 2012 Mazda5 GS; photo by Chris Chase. Click image to enlarge |
By Chris Chase
To the casual observer of automobiles, Mazda’s introduction of the Mazda5 to Canada in 2006 marked the beginning of a new trend in family-friendly vehicles. That was bolstered in 2007 with the arrival of the Kia Rondo, a vehicle whose only major difference was in its swing-out rear doors, where the Mazda uses sliders.
Earlier this year, Ford announced it would bring its Focus-based C-MAX to Canada for 2012, the same year Chevrolet will intro its Orlando north of the border. These four vehicles, all of which are sold in other markets, some under different names, are just the tip of the iceberg. In Europe, these multi-purpose vehicles (MPVs, not to be confused with the now-defunct Mazda minivan of the same name), as they’re classified, are everywhere, serving as that continent’s equivalent of the crossovers and minivans so popular here.
Alas, the multi-purpose vehicle, or MPV, is not new to Canada. We first saw vehicles like these nearly 30 years ago! There was the 1982 Nissan Multi, a boxy caricature of a hatchback that was related to the Nissan Stanza (a car that was eventually replaced by the Altima), and the 1983 Dodge/Plymouth Colt Vista, and Eagle Vista wagon, a trio of Mitsubishi-built vehicles sold by the Chrysler group, and positioned beneath the company’s famous minivans, which debuted the same year.
  Nissan Multi – photo courtesy Wikipedia user Infrogmation; Dodge Colt Vista – photo courtesy OldParkedCars.com. Click image to enlarge |
If you wanted to stretch the definition even further, you could include cars like the Honda Civic Wagovan of the mid-1980s, and Toyota’s Tercel 4WD station wagon (Civic and Tercel photos courtesy of OldParkedCars.com) of the 1980s and Corolla All-Trac wagon (photo courtesy Svana.org), sold from 1988 through 1992. While seating was limited to five in these cars, they all sported tall rooflines that enhanced interior space beyond what was typical in a small wagon.
(As an aside, OldParkedCars.com has loads of photos of mostly clean examples of cars, both nifty and normal, from decades past, and is well worth checking out.)
The Vista was a true predecessor to the Mazda5 and Rondo in that it offered three-row, seven-passenger seating (in a vehicle whose engine 2.0-litre made 96 horsepower), while the Multi was strictly a five-seater. The Nissan also used a 2.0-litre engine, with 97 horsepower.
In 1988, the Multi was redesigned into the Axxess, a sleeker, more powerful (with a 138-hp, 2.4-litre motor) vehicle that foreshadowed the look of the 1993 Nissan Quest (also sold as the Mercury Villager). The Axxess would ultimately be dropped in favour of the Quest, whose subsequent generations grew in size, along with its competitors in the minivan segment.
Meanwhile, the Vista was redesigned into the Colt wagon (Dodge) and Summit wagon (Eagle) in 1992, and gained a pair of new engines: a 113-hp, 1.8-litre and a 2.4-litre.
Both the Axxess and Vista succumbed in 1995 to poor sales, no doubt thanks to the success of the larger, more powerful and more versatile minivan.
  Nissan Axxess – photo courtesy Wikipedia user dave_7; Dodge Colt Vista – photo courtesy Michael Gil. Click image to enlarge |
The automotive marketplace is a much different place now than it was in the 1980s and 1990s, but MPVs are making an apparent comeback. The new surge in their popularity probably has to do with rising fuel costs, and, related to that, a desire in many motorists to drive smaller vehicles that offer a level of utility approaching that of a crossover or minivan.
The six-seat Mazda5 is in its second generation now, having been redesigned for 2012, and as in 2006, is a reasonably satisfying vehicle to drive. It’s not perfect – its 157-horsepower engine works hard when you’re in a hurry, and the clutch and shifter in manual transmission models aren’t as nicely-tuned as in most Mazdas – but it’s a nice alternative to a minivan (all of which are anything but mini these days) or a crossover.
The Rondo (a five-seater that can be optioned to carry seven) is in its twilight, having been discontinued in the U.S. due to falling sales, though it soldiers on in Canada for 2011, at least. It’s still a decent vehicle despite its age, offering four-cylinder and V6 power, the latter a stronger performer than the Mazda’s motor.
Kia showed a concept called the KV7 at the 2011 Detroit auto show, and this wacky vehicle – it has yellow swivelling seats, teak flooring, a retractable dashboard and a floating table-top touch-screen computer inside – could wind up being the basis for a future MPV, or a replacement for the also-aging Sedona minivan. Sales numbers suggest the Rondo should win out, though, as Kia sold 6,307 of them in 2010, compared to just 1,615 Sedonas. For the record, Mazda sold 7,532 Mazda5s in Canada last year.
  2012 Ford C-MAX; 2012 Chevrolet Orlando. Click image to enlarge |
As for the newcomers to the MPV field, the Orlando uses a 2.4-litre, direct-injected four-cylinder engine that makes 178 horsepower, and seats seven. While General Motors had planned to sell it in the U.S., the company ultimately decided not to do so, but it will go on sale in Canada later this year as a 2012 model. GM has also shown a GMC concept called the Granite; it’s similar to the Orlando, but it’s unclear if it will be produced.
The seven-seat 2012 Ford C-MAX will be offered with a choice of four-cylinder, starting with a 2.5-litre four-cylinder in base models, and a turbocharged EcoBoost 1.6-litre, boasting similar power but lower fuel consumption, will be the option.
On the eco-friendly front, Ford plans to sell hybrid and full-electric versions of its MPV, called C-MAX Hybrid and C-MAX Energi, respectively. Toyota has a Prius-based MPV in the pipe, called the Prius v, a five-seater boasting frugal fuel consumption and a notable increase in interior space compared to the standard Prius.
The future of the MPV in Canada will hinge on the success of the new Mazda5 and the latest additions to the segment, and it will be particularly interesting to see how buyers in this class take to Ford and Toyota’s hybrid/electric versions. An MPV may not be the most exciting vehicle to drive, but it will be interesting to watch how the market for them plays out.
