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 On the upside, the 2011 lowers the taillights and eliminates the clear-lens-over-chrome style, which is outdated at best.

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    Safety
    The Mazda5 hasn't been crash-tested by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Its standard safety features include seat-mounted side-impact airbags for the front seats, plus side curtain airb ...

    Zoom-Zoom Handling
    The Mazda CX9 body shell has a highly rigid structure in the lower body with multiple cross members under the floor, a reinforced upper body area at the C-pillar, a high-tensile steel B-pillar and ...

    Windshield Wipers and Washer
    The ignition switch must be in the ON position. WARNING: Use only windshield washer fluid or plain water in the reservoir: Using radiator antifreeze as washer fluid is dangerous. If sprayed on t ...