did the unthinkable: bought a new car

I have always preached, and practiced: never buy a new car [due to depreciation].
Oh well, rules are made to be broken right?

Last night drove a brand spanking new 2012 Mazda5 home from the dealer and I'm almost as psyched as when I drove home the 308. What a neat car!

Needed a more modern, reliable, fuel efficient replacement for the gas-guzzling, explosion and rollover prone, stupid, snow-conquering, totally awesome '98 Grand Cherokee 5.9 (fastest production SUV in the world until the SRT8 I believe) I've owned since '06.

I really like full size minivans (always rent an Odyssey, Sienna, T&C etc when on business trips and 4+ people are with) but don't need or want that kind of size in the next 4-5 years. So we cross shopped a fairly diverse group:
- Ford C-Max 7 seater. Was holding out for one of these, until last month when Ford announced they weren't bringing it over from Europe .
- '00-'03 BMW 5er wagon: I know and love E39s, so a <50k mile 525iAT/540iAT for ~$10k had appeal. In the end decided one complex german Autobahn blaster in the garage was enough, and wanted the choice of seating 5 comfortably or 6 in a pinch.
- '05ish Dodge Magnum: Scared the hell out of my wife test driving a R/T with the Hemi Poor visibility, great 2nd row room but very low ceiling in back. Nah.
- '03-'06 Mazda MPV: test drove a mint, loaded '06 for $11k. Bigger (than I really need), nice handling, more powerful V6, but relatively boring, no DSC or side airbags, rusty exhaust.
- '07-'10 Mazda 5: drove 2 '07s with autoboxes and ~55k miles. Nice enough but at for ~$6k more the 2012s have a better motor, better seats, more refined ride, upgraded interior, stronger crash structures, DSC and IMO are more attractive.
- '05-'08 Ford Freestyle/Taurus X. Too boring and expensive for what they are IMO.

I really wanted to buy American but there are literally no new US cars that fits this bill: smaller than a 'big' minivan, seats 6 comfortably, is not an SUV or crossover, preferably sub 3500lbs.

So for $19,120 + tax drove home a silver over black 2012 Mazda 5 "Sport" (base model), which is the only one available with a manual. My wife and I didn't really expect to choose the 6-sp, until we drove one. Very slick shifting, suits the car nicely. And she's a legit handler! Super direct but not darty steering, solid, predictable brakes, superbly balanced chassis (based on the 3) that's neither over nor under sprung. A real sweetheart that can be a comfy, relatively quiet bus or a corner carver, you chose.

The doo-dads in the higher spec models, for the most part, didn't seem worth it: so-so leather, small noisy sunroof, tacky body add ons, 17" wheels vs 16s, etc. Mine doesn't have bluetooth or Sirius so will go aftermarket on those. I will be adding a leather shift knob from the Miata though. And getting dedicated rims and winter tires (probably cheap and stylish 17s with Blizzaks).

The rest of it is just about perfect: dual sliding doors (US doesn't get a power option, but these literally take one finger to open/close), seating for 6 (my 6' frame fits comfortably enough in the 3rd row) or tons of cargo, solid fit and finish, great visibility, tight turning circle, auto climate control, nice cruise and radio controls on the steering wheel, height adjustable driver's seat etc.

It's sad that Ford gave up on this niche, and no other US brands think they will sell. Guess they're making too much money on loaded Edges for $35k+ or any of the crossovers.

Anyway, if you're in the market for a practical, relatively efficient (high 20s, will be more in 2 years or so when Mazda's SKY-G motor goes into the 5), fun to drive hauler take a 5 for a drive. I have a good feeling that we'll be driving ours for years and years.
cheers!
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Thanks - I do feel like we're supporting a worthy cause in addition to sincerely preferring to shift it ourselves. I'm a big 3-pedal guy, but never saw the appeal of a stick in a "utilitarian" vehicle. It says a lot about the 5's broad dynamics that both me (petrolhead, somewhat refined i.e. getting older) and my wife (petrolhead by association, but doesn't have 10W30 running through her veins) agreed that the manual was the pick of the litter.
BTW here are the gear ratios: 1st: 3.45, 2nd 1.84, 3rd 1.23 (~75mph @ 6500rpm), 4th 0.91, 5th 0.76 (2800rpm @ ~70rpm), 6th 0.68 (2400rpm @ ~70mph). THREE overdrive gears! They could have made 4th a bit lower and done away with 5th, the motor has sufficient torque to handle this IMO, but the 6-sp works so well I won't presume to second guess.

For us I agree that the 5 is the best choice. If/when we have 3+ kids (2 playing ice hockey, like our neighbors and their packed Suburban), and/or are carpooling 6/7 people and/or towing a race trailer/boat, a full sized van (let's not call them 'mini' anymore, ok?) or big SUV would be appropriate. Until then the 5 hits the bullseye and everything else is bounce out.

