2009 MAZDA MODEL RX 8 tow

Black plate (93,1)
Door Locks
WARNING
Always take all children and pets with
you or leave a responsible person with
them:Leaving a child or a pet unattended
in a parked vehicle is dangerous. In
hot weather, temperatures inside a
vehicle can become high enough to
cause brain damage or even death.
Do not leave the key in your vehicle
with children and keep them in a place
where your children will not find or
play with them: Leaving children in a vehicle with the
key is dangerous. This could result in
someone being badly injured or even
killed. They could play with power
windows or other controls, or even
make the vehicle move.
Keep all doors locked when driving: Unlocked doors in a moving vehicle
are dangerous. Passengers can fall
out if a door is accidentally opened
and can more easily be thrown out in
an accident.
Always close all the windows, lock the
doors and take the key with you when
leaving your vehicle unattended: Leaving your vehicle unlocked is
dangerous as children could lock
themselves in a hot vehicle, which
could result in death. Also, a vehicle
left unlocked becomes an easy target
for thieves and intruders.
qLocking, Unlocking with Key
The driver's door can be locked/unlocked
with the key.
Turn the key toward the front to unlock,
toward the back to lock.
Unlock
Lock
qLocking, Unlocking with Request
Switch (with Advanced Key)
The doors can be locked/unlocked by
operating the request switch while
carrying the advanced key outside the
vehicle, refer to Operations Using
Advanced Keyless Functions (page 3-7).
qLocking, Unlocking with
Transmitter (with Advanced Key)
The doors can be locked/unlocked by
operating the keyless entry system
transmitter, refer to Keyless Entry System
(page 3-14).
qLocking, Unlocking with Transmitter
(with Retractable Type Key)
The doors can be locked/unlocked by
operating the keyless entry system
transmitter, refer to Keyless Entry System
(page 3-22).
Knowing Your Mazda
Doors and Locks
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (106,1)
Retractable type key
Lock buttonUnlock button
Trunk button Panic button
Operation
indicator light
NOTElThe unlock button does not operate unless
it is pressed twice sequentially.
lThe lock button cannot be used to close the
power windows.
With key
1. Insert the key in the driver's door key
cylinder.
2. Turn the key toward the front and hold it. After the doors are unlocked, the
windows fully open automatically.
Open
To stop this operation, turn the key to the
center position, then turn it toward the
front again. NOTE
The window opening operation also can be
stopped by turning the key toward the back.
However, the doors will lock.
Closing
The windows can be closed in case they
are left open after getting out of the
vehicle.
NOTE
(With advanced key)
If the auto-lock function (page 3-8) has been
activated, the doors automatically lock as you
walk away from the vehicle, however, the
power windows cannot be closed. When
leaving the vehicle, close the windows using
the power window switch inside the vehicle,
the key, or a request switch.
With key
1. Insert the key in the driver's door key
cylinder.
2. Turn the key toward the back and hold it. After the doors are locked, the
windows close as long as the key is
turned.
Close
With request switch on the driver's
door (Advanced key)
1. If the doors are locked, unlock them.
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Knowing Your Mazda
Doors and Locks
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (125,1)
4Before Driving Your Mazda
Important information about driving your Mazda.
Fuel and Engine Exhaust Precautions ........................................ 4-2Fuel Requirements .................................................................... 4-2
Emission Control System .......................................................... 4-3
Engine Exhaust (Carbon Monoxide) ......................................... 4-4
Before Starting the Engine ........................................................... 4-5 Before Getting In ...................................................................... 4-5
After Getting In ......................................................................... 4-5
Driving Tips ................................................................................... 4-6 Break-In Period ......................................................................... 4-6
Money-Saving Suggestions ...................................................... 4-6
Hazardous Driving .................................................................... 4-7
Floor Mat .................................................................................. 4-8
Rocking the Vehicle .................................................................. 4-8
Winter Driving .......................................................................... 4-9
Driving In Flooded Area ......................................................... 4-11
Overloading ............................................................................. 4-11
Driving on Uneven Road ........................................................ 4-12
Towing ......................................................................................... 4-13 Trailer Towing ......................................................................... 4-13
4-1
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (137,1)
Trailer Towing
The Mazda RX-8 is not designed for
towing. Never tow a trailer with your
Mazda RX-8.
Before Driving Your Mazda
Towing
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (145,1)
Setting the parking brake
Depress the brake pedal and then firmly
pull the parking brake lever fully upwards
with a greater amount of force than is
required so that the vehicle holds in the
stationary position.
Releasing the parking brake
Depress the brake pedal and pull the
parking brake lever upwards, then press
the release button. While holding the
button, lower the parking brake lever all
the way down to the released position.
qBrake System Warning Light
This warning has the following functions:
Parking brake warning
The light comes on when the parking
brake is applied with the ignition switch
in the START or ON position. It turns off
when the parking brake is fully released.
Low brake fluid level warning
If the light stays on after the parking brake
is fully released, you may have a brake
problem.
Drive to the side of the road and park off
the right-of-way.
You may notice that the pedal is harder to
push or that it may go closer to the floor.
