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Thank you for choosing a Mazda. We at Mazda design and build vehicles with complete
customer satisfaction in mind.
To help ensure enjoyable and trouble-free operation of your Mazda, read this manual
carefully and follow its recommendations.
An Authorized Mazda Dealer knows your vehicle best. So when maintenance or service is
necessary, that's the place to go.
Our nationwide network of Mazda professionals is dedicated to providing you with the best
possible service.
We assure you that all of us at Mazda have an ongoing interest in your motoring pleasure
and in your full satisfaction with your Mazda product.
Mazda Motor Corporation
HIROSHIMA, JAPAN
Important Notes About This Manual
Keep this manual in the glove box as a handy reference for the safe and enjoyable use of your Mazda. Should you
resell the vehicle, leave this manual with it for the next owner.
All specifications and descriptions are accurate at the time of printing. Because improvement is a constant goal at
Mazda, we reserve the right to make changes in specifications at any time without notice and without obligation.
Event Data Recorder
This vehicle is equipped with an event data recorder. In the event of a crash, this device records data related to
vehicle dynamics and safety systems for a short period of time. These data can help provide a better
understanding of the circumstances in which crashes and injuries occur and lead to the designing of safer
vehicles.
Air Conditioning and the Environment
Your Mazda's genuine air conditioner is filled with HFC134a (R134a), a refrigerant that has been found not to
damage the earth's ozone layer. If the air conditioner does not operate properly, consult an Authorized Mazda
Dealer.
Perchlorate
Certain components of this vehicle such as [air bag modules, seat belt pretensioners, lithium batteries, ...] may
contain Perchlorate Material–Special handling may apply for service or vehicle end of life disposal. See
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate.
Please be aware that this manual applies to all models, equipment and options. As a result, you may find
some explanations for equipment not installed on your vehicle.
©2009 Mazda Motor Corporation
Printed in Japan May 2010(Print5)
A Word to Mazda Owners
CX-9_8AU2-EA-09G_Edition5 Page3
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Form No.8AU2-EA-09G
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2Essential Safety Equipment
Use of safety equipment, including seats, seat belt system, child-restraint
systems and SRS air bags.
Seats ............................................................................................... 2-2
Front Seats (Manually Operated Seats) ..................................... 2-2
Front Seats (Electrically Operated Seats) .................................. 2-4
Second-Row Seats .................................................................... 2-9
Third-Row Seat ....................................................................... 2-13
Head Restraints ....................................................................... 2-15
Seat Warmer
í......................................................................... 2-17
Seat Belt Systems ........................................................................ 2-19
Seat Belt Precautions .............................................................. 2-19
3-Point Type Seat Belt ............................................................ 2-23
Front Seat Belt Pretensioner and Load Limiting Systems ....... 2-25
Center-Rear Position Seat Belt (Second-Row Seats) .............. 2-28
Seat Belt Extender ................................................................... 2-31
Seat Belt Warning Light/Beep ................................................ 2-33
Child Restraint ............................................................................ 2-35
Child Restraint Precautions ..................................................... 2-35
Installing Child-Restraint Systems .......................................... 2-39
LATCH Child-Restraint Systems ............................................ 2-46
SRS Air Bags ............................................................................... 2-51
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) Precautions ................ 2-51
Supplemental Restraint System Components ......................... 2-56
How the SRS Air Bags Work .................................................. 2-57
SRS Air Bag Deployment Criteria .......................................... 2-61
Limitations to SRS Air Bag .................................................... 2-62
Driver and Front Passenger Occupant Classification
System
í.................................................................................. 2-64
Monitoring and Maintenance .................................................. 2-69
2-1íSome models.
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Seat Warmerí
The front seats are electrically heated. The
ignition switch must be in the ON
position.
Press the seat warmer switch to illuminate
the indicator light while the ignition
switch is turned to the ON position. The
mode changes as follow each time the seat
warmer switch is pressed.
OFF
High
Low
WARNING
ØBe careful when using the seat
warmer. The heat from the seat
warmer may be too hot for some
people, as indicated below, and
could cause a low-temperature
burn.
ØInfants, small babies, elderly
people, and physically
challenged people
ØPeople with delicate skin
ØPeople who are excessively
fatigued
ØPeople who are intoxicated
ØPeople who have taken sleep-
inducing medicine such as
sleeping pills or cold medicine
ØDo not use the seat warmer with
anything having high moisture-
retention ability such as a blanket
or cushion on the seat. The seat
may be heated excessively and
cause a low-temperature burn.
ØDo not use the seat warmer even
when taking a short nap in the
vehicle. The seat may be heated
excessively and cause a low-
temperature burn.
ØDo not place heavy objects with
sharp projections on the seat, or
insert needles or pins into it. This
could cause the seat to become
excessively heated and result in
injury from a minor burn.
CAUTION
Do not use organic solvents to clean
the seat. It may damage the seat
surface and the heater.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
2-17íSome models. CX-9_8AU2-EA-09G_Edition5 Page29
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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.
Your vehicle has the following types of seat belts.
Seating Position Types of seat belt
Front seatDriver side 3-point type seat belt with emergency locking mode retractor
Passenger side
3-point type seat belt with emergency locking mode
retractor/automatic locking mode retractor Second-row seat
Third-row seat
3-point type seat belt with emergency locking mode retractor
This belt has retractors with an inertia lock that keep the belt retracted when not in use.
