How much can you fit in your 5?

[doctorz]

I'm honestly not all that happy with the room in our 5. Once a rear facing child seat is put in, the front passenger seat becomes pretty much useless since it has to be pulled up as far as it can go. The third row seats have next to no leg space, and are only good for small children. And with the third row folded down it's still hard to fit in a stroller with other items. My wife and I are considering getting rid of it after only 4 mths, and picking up an MPV instead.

Are you sure you're getting the 2007 MPV in Canada? I can find no reports of the new MPV coming to anywhere in North America. Shame.

Regardless...the 5 and the MPV are two completely different vehicles. We traded in an '04 MPV for our 5. Of course the MPV is bigger. And comfortable. And thirstier. And not much fun to drive..."ponderous" comes to mind. If you go from a 5 to an MPV, you will definitely notice the difference in driveability...you can't hide the size and the mass. If you simply want a bigger vehicle, then it's for you. For us, however, we got tired--my wife in particular--of driving something that big around, and seeing all that space in the back that we almost never used. And we have two kids AND a dog.

A rear facing car seat is a pain to fit in any car, and I wouldn't say it fit easily in the MPV either. It gets easier when you can turn the seat around. Probably the biggest difference is that with the MPV we tossed everything in the back without thinking, whereas with the 5 it takes a little planning; for example, we use an $10 umbrella stroller that fits easily anywhere. We figured that we could use the extra space of the MPV about 1% of the time, and for those times we could find alternatives, such as taking two cars or using the roof.

My wife recently commented that she doesn't miss our MPV at all. Neither do I. Oh, and we just brought our Christmas tree home inside the 5...with all four of us in the car.

 

[jlk_250]

I'm honestly not all that happy with the room in our 5. Once a rear facing child seat is put in, the front passenger seat becomes pretty much useless since it has to be pulled up as far as it can go. The third row seats have next to no leg space, and are only good for small children. And with the third row folded down it's still hard to fit in a stroller with other items.

I agree that the Mazda5 is compromised for passenger room versus cargo room. You can haul lots of one or the other or some, but not lots, of each. We find ours just about perfect for a family of four, including a baby in a rear-facing carrier and me at 6' tall. We did have to buy a smaller stroller that fits the available cargo area behind the third row. For us the Mazda5 is a great compromise but I can definitely see why someone would prefer an MPV or the other minivans.

Is the newly redesigned MPV making it to the great white north for 2007? It's a no-show in the USA.

Jon

 

[CrazyCaker]

Are you sure you're getting the 2007 MPV in Canada? I can find no reports of the new MPV coming to anywhere in North America. Shame.

Regardless...the 5 and the MPV are two completely different vehicles. We traded in an '04 MPV for our 5. Of course the MPV is bigger. And comfortable. And thirstier. And not much fun to drive..."ponderous" comes to mind. If you go from a 5 to an MPV, you will definitely notice the difference in driveability...you can't hide the size and the mass. If you simply want a bigger vehicle, then it's for you. For us, however, we got tired--my wife in particular--of driving something that big around, and seeing all that space in the back that we almost never used. And we have two kids AND a dog.

A rear facing car seat is a pain to fit in any car, and I wouldn't say it fit easily in the MPV either. It gets easier when you can turn the seat around. Probably the biggest difference is that with the MPV we tossed everything in the back without thinking, whereas with the 5 it takes a little planning; for example, we use an $10 umbrella stroller that fits easily anywhere. We figured that we could use the extra space of the MPV about 1% of the time, and for those times we could find alternatives, such as taking two cars or using the roof.

My wife recently commented that she doesn't miss our MPV at all. Neither do I. Oh, and we just brought our Christmas tree home inside the 5...with all four of us in the car.

I'm not 100% sure, but I have heard that it is. It would be foolish on Mazda's part if they didn't offer it here considering Canada is one of the largest minivan markets in the world.

