Newbie and potential new 5 owner

D

DKaz

Member
:
2007 Mazda 5 GT 5MT
Hey everyone, I'm Donald from Mission BC which is a suburb of Vancouver. I'm 25 and currently drive an 08 Toyota Corolla which I love dearly but since I've gotten married and we're expecting in June priorities have changed and we need a wagon type vehicle. We were at the auto show yesterday and the Mazda 5 as well as the Kia Rondo stood out in terms of versatility and value although the lack of a manual transmission on the Rondo ruled that out.

I was still a bit skeptical about actually owning a minivan (sorry, Multi Activity Vehicle) but decided to test drive one this morning. Wow! Although the car certainly sits like a minivan (but my 6'-1" frame feels much more comfortable in the 5 anyway), the silky smooth shifting manual transmission puts the one in my Corolla to shame and it handles really well despite the taller stance.

We would likely go for the higher GT model with 5 speed manual though we're still on the fence on the Navi and leather packages. I'd like the two but they're pretty expensive addons for something we don't really need. I'll be browsing the forums to research a few things before we buy including trying to calm my brother's protest that I should be sticking to Toyota for its reliability. There is the Matrix but my better half and I really love what this car has to offer for under $28k incl everything.

Anyway I hope to talk to some of you and maybe in the next two weeks I'll have a 5 to call my own!
 
DKaz said:
Hey everyone, I'm Donald from Mission BC which is a suburb of Vancouver. I'm 25 and currently drive an 08 Toyota Corolla which I love dearly but since I've gotten married and we're expecting in June priorities have changed and we need a wagon type vehicle. We were at the auto show yesterday and the Mazda 5 as well as the Kia Rondo stood out in terms of versatility and value although the lack of a manual transmission on the Rondo ruled that out.

I was still a bit skeptical about actually owning a minivan (sorry, Multi Activity Vehicle) but decided to test drive one this morning. Wow! Although the car certainly sits like a minivan (but my 6'-1" frame feels much more comfortable in the 5 anyway), the silky smooth shifting manual transmission puts the one in my Corolla to shame and it handles really well despite the taller stance.

We would likely go for the higher GT model with 5 speed manual though we're still on the fence on the Navi and leather packages. I'd like the two but they're pretty expensive addons for something we don't really need. I'll be browsing the forums to research a few things before we buy including trying to calm my brother's protest that I should be sticking to Toyota for its reliability. There is the Matrix but my better half and I really love what this car has to offer for under $28k incl everything.

Anyway I hope to talk to some of you and maybe in the next two weeks I'll have a 5 to call my own!
Click to expand...

WOW let me be the first to say congrats on the new baby coming and secondly to the forum....

Ok you did you first boo boo mentioning that Matrix (VIBE) thing here lol...that unit came out before the 5 and I have many customers who want out of the Matrix and get into a 5 since it came out.

As for the Rondo...did a check today on the resale value for both the Mazda 5 and Rondo using the 2007 model year with about 30K on em. Well at Auction the Mazda 5 is getting up to 4K more in value than that of the Rondo. By the way good luck getting to rhe rear of the Rondo you need to be a FN yoga expert. Secondly those beautiful sliding doors on the 5 are great for ingress to the car with a baby seat and later on ease for the child to open and close.

As for the GT Lux with NAV...save your money and just get the GT and add 3 party heated seats to the car and that should do it. Oh ya get a Garman for the NAV part lol.
OK I rest my case....
 
Welcome to the forum

Here is a Vibe 2009 rental report if it helps. Yes, not a Matrix, but close enough :D

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123713168

Glad to hear you discarded the Rondo, I still find difficult to believe that KIA does not offer MT, especially in Canada (plus is ugly as sin, but nothing personal, LOL. Of course you'll see we are biased people, we love Mazda5s here after all)
 
balloonbear-welcome.gif
 
DKaz said:
Hey everyone, I'm Donald from Mission BC which is a suburb of Vancouver. I'm 25 and currently drive an 08 Toyota Corolla which I love dearly but since I've gotten married and we're expecting in June priorities have changed and we need a wagon type vehicle. We were at the auto show yesterday and the Mazda 5 as well as the Kia Rondo stood out in terms of versatility and value although the lack of a manual transmission on the Rondo ruled that out.

I was still a bit skeptical about actually owning a minivan (sorry, Multi Activity Vehicle) but decided to test drive one this morning. Wow! Although the car certainly sits like a minivan (but my 6'-1" frame feels much more comfortable in the 5 anyway), the silky smooth shifting manual transmission puts the one in my Corolla to shame and it handles really well despite the taller stance.

