Mazda5

I've never been in one in person.

Do all of the seating positions have adjustable headrests? Is it reasonable to expect to fit four car seats (at least one RF, no boosters), at least on occasion?

Do the seats fold to accommodate cargo?

We are considering this for our second vehicle. We currently have a Toyota Sienna.

My 5 was a 2008.
There have been some changes since then, but nothing too incredibly major, from what I understand.

There are adjustable/removeable headrests in *all* seating positions. In my model, the headrests had to be down for installation, but that was redesigned in 2010, I believe, and you no longer need to.

The 2nd and 3rd row seats fold flat which creates an insane amount of cargo, should you need it. The 3rd row is a 50/50 split.

You could definitely fit 4 carseats, depending on what they are. The seats and seatbelts, I thought, were very carseat friendly. I never had an installation issue. I had issues with the 3rd row seatbelts with a high back booster, but again, my understanding is that Mazda redesigned those 3rd row seatbelts, so it may be a non-issue now. You could put your RF'ers in the middle row and your FF'ers in the 3rd row, that would, probably, take up the least amount of space. There is not a huge amount of legroom in the 3rd row, but it's definitely do-able, especially for a sometimes kind of thing.

There are top tethers for each rear seating position. Lower anchors in the middle row captain's chairs only.

I absolutely loved my 5. It has been my favorite car EVER. I, literally, cried when we traded it in for a fullsize minivan. But...such is life.

Good luck!

Thanks! We would actually be looking at used, 2006-2008 or so, so your comments were extremely helpful!

I've got some pics for you. Mine's an '07.

This is how the 2nd row seats fold down:


This is my 6' dh in the 3rd row, kindly demonstrating the leg room:


3rd row and 2nd row seats folded down - it's not quite 6':


4 kids; only one's in a carseat (driver-side 3rd row), one in a booster (driver-side 2nd row), one in a Britax laptop (passenger-side 3rd row), one in seatbelt:


They made the adjustments to the 3rd row seatbelts in '09, so if you're looking for used, start with that year if possible. They also added rear air vents and an armrest for the front passenger seat in '08. That said, I still love my '07. I'd love to upgrade and get the improved 3rd-row seat belts, the rear air vents, and the armrest, but those are minor issues for me.

We love our Mazda 5. We had issue installing Marathons in the back row, but had NO issue with the Nautlis. DD is RF in the middle with plently of leg room for us to drive (I am 5'2" and DH is 5'6", so not really "tall"...).

If you fold down the 3rd row you have a TON of room!

It's been a really great car for us and we love it! It's the perfect fit for our family.

Debbie, I think I PMed you forever ago about 3-across in a VW Golf, now I see you have a Mazda 5 as well? Are we car twins?!

I have three kids in seats and often take another child with no problems. You just aren't going to get 4 kids AND lots of stuff in it. I think the most I've done is 2 RFing seats, 1 FFing seat, 1 booster, 2 adults (in front) with a double Phil and Teds stroller in the back with the wheels off and a Graco umbrella stroller on the floor under a RFing car seat. i think the front passenger held her diaper bag and the soft cooler went on the floor under the kids' feet.

Hey that's what you need to take 4 kids to the zoo.

Now I have my RFer in the 3rd row in a CCO. My 7 yr old in a Nauti as a booster next to him and my almost 4 yr old in a FFing Radian in the middle row.

The only huge incompatibility that has mattered to me is that a FFing Radian doesn't fit in the 3rd row- but I knew about it before I got the 5. The Nautilus fits great back there harnessed or as a booster. I have an 08, and my DD passes the 5 step test in the 3rd row except because of the seatbelt geometry it's 3" in front of her, but the Nauti works great. She is smaller and needs a booster in about every other vehicle anyway.

RCCway said:

Debbie, I think I PMed you forever ago about 3-across in a VW Golf, now I see you have a Mazda 5 as well? Are we car twins?!

Click to expand...

LOL! Great minds think alike, I guess.

What is the issue with seatbelts in the third row? I'm not really clear, and I think the newest model year we will be able to get is going to be an 06 or 07.

The 3rd row seatbelts in the earlier model years (pre 2009) are just set *so far* forward that, without a booster, it leaves a very large gap between the belt and the chest. *I* didn't even fit properly back there. And with most boosters, the setting of the seatbelt just makes a really poor fit with and through the booster guide. Again, this was really only an issue with seatbelt or booster users, I never had an *installation* issue with any of the CRs I had or played with (except...FF RN).

Defrost actually had a really, really good thread a few years back: http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=18200