It's just cheap and plain, nothing luxurious about it. But I do like that it doesn't try to be something it's not: nothing in the interior feels gimmicky or fabricated. This is a cheap car with a cheap interior. I would say that the engine is the worst large component on the car overall, something that Mazda addressed with the Mazda3 that replaced this car. It's adequate at best, and as it's aged it has developed a fair amount of vibration felt throughout the cabin. This is directly linked to the great handling qualities listed in the pros: you're simply not going to have the best of both worlds in an economy car of this age.ĭon't buy this car if you're looking for a great engine. This has a shorter wheelbase and a semi-firm suspension, so things can get bumpy. Not a great car for extended highway trips. Nearly everyone that rides in the car comments on how much road and engine noise there is. I've taken some of the interior apart and there is basically zero sound-deadening material installed from the factory. For me, I just like it, and that's been enough to not replace it yet. If you are less sensitive to its faults than I am you will absolutely love it. Would I buy it again? Probably, though I would seriously shop other hatchbacks/small wagons to see if I could avoid some of the things that bother me about this car. With these simple additions it could have been a much, much better car overall. It desperately needs much more sound deadening, about 20-30 more horsepower, and a sixth gear for highway cruising (70 mph is about 3300 rpm). It's the perfect size with the perfect steering feel, economy, and cost of maintenance/reliability. There may be minor changes to current model you are looking at. If I were to sum up how I feel about my P5: I desperately want to love this car, but am forced to just like it because it has never quite been the car I think it should have been. The following review is for a 2002 Model Year. I continue to own it because A) the positives continue to outweigh the negatives, and B) I have yet to find a newer car that I like better, is affordable, and is reliable. Owning this car has been a mostly positive experience with a number of drawbacks, most of them being the slow discovery of the faults of this car. I've now owned my P5 for 4 years and driven about 55,000 miles.
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