We would likely go for the higher GT model with 5 speed manual though we're still on the fence on the Navi and leather packages. I'd like the two but they're pretty expensive addons for something we don't really need. I'll be browsing the forums to research a few things before we buy including trying to calm my brother's protest that I should be sticking to Toyota for its reliability. There is the Matrix but my better half and I really love what this car has to offer for under $28k incl everything.

Anyway I hope to talk to some of you and maybe in the next two weeks I'll have a 5 to call my own!
Click to expand...

Hopefully we will welcome you to the club.

I test drove the Matrix and still liked the Mazda5 much better. The Matrix is really small compared to the 5. In terms of cargo space and versatility, it isn't a comparison. Even with the 2nd row down in the Matrix, the cargo space is cramped.

I like to think of our Mazda5 as a vehicle that has the functionality and versatility of a minivan but doesn't look like one or behave like one (on the road). Or to put it another way, it drives like a car but functions like a MV.

I actually am the main driver of the Mazda5 in my family. It definitely fits the family-mover category. But it is also fantastic for those frequent trips to Home Depot and Costco. I'm still amazed at the stuff I manage to stuff into this vehicle.
 
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Thanks everyone! Yes I find the new Matrix lacking, the old one was ok especially with the high revving 2ZZ engine but there's no compelling reason to get the current one.

I surprisingly manage to fit myself in the 3rd row just fine, it was no worse than being in the third row of a Ford Explorer a few years ago except the 5 gets way better fuel economy. $400 Garmin NAV, $2700 Mazda in dash NAV... I think the Garmin wins. lol. Heated seats aren't really necessary with cloth seats anyway, I'd just consider the leather to be more durable against kids. Thank goodness Scotchgard was invented!

The handling was great, I took a few twisties and there was little body roll compared to my Corolla before I lowered it. Acceleration is also more than adequate and the feel of the clutch is just very different from my Corolla, almost as if the 5 is begging me to zoom and let'er rip. It's like a totally different personality. The Corolla is an easy going car that doesn't mind being pushed. The 5 doesn't mind being easy going but it just really wants to GO. I probably won't be modding the 5 much anyway -- I had my fun with the Corolla -- but the car is just perfect as is! We're planning for this car to be with us for at least 10 years so we shall see!

I'll keep all of you updated on what I decide. If I don't get it this year it'll be next year for sure but there are some really good incentives to get one soon. Thanks again!
 
I bought a 2006 new and have never regretted the decision. I have a GT with the 5 speed stick and it's a blast to drive. At least considering the type of vehicle it is.

I have the cloth seats and there is no apparent wear and tear after 3 years, and they don't feel "real" cold in the winter. I live in Kelowna and -20 Celsius is pretty common. I doubt Mission gets that cold!

Wish I had had sliding doors when my kids were little. I whacked my head too many times with the old Civic I had then.
 
I found a 2007 5 GT manual in black on black cloth for $15,995, exactly what we wanted, 72,000km [45,000 miles], being sold by the same dealer the original owner bought it from, all service records, clean in and out. I'd miss out on the Aux-In (I'll probably buy the iPod adapter anyway) and LED tails, but seems we get all the other features a 2009 5 GT has. Sounds like a good deal? Anything I should watch out for?
 
You don’t need a new car, you already have a new car (’08 Toyota Corolla) in your driveway. You won’t need a minivan type vehicle until your little one is 5 years old or so, going to sports and with you hauling his buddies around. Unless you really do need to haul six people around on a regular basis, stick with the Corolla.

That being said, say you really do need (want) a Mazda5. Before I start talking about warranties, prices, rebates, etc keep in mind that I know nothing about the Canadian market. For the sake of argument I’m assuming that the prices, incentives, warranties, are the same as the US market.

OK now, you are looking at a 2 year old vehicle with 45,000 miles on it for $16,000. I see new ’09 Mazda5 Sports with manual transmission advertised at $16,000 to $16,500 in the St. Louis paper (after incentives, before tax, title, license). Why would you want a 2 year old vehicle with no warranty and 45,000 miles (four years worth of driving!) on it over a brand new Sport with close to zero miles? OK, you don’t get the leather or moonroof (everything else is cosmetic), but you can also add leather seats or an electric moonroof for about $1,200 each (both aftermarket). And you get four extra years of driving out of it.

The warranty on the ’07 and ’09 Mazda5s are:
3 year, 36,000 mile bumper to bumper
5 year, 60,000 mile drivetrain warranty (engine, transmission)

And as far as the iPod adapter goes (if you do go with the '07 GT), that's close to $200. You can buy a nice aftermarket head unit for the same price with built in iPod controls as well as other inputs.
 
