Exterior & Styling

The sliding doors say "minivan," but many see the Mazda5 as a wagon. Minivans tend not to set hearts aflutter, but there's one thing I appreciate about the 2010 Mazda5, and that's its styling. It's nothing special, but it's also not the redesigned 2011 Mazda5 that's due at dealerships early in 2011; Mazda has already released photos (click on the thumbnails to the right). The 2011 has a less restrained design, including the smiling grille most new Mazda models get, plus a new characteristic: wavelike accent lines in the bodyside sheet metal. On the upside, the 2011 lowers the taillights and eliminates the clear-lens-over-chrome style, which is outdated at best.

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    Interior
    The CX-9 has front bucket seats, and the 60/40-split folding second-row seat has room for three. The second row's backrest can recline or fold flat, and the seat can slide fore and aft to optimize ...

    Warning/Indicator Lights
    Warning/Indicator lights will appear in any of the highlighted areas Brake System Warning Light This warning has the following functions: Parking brake warning The light illuminates when t ...

    Convertible Top (Power Retractable Hardtop)
    The power retractable hardtop opens/closes electrically by operating switches in the vehicle. When opening/closing the hardtop, the hardtop, deck and window glass operate together. The hardtop ...