Thanks! I've long admired Mazdas, my folks even had a GLC for a few years in the early 80's. Since then neither they nor I have owned one, mainly because I couldn't comfortably fit into a Miata (arms about ~2" too long).
It's almost a shame that they didn't put the 3's turbo motor in the 5, there's plenty of room under the hood. That would be just too nuts I suppose.
BTW one of my all time favorite passenger laps of the 'Ring was in a well driven, highly tuned 400+ hp '95ish RX7. Just awesome....

Agreed. I think Mazda sells 20+ autos for each manual. Ours was the only stick on any lot within a 100 mile radius. Had 9 miles when we took it for a test drive, 40 (31 mine) when we bought it.
Funny reading this NY Times preview from January '10 on the upcoming revamped 5 where they are (understandably) pessimist about it coming to the States with 3 pedals:
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/new-mazda5-is-first-to-have-nagare-design/

"Both [expected European powertrains] come with a 6-speed manual transmission, which, no doubt, will not make it to the United States."

I'd like to buy the Mazda exec who made the call to do so a very nice sake.

Thanks! I believe the 5 is and will be the only Mazda to follow their short-lived "Nagare" theme (meant to evoke nature, flowing water, etc) since the designer left the company soon after proposing it. To my eyes she's a real looker, especially in silver, red or black (at least for the 15 minutes it stays perfectly clean after you wash it).
The curvaceous side details not only work aesthetically but also add strength to the panels. Form and function FTW.

 

No, sadly it's not available with a stick

 

If you've got the time, tools and ability to service older cars, have really good luck, and/or know a great, cheap mechanic, then used cars are no doubt the way to go, economically. I've been doing that for over 20 years and 20 used cars. Now that I'm confronting a growing family and a job that will require occasional long road trips and client lunches (and includes a modest car allowance, which I'm free to spend on whatever I want including maintenance for a new-used car) a cheap, modern i.e. new car makes much more sense.

RE minivans: I think of them as business jets for the road. Ever ride in the second row of a newer MV? You can read the paper or work on a laptop with your legs crossed like you're flying economy-plus. Top spec is more like business class, but they cost damn near $40k. Which is mid-level SUV money lets not forget!

The Mazda5 is more like a Learjet than a Gulfstream I imagine: not exceptionally roomy, but big enough and goes like the clappers.

Ford Transit? Sprinter? They're more like a C-130 aren't they? Not that there's anything wrong with that...

 

Grazie! It sure is. My friend suggested the first thing I do is take a ball peen hammer and give the body one good whack, anywhere. That way I won't be worried about the inevitable first ding it will surely get.

They only caught fire in rear end collisions or rollovers.
ABC did a story on it with video.

Mazda is a shining example of a company that still cares about and caters to driving enthusiasts. They are the 5th largest Japanese manufacturer and sell TWO distinct bonafide sports cars fer chrissakes, while the 4 larger Japanese companies together sell a grand total of ONE (realistically attainable: 370z), or three if you count the GTR and LFA.

When they redesigned the 5 for 2012 (no 2011 MY) they added and improved a ton of little things, yet the curb weight went DOWN. Respect.

 

Thanks! The 5-sp auto is by all accounts a very good unit. It's quick to downshift (snaps them off during hard braking to help in slowing), the push/pull manual shift function works quite well, and most impressively it'll hold a chosen gear even bouncing off redline. But the 6-sp works even better IMO There is just a bit of lag in the throttle response, I'm sure purposefully put there to dampen any low throttle jerkiness. Normally I want the most direct, fast responding throttle possible but in such a vehicle this minor artificial throttle smoothing is totally appropriate.

Domo!
I did read about C&D's project; they worked with a local voc ed school to transplant the turbo drivetrain. Everything bolted in easily enough, but the electronics, instruments and engine computer were totally different so it necessitated a full wiring harness swap as well. Apparently they never got it running correctly

Thank you! Best to you as well.

 

bah, hadn't heard that. The dealer has a very attractive red one in the showroom.
Mazda stuck with it for a while though, since 2005 I think? The biggest knock against it I heard was oil and fuel consumption. Would love to drive one sometime.

"leering" grin lol. I like that
It's for sure not an especially subtle front end, but it's growing on us and the outside appearance was ranked below other factors (e.g. performance, safety, features) on our priority list.

Traffic for sure isn't any fun with a stick, but we don't deal with much here in Milwaukee (a 5-10 minute back up on our routes is very unusual; any Chicagoan would kill for only a 10 minute jam). Plus she will happily trundle along idling at 5mph in 2nd, pulling smoothly up to ~40 without changing gears.

 

Assuming you're not being facetious, thanks
More proud that the wife also picked it!

Yeah I was really bummed about the sliding-door C-max not coming here. If they kept it under ~$23k nicely equipped, like the Mazda5, I'd have waited a few months and bought one.

I read that the ecoboost isn't up to the task of moving a heavier vehicle like the new Explorer, and doesn't deliver nearly the advertised economy, but I imagine it'd do well in a lighter car like the C-Max. A diesel would be ideal, but apparently Americans don't want them