Mazda MPV

tayalynn1

I have been driving my new Mazda van since 3/25. I gotta tell you I love it! My neighbors love it, my kids love it, yadda, yadda, yadda! I have had the huge moonroof open with my CD's going and I don't even know I'm in a mini-van. I love the nimble ride and well, basically everything about the van. I drove a 2000 Odyssey that I hated and I sure made the right choice on the 2002 MPV. Regarding the first 1,000 mile oil change, my dealer recommended it and even gave me a certificate for a free oil change for that first one. I do have to admit, I had to make the dealer sell me a vehicle. They didn't seem to care one way or another if I bought it or not. I did get it for 3% over invoice however so I can't complain. I even called a couple of other dealers within 100 miles and they could not touch the deal I got.

javadoc

Did you used to own a 2000 Ody?

/java

sweet_subie

I justr read the consumer review magazine on 02 MPV. Thye liked everything but the engine noise.....

I am in sort of the same position. I like everything in my 02 MPV ES, but a 28k car growling ! I am just not happy with the engine noise in 02. that's my whole purpose of trading-in my 00.

no matter what all we critcize Ody on ohter things, it has the smoothest engine.........

your all thoughts ?

dulnev

I'm pretty sure I know which "consumer review" magazine you're talking about: Consumer Digest Car Buying Guide, right? I'm afraid these morons did not test the 2002 MPV, only the 2001 model which was indeed very noisy. The 2002 model is not noisy by any measure. No car magazine has noted that it's noisy. I've driven it on a highway and local streets for about 20 minutes and did not detect any unpleasant or loud growling from the engine.

big_guy

I read a review that stated something similar to the following;

". . . even though the new 3.0L V6 is not as quiet as the 3.5L V6 in the Honda Odyssey, it is definitely in the same class . . ."

I didn't notice any significant noise during a recent test drive of a 20002 MPV either . . . as a matter of fact, the MPV was quieter than the 3.3L V6 in the Caravan I am currently leasing.

scarter7719

when I dropped off the MPV for service this morning. That's got to be my favorite color! The 17" alloys are awesome looking too! I can't understand why they don't just go ahead and stick a spoiler on the back as a standard ES option. Imho, it just begs for it . Though I did feel like having breakfast at IHOP after staring at the revised front grill, I think the updated tail lights are a nice, sporty touch. All in all, the best looking van on the road keeps getting better!

SC

mazda_guy

I don't have any idea what noise are we talking about? My 02ES MPV is almost as quiet as Acura TL. Only at idle speed a little noisier. In Acura at idle actually I never know if the engine is running or not. In MPV at idle I can hear the engine. I have owned about 16 cars including Mercedes and MPV is one of the quietest cars. The most noise comes usually from the rough road surface not from the engine unless someone is pushing at 6000 RPM all the time then this can explain the engine noise. At 80 MPH and 2300 RPM I can hardly hear any engine noise.

MB

javadoc

This color? I like this one alot. What do you mean IHOP? lol



/j
...credit to mazda for pic...

scarter7719

That pic looks JUST like the one I saw. I REALLY like those 17" wheels, much more so than the 16"s - they have too much of a curve thing going at the end of the spoke, I prefer a straight spoke. I wonder how much they'd set me me back for the '01? BTW, someone on the Mazda 6 board posted pics from a recent autoshow. Pretty neat stuff, especially the mazdaspeedMPV.

re: IHOP - I could almost smell those Belgian waffles!

SC

mazda_guy

javadoc, scarter, I believe this is sage green metallic color and this is exactly MPV that I have. I love this color and my wife likes it as well. I did, either on Edmunds or kbb.com, an appraisal for a used car with this color and to my amazement the price of the car was reduced $88 because of that particular color. GO FIGURE!

MB

dulnev

I agree, I think it is the Sage Green, not Coastal Blue. The Sage Green is what I'm going to get. Absolutely the most awesome color I've seen in a Japanese import in awhile.

scarter7719

Could be ... my eyes aren't focusing as well on this tiny 14" monitor - the 17" broke last week and I'm awaiting replacement , so the pic java posted seems like a thumbnail, but I thought it was the same. Those two colors must be close then (?). The MPV I saw today was coastal blue ... said so on the sticker. That's my story and I is stickin' to it! BTW, did I say I REALLY like the *Coastal Blue*, but the *Sage Green* is nice too ?!

While I'm talking about color, have you ever noticed how some vehicles with the same namesake look good in one or two colors, but awful in the rest? Like the Sienna for example . It’s like the nice paint job makes up for the bland styling. Fortunately that doesn't seem to be a problem with the MPV. I'm hoping maybe for that deep blue on the Mazda 6, or the yellow off the RX-8 for the future!

pjd58

I agree about the Sienna's colors. I don't care for the two tone color scheme. The Ody has the worst selection of colors(earthy & mundane). Mazda has really improved their image with all the new color selections. Laser Blue Mica(M6 & MP3), Vivid Yellow(P5 & MP3) and the all new MS Protege in Spicy Orange. Mazda's marketing is targeting the young and young at heart.

The MPV's colors are very nice, especially the new colors for 02. My favorite MPV color is Midnight Blue!

Pjd58

pjd58

It's our first anniversary(4/3) with our 01 LX MPV. After one year our MPV has 15,000 flawless miles. Nothing wrong...nil, zilch, nada, big fat zero! Except for some rock chips on the hood, our MPV looks brand spankin new. Lots of hand washing and Zymol treatments, by yours truly. I hope my Wifey appreciates my detailing efforts:)

Pjd58

javadoc

...send me that auth-request again, I miffed it up.

