Minivans are passe. Station wagons are so outdated. But families still exist, and couples young and old still enjoy getting out and about. And, of course, gas prices continue to climb, or show little or no sign of returning to levels U.S. drivers consider normal.
What to do? Why, buy a crossover, or what some used to call a hybrid: a car that's more than a car, but isn't really a minivan or a station wagon, either. Whatever they're called, they fit somewhere in between those two, socially dated vehicles, trying to blend the best of both without mixing in any of the downsides of either.
The newest iterations are about the size of a car, but slightly taller, and often share underpinnings with cars. They use the same powertrains, albeit tuned to motivate generally slightly heavier and bulkier packages. But they find room inside for a minimum of six people, sometimes seven. There's generally not much cargo space. But hey, something has to give.
Into this ballooning fray enters the 2006 Mazda5, a six-passenger vehicle built, believe it or not, on the foundation underlying the company's smaller sedan, the Mazda3. Granted, it has been stretched this way and that, and beefed up here and there, but the lion's share of the mechanicals source directly from that car. Equally telling, the Mazda5 weighs about the same as the Mazda6, but it's more compact than the largest of Mazda's five-passenger sedans. See how the game's played?
The result is one of those esoteric truisms, where the total is better than the sum of its parts. Not great, mind you, but better. Just like a minivan, the Mazda5 really will accommodate six adults, although a couple might have to make some less-than-comfortable adaptations, again, not unlike with some minivans. With the back two rows of seats folded, it'll hold as much or more than a station wagon. And it drives better than either a wagon or a minivan.
The base Mazda5 Sport starts at $17,435, the Touring at $18,350. Tricked out with every available factory option, the Touring lists at less than $22,500. Looked at this way, there's no competition.