In either case, it will take longer to stop
the vehicle.
1. With the engine stopped, check the
brake fluid level immediately and add
fluid as required (page 8-16).
2. After adding fluid, check the light again.
If the warning light remains on, or if the
brakes do not operate properly, do not
drive the vehicle. Have it towed to an
Authorized Mazda Dealer.
Even if the light goes out have your brake
system inspected as soon as possible by
an Authorized Mazda Dealer.
Driving Your Mazda
Starting and Driving
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (147,1)
If the ABS warning light stays on while
you're driving, the ABS control unit has
detected a system malfunction. If this
occurs, your brakes will function normally
as if the vehicle had no ABS.
Should this happen, consult an Authorized
Mazda Dealer as soon as possible.
NOTE
When the engine is jump-started to charge the
battery, uneven rpm occurs and the ABS
warning light comes on. This is due to a weak
battery, not a malfunction.
Recharge the battery.
qElectronic Brake Force
Distribution System Warning
If the electronic brake force distribution
control unit determines that some
components are operating incorrectly, the
control unit may turn the brake system
warning light and the ABS warning light
on at the same time. The problem is likely
to be the electronic brake force
distribution system.
WARNING
Do not drive with both the ABS warning
light and brake warning light
illuminated. Have the vehicle towed to
an Authorized Mazda Dealer to have
the brakes inspected as soon as
possible:
Driving when the brake system
warning light and ABS warning light
are illuminated at the same time is
dangerous.
When both lights are illuminated, the
rear wheels could lock more quickly
in an emergency stop than under
normal circumstances.
qBrake Pad Wear Indicator
When the disc brake pads become worn,
the built-in wear indicators contact the
disc plates. This causes a screeching noise
to warn that the pads should be replaced.
When you hear this noise, consult an
Authorized Mazda Dealer as soon as
possible.
Driving Your Mazda
Starting and Driving
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (154,1)
Indicators
Shift position indicator
In manual shift mode, the“M ”of the shift
position indicator in the instrument panel
illuminates.
Gear position indicator
The numeral for the selected gear
illuminates.
Shift position
indicator
Gear position
indicator
NOTE
If the gears cannot be shifted down when
driving at higher speeds, the gear position
indicator will flash twice to signal that the
gears cannot be shifted down.
Shifting
You can shift gears up and down by
operating the shift lever or the steering
shift switches.
NOTE
lIf the steering shift switches on both sides
(left and right) are operated simultaneously,
the gear will shift once.
lThe gear will not shift if:lThe steering shift switch and the shift
lever are operated simultaneously.
lThe UP switch and DOWN switch are
operated simultaneously.
Manually Shifting up
(M1
→M2 →M3 →M4 →M5 →M6)
To shift up to a higher gear, tap the shift
lever back (
) once.
To shift up to a higher gear with the
steering shift switches, tap either of the
UP switches toward you once with your
fingers.
Up switches
WARNING
Keep your hands on the steering wheel
rim when using fingers or thumbs on
the steering shift switches: Putting your hands inside the rim of
the steering wheel when using the
steering shift switches is dangerous.
If the driver air bag were to deploy in
a collision, your hands could be
impacted causing injury.
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Driving Your Mazda
Starting and Driving
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C

Black plate (180,1)
qBrake System Warning Light
This warning has the following functions:
Parking brake warning
The light comes on when the parking
brake is applied with the ignition switch
in the START or ON position. It turns off
when the parking brake is fully released.
Low brake fluid level warning
If the light stays on after the parking brake
is fully released, you may have a brake
problem.
Drive to the side of the road and park off
the right-of-way.
You may notice that the pedal is harder to
push or that it may go closer to the floor.
In either case, it will take longer to stop
the vehicle.
1. With the engine stopped, check the
brake fluid level immediately and add
fluid as required (page 8-16).
2. After adding fluid, check the light again.
If the warning light remains on, or if the
brakes do not operate properly, do not
drive the vehicle. Have it towed to an
Authorized Mazda Dealer.
Even if the light goes out have your brake
system inspected as soon as possible by
an Authorized Mazda Dealer. NOTE
Having to add brake fluid is sometimes an
indicator of leakage. Consult an Authorized
Mazda Dealer as soon as possible even if the
brake light is no longer illuminated.
WARNING
Do not drive with the brake system
warning light illuminated. Contact an
Authorized Mazda Dealer to have the
brakes inspected as soon as possible:
Driving with the brake system
warning light illuminated is
dangerous. It indicates that your
brakes may not work at all or that
they could completely fail at any
time. If this light remains
illuminated, after checking that the
parking brake is fully released, have
the brakes inspected immediately.
qABS Warning Light
The warning light stays on for a few
seconds when the ignition switch is turned
to the ON position.
If the ABS warning light stays on while
you're driving, the ABS control unit has
detected a system malfunction. If this
occurs, your brakes will function normally
as if the vehicle had no ABS.
Should this happen, consult an Authorized
Mazda Dealer as soon as possible.
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Driving Your Mazda
Warning/Indicator Lights and Beep Sounds
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Form No.8Z09-EA-08C