heat or on long summer trips. Can anyone tell me what they think of the AC system? Can it circulate air to the back passengers and keep them cool without freezing the front passengers.
I'd buy this car right away if it weren't for these two concerns. It was a fun, quiet, agile, and versatile car to drive. Also, I was skeptical of the four cylinder, but surprised by it's acceleration. I'm sure that it helps that it has less weight to pull around than some of the other crossovers.
Thanks for any input.
As for the A/C, I was also concerned about no rear vents, but I've found that the air actually circulates pretty well from the front to the back in my Mazda5, so there's not really a need for extra vents in the back. The car does take a while to cool down in 90+ weather though (the black interior doesn't help). I felt like the A/C worked great in 70-80-85-degree weather, but it feels slightly weak when the outside temps get up over 90 with high humidity (the way it's been here in NJ for the past week). This is only noticable on shorter trips...on longer trips, once the Mazda5 has cooled down, my Mazda5's A/C has been able to make 2nd row passengers too cold even in 90+ outside weather.
If these are your only 2 concerns, I think you'll be happy with a Mazda5
A quick Villager/Mazda5 comparison:
Mercury Villager: 170-hp, 4050 pounds: 0.042-hp per pound
Mazda5: 157-hp, 3389 pounds (for the AT): 0.046-hp per pound
So, the Mazda5 has more hp-per-pound. If we fill each of them up with 1000 pounds of people/stuff:
Villager: 0.034-hp per pound
Mazda5: 0.036-hp per pound
The Mazda5 still wins. Horespower isn't the whole story (torque and other things are important too), but the Mazda5 has more HP per pound than the Villager, so you shouldn't miss your Villager's 170-hp. My guess is the Mazda5 will feel more powerful! The best way to find out for sure is to do a test drive.
The outside temp was 85 and sunny (rather than 95 and hot like last week), but the AC still didn't seem adequate for the middle seats even though I had it on full speed 70% of the time. (I turned it off the other 30% to see how the wind noise and road noise were.) I tilted them upward as mentioned on this board. My daughter complained that she was still too hot and I didn't think the air ever felt cold, just cool.
The dealer said that Mazda has sent notice that the coolant that is put in the cars in Japan is not as good as it should be. And if the dealer drains the original coolant and puts in new coolant that improves the AC a lot. Has anyone else heard this? Have any purchasers had their dealer do this or know if their dealer putting in new coolant to improve their AC?
Anyhow, I liked the thing. We our coming out of an 02 CR-V lease (5spd), and the power was just like I expected given the weight and power numbers between the 2 vehicles. Gearing ratios were virutally identical between the Mazda and CR-V. The 5spd was OK, but I would imagine the auto would be too gutless for me. Otherwise, it drove well - handling, braking, etc. I was amazed at the space in the rear. I sat in the 3rd row and as long as the seat in front was moved up a bit, I could survive back there for an hour or so (I'm 5-10).
Given the price ($6k CDN less than the '05 CR-V we would be getting otherwise), I believe we will be buying/leasing one within a few weeks. I've got to give Mazda credit; getting my wife out of a Honda is nothing short of miraculous!
Also, much to my surprise - they said that they could feel the A/C just fine.(I angle the middle vents straight up and close the side vents completely)
Another thing that I knew about, but was surprised with in reality was the way that the seating is configured so that you can see everyone from the front seats. I was sitting in the passenger seat and turned to say something to my brother in the 3rd row and I could actually see all 4 passengers and hold a single conversation with ease.
I had the same experience this weekend while driving some friends around in 85+ degree weather (one friend in the passenger seat and 2 in the 2nd row). Because of all of the AC discussion that's gone on in these forums, I was worried that the AC might not be reaching the 2nd row. So I asked my friends if they were cool enough. They replied that they were fine, and that they could feel the AC breeze both on their faces and on their feet/legs!
