Its Really Not A Van
- Thread starter Zoom5Zoom
- Start date
I don't even really know why this matters. Why does it NEED a classification? It's a Mazda5/Premacy, leave it at that.
The bottom line is the Mazda5 is a head turner, not because it's drop dead sexy or an attention-getter, but it's a WTFWT car... that's right, a "What The **** Was That" car. When people see it for the first time they can't figure out what it is or what the point of it is, hence, a WTFWT car. It's too borderline to package it up in a nice neat little classification, so why bother. What matters is that you like looking at it, driving it, and that it fits your needs. If you really care that much about what others think, then like I said before... it's an ego or inferiority complex issue.
Regardless of what you like to call it, a microvan, minivan, wagon, whatever.... in the end it's a truly unique vehicle that defies classification. Some people will love it, some will hate it. Oh well, that's life.
The bottom line is the Mazda5 is a head turner, not because it's drop dead sexy or an attention-getter, but it's a WTFWT car... that's right, a "What The **** Was That" car. When people see it for the first time they can't figure out what it is or what the point of it is, hence, a WTFWT car. It's too borderline to package it up in a nice neat little classification, so why bother. What matters is that you like looking at it, driving it, and that it fits your needs. If you really care that much about what others think, then like I said before... it's an ego or inferiority complex issue.
Regardless of what you like to call it, a microvan, minivan, wagon, whatever.... in the end it's a truly unique vehicle that defies classification. Some people will love it, some will hate it. Oh well, that's life.
sugarqublex
Member
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- Mazda Protoge5
True DAT!!! I doesn't matter. It's a nice "car" that turns heads. My hubby calls it a CAN... It's not a car and it's not a van!
fucy626 did... his car can be seen here. http://www.msprotege.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123635897allday31 said:
Now, he did say his exhaust is custom which is always an option. However if you want a bolt-on exhaust system, here ya go http://www.srmotorsports.com/Mazda5_Performance_Exhaust_System_Parts.html
Rac3rX said:
Hey folks, Mazda5 owner (or married to Mazda5 owner technically) and lurker here whou couldn't resist repsponding to this thread!
The reason that the 5 is so hard to categorize is that it is the first of it's kind in the US in about a decade: the mini-MPV. MPV is the usual term for a minivan in the U.K. (and the rest of Europe), and mini-MPVs are a booming class over there.
The new Focus in Europe is quite nice, particularly the Focus C-Max... if you've seen one, you know exactly why I say that.
The Mazda5 seems most closely the descendant of the Mitsubishi Expo:
They offered 7 passenger seating, sliding rear door (though you couldn't get the two together!), and was powered by a I4 with either an auto or a manual. The Expo, and it's siblings (Eagle Vision, Plymouth Colt Vista) got lost in the SUV shuffle of the early 90s.
In Europe, it's hardly unique, with competition from the Corolla Versa, Opel/Vauxhall Zafira, Renault Scenic/Grand Scenic, and countless others. And, stick shifts in minivans, er, MPV's, is the norm there, even in larger "full size" MPVs like the Ford Galaxy. Sliding doors are a bit of a novelty over there though.
Since this is my first post, I'll go ahead and add:
Silver Mazda5 Sport, 5-speed. Very cool, my wife loves it, and it's about even in gas consumption and footprint to my CR-V. After once driving a Dodge Grand Caravan through narrow winding streets in continental Europe (long story, strange situation) and trying to find places to park the lumbering behemoth, I decided that I would never own a fullsize minivan if I could avoid it.
Long story here...Maryland requires different license plates for passenger cars (class "A" tags), minivans/SUVs (class "M" tags), and pickups (have no idea what they call them).
For those of you who aren't from Maryland, standard license plates have three letters/numbers, whereas minivans/SUVs plates have six numbers with an "M' stuck somewhere on the plate depending on when the plate was issued (right now it's three digits, M, three digits). In theory you can be pulled over if you have the wrong plate.
When we bought our 5, I asked the dealer what plate we needed--they said the "M" plates. So we transferred our MPV's "M" plate to the 5 and drove away. One week later I got my insurance card saying the 5 was a station wagon. I called the MD Motor Vehicle Administration--they said the 5 was a car and that a minivan/truck registration would be returned to the dealer. So I call the dealer back, they promise to submit a passenger car registration, give me temporary plates, and I return the "M" plate.
Six weeks later I get a title for the 5 that says "truck". Turned out the dealer took another look at the 5, still thought it was a minivan/truck, and resubmitted the registration as a plate transfer (for my old "M" plate).