The lock allows the belt to remain comfortable on the user, but it will lock in position
during a collision.
Refer to Emergency Locking Mode on page 2-21.
3-point type seat belt with emergency locking mode retractor/automatic locking mode
retractor
In addition to the emergency locking mode function, this belt has retractors that operate in
another mode, the automatic locking mode, for the child-restraint system.
Refer to Automatic Locking Mode on page 2-22.
Refer to Installing Child-Restraint Systems on page 2-39.
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.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-19
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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 8-60).
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.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-21
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Front Seat Belt Pretensioner
and Load Limiting Systems
For optimum protection, the driver and
front passenger seat belts are equipped
with pretensioner and load limiting
systems. For both these systems to work
properly you must wear the seat belt
properly.
Pretensioners:
The front seat belt retractors remove slack
quickly as the air bags are expanding.
Any time the air bags and seat belt
pretensioners have fired they must be
replaced.
For deployment details, refer to the SRS
Air Bag Deployment Criteria (page 2-61).
(With Driver and Front Passenger
Occupant Classification System)
In addition, the pretensioner system for
the front passenger, like the front
passenger air bag, is designed to only
deploy in accordance with the total seated
weight on the front passenger seat. For
details, refer to the driver and front
passenger occupant classification system
(page 2-64).
Load limiter:
The load limiting system releases belt
webbing in a controlled manner to reduce
belt force on the occupant's chest. While
the most severe load on a seat belt occurs
in frontal collisions, the load limiter has
an automatic mechanical function and can
activate in any accident mode with
sufficient occupant movement.
Even if the pretensioners have not fired,
the load limiting function must be
checked by an Authorized Mazda Dealer.
WARNING
Wear seat belts only as recommended
in this owner's manual:
Incorrect positioning of the driver and
front passenger seat belts is
dangerous. Without proper
positioning, the pretensioner and
load limiting systems cannot provide
adequate protection in an accident
and this could result in serious injury.
For more details about wearing seat
belts, refer to“Fastening the seat
belts”(page 2-23).
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.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-25
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Installing Child-Restraint
Systems
Accident statistics reveal that a child is
safer in the rear seats. The front
passenger's seat is clearly the worst choice
for any child under 12, and with rear-
facing child-restraint systems it is clearly
unsafe due to air bags.
NOTE
Even if your vehicle is equipped with front
passenger seat weight sensors (page 2-64),
which automatically deactivates the front
passenger air bag, a rear seat is the safest
place for a child of any age or size.
Some child-restraint systems now come
with tethers and therefore must be
installed on the seats that take tethers to
be effective. In your Mazda, tethered
child-restraint systems can only be
accommodated in the three positions on
the second-row seats.
Some child-restraint systems also employ
specially designed LATCH attachments;
refer to“LATCH Child-Restraint
Systems”(page 2-46).
WARNING
Tethered Child-Restraint Systems Work
Only on Tether-Equipped Rear Seats:
Installation of a tether equipped
child-restraint system in the front
passenger's seat or the third-row
seats defeats the safety design of the
system and will result in an increased
chance of serious injury if the child-
restraint system goes forward
without benefit of being tethered.
Place tether equipped child-restraint
systems where there are tether
anchors.
qSecond-Row Seats Child-
Restraint System Installation
Follow these instructions when using a
child-restraint system, unless you are
attaching a LATCH-equipped child-
restraint system to the rear LATCH lower
anchors. Refer to“LATCH Child-
Restraint Systems”(page 2-46).
NOTE
Follow the child-restraint system
manufacturer's instructions carefully. If you
are not sure whether you have a LATCH
system or tether, check in the child-restraint
system manufacturer's instructions and follow
them accordingly. Depending on the type of
child-restraint system, it may use LATCH
system instead of seat belts or if the belt goes
across the child's chest, may recommend
against using automatic locking mode.
1. When installing the child-restraint
system on the second-row seat, make
sure that the center-rear seat belt is
routed through the seat belt guide.
Essential Safety Equipment
Child Restraint
2-39
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qThird-Row Seats Child-Restraint
System Installation
The third-row seats cannot accommodate
LATCH-type child-restraint systems or
tethers, therefore these systems must be
installed on the other seat positions such
as the second-row seat. If this not
possible, LATCH-type child-restraint
systems should be installed to a third-row
seat using the seat belt depending on
whether the child-restraint manufacturer
allows their use without LATCH
attachments and tether anchors.
Follow these manufacturer's instructions
when using a child-restraint system.
NOTE
Follow the child-restraint system
manufacturer's instructions carefully.
Depending on the type of child-restraint
system, it may not employ seat belts which are
in automatic locking mode.
1. Raise the head restraint to the top
locked position. Refer to Head
Restraints on page 2-15.
2. Secure the child-restraint system with
the lap portion of the lap/shoulder belt.
See the manufacturer's instructions on
the child-restraint system for belt
routing instructions.3. To get the retractor into the automatic
locking mode, pull the shoulder belt
portion of the seat belt until the entire
length of the belt is out of the retractor.
4. Push the child-restraint system firmly
into the vehicle seat. Be sure the belt
retracts as snugly as possible. Clicking
from the retractor will be heard during
retraction if the system is in the
automatic locking mode. If the belt
does not lock the seat down tight,
repeat this step.
2-42
Essential Safety Equipment
Child Restraint
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