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Never allow a passenger to sit or stand
on the folded seatback while the
vehicle is moving:
Driving with a passenger on the
folded seatback is dangerous.
Allowing a child to sit up on the
folded seatback while the vehicle is
moving is particularly dangerous. In
a sudden stop or even a minor
collision, a child not in a proper seat
or child-restraint system and seat
belt could be thrown forward, back
or even out of the vehicle resulting in
serious injuries or death. The child in
the baggage area could be thrown
into other occupants and cause
serious injury.
NOTE
When returning a rear seat to its original
position, also replace the seat belt to its
normal position. Verify that the seat belt pulls
out and retracts.
qSplit-Folding Rear Seatback
The seatbacks can be folded down to
provide more space in the luggage
compartment.
To fold down the seatbacks
WARNING
Always remove the child-restraint
system from the rear seat before
operating the remote handle levers for
the rear seat:
Operating (pulling) the remote
handle levers while a rear-facing
child-restraint system is in the rear
seat is dangerous. It could cause
injury to a child seated in the child-
restraint system when the seatback
suddenly flips forward.
Make sure there is nobody in the rear
seat area before operating (pulling) the
remote handle levers:
Not checking the rear seat area for
persons before folding the seatbacks
down with the remote handle levers
is dangerous. The rear seat area is
difficult to see from the rear of the
vehicle. Operating (pulling) the
remote handle levers without
checking could cause injury to a
person when a seatback suddenly
flips forward.
CAUTION
Before folding the seatbacks down
with the remote handle levers, make
sure there is no cup in a rear cup
holder. Folding the seatbacks with
the remote handle levers while a cup
is in the cup holder could soil or
damage the seat bottom and
seatback.
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Seats
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When using the remote handle levers:
CAUTION
Be careful of the following when
using the remote handle levers:
ØOn a downward slope, the
seatback could flip forward faster
than on a flat surface.
ØOn an upward slope, the seatback
may not fold down. When the
seatbacks cannot be folded down
with levers, pull the rear seatback
forward from inside the vehicle.
1. Unfasten the lap portion of the center-
rear seat belt (page 2-24).
CAUTION
Always unfasten the lap portion of
the belt before folding left-rear
seatback. Leaving the lap portion of
the belt fastened could cause
damage to the seat belt, buckle and
seatback.
2. After checking that the rear seats are
clear, open the liftgate compartment
and pull the remote handle levers on
the left and right sides of the liftgate
compartment.
When using the rear seatback knobs:
CAUTION
When operating the rear seatback
knob, make sure you support the
seatback with your hand. If the
seatback is not supported with your
hand, it will flip forward suddenly
and could cause injury to the finger
that pushes the rear seatback knob
down.
1. Unfasten the lap portion of the center-
rear seat belt (page 2-24).
CAUTION
Always unfasten the lap portion of
the belt before folding the rear-left
seatback. Leaving the lap portion of
the belt fastened could cause
damage to the seat belt, buckle and
seatback.
2. Support the seatback with your hand.
3. Push the rear seatback knob down.
To return the seatbacks to the upright
position
1. Lift the seatbacks upright.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
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2. Pull on the top of the seatbacks from
inside the vehicle to make sure they are
locked.
3. Fasten the center-rear lap/shoulder belt
and check that all seat belts are routed
properly for passenger use (page 2-24).
WARNING
Always make sure the seat belts are
fully pulled out from under the
seatbacks:
A seat belt caught under a seatback
after the seatback is returned to its
upright position is dangerous. In a
collision or sudden stop, the seat belt
cannot provide adequate protection.
When returning the seatback to the
upright position, make sure there is no
red indication:
A rear seatback not fully returned
and locked in the upright position is
dangerous. Sudden stops or
maneuvering could cause a seatback
to flip forward suddenly resulting in
injury. If the red indicator is visible on
the back of the rear seatback knob,
the seatback is not locked in the
upright position.
Locked position
Unlocked position
Red indicator
qArmrest
The rear armrest in the center of the rear
seatback can be used (no occupant in the
center seat) or placed upright.
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Seats
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Seat Belt Precautions
Seat belts help to decrease the possibility of severe injury during accidents and sudden
stops. Mazda recommends that the driver and all passengers always wear seat belts.
All of the seat belt retractors are designed to keep the lap/shoulder belts out of the way
when not in use.
The driver's seat belt has no provisions for child-restraint systems and has only an
emergency locking mode. The driver may wear it comfortably, and it will lock during a
collision.
However, the front passenger's seat and all rear lap/shoulder belt retractors operate in two
modes: emergency locking mode, and for child-restraint systems, automatic locking mode.
While we recommend you put all children in the rear seats, if you must use the front
passenger seat for a child, slide the front passenger seat as far back as possible and make
sure any child-restraint system is secured properly.