I call the MVA back and finally get the story straight. At the end of March 2006, a memo was circulated saying the Mazda5 was a car and needed passenger car tags. Evidently the MVA couldn't get it straight either. Nothing in the MVA's computers rejects the Mazda5 from getting minivan plates, though, which is why I got a title saying the Mazda5 was a truck. Of course, the MVA was telling me that I could get pulled over for having the wrong plates. By this time, though, I'd already returned the "M" plates, so I now had a title saying the Mazda5 was a truck...but I had no plates.
I spent an afternoon at an MVA straightening this mess out and finally got the correct plates. I've noticed that of the handful of Mazda5's I've seen around here, they all do have passenger car plates, so I guess most people get it right. Interesting factoid--an easy way to tell 2004 and earlier Subaru Outbacks from 2005 and later Outbacks? Because the Outback was classified as a truck beginning in 2005, they have "M" plates.
Question of the day: when I take the Mazda5 to the car wash in the winter, I wonder if they'll try and charge me car price or minivan price ($4 higher). What do you think?
For those of you who aren't from Maryland, standard license plates have three letters/numbers, whereas minivans/SUVs plates have six numbers with an "M' stuck somewhere on the plate depending on when the plate was issued (right now it's three digits, M, three digits). In theory you can be pulled over if you have the wrong plate.
When we bought our 5, I asked the dealer what plate we needed--they said the "M" plates. So we transferred our MPV's "M" plate to the 5 and drove away. One week later I got my insurance card saying the 5 was a station wagon. I called the MD Motor Vehicle Administration--they said the 5 was a car and that a minivan/truck registration would be returned to the dealer. So I call the dealer back, they promise to submit a passenger car registration, give me temporary plates, and I return the "M" plate.
Six weeks later I get a title for the 5 that says "truck". Turned out the dealer took another look at the 5, still thought it was a minivan/truck, and resubmitted the registration as a plate transfer (for my old "M" plate).
I call the MVA back and finally get the story straight. At the end of March 2006, a memo was circulated saying the Mazda5 was a car and needed passenger car tags. Evidently the MVA couldn't get it straight either. Nothing in the MVA's computers rejects the Mazda5 from getting minivan plates, though, which is why I got a title saying the Mazda5 was a truck. Of course, the MVA was telling me that I could get pulled over for having the wrong plates. By this time, though, I'd already returned the "M" plates, so I now had a title saying the Mazda5 was a truck...but I had no plates.
I spent an afternoon at an MVA straightening this mess out and finally got the correct plates. I've noticed that of the handful of Mazda5's I've seen around here, they all do have passenger car plates, so I guess most people get it right. Interesting factoid--an easy way to tell 2004 and earlier Subaru Outbacks from 2005 and later Outbacks? Because the Outback was classified as a truck beginning in 2005, they have "M" plates.
Question of the day: when I take the Mazda5 to the car wash in the winter, I wonder if they'll try and charge me car price or minivan price ($4 higher). What do you think?
the_saint said:
Okay, I double checked this place's web site. Depending on the wash package, minivans are between $2 and $5 more expensive. Unfortunately, this place happens to be the best place to get a car washed within about 20 miles, considering price and wash quality.
I suppose you can make a case that it takes more time to clean the third row. When it's above freezing I wash my own cars anyway, so we'll what happens in January. I do plan to point to my plates and see what they say.
In retrospect our experience with getting plates was amusing, but it was a big pain in the butt when it was happening. My wife and I call the 5 a microvan, but truthfully, we could care less what it really is (other than perfect for our needs!).
I got sent to the "car" area of the drive-in movie theater the other night. Then I popped the hatch up and the teenaged parking-nazi boy came to check that we were parked where we were told to. We showed him the slip and he looked at the car funny and said ok.
We determined that it is the ultimate drive-in movie vehicle for just this reason. You can also fit a fair number of people in the back with all four seats down when it starts to pour rain...
We determined that it is the ultimate drive-in movie vehicle for just this reason. You can also fit a fair number of people in the back with all four seats down when it starts to pour rain...
jandree22 said:
The EPA classes it as a Mid-Sized wagon. The EPA views the HHR and the PT Crusier as SUVs. It's all about fuel economy. Mazda doesn't need the Mazda5's fuel economy to pull up the average for larger trucks. Because CAFE requires an average 21.5 (Correct me if I'm wrong on that figure), automakers try to classify as many vehicles as possible as light trucks. Light trucks include SUV's, vans, minivans, and pickups. HHR and PT Cruiser keep the Ram and Silverado legal. Mazda has no large pickups or SUVs to offset.
So, it's a small minivan, small MPV, small people carrier... whatever the local term for a minivan may be. You know what a small wagon like a Toyota Matrix would be if you made it a smidge longer, added two sliding doors, third row seating, center row captains chairs, optional satnav and DVD entertainment system? A friggin' minivan.
