Mazda 5 drivers/owners here? question....

[ultraman6970]

Hi, guys i finally gave up trying to fix my town and country, the good news is that i found a mazda 5 with little milleage in a dealer around and since im not that familiar with the vehicle i have a few questions. 1st the only small car I had is a mustang lx 2.3L and that one i dont remember did the following, same a matrix my wife used to have.

I went to test the car and drives ok, some shaking in the steering that looks like normal but nothing that i couldnt fix myself IMO... probably a nice pair of continentals will fix the issue, the toyo stocks sucks, the control arms arent knoking or anything which is normal in those cars after a few years.

So took the oil cap off and I see a lot of air coming up from the crankcase and a puff puff puff puff sound...I thought was a problem of a head gasket busted but I was wondering if those cars do that due to compression dont remember my wife's matrix doing that. Any mazda 5 owners around?? mechanics???

If normal will go and get the car, super comfortable for the size, a lot easier to repair than my town and country aswell, besides dont need a big car anymore...

Thanks in advance...

UM.

[Mark McM]

At one point I had been considering getting a Mazda 5, but decided against it. While I might have been able to tolerate its poor fuel mileage, the thing that really turned me off was its poor crash test scores (https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle/mazda/5/2014).

Also, how is shaking in the steering wheel "normal"? That would put me off right there.

[efixler]

I had this car for a few years. It’s nominal practicality was somewhat overshadowed by general cheapness/junkieness. It has some charms but don’t expect it to take a beating and last.

[fmradio516]

At one point I had been considering getting a Mazda 5, but decided against it. While I might have been able to tolerate its poor fuel mileage, the thing that really turned me off was its poor crash test scores (https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle/mazda/5/2014).

Also, how is shaking in the steering wheel "normal"? That would put me off right there.

Depending on speed, it usually just means that the front wheels are out of balance.

[JAGI410]

Those are neat cars. 3rd row seating and an available manual trans?! Pretty rare combo.

Sometimes the puffing/air from the oil cap can point to a clogged PCV valve. Those are cheap and fairly easy to replace. I'd also check to see if that puffing can be felt from the dipstick tube as well, that would be a little more concerning.

[Ken Robb]

I'm not familiar with this model but our 2014 MAZDA3 sedan has been excellent in all ways. Our only problem was a common one where the touchscreen got erratic. MAZDA extended the warranty to cover them and replaced ours free. Routine maintenance at John Hine in San Diego has been excellent and very reasonable.

[ultraman6970]

Read about the shaking, looks like the car only likes expensive continental tires and this one shaked a little bit but had the toyo tire which are standard in this cars even if something needs to be done like change control arms I can work on that myself, is not like a problem.

Yeah I have to agree not a stellar car but well.. it was that or a 220k 2016 minivan for the same price and the mazda has like 70k... That;s the big issue, I can find something newer and better like a 6th gen minivan (i like minivans and sw) or a subaru but the mileage in those 2 are going to be close to 150k... and eventhought the 5 is a 2007 it has like 70k only. 1st owner drove it like for 2 months then went to a lady I think, 5k a year is a car that spend its time in the drive way.


But yeah I have to agree is not an stellar car at all but surprise me too that the market price is pretty high aswell. Found another 2012 90k, the problem is that they want 9k for it... way too much :/

BTW getting in and out of the second row is just fantastic, never thought my bigger kid was going to fit fine, he loved the room in the back for a car that small. So the 5 was kind'a... small and minivan-ish.

[AngryScientist]

i would not buy a car from a dealer with known problems. it's a different story if it's a private party sale and you're getting a real bargain and you know what you're getting into.

a front end that vibrates/shakes at speed is not normal, and can be a whole bunch of things from simple wheel unbalance to bad bushings to bent assemblies, and any combination of such.

i'd have them fix that before you consider purchasing.

[ultraman6970]

I mention the guy if they could check out both things, specially the puff puff part because I can not deal with a head gasket leaking... after a few years rubbers and arms in the suspension start knocking but in this one they arent so takes me to think about the the tires. Found a few threads about the toyo tires which are stock in those mazda 5s, looks like going continental which is a way better tire cured it, but well... ive driven each hooptie that a little thing here and there is nothing for me at this time :D

The car is in a big dealer, Ive got cars from there already so it was the 1st place we went to check. The guy txt me back said that they put it in for check up, so lets see whats going on.