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Seat Belt Systems
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WARNING
Always wear your seat belt and make sure all occupants are properly restrained:
Not wearing a seat belt is extremely dangerous. During a collision, occupants not
wearing seat belts could hit someone or things inside the vehicle or even be thrown
out of the vehicle. They could be seriously injured or even killed. In the same
collision, occupants wearing seat belts would be much safer.
Do not wear twisted seat belts:
Twisted seat belts are dangerous. In a collision, the full width of the belt is not
available to absorb the impact. This puts more force on the bones beneath the belt,
which could cause serious injury or death.
Never use one seat belt on more than one person at a time:
Using one seat belt for more than one person at a time is dangerous. A seat belt
used in this way cannot spread the impact forces properly and the two passengers
could be crushed together and seriously injured or even killed. Never use one belt for
more than one person at a time and always operate the vehicle with each occupant
properly restrained.
Do not operate a vehicle with a damaged seat belt:
Using a damaged seat belt is dangerous. An accident could damage the belt
webbing of the seat belt in use. A damaged seat belt cannot provide adequate
protection in a collision. Have an Authorized Mazda Dealer inspect all seat belt
systems in use during an accident before they are used again.
Have your seat belts changed immediately if the pretensioner or load limiter has
been expended:
One or both front air bags may deploy, and the corresponding pretensioner(s) may
also deploy at the same time. Like the air bags, the front seat belt pretensioners will
only function once. While it is safer to use a post-crash (a seat belt that was used in
an accident) than no front seat belt at all, using a front seat belt with an expended
pretensioner or load limiter loaded reduces the safety available to you. If the front
seat belt pretensioners are not replaced, the risk of injury in a collision will increase.
Expended front seat belt pretensioners and air bags must be replaced after any
collision which caused them to deploy. Additionally, the load limiter will only limit
loads on the chest once in a collision and this is another reason to have the front
seat belts inspected. Always have an Authorized Mazda Dealer inspect the front seat
belt pretensioners and air bags after any collision.
In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is significantly more likely to die than a
person wearing a seat belt.
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Seat Belt Systems
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CAUTION
Belt retraction may become difficult if the belts and rings are soiled, so try to keep
them clean. For more details about cleaning the seat belts, refer to“Cleaning the
Lap/Shoulder Belt Webbing”(page 8-61).
qPregnant Women and Persons with Serious Medical Conditions
Pregnant women should always wear seat belts. Ask your doctor for specific
recommendations.
The lap belt should be worn SNUGLY AND AS LOW AS POSSIBLE OVER THE HIPS.
The shoulder belt should be worn across your shoulder properly, but never across the
stomach area.
Persons with serious medical conditions also should wear seat belts. Check with your
doctor for any special instructions regarding specific medical conditions.
qEmergency Locking Mode
In the emergency locking mode, the belt remains comfortable on the occupant and the
retractor will lock in position during a collision. When the seat belt is fastened, it will
always be in the emergency locking mode until it is switched to automatic locking mode by
pulling it all the way out to its full length. If the belt feels tight and hinders comfortable
movement while the vehicle is stopped or in motion, it may be in the automatic locking
mode because the belt has been pulled too far out. To return the belt to the more
comfortable emergency locking mode, wait until the vehicle has stopped in a safe, level
area, retract the belt fully to convert it back to emergency locking mode and then extend it
around you again.
If the belt is locked and cannot be pulled out, retract the belt once, and then try pulling it
out slowly. If this fails, pull the belt strongly one time and loosen, then pull it out again
slowly.
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Seat Belt Systems
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qAutomatic Locking Mode
Always use the automatic locking mode to keep the child-restraint system from shifting to
an unsafe position in the event of an accident. To enable seat belt automatic locking mode,
pull it all the way out and connect it as instructed on the child-restraint system. It will
retract down to the child-restraint system and stay locked on it. See the section on child
restraint (page 2-30).
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Seat Belt Systems
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Seat Belt (Except Center-
Rear Position)
qFastening the Seat Belt
1. Grasp the seat belt tongue.
2. Slowly pull out the lap/shoulder belt.
Lap/shoulder
belt
Seat belt
tongue
3. Insert the seat belt tongue into the seat
belt buckle until you hear a click
sound.
Seat belt tongue
Seat belt
buckle
WARNING
Positioning the Shoulder Portion of the
Seat Belt:
Improper positioning of the shoulder
portion of the seat belt is dangerous.
Always make sure the shoulder
portion of the seat belt is positioned
across your shoulder and near your
neck, but never under your arm, on
your neck, or on your upper arm.
4. Position the lap belt as low as possible,
not on the abdominal area, then adjust
the shoulder belt so that it fits snugly
against your body.
Keep low on
hip bone
Too high Take up slack
WARNING
Positioning the Lap Portion of the Seat
Belt:
The lap portion of the seat belt worn
too high is dangerous. In a collision,
this would concentrate the impact
force directly on the abdominal area,
causing serious injury. Wear the lap
portion of the belt snugly and as low
as possible.
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Seat Belt Systems
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