Hi all....potential 5 newbie here......some questions.....

[Mazr]

Hello everyone.

Here's my story: currently driving an 01 Santa Fe. I am a 95% in town driver. Love everything about the Santa Fe except for the BRUTAL in-town mileage.

I'm 6'3" with two kids. They are 6 and 3 and I already know they are going to be tall for their size.

I've been looking at Elantras and Honda Fits and then I remembered the 5's. The rear air, the sliding rear captain chairs and sliding doors are all AWESOME options. 3rd row is not so much a big deal for us because my wife drives an Odyssey.

Would this car work for me? I love the looks of it and I know given our heights that finding a smaller car with ample size is probably not going to happen.

I've found and 09 Sport w/17,000 miles for $13999. Haven't driven it yet....just in the research stages. All the consumer reviews I've seen are very favorable.

Thanks for any input.

 

[mazdadude]

What kind of in-town milage are you getting in your Santa Fe? The Mazda5 would be around 22mpg in town.

 

[skyhawk]

Include a Road test as part of your research.

 

[Mazr]

What kind of in-town milage are you getting in your Santa Fe? The Mazda5 would be around 22mpg in town.

Not even 20 MPG in town. Now that I think about it it's not really close to 20. I'd have to say 15 MPG best case scenario. It's the 4WD V6 with 106,000 miles.

 

[DKaz]

On a bad tank of gas I'll get 23MPG. My sig is my average and I get over 30MPG on road trips. Of course the 08+ are more fuel efficient by about 2MPG compared to the 06-07 (I have an 07). Of course I miss my Corolla's fuel efficiency but the fun to drive and utilitarian factor more than makes up for it.

If you never go offroading or if "offroading" means a gravel road, you certainly don't need an SUV. Definitely take a test drive. You will either love how practical and sporty it is or you will hate how it screams economy car and how "unrefined" the ride is.

 

[thaxman]

What kind of in-town milage are you getting in your Santa Fe? The Mazda5 would be around 22mpg in town.

A manual-transmission Sport will not have a space-robbing sunroof and can yield 24+ mpg all city. But road trips @ 85 mph WON'T give you 28 mpg like the EPA says.

 

[thaxman]

If you never go offroading or if "offroading" means a gravel road, you certainly don't need an SUV. Definitely take a test drive. You will either love how practical and sporty it is or you will hate how it screams economy car and how "unrefined" the ride is.

He has an '01 Santa Fe. I know its not a Kia Sportage or anything, but he is hardly coming from a vehicle reknown for its refinement.

 

[Mazr]

He has an '01 Santa Fe. I know its not a Kia Sportage or anything, but he is hardly coming from a vehicle reknown for its refinement.

Good point......the ride quality is not one of the selling points of the 01 Santa Fe.

 

[Mazr]

A manual-transmission Sport will not have a space-robbing sunroof and can yield 24+ mpg all city. But road trips @ 85 mph WON'T give you 28 mpg like the EPA says.

I'm done with the stick shift. I'll be going with a auto if we buy.

Thanks for all the responses, BTW

 

[jimp]

something to be aware of, the 5 does not have alot of storage for all the "stuff" you would think would be on a "van" or family vehicle. Yes, there are bottle holders, and small storage spots but really not that many like one would think. It's a FUN vehicle to drive, easy to park, wife loves her 09 AT, a usual tank of gas got her 23 mpg, she drives 5miles/day RT for work, with ~80 miles interstate included on this tank, runs the AC 100% of the time.

 

[Heat]

A manual-transmission Sport will not have a space-robbing sunroof and can yield 24+ mpg all city. But road trips @ 85 mph WON'T give you 28 mpg like the EPA says.

You can read how the averages are calculated here: http://www.epa.gov/fueleconomy/420f09067.pdf

Note that for the highway mileage calculation, the average speed is 48 mph and the top speed is 60 mph. With the way that the Mazda5 manual transmission is geared, it would excel on a trip where the average speed is 48 mph, but it stinks at 65 to 70 mph (high RPMs). For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, the manual transmission is geared lower than automatic transmissions thus more pep at lower speeds but higher RPMs at higher (interstate) speeds.

Anyway... personally I would buy the Honda Fit. My opinion is that the only reason to buy the Mazda5 is to get the 6th seat, which you don't need since you have the Odyssey. Try renting a Mazda5 for a weekend, drive it around and put some miles on it. See what you think.

 

[doctorz]

I have a Fit and a 5, and two kids (10 and 6). They're both great cars. Both have the 5MT, but I think mileage difference with the AT is generally negligible and depends more on driving style.