[David Kirk]

I'd have a compression check done to see if the "puff, puff, puff" out of the oil cap isn't blow by into the crankcase.

dave

[benb]

Shaking in the steering can be damaged/corroded rotors or bent rims too.

Seems like a lot of stuff that should have been fixed already if it's at a dealer and with only 70k miles but I guess we're talking really great deal here so maybe it's at a cheap lot that just sells the cars as-is?

[ScottW]

"Some" blowby is normal, hence the existence of the PCV system, to reroute that little bit of positive pressure back to the intake. Compression test is never a bad idea, and easy enough to do on an inline 4-banger with the spark plug holes all lined up and easily accessible. Head gasket, you can check the dipstick for evidence of coolant in oil (unlikely, but quick and free) or use one of the test kits that go on the radiator to check for combustion gases making their way into the coolant. 70K would be pretty low for one of those MZR engines to have a major problem like this. It's not a high strung engine... not a lot of power relative to its displacement.

The shaking could be any combination of tires/balancing, ball joints, bushings, CVs. Agree they should provide it to you in a non-shaking condition. When I bought my used Subie, the dealership had already replaced the front lower control arms, whose bushings are known to go bad on my model. You pay more buying from a dealership than in a private party transaction, and a car in relatively tip-top shape (for the age) is what you should expect for that premium. You can be 100% certain that they fleeced whomever traded that in, so make them work a little bit for the money.

My neighbor had a Mazda 5. They're kinda cool, like a minivan that isn't. His ran well the entire time he owned it.

[ultraman6970]

IMo they based the price more than nothing in the milleage, rare to find a 07 with 70k miles. The sticker said "sold as is" but at the same time the car had been like for 20 days in the lot and winter sales are low too... and there's a reason for that IMO too.

Radio works, ac and heater work, all the stuff looks like is working just fine but the puff puff and the steering shaking... actually I did not feel the car like underpowered at all, it felt ok in the power dept in my 10 mins riding test (did not take it to the hwy tho)

I can get newer at c/l and some weird dealers for around the same prices but the milleage goes to 120k - 140k, and the next in the line for 90k miles is a 2012 but that is a premium car dealer and those want 9 thousand for it. Cant pay that much at all. The car dealer i went is a premium car dealer aswell.

The one im looking is 5500 which is lower than the KBB for the price already. Not a super deal but apparently those micro minivans are not cheap either.

[stien]

Ah, another minivan enthusiast!

I too contemplated the mazda 5 but was too put off by crash test ratings, reliability (not as good as Toyota) and lack of space vs regular minivan. I went with a 2006 Sienna 1 year ago.

My only regret is not getting one that was newer! I love it! Now we want to trade up for a 2010 top model with all the options...Ultra if you want to make a deal I did the timing belt, water pump, brake pads, new tires...can do a snow tire deal too.

However it sounds like you don’t need a big car anymore. I’d still have a hard time giving up at least enough space to get a few bikes in. Have you considered a gen 2 prius? They are extremely reliable, can fit two bikes in complete with two people and return great mileage. we also have one that we aren’t letting go of until it’s really done for.

[mktng]

Solid cars. Depending on year. It'll likely rot to death before mechanically dying. My father in law's 05/06 Mazda 5 AT is rolling over 440k km. Original motor and transmission. No crazy maintenance besides the regular maintenance items.

It's rotting though. But trucking along.

Mazda 2.3L engine is quite good. I really liked my 06 3 GT. Easy to work on and loads of stuff online for tutorials.

For the burning from the engine bay. Can be alot of stuff. Get it thoroughly checked out by a knowledgable mechanic before buying. Steering issue can be one of few things like bent rotors as mentioned above. Worn tires. Steering components. My issue were bent rims. Apparently Mazda makes their rims out of crappy metals. Fuel consumption is also not as good as what you'd imagine from a 4cyl 2.3. But it's not bad.

I'd jump on a Mazda 5 if they re-released with optional AWD.

[ultraman6970]

Well. checked out the siennas and at least here everything has way too much millage IMO... btw were are you located? :D