Mazda MPV Minivans | Wagons
Mazda MPV Minivans | Wagons
[Aug 05, 2002]
gkoves
Model Reviewed:
Mazda MPV LX
Strength:
nice interior, roll down rear windows, good view
Weakness:
http://www.vehicleidentificationnumber.com/car_lemon_law_info.html Bought my MPV with 300 miles, new. 10 days and 700 miles later it is in the service. The engine sounds like diesel. They couldn't figure out what the problem was for the last 6 days. Now they want to change the engine. Engine is made in US by Ford. |
[Aug 04, 2002]
jcpotter
Strength:
200HP V-6 5 Speed Auto Rear roll down windows...way cool!! Hide away 3rd seat Handles like a car Zoom-Zoom quick!
Weakness:
Cheap carpet No cover on left foot dead pedal (can see a hole coming real soon there) No rear A/C vents unless you order rear A/C. No pull handle on rear sliding doors?? Excellent product. Researched them all and the only one that came close was the Honda. Price for the Honda (10 to 12 grand!)over the MPV eliminated the Honda. $2000 cash back and it was a done deal. Actually like the smaller size, doesn't feel like I'm driving a bus. Has many same features as the Honda AND roll down rear windows that are WAY COOL! 200HP V-6 really "Zooms" and the 5 speed auto is seemless and smart. Getting 21 to 27 MPG so far and the huge gas tank means less time stopped for fill ups. Fit and finish is 8 out of 10. Wished the quality of the carpet was a little nicer, pretty thin and can see it wearing prematurely if not careful. Why is there no cover on the left foot dead pedal? Wished I got the rear A/C along with the 4 season pkg. rear heater. A/C OK, but could use some help on those 90+ degree days. The family loves the van and I honestly think that it's the best overall value out there. Similar Products Used: Dodge Grand Caravan |
[Jul 31, 2002]
Emily Dennis
Strength:
Drives like a car, has good pickup, has a perky feel and look. You don't feel like you're driving a behemoth.
Weakness:
The smell!! Also, car is slow accelerating when AC is on. I would have given this car 5 glowing stars until it began to smell like rotten eggs about 3 days after purchase. I loved it when I first drove it--it doesnt' feel much different from driving a car and doesn't have the large blindspot area I encountered with the Sienna. Also, the view out the back window is better than Sienna. It feels very comfortable to sit in and it seemed the designers had thought of everything for our convenience. My family of four has really enjoyed traveling comfortably in this little van after several years in our now miniature-seeming Corolla wagon. HOWEVER, the smell is gross and embarrassing. Even if it may not be the case, it now seems that I'm polluting worse than other drivers. I did not see the reviews about the sulphur smell before purchase, or perhaps I did and disregarded them. I hope this problem will be resolved, as it is really marring my enjoyment of this otherwise great car, my first and perhaps last Mazda. Similar Products Used: Toyota Sienna |
[Jul 31, 2002]
dbs2001
Model Reviewed:
ES
Strength:
Handling, space for the size, magic 3rd seat that folds flat into the floor, roll-down rear windows. Price for what you get.
Weakness:
Power is just adequate (but this was fixed in the 2002 model). Gas mileage is not the greatest. Excellent vehicle and great buy pricewise. We've had it 18 months and no problems. It handles beautifully and is very maneuverable. We have taken a number of 400+ mile trips in one day & I always arrive not feeling tired. This was not true of our old Caravan. Similar Products Used: 91 Grand Caravan |
[Jul 30, 2002]
CEGrannan
Strength:
I like the fact that it is so simple to change the seat configurations. Even my 10-year old daughter manipulates the seats with ease. I love the huge moon roof, the leather seats, the power sliding doors. My husband loves the 17-inch rims, but is upset that the van's rims are larger than his Mustang's. I love the handling of this van. It is so much more nimble than our Town & Country. And did I mention the price. The price was tremendous, especially with the S-Plan. The 4 year loan at 0% with the deferred payments until January added to the appeal. There was really no comparison.
