Do you find the 5 under-powered?

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MP5Alive

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2006 Platinum Silver Mazda5
Been driving the 5 for around 2000 kms now and am quite happy with it. It's a great compromise of utility, performance, and economy.

I used to drive a 5-speed Protege5. Sure, it wasn't a speed demon, but the thrust-to-weight ratio is about right and with a quick downshift, there is more than enough power on tap.

My 4-speed auto Mazda5 however, will try to climb a hill at 1900RPM in 3rd gear? WTF?!? And it really struggles. If I'm not mistaken, 3rd gear in the 4AT is 1:1 (i.e. no mechanical advantage). Of course I can just floor the pedal to force a downshift but then the car screams as the RPMs go way up.

Is it just me or is the only way to get decent power out of the auto tranny is to floor the gas pedal? I find 2nd and 3rd gear a bit far apart. Why didn't they have a 5-spd auto? It's available on Mazda3's, right?
 
yeah, it seems a bit underpowered to me, also. maybe it's the 4AT's unwillingness to kick down a gear. not sure how it is in the 5 speed.
 
mazda 5 = no juice =p I still love it though for its' style and function.
 
It sure could use that Auto 5-speed. Although, I don't know the ratios in it...

Luckily we have the option of shifting the 4-speed ourselves (most of the time) so flooring it doesn't really need to happen.

I find it quite peppy above 5500rpm! :D It IS an inline 4 afterall. Rev the buggah!
 
I needs the turbo-charger from the Speed6 mated to that 6-speed! YUM!
 
mountjonas said:
yeah, it seems a bit underpowered to me, also. maybe it's the 4AT's unwillingness to kick down a gear. not sure how it is in the 5 speed.
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wow, odd. I thought our 5s was one of the most aggresive autos ive ever driven. Mine always wants to kick down a gear
 
Underpowered? No, I don't find ours to be. OTOH, everything is relative. So, if you're used to an 8-liter V-10 in a 500-lb. cart, then yeah, it's a little underpowered. :p

Seriously, though, I don't find it underpowered despite having had a 250-hp (aftermarket) SAAB turbo not too long ago. It's powered about appropriately for what it is aimed at doing, IMO. Don't know how much different, exactly, the AT is. We drove one or two, but that's not the same as owning one for 6 months or a year or so.
 
I don't see how anyone can call the mazda 5 underpowered.. have you ever been driving on the freeway and had to turn around and go home because it was too steep? I have... that is underpowered -- the lack of power affects the car's ability to transport its passengers.
 
for me, it's more of a transmission thing which translates into the car feeling underpowered. yeah, my 87 tempo with ~70whp was underpowered. but driving up a grade at 70mph, the AT stays in 4th gear until i really step on it.
 
mountjonas said:
for me, it's more of a transmission thing which translates into the car feeling underpowered. yeah, my 87 tempo with ~70whp was underpowered. but driving up a grade at 70mph, the AT stays in 4th gear until i really step on it.
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I think that's it. I've been spoiled by my Protege5's 5MT where I could more easily choose what gear to be in. That car totally didn't mind being driven consistently above 4000rpm with none of this "burnt" smell problems others have experienced.
 
I think it's a transmission thing too...it's too soft and shifts too early. Like it will try to accelerate up a hill from 5mph in 2nd gear, and it will stay in 2nd (from 800 rpm up to 4 or 5 grand. And this is keeping it in the 75% throttle range the whole time. I find myself doing the "scootch" manuver (where you sort of hop forward in your seat, trying to make the car go faster (freak) ).

And then there are other times where it will be in third gear (coasting) and I will step on the gas and ther car will almost do a 'neutral drop' into second.


Makes me wish I would have got a stick instead.
vava.gif


Does anybody know if there is a PCM reflash or something that can be done to change the transmission characteristics?
 
toucci said:
I don't see how anyone can call the mazda 5 underpowered.. have you ever been driving on the freeway and had to turn around and go home because it was too steep? I have... that is underpowered -- the lack of power affects the car's ability to transport its passengers.
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Was this in your P5 you're referring to? Do you have an auto tranny?

IMO the 5's problem is more tranny than engine. It's just a fact that the smaller the engine is, the more important it is to have a well thought out transmission to take advantage of power you have. The 5MT is obviously a winner because not only do you have 5 gears, but it's also easier for the driver to select which is most appropriate. Seems like the 4AT is flawed not only in that it only has 4 gears, but that it's kind of 'mentally challenged' too... it's a shame, hopefully there's be some kind of reflash in the future like you're hoping for Saint...

All I can say is learn to use your auto-stick feature effectively, and be thankful that you even have it. While it's certainly not the perfect solution, it should be a big help for climbing hills and what not.
 
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I agree, the 5 feels underpowered with the automatic, but it felt like every other four cylinder engine with an automatic that I've driven--slow off the line, floor the pedal to get the tranny to kick down to get any power. That's part of the reason we got the 5-speed, which has plenty of power, even with the A/C on and a full load. I'll never buy a four cylinder car with an automatic again if I can help it.

On the other hand, it's all relative. We used to have a '97 Honda CR-V with an automatic. Now that was slow...but it did make it up hills if you floored it. Can't say I've ever had bulwnkl's problem...
 
So what's the ratios of both transmissions anyway?

Letting the auto shift on its own is a bit frustrating. I can now fully realize why they went with a "shift-it-yourself-if-you-want" feature. I use it quite a bit!
 
It depends on what you're coming from :) My 5 replaced a 1995 Saturn and it's got way more power than that. I wouldn't complain about 20 or 30 more horsepower or a turbo or something. But I wouldn't want to make the gas milage any less. i think the engine is just fine and even fun to drive. No problems or complaints here I think it's terrific.
 
Not underpowered here - the 5spd manual transmission is great! However, that being said - all thing are relative - my hubby drives a 2002 Toyota prius - that thing is a dog! Great on gas because it can't move out of it's own way! Needless to say, I don't like driving the prius.

In addition to not being underpowered, the mazda5 is pretty great on the curves - I had a jeep SUV follow me onto an onramp and they were pretty close going in then when I looked in my rearview they were waaay back there - likely they slammed on their brakes when they realized how fast we were going into the curve. zoom zoom!
 
the mazda5 is pretty great on the curves
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oh yea, I'll second that. The handling is wonderful, doesn't feel like a minivan or SUV at all. There is a little more tilt in the corners than my old sedan, but it's SO much more like a car than a van when driving. It handles wonderfully.
 
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