Hello, new member to the board, but I've been interested in the Mazda5 since the first time I saw one. I'm about to pull the trigger and pick up a 2012 GT. It seems more and more reviews show up everyday in the news. There doesn't seem to be much from the new owners here. So I'm hoping this thread will be a good place to add some opinions from the new model owners.

Here are some thoughts on my concerns with buying one, maybe some new owners can give some comments.

Styling:
Wow, is the styling ever polarizing, people hate it or like it, I have grown to like it more and more (and in person like it a lot more). Same was true when the smiley face Mazda3s came out, I remember laughing at them in the show room, now they seem normal and seem to be a favorite for many of my coworkers.

Front seat Room:
There is already a thread on this, but I have a little to add, I'm 6' tall, when I've test drove the M5 I felt a little cramped, but think it may be I feel that way because I'm usually driving a laid back sedan, am I wrong to think it's more the different seating position that has me feeling cramped? Any other 6 footers out there?

Headroom w/moon roof:
Haven't seen one with a moon roof at the local dealers yet, again 6' tall, do I have anything to be concerned with?

Power:
Should be better than the last one, I know some have upgraded from an earlier model, what are your impressions?

Dislikes:
This one is really important to me since I may buy in the next few weeks.

Hope this works out well as a good place to get some info for other people considering buying one.

 

Well, first sorry about the typo on Reviews in the title, oops. Second, seems like a good number of people are viewing this, but still no comments. Anyone out there have any info for us potential buyers of the redesign?

 

hi i just bought a 2012 mazda 5 i am not 6 feet tall but my friend is 6.4 295 lbs he drove my new2012 mazda5 and his head did not hit the roof and he liked the mazda 5 van and is going to buy one .. i am sure you know that the drivers seat does go up and down the mazda5 you sat in at your dealer might have had the seat raized up and you did not know it ...i had a 2009 mazda5 van i am sure your going to like the 2012 mazda5 van the 2.5 motor is way better than thw 2.3 motor lots more power and your going to like the new suspension its drives like a sports car i keep forgetting its a van when i go into the corners lol you allso will like the new seats there super not as hard as the other mazda seat of the past they did there home work on the seats allso the heated seats are 1,000 times better than the old heated seats on past mazda cars as for the looks when you see the mazda5 van in person it looks a lot better i like the new look i can find my mazda 5 van in the parking lot a lot eazyer i feal you will like a new 2012 5 van i used to get 32mpg on my old mazda 5 van on the open road they say the new 2.5 motor gets better mpg good luck spencerfvee

 

We purchased a red 2012 Sport yesterday with 6 speed manual, trading in our trusty 2000 MPV.

We were considering driving 2 hours to a dealer in another state to get a 2010 with MT (very good prices, but colors limited). We went to our local Mazda dealer and test drive the 2012. My wife really likes the styling. We asked the dealer if he could locate and deliver a 2010 for us, because low price was a priority for us. He checked with the boss who said no, but then proceeded to offer us a price of $3500 off MSRP with our trade (about $16,600 before T&T). He said they wanted to sell us a car and knew we would likely drive to an out of state dealer to get a 2010 at a low price. We were very happy with the offer (I think our 2000 MPV is worth about $1500). The only options are floor mats and rear bumper protector.


Initial obervations:


Those body lines that look so pronounced in the pictures are quite subtle in person.


After purchase I noticed there are no bodyside moldings. They would clash with the styling anyway, but we will have to be careful where we park.


The 6 speed manual shifts well enough, but 5th-6th gears ratios very close (was 6 speed necessary?). Also, to go in to reverse you have to push shifter down, and move to the left and up (a safety feature they say). Not too hard to get used to but our other car is a MT Suzuki SX4 with reverse in the normal place (when swithching between cars I may have a problem).


Center radio **** is for the tuner, not the volume (will take some getting used to).


Gas mileage computer (MPG/miles to empty etc.) is not standard on this model. I like this feature on my SX4.


Overall we are very impressed with the car, and hope to keep it a long time. Our OTD price was almost exactly the same as we paid for our 2000 MPV DX 11 years ago. Hard to beat that!

 

Well, I should pick up my 2012 GT (Sliver/black) early this week. I'll be posting my opinions after I've had a week or so with it. I've test drove the sport a few times, and finally got to see a GT in person, I was very impressed, I still liked the sport, but I'm used to a loaded sedan so this seems a pretty comfortable swap. Only one option that I wanted they couldn't find, the auto dim mirror with homelink and compass. Guess I'll have to add it myself later.

I had more time to adjust the seats and found a very comfortable position (GT has lumbar also).

I also agree the lines on the side are not nearly as noticeable in person.

Thanks for the other posts.

 

hi i allso bought a loaded GT 2012 i ran ito the same thing on the auto dim mirror back orderd and same on the rubber winter floor mats & rear bumper guard & cargo net & dress up ex tip. all on back order i guess mazda did not think any one would buy a new 2012 and want options for there new mazda 5 lol lol spencerfvee..................

 

My sisters kid just bought there firstnew car (2012 Mazda 5) through a agency that gives special financing.They did not test drive this vehicle, it was just bought anddelivered. They brought it down to my house this weekend to show mesince I help them keep up their vehicles. When they took me for atest ride, there was so much road noise coming from the rear of thecar, that you needed to raise your volume of talking. It sounded likethey had some mud terrain tires on the back rubber. They were awareof the noise and said, yes it's a bit noisy. I searched this problemand a lot of complaints came up. Any family car in this categoryshould be whisper quiet when not under acceleration. From theinternet this seems to be an ongoing problem from conception. Ithought I'd throw this out on the form before going with them to thedealer. Thanks for your insight on this. I am a new member. I signedup just for help with this problem. Hope this question is in theright place.

 

who still has there 2012 GT? I just bought one with 60K

 

Mine has 95k, bought it new in Feb of 2011. It's been a great car that's really worked well for my needs (small family+hockey gear). So far the only issues I've had with are the following...

Tires- you'll see lots of posts on this and it is definitely tougher on tires than my previous cars, but I love the handling so much I've gotten over it. I usually put on 15k miles a year and couldn't find reasonably priced tires that would last 3 years. My last (and current new set) were (are) Pirelle and they lasted until 44k, I think I could have easily gotten to 48k on them, but I had a nail in one that couldn't be repaired so I just replaced them all since they were 90% gone.

Error Code- I've been getting a 442 error code recently, it's a small emissions leak, I took it to the shop and they inspected and recommended replacing the fuel cap, I did that but the issue is still there. I have a code reader so I've been resetting it the last few weeks, should have an oil change in about a week or two and I'll have they check again. When I reset it sometimes it goes a week without going off again so it must be very small if there is one.

Other than those things I've loved the car and after 7 years still enjoy driving it. As my son gets bigger I can see something larger being a good decision, but no regrets after 7 years.