Dubbed the Mazda5 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca (MRLS) support vehicle, the six-seater family car has been reimagined with a slightly sportier flair.
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As well as adopting the company's trademark smiley face grille up front, the new Mazda5 also uses swoopy elements of Mazda's 'Nagare Flow' design language that was previewed on several concept cars including the Furai.
Like its predecessor, the new '5 comes with sliding rear-doors and can accommodate up to seven passengers in three rows of seats.
Among the engine options will be Mazda's newly-developed 2.0-litre four-cylinder gasoline engine with direct-injection and i-stop, linked to a six-speed manual transmission with gear ratios specific to this version.
The gasoline line-up will also features a 1.8-liter engine with a six-speed manual transmission.
The all-new Mazda5 is scheduled to go on sale across Europe later this year with more details to be released at the Geneva motor show.
Citing the continued weakening of the British Pound against the Euro and rising costs in materials, Mazda UK announced that prices of its Mazda6 and Mazda5 range will be going up by 2 percent in April. This move will raise the prices of Mazda6 cars by an average of £345 and Mazda5 vehicles by £323 starting from April 1st - no, this ain't an April Fool's Day joke..."Recent rises in some raw materials costs and fluctuations in the Yen/Pound exchange rate mean that we have to increase prices on the Mazda5 and Mazda6 range from 1 April," commented Mark Cameron, Sales & Marketing Director Mazda UK. "We are keeping these rises to just 2 percent, which is much less than the increases introduced by many other brands," he added.
The 2008 Mazda5 facelift will make its European debut at the Bologna Motor Show, starting December 5, 2007. Set to hit European showrooms in early 2008, the facelifted compact MPV features a revised 2.0-liter powertrain, new power sliding doors, enhanced comfort and safety along with suspension revisions. -Continued after the jumpThe MRZ 2.0-liter petrol engine has been completely revised and now has electric throttle and sequential valve timing (S-VT), which makes maximum torque available at a much lower engine speed than before. Two newly-introduced transmissions enhance the revised engine: a six-speed manual transmission as standard and an optional five-speed automatic – a first for the Mazda5 line-up. According to Mazda, the new MZR 2.0-litre uses 4 percent less fuel than the outgoing 2.0-litre. The revised MPV also features new front dampers and a refined suspension along with a newly optimized brake booster.
The 2008 Mazda5 can be equipped optionally with new power sliding rear doors that open and close in less than five seconds and stop automatically if obstructed. They are operated by a button from the driver’s seat, by the door handles or by the remote control key.
Inside, the Mazda5 facelift features a new navigation and audio systems while the interior is quieter and more comfortable thanks to the new multi-resonator located around the fresh air intake duct that lowers engine noise, strengthened wheel rims and Thinsulate insulation sheeting newly added to the roof liner to reduce road noise.