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We found an 07 Touring with nav with 15k miles on it for 15,000 back in Nov. Couldnt pass it up. It was actually a Mazda owned vehicle, never sold to the public. 45,000 miles seems awefully high. Are they throwing in the extended warranty? If so go for it. if not, buy new or keep looking for a lower mileage 5.
 
I'll be trading in the Corolla, we don't need two cars as I'm able to take a commuter train to work that's a lot faster than driving.

A new GS with air in Canada is $21,595, there are a few factory incentives.

But I really want the GT, which is $23,995 minus any factory incentives. With taxes (minus tax credit for trade in) and everything it comes to $27,000. (The GT in Canada does not come with leather or NAVI, that stuff would push the GT to $31,500, but we don't want either)

The 07 GT which is still under Mazda Canada 3 year/80,000km warranty would be $17,000 after all taxes.

Of course all minus my trade in, and however much I talk the price down. I can buy the MAP extended warranty on the GT for $2000 and I would still be $8,000 ahead (or try to work a deal with them...)

We need the Mazda 5 because I'm tired of my wife's dog pooing and throwing up in my Corolla, so I would like to keep him in the back with a dog barrier. And we're not stopping at one kid. :)

I already paid the depreciation for my Corolla, and unfortunately priorities have changed since I got my car, by getting the 07 GT, the previous owner will have paid that depreciation already. So while I'd be really happy getting a brand new 09 GT, I'd also be really happy getting the 07 GT, an extra $8000-$10000 in my pocket will make up for the lack of new car smell.
 
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Haha oops I should've realize that you guys would've interpretted $15,995 in US Dollars, that's Canadian dollars which is $12,955 in US dollars.

Anyway didn't talk the price down but got an extension of warranty to 4 years/100,000km mark, free all weather mats (woohoo lol) and a very generous $13,000 [$10,660] trade in appraisal for my 08 Corolla that already has a whopping 40,000km [25,000 miles] (yes I drive a lot), which makes up for not talking the price down. I told him to give me until tomorrow to decide since it was late and they were closing anyway, It's a great deal and really I've paid my depreciation already on my Corolla, I'd be really happy to trade it in for something that I didn't have to pay depreciation on again. The car drives great, I love it, most importantly my wife loves it. I'm ready to go through with this deal.
 
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DKaz said:
Haha oops I should've realize that you guys would've interpretted $15,995 in US Dollars, that's Canadian dollars which is $12,955 in US dollars.
Click to expand...
I thought that the US dollar and the Canadian dollar were very close to equal? Whoops. Yes, US$13,000 is much better than US$16,000 for the vehicle.

Though I still like the Corolla, if you really want a Mazda5 it sounds like you have found a good deal. Enjoy your new Mazda5!
 
Heat said:
I thought that the US dollar and the Canadian dollar were very close to equal? Whoops. Yes, US$13,000 is much better than US$16,000 for the vehicle.

Though I still like the Corolla, if you really want a Mazda5 it sounds like you have found a good deal. Enjoy your new Mazda5!
Click to expand...

Just last summer we were at par but we've dropped big time since our economy started tanking.

I like my Corolla too, it'll be sad to see it go but especially with all the mods I've put in to it to get it to handle more like a 3 (17" rims with wider tires, strut bar, lowered on performance springs, I had more mods planned like rear sway bar, intake, header, exhaust) but in consolation, the 5 handles surprisingly well though I may throw a front strut and rear sway bar to make it even better. I don't care too much about the speed, the Corolla's 1.8L had plenty of power for me already and the 2.3L feels just fine in the 5. Best of all the 5 is versatile,

I've had an 85 Honda Civic wagon for a few years when I could barely keep any of my other cars for more than 6 months to a year at most because I would just get bored of them, all of them sedans. The Civic wagon was just so versatile and practical (I fit a few love seat in there once) that I just babied it knowing that there was just no other car of its kind if it ever died (it eventually did at 360,000km, RIP) and I think that's what the 5 will be. That is, until they release the MazdaSpeed 5.

Here's my Corolla as it stands right now, most of my mods are being parted out to friends so at least my modding efforts weren't too much in vain. :)
DSCF1530.jpg


Not the 85 Civic but this was an 88 Civic RT4WD that I replaced it with, it was a fun car especially with the 4WD and 1.6L SI engine (premium gas!) and 5 speed manual transmission with a 6th "super-low" gear. Unfortunately some idiot ran a red light and hit me 12 days after I got it. =(
2640420027_59a63bd808.jpg
 
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