2006 MAZDA MPV

powertrain dies at 59K/6yrs

Performance: 2 Comfort: 1 Fuel Economy: 3 Fun To Drive: 1 Interior Design: 3 Exterior Design: 4 Build Quality: 2 Reliability: 1 Comfort Rating: 1 Performance Rating: 2 Interior Rating: 3 Reliability Rating: 1

Auto-transmission broke down at 59K, 6 yrs: back and forth between gear 1 and 2. Had to get a tow. Am the first owner. Was having hard-shift right after the purchase. Mazda's attitude: hard-shift not reproducible, cannot fix. Seeing so many other MPV owners' complaints on transmission problems, hard to believe Mazda not facing MPV transmission issue honestly. Transmission breaking down is estimated to cost $4K to fix/replace.

More than satisfied

Performance: 5 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 4 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5

Bought this car private party, 2 years old with 9500 miles. Two and a half years later we have 43K miles with absolutely no repairs. Replaced the factory tires with 90K Goodyears and they are fantastic. This car has met or exceeded my expectations in every way.

Was Not Happy

Performance: 2 Comfort: 2 Fuel Economy: 2 Fun To Drive: 2 Interior Design: 2 Exterior Design: 4 Build Quality: 2 Reliability: 4 Comfort Rating: 2 Performance Rating: 2 Interior Rating: 2 Reliability Rating: 4

Well my mom had purchased this van a year prior with a new kid on the way I was excited to be a minivan owner. It was a really late night when they do those crazy specials at midnight!? I didn't test drive it because I've been driving my moms for quite some time, got it home to notice that our van had NO REAR AIR!!! I couldn't believe they made vans without it! My moms came standard with it, didn't realize it was missing til the next morning when it was freezing cold taking our 2 young kids out!! I've had to put fans in the back to just get by in the summer. It is brutal. I was very upset that the sales people sold it they had to know!! will never go back again!!!

Family Utilitarian

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

We have two young daughters with a child on the way and our MPV has been great. It drives like a sedan. The window sills are low, which allows great visibility from the driver's seat. It has more than enough power, but gets better than expected gas mileage. The third row seat folds down into the floor to provide exceptional storage capacity. It has served our family well.

Stands out from the crowd

Performance: 4 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 3 Fun To Drive: 4 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5

I've only owned this vehicle for 4 months but so far, it's been great. I love the size. It's not a tank (aka Odyssey/Sienna). I also like having a vehicle that isn't on every corner. The MPV really stands out from the crowd. Took it on a long trip this summer and it performed flawlessly. The interior doesn't have that cheap quality feel that some cars have. It feels solid.

Decent van for the price

Performance: 4 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 2 Fun To Drive: 3 Interior Design: 3 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 3 Reliability Rating: 5

I had my eye on this van since I bought our last car several years ago. Mazda had built this generation MPV for 8 years or so, and so had plenty of time to work out any kinks. And it shows in terms of reliability and quality.

Love This Minivan

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5

Used to have SUVs and sedans; with 2 kids needed something bigger - OMG! a van! NO WAY I thought. Loved this one for style, features, price, not a gargantuan van. Drove Honda and Toyota too big and too pricey. This one is just right size for city and Handles like a dream! Everyone is happy now in this van. LOVE the dual sliding doors and section controled air. Never thought I'd say it but I just love this thing! Wish they would bring it back. The Mazda 5 is just too small for us with pets and relatives aboard.

Great Van for the dollar.

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

My wife and I thought we would never purchase a minivan. We both have SUVs, a Land Cruiser 95 and Land Rover Disco 97. Now we have a son, with the car seat in the back it is a little cramped. The person sitting next to the car set just doesn’t have room. Both SUVs have the 3 row sets still not comfortable. We look at all the vans only the MPV, Honda and Toyota were considered. Well, we got the MPV black sport with side air bags and rear air. No auto sliding doors. WOW great ride, excellent van. Acceleration. Drives like a car. Only got 7k on it so far. Only problem, at the port where the MPV came in, factory options are put in. During the roof rack install, screw installed wrong, leaked. New headliner required.

You Can Get Em Cheap

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5

My wife needed a minivan and didn't want the minivan looks. We rented a MPV and liked it. We test drove the Quest and Sedona. Both of those had interior parts fall off during our test drives. Saw a new MPV in an ad at a local dealer for $15,488. Heavy rebates and dealer took off another $1K for Mazda financing. Can't beat the price and runs great. The dealers want to get rid of these so you can get them for a steal if you can find them.

Initial Delivery Quality questionable

Performance: 4 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 1 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 3 Reliability: 3 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 3

Within 24 hours of MPV delivery by dealer, the "check engine" light went on. A defective/damaged fuel cap was the cause. Other than that, it is fun to drive this MPV. Engine is powerful but acceleration is not linear. Price is attractive, $17K out to door for LX-SV, probably because this is the last model year.

Extremely Pleased

Performance: 4 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

Bought this minivan for my business and was so impressed with the ride, gas mileage and features, that we took it on vacation for 10 days. It doesn't ride like a minivan. It rides like a car. The standard stereo and CD with steering wheel controls is excellent. I test drove a 2005 Kia Sedona and found the Mazda MPV to be more quiet, smooth and stable. Don't overlook this one!

Love it!

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

By far the best looking and most fun to drive minivan. Great for road trips too. Surprising amount of features and storage for small nimble size.