We aren't to concerned about the "fun" factor of the MPV, or the Mazda5 for that matter, we have my boosted P5 for that.

 

[jandree22]

All models on Mazda.ca are listed as 2007s, except the MPV and the Tribute, which are still listed as 2006s. FWIW, wouldnt be surprised to see the Tribute go bye-bye, either. I dunno man, sorry for the bad news

 

[doctorz]

We aren't to concerned about the "fun" factor of the MPV, or the Mazda5 for that matter, we have my boosted P5 for that.

Touch.

 

[paging_drburgos]

i'd trade my 5 for an 8 (MPV in Japan) the instant it hits the US shores...but for some reason i dont see them importing it. Im tempted to start a petition and send it in to Mazda HQ. They be fools (ebonics) for making the CX9 instead of the Mazda 8. SUV's are so retro

 

[raspykart]

Yep, 2 kids (7/6), and a dog. Needed enough room for a couple 8 hour drives a year, plus extra room is great. Will be loading up the 5 for 8 hour christmas trip. Roof rack will help.

Not sure if this vehicle is my wife's, or mine yet. I love the vehicle, but at 6'2", the leg room leaves a lot to be desired, so might be wife's vehicle more than mine.

let us know how that affects your mileage

 

[jandree22]

i'd trade my 5 for an 8 (MPV in Japan) the instant it hits the US shores...but for some reason i dont see them importing it. Im tempted to start a petition and send it in to Mazda HQ. They be fools (ebonics) for making the CX9 instead of the Mazda 8. SUV's are so retro

Amen.

 

[7red7]

Damn! does everyone who owns a 5 have kids? i am a bachelor and i bought one simply because i can fit my bike, surfboards, and other toys into it and it still has great gas mileage (and i didn't want an element!)...

I do get called a soccer mom once in a while by my buddies, but for the most part, i get compliments all around!

No kids here yet, and in fact I also bought my 5 so I could put my longboard in it without having to install a roof rack...I haven't had a chance to get it to the beach yet here in NorCal, but once we relocate back to SoCal this Spring I'm hitting the beaches at least three times a month!!!

I get the soccer mom comments from friends too, but when they get me alone they always say they really do like the car a lot

 

[Wuster]

I'm honestly not all that happy with the room in our 5. Once a rear facing child seat is put in, the front passenger seat becomes pretty much useless since it has to be pulled up as far as it can go. The third row seats have next to no leg space, and are only good for small children. And with the third row folded down it's still hard to fit in a stroller with other items. My wife and I are considering getting rid of it after only 4 mths, and picking up an MPV instead.

Humm... we have two Britax car seat in the 5. One facing forward and one facing backwards, and I have no problem with space. I actually think the forward facing seat takes up more space than the rear facing seat.

You can also fit a Sit n Stand in the back of the 5 (with the 3rd row down of course) with plenty of room left over.

 

[carshopper]

I agree that the Mazda5 is compromised for passenger room versus cargo room. You can haul lots of one or the other or some, but not lots, of each. We find ours just about perfect for a family of four, including a baby in a rear-facing carrier and me at 6' tall. We did have to buy a smaller stroller that fits the available cargo area behind the third row. For us the Mazda5 is a great compromise but I can definitely see why someone would prefer an MPV or the other minivans.

Is the newly redesigned MPV making it to the great white north for 2007? It's a no-show in the USA.

Jon

Hi Jon,

May I ask you which model of stroller you bought in order to fit it behind the 3rd row? Our current stroller doesn't fit even with the 3rd down because of its length when fold down.

Thanks.

 

[Zoom5Zoom]

All models on Mazda.ca are listed as 2007s, except the MPV and the Tribute, which are still listed as 2006s. FWIW, wouldnt be surprised to see the Tribute go bye-bye, either. I dunno man, sorry for the bad news

2008 Tribute will be on the lot in 2 weeks eh... and it is now posted on mazda.ca

Leaner and not as expensive