If you’ve ever got a bit carried away by a fad – Atkins diet anyone? – and later realised that you had gone a little over the top, then you could be a car designer or European road safety legislator. The legislators are forever making it harder to design a car by bringing in more and more rules. And the designers, in their attempts to meet that obligation and have bigger stats than their competitors, are designing fatter and fatter cars that offer questionable gains in practicality or satisfaction.
However, Mazda continues to make understated cars that deliver driver experience and make day-to-day living a little easier. The Mazda 5, while not sporting the largest maximum boot capacity of an MPV (it’s less than half the Renault Espace), will – as a friend of mine demonstrated – take a small bunch of people and their mountain bikes. How much more space do you need?
By not trying to outdo their rivals on the boot capacity stats, Mazda have been able to keep a light and airy feel to their MPV. In central London traffic, it was easy to switch into filter lanes and make tight right-hand turns through small gaps in the traffic jam on the opposing carriageway. When the red light goes to green and all the pizza delivery scooters buzz off like wasps who haven’t seen honey for a week, the Mazda 5 easily pulls away with them, avoiding any sense of pressure from the angry stockbroker in his Porsche behind.
.jpg)
I am not suggesting this car will appeal to boy racers – it won’t. But it will allow mum or dad to tackle a busy commute without the heart-stopping moments that bigger MPVs give when they lumber out onto the roundabout too slowly and rushing commuters swarm all over the back of the van.
Which is, sadly, what the 5 feels like. It handles like a car with a short, clicky gear box, short clutch travel and precise, neutral steering that has plenty of feel. It sounds like a car with a gruff, sporty sound from engine and exhaust as you nip about your daily business. Nonetheless you feel like you’re driving a (good quality) van from a low-down position.
The reason for that is the same reason why you will probably buy one – even if at the moment you’re thinking: ‘That’s put me right off – I am not a courier’. The cabin is airy and spacious, despite the dark plastics. The sliding side doors make for easy access, be it for your gran or your push bike. And all that is achieved through the vehicle’s uncomplicated shape and high ceiling. Just like the best vans.
Still not convinced? Well, in that case get the Mazda 6 estate, which offers the same driving experience but is a car.
What’s the market like?
There are less than 700 used Mazda 5s on the market, so when you find a good one, snap it up. Surprisingly, the relative lack of supply doesn’t mean expensive used prices. The petrol-engined cars lose a steady 10-15% every year, which allows you to buy a 3-year-old car with an average mileage of around 20,000 for about half the new price.
Put a private warranty on a well-loved one and the car will feel as good as new – or better, as you only paid half price. Two thirds of the cars on the market are petrol-engined but depreciation is not dramatically different on either, so you can take your preference without hurting your wallet.
What else can this budget buy?
Two-year-old 1.8 TSs are around £11,000 which is £2,000 less than the more attractive, less reliable Citroen C4 Picasso and at least £7,000 less than a Ford S-Max.
Which makes me realise that a Mazda 5 may be one of the automotive sector’s best kept secrets. It is only slightly more money than smaller MPVs such as the Renault Scenic and Citroen Picassos, but a lot less than the sporty, bigger equivalents such as the S-Max, with which it can compete.
This budget doesn’t buy anything truly comparable, but it could buy an older big MPV or a newer small MPV. Personally, with that kind of budget I would buy the Mazda and put a private warranty on it at 3 years old.
Summary
Like its brother, the Mazda 6 estate, it is fun to drive but easy to live with and extremely practical. It is also cheap to run and good value on the nearly new market.