MAZDA5-I can't get my hands on one?

[merlhagstrom]

I am a former 1st gen owner of a Scion XB. I have decided to get another "box" or the like. Decided to look at the new XB and it is pretty nice, but I hate the Scion sales people in Houston. They all suck!

SO for some reason I get the idea to go to a Mazda dealer and I see the Mazda5. Well they have 2 Sports only. I look it over and it looks pretty cool. Could use some serious design work, the dash is lame. The green LCD--someone should loose a job over that! I tell them thanks and head home. I get online and start my research--I have never found less on a car I wanted to look into! The Mazda web page shows the M5 with Nav and that dresses the dash area up a bit. Still the green LCD but not that damn black blank in the middle of the radio area...thats messed up. SO I decide I'd like to touch, smell, feel, drive a M5 GT with Nav...NO F'n way none to be found...NONE. I can have one in 4 months? Can they be serious? I drove 30 miles to look at a GT without Nav ..I dug it. I like it and all, with some mods I think it could be cooler than an XB. I guess my question is, are they stopping making these things? Does anyone know why after markets have not latched on to the M5, not much out there? And where the heck are they all? I wanna drop it, put 18's, sway bars, actuate the sliding doors, tint her, CIA, exhaust and rock and roll..

Thanks in advance.

 

[daan]

I was looking for just the right 5 since about May of 07... Mazda just doesn't promote these things like they should. So also that means that they don't sell as many as they'd like, so then they spend less $ promoting...it's a vicious circle. I think way more people would buy these (and then there would be more aftermarket) if Mazda would just advertise more. Here in Minneapolis/St Paul I've only seen my 5 and one other, even the Mazda dealer by me only had one 5 in stock.

 

[coolmazda5]

First check inventory in places like cars.com or similar, sort them by price. Grand Tourings with nav are around $25k (nav itself is $2000). Problem is in those sites details suck so they don't give too much info, so once done go to the MazdaUSA site and cross-check the inventory of the dealers you found to ensure it is the nav included. As per the green dash, I think you haven't seen some in some time, 08s have changed many things.

I just found 2 around my area in about 2 minutes (50 miles radius) i.e.:

2008 MAZDA5 Grand Touring
$23,000
153-hp 2.3L DOHC 16-valve inline 4-cylinder
Standard
5-Spd Auto
Standard
PACKAGES & OPTIONS
NAVIGATION SYSTEM $2,000
CARGO NET $40
ALL-WEATHER FLOOR MATS $78
REAR BUMPER STEP PLATE $50
WHEEL LOCKS $50

Oh, and no worries, MANY cars are better than a Scion Xb

 

[merlhagstrom]

I hear ya, I', looking for black on black, my dealer said there were none within 500 miles. I just find it odd that a car IMHO that has HUGE potential is so limited. I was in an 08 Yesterday, it had the green lcd screen indicatiing radio functions and the like. It's 10 years old easy. But I can get past that, I like to change colors of the gauges and all so they all match with radio, under dash and other interior lamps. I'll figure that out when the time comes. I just read that 09's might have auto sliding doors, time to check that rumor out.

 

[coolmazda5]

Best of luck. One note, my bad, the central dash is still illuminated green, gauges are the ones changed to electroluminescent. The rest of the features pay off though

As per the 2009 auto sliding doors, it is too early to say. The 2009 Mazda5 thread in these forums is not correct, the model shown is the European 08. The auto sliding doors have been sold in Japan since 2005 but regardless, given the car price pressure in the US and maybe Canada compared to Europe and Asia might be making Mazda economize on those kind of features to remain competitive. The doors are sooo light and easy to close/open that it may not be a critical purchase factor for many IMO.

 

[CX-7owner]

You can order one, right?

 

[rodslinger]

...

As per the 2009 auto sliding doors, it is too early to say.

I like NOT having the power slding doors. The power door systems I have used on different vehicles are way too slow. I like being able to just fling it open, get in and shut it.

 

[qddave]

Keep in mind that dealers are only just now receiving their second allocations for the 2008 model year. There aren't many out there. My dealer sold his first 3 cars in about a week. Of course, one was reserved for my wife.

 

[daan]

I got my 5 from a Saturn dealer, the sales guy told me that "I wish Saturn had a vehicle like this, we look for these used and sell them almost immediately when we get one in." Then at the Mazda store, the sales guy actually told me "I've never sold one of these, nobody comes in asking about them so we don't keep any in stock usually." SOme dealers are a lot better than others at stocking stuff, so you might just be better off ordering a vehicle than waiting for one with the right equipment to just show up. One thing you may consider, especially if you are modding it anyway is to buy a 5 from a rental agency. I almost got an 05 from one, it was almost half off a new 5 but wasn't in the best condition (I don't wanna put my daughter in a vehicle that stinks of cigarettes).

 

[merlhagstrom]

Thanks for the comments, I really wanna ditch my gas burning hemi but not being able to sit in a M5 is freaking me out..(outfitted GT w/Everything!)

 

[rodslinger]

Thanks for the comments, I really wanna ditch my gas burning hemi but not being able to sit in a M5 is freaking me out..(outfitted GT w/Everything!)

Not sure where you are but there is a GT locally with NAV and DVD system. Copper red with sand leather and all. It really is FULLY loaded.

Also doing a search on cars.com with a 500 mile radius pulls about 6 Grand Touring models with NAV in various colors.