The Mazda 5 Was America’s Last Stick-Shift Minivan And It’s Still A Great Used Car

I’m going to say it: Minivans are cool. Just like how a supercar is ruthlessly optimized for going fast, minivans are relentless in their pursuit of practicality. The sliding doors, the folding seats, it all just makes so much sense. However, minivans often aren’t fun to drive. Contrary to their name, most modern models are rather big and hefty. Most, but not all. For nearly half of the past 20 years, Americans could buy a van that weighed less than a midsize sedan and handled almost like a compact car. I’m talking, of course, about the magnificent Mazda 5.

The mid-2000s was Hail Mary time for the minivan segment, in the sense that automakers were trying everything just to make a play stick amid the early rise of the crossover. General Motors had those unusual “Crossover Sport Vans,” Chrysler launched its revolutionary Stow ‘n Go seating system, Nissan made the Quest gloriously strange, and Toyota dramatically upsized its second-generation Sienna.

So what about Mazda? Well, Mazda was about to do the opposite of Toyota. By the 2006 model year, the second-generation MPV had just about finished its production run, and while a third-generation model was ready on deck for Asia and New Zealand, Mazda had other plans for export markets.

The plan was simple: Take the bones of the Mazda 3 compact car and use them to build a properly mini minivan. We’re talking a machine eight inches shorter and almost three inches narrower than the second-generation MPV, yet roomy enough to be equipped with three rows of seats. A 157-horsepower 2.3-liter inline-four would be borrowed wholesale from the Mazda 3 in the pursuit of greater fuel economy, and the resulting Mazda 5 was nothing like any other minivan sold in America through the second half of the 2000s.

For one, it came standard with a manual transmission, making it the only U.S.-market minivan of its day to let drivers row their own gears. Secondly, the seating arrangement was a bit strange. Not only was it a six-seater with second-row captain’s chairs and a two-place third-row bench, but the seats stowed in a relatively novel manner.

The third row simply folded flat like in a crossover, while dropping the second-row captain’s chairs required flipping up the seat squabs, folding the headrests, then folding the backrests down. The result was an impressive 70.9 cu.-ft. of cargo space with all rear seats folded, and a relatively flat load floor, save for a void between the rear seats that could optionally be filled by a table.

Unsurprisingly, when Motor Trend tested the 2006 Mazda 5, it found that this quirked-up people carrier certainly didn’t drive like other minivans on the market:

Out on the road, the Mazda5 leaves no doubt about its corporate heritage – nor about the fact that it weighs roughly 500 pounds more than a comparable Mazda3s. The suspension bits, electro-hydraulic power steering, and anti-lock disc brakes have been appropriately upgraded to handle the extra mass and payload possibilities, an effort further abetted by semi-sticky, low-profile tires. That combination yields an eminently livable balance of comfort and control, and it does a great job of limiting body roll in corners.

Add in available toys like a moonroof, a CD changer, a navigation system, and automatic climate control, combine that with an EPA highway fuel economy rating of 27 MPG, and the result was a niche but awesome ride for small families and the mildly to moderately outdoorsy. Space inside didn’t rival a Dodge Grand Caravan, and front-wheel drive plus moderate ground clearance meant off-roading was ill-advised, but here was a city-sized sliding-door-equipped machine with up to 1,239 pounds of payload capacity that could swallow bikes whole.

A 2008 update brought in more aggressive bumpers and available LED taillights, but also some real quality-of-life upgrades. The stereo gained an auxiliary input, the second row got air-conditioning vents, and crucially, the optional four-speed automatic was replaced with a five-speed unit. When Car And Driver tested a two-pedal 2008 Mazda 5, it managed zero-to-60 mph in 9.4 seconds. Not quick, but also not uncompetitive. What matters more is that the Mazda 5 remained a delight to drive, as the magazine wrote:

The Mazda 5 might be almost as high as it is wide, but there is nothing square about its ride. The squat look leads to the expectation that it can’t mimic the Mazda 3 in dynamics, but it proves to be a reasonable copycat, thanks in part to its nearly identical curb weight. That makes the 5 about 1000 pounds lighter than the average full-size minivan in our most recent comparison test.

Furthermore, at 0.80 g, the 5 outgripped all those full-sizers on the skidpad. Meanwhile, the electrohydraulic rack-and-pinion steering is accurate and quick at 2.9 turns lock-to-lock, understeer is moderate, and the turning diameter is impressive.

So far, so good. At least if you live in a place that’s sunny. While the first generation of Mazda 5 sold in North America can be a great daily driver, it had one big flaw: rust. After a few years in the salt belt, these little minivans started fizzling like Alka-Seltzers as their sills and rear wheel arches rapidly developed corrosion. By the 2012 model year, it was time for a do-over.

If the 2006 to 2010 Mazda 5 was unusual, the 2012 model was downright zany. It was the only production Mazda ever to use the swooshy character lines of Franz von Holzhausen and Laurens van den Acker’s Nagare design language, but beneath the smiling exterior came a vastly improved model. The old 2.3-liter inline-four went in the bin, and a 2.5-liter unit took its place. The result was an extra five horsepower and 15 lb.-ft. of torque. At these power levels, that’s a noticeable increase.

The standard transmission was new too, a six-speed manual in place of the old five-speed. When Car and Driver tested a stick-shift example, the magazine clicked off an 8.3-second run from zero-to-60 mph. That’s not too shabby. Best of all, this heavily revised Mazda 5 kept its character. As the magazine wrote:

The suspension is compliant and comfortable, the smooth ride more reminiscent of the 6 sedan’s than that of the occasionally stiff 3 with which the 5 shares its underpinnings. The steering is precise—it certainly is more direct and provides more feel than you’d find in most small three-row crossovers or in a bigger van—and the 5 feels remarkably neutral, despite an unimpressive 0.78 g on our skidpad. Make no mistake, the 5 is bested by the 3 for smiles per mile, but it is way more gratifying than something with sliding doors has a right to be.

However, perhaps the most critical improvement was greater corrosion resistance. Even in salty climates, these final-generation Mazda 5s are still holding up. Sadly, the overall production run was relatively short. After the 2015 model year, the Mazda 5 bowed out of the U.S. market, although it stuck around in Canada through 2017.

Today, a second-hand Mazda 5 remains a reasonably priced, reasonably thrifty machine with a ton of practicality and the available fun of a manual transmission. They’re excellent used car buys, provided you pick one up that’s in good shape. Oh, and this isn’t enthusiast pandering, this is a make and model of car I’ve legitimately recommended to family. For a few thousand dollars, a Mazda 5 might be the daily driver you need.

Top graphic image: Mazda