Test Drive Mazda MPV 1999 - 2006

Comparison of the minivans of Toyota Estima, Honda Odyssey, Mazda MPV

Who are they, Possible Toyota Estima car competitors?
A step forward in the right direction, it is likely that you can regard the appearance of the third generation to the Toyota Estima car market. If you calculate, it turns out that the last model of this family appeared on the light after a little over 15 years after the first car's debut under the name. For any knowledgeable person, it's only a look at a new car, it will not be difficult to understand that in front of him everything is also Estima, although a new sample. But in fact, under this habitual, in general, the appearance hides a newly calculated carrying body and a fully updated force unit. It is interesting for us to compare this car with other popular minivans of a similar class.
So, first, a few words about the Toyota Estima car, which is equipped with a 3.5 liter engine, the price of which fluctuates from 3 million 213 thousand to 3 million 885 thousand yen.
Elevated and perceived completely updated.
From the very day, when the first Toyota Estima car appeared on the market, the car that specialists called not otherwise, as promising or suggestive, passed more than 15 years. He was really prepared by the happy fate of the long-lived. It is enough just to say that in 10 years, so far its production went, approximately 1 million 100 thousand cars were released. Then it is time to change generations. It happened if anyone remembers in 2000. After that, for 6 years, a 2-generation car was produced, they were produced a total of about 600 thousand units. And it should be recognized that when this model, along with the Honda Odyssey car, attribute a decisive role in the formation of a new type of minivan on the Japanese market, then this is not an exaggeration.
But January 2006 came, and a new, third model Estima appeared on the market. Despite the catchy appearance, it is perceived as a car close to the spirit of the old sample. This fact is a convincing evidence that the authors of the Estima project are deeply convinced: such a body configuration that can be chopped as a monoform based on an ellipse and caused by this peculiar appearance of Estima has not yet exhausted their potential to conquer buyers' sympathies.
So with external forms, everything seems to be clear. As for internal content, there is a complete update here. Judge for yourself: both the platform, and the engine, and the design of the suspension, - all these components turned out to be completely updated. Needless to say, new development is always additional costs. And the fact that Toyota still decided to continue to invest in this project, makes this model even more attractive to buyers.
A distinctive feature of the Estima car's new sample is that never before this car has not been equipped with an engine with such a large working volume. It should be noted that this 3.5-liter motor with six V-figuratively located cylinders has already been tested on the LEXUS GS and IS brand machines, as well as on the Toyota Crown car. However, when preparing for installation on a minivan, it was rewritten and refined, in particular, in terms of the injection system. As a result, the developing capacity increased to 280 horsepower.
More interesting to note is that this engine is combined with a 6-speed automatic transmission. It is important, a clear case, not the very fact of a combination of a powerful engine with a multistage machine. The fact is that this time it was decided to abandon the Box of the AISHIN brand traditional for Toyota cars, and instead, to use their own development, on which, according to the company's representative, was spent as much as 4 years. This metamorphosis has not become the only one. Another feature for the first time on a car coming to the inner Japanese market, the BOSH brake system was applied. This, of course, the work of the manufacturer, to decide whose aggregates to put on your car, but the fact of some changes in the selection of components cannot do not intrigue.
And one more interesting point: as one generation of Estima cars change to others, more and more values \u200b\u200bare attached to its rating on the inner Japanese market. Remember that the very first model was customized exclusively under the requirements of the North American buyer, but her descendant in the third knee is mainly produced for Japan. Why is mainly and not exclusively, because some of the cars produced will still go abroad to the countries of the Asian region.
Specifications of the Estima 3.5aeras S model with a 7-seater body:
Length 4795 mm x Width 1800 mm x Height 1745 mm.
Wheel base: 2950 mm.
Machine weight: 1830 kg.
Drive: on the front wheels
Engine: 3.5-liter, 6-cylinder with V-shaped cylinders, developed power 280 hp at 6200 rpm, the greatest torque is 35.1 kg / m at 4700 rpm.
Machine price: 3 million 423 thousand yen.