I was very surprised by the "on their feet" comment. Our Mazda salesman told us that the AC comes out from below the 2nd row seats (no recognizable "vents", but the AC comes out through the tracks that the 2nd row seats are mounted on)...this might be what my friends could feel. Either way, everyone was happy
Congrats! I hope you like your Mazda5 as much as my wife and I like ours
It'd be great if you could post about your buying experience (like what options/color you got, what other cars you test drove, etc.) on the Mazda5's "Prices Paid and Buying Experience" forum.
As far as the A/C goes, I have seen the issue brought up here a few times, with many saying that the A/C didn't work so well for them, but have often wondered if these people were used to living in IGLOOS up in the artic or something! I find the A/C to be GREAT! It cools quickly and many times we have had to lower the temp, the fan or turn it completely off since the cabin got very cold - including for my mother and children sitting in the back. So, no, I have not had an issue with the A/C at all and feel it works great for all - even the ones in the back. Just make sure to point the vents upward so as to cool the risen hot air.
I whole-heartedly recommend this car to you! I absolutely LOVE mine - and more than any other car!
I test drove another one again a week ago in December in 70 degree weather and I could still tell that the AC wasn't what I would call chilly. I have an ancient Mazda MX-6 with a leak in the coolant line, and it is about as cold with this problem as the Mazda5 is brand new. I am really disappointed in this, because in every other respect the 5 is a PERFECT car for me and I would have bought one on the spot. I had talked myself into believing that the AC issue we saw in July was a figment of my imagination, but it was not.
I live in Texas and we absolutely have to have arctic air conditioning here. It was 108 in *October*. Would you want to drive around in that without decent AC?
I have a good friend who has a Mazda3 and it's AC is perfectly fine. It also has the round shaped AC vents like the Mazda6 does, and I think those provide better airflow. I had an old Tercel with vents shaped like that and it had the best AC of any car I've driven.
All I am saying is that, with MY personal experience, the a/c is not a problem and I couldn't understand others who have had a problem, again, because of my experience with my Mazda5. I wasn't downplaying anyone's problems, just speaking from my perspective.
Now, please relax, charlotte7, I wasn't making a "joke" out of your seemingly very serious and traumatic experience with the Mazda5's air condition system.
I live in Central Texas. I suspect NYC is a bit cooler than it is down here, too.
As others have mentioned - there is a lot of cabin space to cool and only the front vents to do it. It will not cool as fast as a car with smaller cabin space. We tinted our windows partially to keep it cooler and it does help. Some have made comments regarding A/C that didn't get cold at all - this is not our experience.
The Mazda Club Chat is on tonight. The chat room opens at 8:45PM ET Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule
1. get your Mazada 5 tinted, choose darkest tint. Cost me $200 USD, but with life time warranty from 3M.
2. when you have passenger in the back crank up your A/C and point your vents toward them.
Mazada 5 is a great car for the money. From my personal experience A/C is not an issue. I guess you can bargain w/ the dealer to get them to throw in the tint for free.
The Mazda Club Chat is on tonight. The chat room opens at 8:45PM ET Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule
I test drove a 5 in 05 and 07 and have been disapointed both time with lack of power, noise and interior. I've been waiting for a redesign and I got excited by the new interior and the new 5 speed AT.
I test drove a Touring in July 09. I was impressed. The new AT does wonders! The car flew with 3 adults and a kid (my wife was driving). When I drove I noticed that even though I floored it in the second gear, there was not much response. So mainly mannered driving only!
The noise (engine) was much better then expected, though I was successfull in making it scream.
I played with manual shifting and saw that it was pretty slow to react. I also saw that it indicates the speed (gear) selected in the dashboard. Unfortunately, it shows a big "0" when shifted back in D. Now that I think about it, maybe it shows "D" and not "0", but I would like it better like in CX-7, which shows the gear number all the time.
Otherwise I am delighted with the interior.
Overall I can say it's a small car - no way around it. But if you know this going in, you'll survive. The steering (sourced from Ford Escort/Focus) is fantastic. The brakes could be better, when compared with the CX-7, at least. They stop the car allright, but the pedal requires a little more effort then I'd like, which makes it more dificult to modulate properly.
I'm getting one.