/j

scarter7719

I'll have to re-do it tomorrow. I'm home now and don't have icq (actually Trillian) loaded on my laptop yet ...

tayalynn1

Yes I did own a 2000 Odyssey. I hated it. It was like driving a school bus. I spent most of my time bringing it into the service deparment (31 times in 1 year). My kids got car sick in the back because it was sort of floaty when you hit small dips in the road. I also found it searching for power in the hills of Virginia. The Mazda is so much nicer. Handles better and has a nice tight non-floating suspension yet you don't feel all the bumps in the road. Engine noise? What are you talking about? I do have to admit the Toyota Sienna was the quietest and ugliest van I drove but the 2002 Mazda MPV is NOT noisy. All in all it's a great van.
Taya

tayalynn1

Has anyone installed their own mud guards (authentic Mazda MPV guards) on the Mazda MPV yet? It doesn't seem like it'd be hard and the dealer wants $60 just to install them. Sounds like a rip off. I'm willing to bet that there are just a few screws involved. Am I right?
Taya

once_for_all

Thanks gang for your forum.

You have been helping me decide to purchase the '02 MPV LX, which I chose with the luxury package #1 (16" wheels, etc.), 4 seasons, rear air, and mud guards. Dealer had several '02 MPVs on the lot, I had the impression that they weren't moving as fast as he would like. I got my deal for $23,665, which is about $450 to $900 over invoice (depending on whether one subtracts the $445 dealer holdback from the dealer invoice).

My pet peeve with Mazda: to get rear air and rear heater, I had to buy over $2,000 in options. I just couldn't see a nice van like the MPV leaving the rear of the van unclimatized. Barbaric in this day and age. I told the dealer that if I had to spend $24 K to get the MPV equipped with essentials, I would pay a second visit to the Honda dealership and make an offer on the '02 LX Ody, which has rear air/heater standard. Hopefully Mazda will figure this out (listen up Mazda!).

Dealer comments: the Mazda dealer very nice, efficient, helpful so far. The salesman even drove an MPV on their lot 20 miles to our house, so the wife could go on a test drive.

I did test drive the '02 Ody, they are great vans and I would have been happy with either one. Honda still hasn't been able to pump out enough product for demand, and the dealers could care less. The attitude I received was that for every one of me wanting one near MSRP, they had 10 guys willing to pay a dealer premium. I will be quite happy with the MPV -- better value, service, and an excellent vehicle in its own right.

evaddave

There are rear heating vents in the MPVs w/o the 4 seasons pkg. They are located under the front seats. I realize that these aren't as convenient as having a separate set of controls in the rear, but they do keep the back-end warmer than just having the dash vents blowing heat.

once_for_all

yea, evaddave, you are correct... but my rear heat needs go beyond just dashboard control with a couple remote outlets. The rear should have a separate blower and temp control, just like the front. How many times do we hear from noisy kids "its too hot" or "its too cold" and then go back and forth trying to regulate, meantime upsetting the front area temperature.... same for the air, the rear half of the van just needs different controls than the front.

javadoc

...Odyssey come with rear heat w/controls as std equipment? I don't know if it does or doesn't. I see that it comes with rear a/c, which is a nice feature. I was looking at specs of an LX Ody, since you had sited a $24k figure.

/j

sweet_subie

For some reason, i find it growling while initial pick-up from say 0 to 40, then it becomes quiet ! maybe it is just me who can hear it....

sweet_subie

Let me see if I can articulate my question right,

I thought, in the front a/c controls if you leave it in rear, the real controls will apply for heat/ac as in rear controls. That works.

If, in the front, if you don't leave it in rear, the front controls should apply for rear heat/ ac.....stranegely in my 02 MPV ES(with 4 seasons), still the rear controls apply.

so, no matter what - you will have to adjust the rear controls to get the rear heat/ac right. Unlike Dodge Caravan - you can control everything from front.
bummer ?

truckdude

Anyone been keeping track of their gas mileage? If so, please share...thanks!

rutger3

What's with the 'backwards' right wiper on the MPV. What is Mazda's reason for this and do other vehicles have these?

budmelon

It isn't very hard to install. All there is are removal of 2 screws on each corner of the wheel well but the front one require some drill if you want to follow the instruction to a T. I didn't drill the hole because of the two screws that were holding the mud guards were strong enough to keep it in place and so far, they are still on the MPV. Hope that helps.

scarter7719

You don't like the wipers? I prefer this; IMO it provides better visibilty. I also like the long blades which pretty much clear the entire windshield. We get a lot of torrential rain down here during the summer and it can get a little tense on the highway sometimes. I actually wish there was a faster, third speed on the wiper motor.

SC

alexv1n

For me, I prefer the way they are on MPV. The right wiper pointing to left when lowered. By doing this, when they sweep the windshield, you have clear edges of it (I mean, left and right sides are clean). If both wipers are pointed to the right, then the right-side portion of windshield are not cleaned properly and you don't see vehicles and pedestrains coming from right...

As a drawback, the upper middle portion of the windshield isn't cleaned well enough but it still doesn't affect your field of view. The only annoyance is the salty water from washer tends to drip in the middle so I had to use wipers several times after I wash the windshield. Other than that, I believe that this design is better from field-of-view stand point. I don't know why many other manufacturers use wipers pointing in the same direction...

javadoc

My impression of the a/c and rear controls are this. No matter what, vent and temperature controls (for the heat at least) are determined by the dials in the back. Fan speed is determined by the front sliding control, or the rear dial if you put the front control on "rear." If you put he a/c on, no a/c is sent to the rear unless you either turn the front-mounted rear fan control on or put it to "rear." But, if someone left the rear control on "hot," you'll still get heated (but conditioned?) air.

Does that make sense, before I've had my morning joe? :-)

/java