Competitor number 1 Honda Odyssey. Typical Honda with all the advantages and minuses.
According to the external features, in particular, at a low altitude, sufficient so that the car gets on the covered passenger parking lot, on the loop back door, - the Honda Odyssey car is not perceived as a direct competitor of the Estima car. But at the same time, the positions conquered by this car in the market of minivans do not allow to discount it from accounts. Indeed, her layout, which is based on completely different principles than Toyota Estima, puts the Odyssey car in one row with passenger universities, which have an additional row of seats in the cabin. Yes, and on some other signs, in particular, by the width of the review, which opens from the driver's seat, or on the work of the steering wheel suspension, this car resembles a sedan more than a minivan.
The Toyota Estima model is already available in its third generation, but still claims to keep the title of stylish minivan. As for the Odyssey Machine, then after her creators felt that competitors began to successfully reproduce its features and crowded, thus, in the market, they decided to look for a new horse. This skate became the height, more precisely, the lowland of her body. Thanks to purposeful and consistent work on a decrease in the center of gravity and a decrease in the total height of the machine, the authors and developers of the ODYSSEY project it was achieved that in terms of charters among cars with 3rd row of seats in the cabin of their brainchild, it seemed not to be equal. It came to the point that the passengers sitting as in the 2nd and 3rd row arise the same sensations when the car, for example, follows the section of the road, replete with steep turns. It is so unusual that they begin to get lost in guesses: so what is it minivan or not?! And this is how it impossibles more accurately characterizes the essence of the modern Honda Odyssey car.
Or take, for example, the appearance of the front panel of the cabin. Of course, in places it sins excessive simplistic, but as applies to an enlarged dashboard, its design is largely contrary to the generally accepted representation of how this element of the interior should look like in a typical family car minivane. The control panel of the on-board navigation system, which initially causes a two-way attitude, it is worth only to start using it, it turns out to be so thoughtful that even blindly can help him. Visual design work of the navigation system (Type Telematics), which is made in such a way as that God forbid, once again do not distract the driver from the road, is not at all saturated, as in the G-Book Alpha system, which is equipped with a Toyota Estima salon. But it does not prevent him from being no less interesting.
If you agree with the point of view that the Toyota Estima car, which, as they say, is aiming in the apple, is a bright representative of the automotive park produced by Toyota, then the car Odyssey with its peculiar appearance is typical Honda.
Technical characteristics of the model Honda Odyssey L:
Length 4765 mm x Width 1800 mm x Height 1550 mm.
Wheel base: 2830 mm.
Machine weight: 1650 kg.
Drive: on the front wheels
Engine: 2.4-liter, 4-cylinder with inline cylinders arrangement, developed power 160 hp At 5500 rpm, the largest torque is 22.2 kg / m at 4500 rpm.
Machine price: 2 million 772 thousand yen.

Competitor number 2 Mazda MPV. The late excellent student who is missed.
When developing this car, someone voiced the slogan that the passengers who take place in the third row should still be located between the front and rear axle. And for the realization of this position, the wheel base of the new car was decided to lengthen 110 mm against the previous model, thus bringing this indicator to 2950 mm. But by a strange coincidence, it turned out that after the complete replacement of its model rows and the Mazda MPV car, and the Toyota Estima car was equal to this indicator.
In the fate of these two cars there is another coincidence: both, and the other began to be produced mainly for implementation within Japan, and not in the North America market, as it was before. And if so, then the body, on the idea of \u200b\u200bdevelopers, if it can be relatively massive, still in size should not go beyond the limits of the Japanese standards of the border. This is how it happened that the length and width of the car Mazda MPV began to be 4860 mm respectively (for individual categories of 4870 mm), and the width is 1850 mm. In other words, in width, and the length of the MPV model slightly bypassed the Estima car. Nevertheless, as it is not strange, it is even perceived even more compact than the Toyota brand machine. And the reason for this lies, it seems to me that the floor of the cabin turned out to be slightly lowered down, respectively, the height of the car as a whole was also reduced. The reduction in the height of the new generation machine takes place in the Toyota Estima model (by 40 mm), but it is still not so noticeable as the height of the height in the MPV car of the new sample (45 mm).
Whether Mazda's designers could not find a worthy 6-cylinder engine for the MPV vehicle of a new sample, and the American motor, which is produced at the subsidiary, turned out to be unsuitable due to its noise and insufficient pickup, it is unclear. But the fact remains: part of the MPV machines was decided to equip 4-cylinder engines, re-equipped turbocharger. To this end, a ready-made 2.3-liter engine was taken, which are equipped with Mazda Atenza cars, and reconfigured taking into account the features of the operation of minivan type machines. In particular, its turbocharger (type Turbo Charger) was reoriented in such a way that the peak of the torque turned out to be shifted towards the revolutions range, which are most often used when driving at an average rate. As a result of such an improvement and bringing the maximum motor power to 245 hp, and also thanks to the successful selection of a 6-speed automatic transmission, the car began to be characterized by a remarkable overclocking dynamics. Whatever enough, it is not inferior to a similar indicator of the new Toyota Estima model, although, as already mentioned, the latter is equipped with a 6-cylinder V-shaped motor. True, it is only a little more stronger than you need, click on the accelerator pedal, how the feeling immediately appears that the turbocharger turns into operation too actively. And this may cause anxiety feeling of those drivers who are accustomed to adhere to the regime of tough fuel economy.
It should be noted that the MPV model with a simple engine also develops a decent crave, and the suspension of controlled wheels is designed in such a way that the balance between handling and comfort is at a sufficiently high level. Due to this, the car, although not a turbo, demonstrates decent running quality. Although the sake of justice should be replaced, which is probably due to the rude quality of materials used to finish the car, it looks not so pretentious as Toyota Estima or Honda Odyssey. Well, that, let him come later, and it looks a little more modest. Moreover, he has reason to become a diligent student.
Specifications Mazda MPV 23C Sporty Package model:
Length 4870 mm x width 1850 mm x Height 1685 mm.
Wheel base: 2950 mm.
Machine weight: 1730 kg.
Drive: on the front wheels
Engine: 2.3-liter, 4-cylinder with inline cylinders arrangement, developed power 163 hp at 6500 rpm, the largest torque of 21.4 kg / m at 4000 rpm.
Machine price: 2 million 596 thousand yen.
 
 

A source: WebCG.net.