if we were to drive our rental car to the area of Plaza Mayor and park at the parking area near (if one exists)the Plaza mayor, is this a fairly safe place to leave an auto unattended?
or are there better options? muchas gracias

Believe me, safety wouldn't be an issue, but total lack of parking space could! It would be wise to check out the several subterranean parking lots around as you mention, some might be full, but some are likely to have some spaces vacant; this depends very much on the time of day you'd be going there. Friday and Saturday evening? Tough call!!!

Last summer we drove our car into Madrid and parked in the parking directly under the Plaza Mayor. We left it there for three days while staying at Hostal Tijcal, without incident. It was convenient and reasonably priced. I should point out that our car belonged to our Spanish friends, so it did not look like a tourist car. To be on the safe side, I would leave nothing inside, except for perhaps a local newspaper. Happy travels!

Whoa.. Wait everyone. Let's not jump to conclusions. Maybe chuck is asking about Salamanca's Plaza Mayor, or that of Chinchon or Segovia or Cuenca or Zamora or maybe even Málaga.

Afterall, this IS an ALL SPAIN Message Board (not just Madrid) and I'm sure everyone knows that by now. Right?