There is no contest between the room of the 5 and the Fit. However, I find the 5 significantly tighter behind the wheel, and I have seen other posts to that effect. It's fine for me, but ironically, I wouldn't be surprised if a 6'3" driver fits in the Fit more easily.

In mixed driving, we average 25 mpg with the 5 and about 33 mpg with the Fit. Subtract 2-3 mpg for pure city driving. Either way, it's a big difference, although both are higher than your Santa Fe. On the highway, we average 29 mpg with the 5 and 38 mpg with the Fit, although I've gotten as high as 32 and 44 mpg at very moderate speeds.

The Fit's engine is significantly noisier, but the 5 has more wind noise. The 5's engine noise at 70-75 mph has never bothered me.

It is interesting that the Fit has more cupholders (ten) than the 5 (6 on the Sport, no center foldout tray).

I agree with Heat. As long as you fit fine behind the wheel, the 5 will serve you well. However, the 5 is our big car, and you already have an Odyssey. The real question: can you fit in the back seat of a Fit after you've positioned the driver seat to your liking? If so, do you need a 5?

 

[Tsuru]

If you're set on an AT there's one big ding against the Honda Fit (IMHO): No spare tire.
I count 8 cup holders on a sport. There's a pair for the third row as well.

 

[mpvue]

If you're set on an AT there's one big ding against the Honda Fit (IMHO): No spare tire.
I count 8 cup holders on a sport. There's a pair for the third row as well.

8 cup holders? are you counting the door pockets? 'cause I'm only seeing 6 useful ones (which is just about the right number for 6 people).

 

[Heat]

The center row fold-out table became standard on the Sports starting in '08.

The '09 Sport has eight cupholders: Two in the front doors, two between the driver / passenger, two on the fold-out table, and two for the third row (next to the windows).

If you're set on an AT there's one big ding against the Honda Fit (IMHO): No spare tire...

The Honda Fit has a spare tire. You'll see it as "standard" on the Fit specifications:
http://automobiles.honda.com/fit/specifications.aspx

 

[mpvue]

The center row fold-out table became standard on the Sports starting in '08.

The '09 Sport has eight cupholders: Two in the front doors, two between the driver / passenger, two on the fold-out table, and two for the third row (next to the windows).

like I said, I don't count the door pockets since they really aren't that convenient for drinks (a 12oz can is about the only thing you can fit in there).

 

[Tsuru]

like I said, I don't count the door pockets since they really aren't that convenient for drinks (a 12oz can is about the only thing you can fit in there).

I find that you can fit a water bottle or a slim thermos bottle in the side pockets as well. I'm thinking of my '06 in any case. The centre console has two more cup holders in the '06-'07 than the later models.

I did some more digging on the Fit: It's the Canadian AT models that don't have the spare. http://www.honda.ca/HondaCA2006/Models/Fit/2010/Specs?L=E
Go figure.

It's nice to know that all we can find to argue about is the number of cup holders

 

[Mazr]

Anyway... personally I would buy the Honda Fit. My opinion is that the only reason to buy the Mazda5 is to get the 6th seat, which you don't need since you have the Odyssey. Try renting a Mazda5 for a weekend, drive it around and put some miles on it. See what you think.

Well, my wife drives the Odyssey and I pick the kids up from school and some days we bring a friend home, which is where the 3rd row would come in handy. I know it's a tight third row but it would work for our needs. And I'd be a hero with the kids, which always helps.

Didn't realize the mileage difference was that great between the 5 and the Fit.

That's a good idea about renting one for a weekend. We might have to try that.

Currently our daughter puts her cup in a cupholder in the booster seat and our son just hangs on to his or gives it to me. The Santa Fe has 4 cupholders and a couple of storage spots on the sides of the back so it wouldn't be that big a deal for us.

I'm anxious to get out and drive a 5.

 

[doctorz]

oh, that's right. I forget about the door pocket cupholders in the front. So that makes eight.

Nevertheless, I find that the middle row has no convenient cupholders. Our ten year old outgrew her booster seat, with cupholders, two years ago. She has to reach for the ones sticking out in the center console. It's workable, but sometimes she still uses the cupholder in her sister's booster seat, which has two.

The third seat does make us a hero with carpooling, now that we are in heavy carpool age.

The Fit does have a spare tire. At least I think it does! Now you've made me want to go double-check.

 

[KBrian]

Two important factors in comparing the 5 and the Fit have been unsaid:

1) the view from the driver's seat compared to the Fit is much higher, making the view over traffic much easier.

2) sliding side doors, which improve in and out/buckling younger passengers, and parking lot access.

Forget about things like fun to drive, cool looking, track record (including Premacy) and 6 passenger capacity vs 5.

Get a 5 and get out and drive. (ooh, I like that)