Gadgetory

nobody knows quite what to call a mazda5 high texture isn't the phrase I'm looking for but the five is still intriguing let's drive the 2012 Mazda 5 sports and check the deck the Mazda 5 is basically a mini minivan three rows a sort of people mover style and size we don't normally see in this country but that sells well in many other markets get a ride from shorty tours at the airport in Kingston for example and you'll be in something like this but in the US this car is kind of a class of one maybe its uniqueness is why Mazda chose not to bother differentiating it with tech now they sent us the base Mazda five which for some reason is called sport although it's got nothing added to it that makes it sporty that's just what they call it inside is a basically handsome cabin the materials are pretty good for this price class this guy is sub 20 grand base I like what they've done with the head unit this one is pretty usable easy to get to the buttons are in logical places let's take a look at what you've got first of all you don't have navigation not available not standard not optional not happening you've got AM and FM no HD radio CD you can do either a single slot or a six disc with optional packages or trim above this car Sirius satellite radio is compatible on all models but not standard not on this guy again option or package it in and the only other digital source you have is the aux jack down here no iPod connector just this guy the old mini jack plug so we're talking real basic technology here now overhead in this car you've got some choices you can option or trim into which would include a glass moonroof again we get the base car so it's not happening here you can also get a rather inadvisable rear seat entertainment system that is a centre ceiling-mounted drop-down seven-inch LCD for playing DVDs to the second and third row I normally say don't do that because they really get in the way of your rearview mirror however the roof on this car is so high it might not one thing I do like about these Mazdas is this eyebrow display very consistent in their vehicle is a very Honda thing as well this is a really great simple graphical way to give you lots of status more cars ought to do this we have kind of a rarity in this car by the way because it's a base trim we have a six-speed manual this is the only trim level you can get this gearbox in step up to touring or grand touring and you've got to get an automatic now a little low-tech Mazda 5 is not worth a damn if it's not good at doing stuff carrying things here are your third row seats which by the way it's pretty impressive for a vehicle this diminutive and putting them down is really easy pull the tab flop there you go with a flat load floor I got to tell you there are a lot of cars that make that a lot more difficult now the floor is not terribly low because the back load decks a little high notice the second row seats also create a pretty much level floor and the utility continues with the side doors there's one on each side of this little guy so you can open it up pretty much like a skeleton see all the way through easy load all around neither door is power again simple car just simple systems at work I got to tell you I was deflated when this 2012 mazda5 arrived in our garage I recalled the 2011 model with its clean almost handsome lines that did favors for a cheap car but this overdone scalloped swoopy thing going on with the side body stampings is a major overcompensation and i suspect it'll date rather badly it's too bad because the rear pillar blackout taillights and the rear roofline are really nice up fronts the motor sidesaddle front-wheel drive only two and a half liter dual overhead cam inline for pre basic stuff apparently it's a holdover from their old Ford partnership days judging and that logo on the intake this guy will give you one hundred and fifty seven horsepower 163 foot-pounds of torque that's good enough to get this car up to sixty in now by next week nine and a half seconds same difference mpg though is pretty good for a big brick 21:28 let's test this Mazda five here on the most treacherous on-ramp in the SF area a dead stop two full freeway traffic entering the Bay Bridge from Treasure Island and you've got about a hundred feet to make or break all right not bad there's enough power here in fact it's enough power here that I would consider the automatic I seem to recall the last time I drove one of these it had an automatic and I came away thinking was perkier than this car with the manual maybe of imagining things but I at least look into it it's not a car that's that much fun to drive with a stick and the mileage is the same automatic or manual gearbox so that comes off the table as a factor spacious greenhouse as you can see behind me not a lot of blind spots just that very far when we call it a deep pillar at the very back of this thing but aside from that it's a lot of good open space smooth riding car quiet for its price class it's just a pleasant vehicle here's the bottom line every time you get one of these in I kind of have to fight to stop myself from going down to the dealer and thinking about getting one okay let's price this little barren wasteland of Technology a Mazda 5 sport the base trim is like 20 grand out the door with destination now to tech it up and I use tech liberally you want to add about twenty six hundred dollars for the top package that turns this into a Grand Touring that's going to get you the hid xenon headlights Bluetooth hands-free power glass moonroof and a couple other niceties like a six disc and Sirius that's about as far as you can go with this guy