We asked ourselves a question when Mazda were kind enough to lend us their Mazda5 microvan for a few months: should minivan owners--the ones that feel as though their vehicle is too big and too costly to gas up--take a hard long look at this vehicle?
Not surprisingly, when you downsize from a Grand Caravan or a Sienna to a Mazda5, you must make a sacrifice or two. But can the 5 manage to perform most of a conventional minivan's duties? We lent the Mazda to a bunch of friends, family and colleagues to find out. Here's what we gathered up while scrutinizing everyone's notes.
Hoorays
An aspect that surprised many was how much room there is inside a vehicle this size. Front-seat occupants get a great view of the road ahead and plenty of headroom, while two adults can sit comfortably in the second-row captains' chairs.
The rearmost seats are destined mostly for kids, and that's definitely where they will sit once they climb into the Mazda5, but adults can manage to squeeze in, provided the trip is short.
"Clever design" we read on one evaluation sheet, while another stated that "the sliding doors are much better for getting the kids in and out than regular ones." Most testers liked the fact the almost everyone has armrests, and the quality of the dashboard plastic and seat fabric was deemed more than acceptable.
The 153-hp, 2.3-litre engine was considered peppy enough for a normal family, but no one was blown away by the vehicle's performance. However, the objective of buying a microvan is saving on fuel, and the Mazda5 averaged 10.4 L/100 km through its first 4,000 kilometres with us.
Boos
There weren't many complaints. A couple of testers found that the engine produced too much noise at wide-open throttle, and one person said the Mazda5 was "too slow."
Also, a mother of three said that although she liked the Mazda5 a lot, the fact that you can't seat three across in the second row means at least one of the two seats must be in place, which doesn't leave much room for the baby stroller and other child necessities.
 |
| But can the 5 manage to perform most of a conventional minivan's duties? |
Not surprisingly, when you downsize from a Grand Caravan or a Sienna to a Mazda5, you must make a sacrifice or two. But can the 5 manage to perform most of a conventional minivan's duties? We lent the Mazda to a bunch of friends, family and colleagues to find out. Here's what we gathered up while scrutinizing everyone's notes.
Hoorays
An aspect that surprised many was how much room there is inside a vehicle this size. Front-seat occupants get a great view of the road ahead and plenty of headroom, while two adults can sit comfortably in the second-row captains' chairs.
The rearmost seats are destined mostly for kids, and that's definitely where they will sit once they climb into the Mazda5, but adults can manage to squeeze in, provided the trip is short.
"Clever design" we read on one evaluation sheet, while another stated that "the sliding doors are much better for getting the kids in and out than regular ones." Most testers liked the fact the almost everyone has armrests, and the quality of the dashboard plastic and seat fabric was deemed more than acceptable.
The 153-hp, 2.3-litre engine was considered peppy enough for a normal family, but no one was blown away by the vehicle's performance. However, the objective of buying a microvan is saving on fuel, and the Mazda5 averaged 10.4 L/100 km through its first 4,000 kilometres with us.
Boos
There weren't many complaints. A couple of testers found that the engine produced too much noise at wide-open throttle, and one person said the Mazda5 was "too slow."
Also, a mother of three said that although she liked the Mazda5 a lot, the fact that you can't seat three across in the second row means at least one of the two seats must be in place, which doesn't leave much room for the baby stroller and other child necessities.
 |
| The 153-hp, 2.3-litre engine was considered peppy enough for a normal family. |