Weakness:
The gear-shift placement. The ride is a little stiffer than the Town & Country, but I realize that you give some of that up with better handling. I'm sure that I wlll see the benefit in the handling with time. I have spent the last 5 weeks looking at SUVs and mini-vans and just stumbled across the MPV. While my husband and I were looking at the Tribute in the showroom, our kids were having a ball playing with all the seat-configurations on the MPV. After taking a quick look at the van, we took it for a test drive and were hooked. We had been looking at suv's as a replacement for our 2000 Town & Country, but the leg room in the rear seat was non-existent. And since we have a nearly 6 foot tall 13-year old, leg room was a big concern. After a 2-week wait for the loaded ES that we wanted, we are the proud owners of an MPV. We took it on the road this weekend and my son raved "this will be a great vacation car". I'm sure that he is right. Similar Products Used: 2000 Town & Country |
[Jul 26, 2002]
Alex
Model Reviewed:
LX
Strength:
Nice exterior/interior design, magic seat, sliding 2nd row seats, power windows in 4 doors, awesome 9 spk sound system with 6 CD changer, really good build quality and reliability
Weakness:
4 speed transmission isn't as smooth as it could be. I wish I had the new 2002 MPV with the new 3.0L 200 hp engine and 5 speed JATCO transmission with built-in learning strategy. A real joy to drive. I'm still excited to get behind the wheel after 2 years of ownership and almost 60,000. |
[Jul 26, 2002]
tgaines14
Model Reviewed:
MPV ES
Strength:
Cost, Best looking mini out there, Power, Handling (drives more like a car than any other mini that I test drove), Stowable third row seats, Sliding door windows that roll down, Power sliding doors, etc.
Weakness:
none that I have found so far I was one of those guys who said that he would never own a minivan. Well, three kids later, and here I am with my first one. I must say that I am very impressed with the MPV. I reviewed all of the mini's for months, and ultimately chose the MPV for many reasons (style, cost, handling, power, features, etc). This is a great minivan, and I would highly recommend it to anyone. |
[Jul 26, 2002]
SXVsleddog
Model Reviewed:
MPV LX
Strength:
Everything stated above
Weakness:
Initial acceleration with AC on and the shift lever does block your line of sight of a couple of buttons on the radio. After being unable to convince my wife to get an SUV instead of a minivan. I researched for months on the internet, in magazines and every other source you can think of and I definitely made the right choice when I bought this van. It is by far the most comfortable and versatile van for any combination of adults, children and cargo. Plus after I made the dealer throw in a rear spoiler it is also the coolest looking minivan out there. Even my anti-minivan friends agree it looks pretty cool and they also like how the rear seat flips backwards for tailgating. Also, except for a slight lack of initial acceleration, from a dead stop, when the air conditioning is on it drives and handles excellent. Don't hesitate to buy this van you will not be disapointed! Similar Products Used: Researched and tried them all. |
[Jul 24, 2002]
ZoomZoom
Model Reviewed:
LX
Strength:
Fold flat 3rd row seats, side-by-slide 2nd row seats, 2nd row roll down windows, 200hp engine, 5 speed auto trans.
Weakness:
Some things can be improved - like the placement of the gear shift, & better thigh support in the 3rd row seats. This is an excellent minivan for a small family. Good power, quiet, handles well & is very smooth. One of the complaints that I see in many of these reviews concerns the sulphur smell from the catalytic converter. I HAD this problem as well, but after ~2000km it went away. According to my mechanic friend, it is quite common in some new cars & should go away in time. Other opinions (see MPVClub.com) suggest using gasolines from different gas companies, & also to use 87 octane, as recommended by Mazda. For those who have this problem, hopefully it will go away in time, like it did for me :) |
[Jul 18, 2002]
miguel gonzalez
Model Reviewed:
MPV ES
Strength:
SIze-very handeable, finish in class with Toyota and Honda, new engine, power doors with roll down windows, sliding captain seats, 3rd seat fold down, traction control standard, better legroom than Sienna. side air.
Weakness:
interior space except front seating. some plastic details that I anticipate will fall off(?) but mostly great finish. cargo space with 3rd row inplace is a bit small if you havea loaded van and want everyone's luggage to go (better get a rooftop-box) amount of accessories offered (original Mazda) is weak such as a full rubber inlay mat for the cargo "bowl", gear shift definitely blocks some controls, particularly the stereo (which as some mentions doesn't have a very rich midregister - needs an equalizer in other words...) Excellent mini-mini-van...great finish and style. looks best of the mini-vans, particularly if you slap a hood deflector on it - grrr- looks aggressive. after reading the reviews here I am happy we got a 2002, with the 200hp engine which delivers great when you need it - I am still trying to calculate an average mileage on it htough, seems good so far! Definitely a competitor to the overpriced Odyssey. Remains to see what Sienna looks like in 2003... ONE word of caution- if youplan to use rear facing baby seat in 2nd row, make sure your seats can fit - we have 2 new babies and there is barely room for our (normal) rear facing infant seats in this 2nd row, which is the only down side to this otherwise excellent machine - namely its somewhat cramped interior. Similar Products Used: tested caravans, odyssey, sienna. this is absolutely the best value, UNLESS you need real space - then pay the $$$ and get an Odyssey (2002 ex have discs around, side air, powerdoors, traction, seems |