Great minivan

Performance: 5 Comfort: 3 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 4 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 3 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

The MPV is everything I had expected in a minivan and the price was also very good. The only thing I would change on the vehicle would be the leg room. When you have a baby carrier in it you have the keep the front seats up closer to the steering wheel and this is hard on tall people. So you are not comfortable when you drive, especially long distances.

New computer after 300 miles!

Performance: 4 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 2 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 4 Reliability: 4 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 4

Purchased car this month and after 300 miles, the computer went out and left us stranded in the middle of 5 lanes of traffic...sideways! Dealer very helpful and gave us a loaner car and replaced computer in less than a week. Very happy customer with this dealership. When accelerating from a stop, sometimes...sometimes...it feels like power is not constant. Almost like driving a turbo with turbo lag.

Mazda 06

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

We liked the Sienna LE okay but didn't care for its almost $29,000 price tag. Saw an advertisement in the paper, Mazda MPV LX 2006 for $16,397. Called the dealer, confirmed the price, got the color and stock number and went to pick up the car. No hassle negotiating! The Mazda was about $7500 off MSRP. Have been driving almost a month now and love every minute of it.

The greatest vehicle EVER

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

When I went shopping for a new automobile, I was convinced that an SUV was right for me. That was until I drove a MPV. When Mazda says it has the soul of a sports car, they mean it. With better fuel economy that SUV's of comparable size, pick up better than most sedans and enough room to fit a love seat in the back, the MPV is the GREATEST automobile I have EVER had the pleasure of purchasing.

Runs Great

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

Prior to purchasing the MPV I looked at the Honda as well as the Toyota and I considered a few things. Although the Honda and Toyota offered more power and size, #1 I realized it’s not a race car and I’m not trying to give the entire world a ride. Bottom line it made more economical since to get the MPV. I purchased the LX loaded including the DVD system. The same options would hurt the pocketbook with the competitors. It looks great and very unique in a positive way. I constantly get comments on it. It runs really smooth but doesn’t float. I’m not sure what the experts are looking for but it drives more like a car than a van. Adjustable second row makes in/out access easy.

I really like this van

Performance: 5 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

I really love driving this van. It drives like a car and I get comments on it all the time. The power thing has never been a problem, if fact I think it has plenty of power. The tranny problem was fixed right away and has yet to be an issue since (programming error in control module). I'm glad I got it loaded, and we paid quite a bit less than invoice with add ons. I'm disappointed they are going to stop making this van. I would definitely buy another.

Nice, Very Nice

Performance: 4 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 3 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

To me this vehicle represented a great deal. I wanted a Japanese made minivan since they last longer than other brands. I shopped price and options. Honda, Toyota, and Nissan, all had nice vans, but they would not move on price. Well Honda and Toyota were pretty much firm, Nissan came down a bit, but Mazda will give the best deal. My guess is the other vans are a bit larger so they are in more demand. Heck, this vehicle is loaded and I saved at least $10K as compared to the other brands. My 4 year old loves it.

Love IT

Performance: 5 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

I just bought a new 2006 Mazda LX-SV and love it. The way it drives and handles, the look and layout of the seats. I love that the 2 middle seats can be close or apart from each other. It handles very nicely and comfortable to sit in.

Very reliable

Performance: 4 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 4 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5

Excellent and good looking vehicle, no major problem as of today. Good handling, braking is average in winter conditions and the windshield seems to be a problem (had to be changed twice - cracked by small rocks impacts). You should consider buying a rear step protector because the paint can be easily scratched when loading or unloading from the cargo bay. Too bad that Mazda want to replace it with a cross-whatever vehicle (Mazda 7).

Great Minivan

Performance: 4 Comfort: 5 Fuel Economy: 5 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 5 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

Loaded with features at an awesome price. 17" wheels, leather, moonroof, 6 disc CD changer, dual air, roll down rear windows, power sliding doors, and more. My gas mileage on the highway has been 26.5 mpg consistently. It is garageable in a single car garage.

good deal

Performance: 4 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 4 Fun To Drive: 5 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

i got the LX-SV for less than $18k out the door. It's not as comfy as the Sienna but for the price it will do. Took it on a few 2 hour rides and no complaints so far. The gas mileage is average for a van. Handling is decent with good road feel (unlike other vans). A basic Sienna without side airbags would have cost about $5k more. The transmission has felt fine so far.

Best Minivan for the Price

Performance: 4 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 3 Fun To Drive: 4 Interior Design: 4 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 5 Reliability: 4 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 4 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 4

We looked at every other van on the market and for the price it was a great buy. Plus Mazda is willing to cut a deal to get you in one of their cars. We paid well under the listed price for this van. The power is great for a 3.0L vehicle of this size. The transmission is a bit slow to respond; that would be my only complaint. But not many of the vans we tried responded like a race car. We spent a week in the Sierras driving on and even a little off-road (mostly fire roads) and had no issues. With a family of 6 we would have liked the van to be a little longer to store more equipment. But it worked. Great style and power for $10,000 less than the Honda.

2 years old -19 mpg

Performance: 3 Comfort: 4 Fuel Economy: 1 Fun To Drive: 2 Interior Design: 5 Exterior Design: 5 Build Quality: 4 Reliability: 5 Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 3 Interior Rating: 5 Reliability Rating: 5

All the Mazda's have a problem with the transmission where it feels like you got hit by another car. It's the transmission shifting. It only happens every few months, but they won't fix the problem. The gas mileage is lower than they say at 19 mpg with part highway and part in town. If it is all freeway, and you drive 60 or less, you can get 24 mpg. I got that once. Overall I love the van, but the gas is too expensive now, so I'm selling. No other problems have ever occurred, and I have 24,000 miles.