Mazda 5 2.0 Review: Keeping the Five alive

What we like:

Fresh new looks on the outside

practicality of the sliding doors

agile roadholding manners

What we dislike:

No major mechanical changes under the skin

dated interior

doesn’t look as compact or dynamic as previously

Inside, the 5’s cabin only gets minor trim and detail changes when compared to its predecessor. Up front, there’s a dashboard that is put together from reasonable quality switchgear and materials. The driving position is easily adjustable for comfort and the view out from the driver’s seat is excellent.

The 5 features what Mazda calls a 6+1 seating configuration. The ‘+1’ basically refers to the foldable bench that is in the centre of the second row. This bench seat can easily be stowed aside to allow walk through access through the second row to the rear. The centre row seats can also slide fore and aft to adjust legroom as required. With the centre row positioned slightly forward, there’s actually decent legroom in the third row despite the 5’s relatively compact exterior dimensions. Passengers seated on both second and third rows will welcome the air-con vents – they can even adjust the fan speed at the rear. Access to the third row is a breeze as well thanks to the low floor and the wide opening sliding doors. The latter get full electrical operation on both sides and can be operated either by the master button on the dash or via the key fob. The 5, being an MPV offers flexibility in the form of easily foldable seats to convert it into a load carrier if required. With the seats all up, the load area is average sized for a mid-sized seven-seater MPV. The 5 also offers a small underfloor storage area at the back, which can be useful to store smaller items and odds and ends. Useful storage spaces can also be found under the second and third row seats, in the large door bins among other places.

While there’s enough practicality and versitility in the 5’s interior, the design of the driving environment, the dashboard in particular, looks a tad aged. Overall perceived quality levels are OK for a Japanese model but some of the switchgear, design details, instruments and so on look or feel like they’ve been around for ages.

The Mazda5 offers a reasonable amount of kit as standard. This includes the two electric sliding doors, electric sunroof, alloy wheels, electric folding mirrors, climate control, factory fitted stereo, auto headlamps and wipers, ABS with EBD and twin front airbags.

Despite its obvious age in some key areas, the Mazda5 still makes for a practical and versatile people carrier whilst staying true to the previous model’s ‘zoom-zoom’ philosophy. Its new looks ought to do the job to keep the Mazda5 showroom fresh for at least a while more.

Credits: Story by Joe Yeo Photos by Yang and Raymond Lai