3–29
Before Driving
Steering Wheel
Steering Wheel
WARNING
Never adjust the steering wheel while
the vehicle is moving:
Adjusting the steering wheel while
the vehicle is moving is dangerous.
Moving it can very easily cause the
driver to abruptly turn to the left or
right. This can lead to loss of control or
an accident.
Steering Wheel Adjustment
To change the angle or length of the
steering wheel:
1. Stop the vehicle, and then pull down
the lock release lever under the steering
column.
Lock release lever
2. Tilt the steering wheel and/or adjust the
steering column length to the desired
positions, then push the lever up to lock
the column.
3. Attempt to push the steering wheel
up and down to make sure it's locked
before driving.
N O T E
Make sure that the steering wheel is locked
¿ rmly in place. If it is dif ¿ cult to raise
the lever, lightly move the steering wheel
forward and back to pull up the lever.
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3–42
Before Driving
Driving Tips
Hazardous Driving
WARNING
Be extremely careful if it is necessary to
downshift on slippery surfaces:
Downshifting into lower gear
while driving on slippery surfaces is
dangerous. The sudden change in tire
speed could cause the tires to skid. This
could lead to loss of vehicle control
and an accident.
When driving on ice or in water, snow,
mud, sand, or similar hazards:
y Be cautious and allow extra distance for
braking.
y Avoid sudden braking and sudden
maneuvering.
y Do not pump the brakes. Continue to
press down on the brake pedal.
Refer to Antilock Brake System (ABS)
on page 4-58 .
y If you get stuck, select a lower gear and
accelerate slowly. Do not spin the front
wheels.
y For more traction in starting on slippery
surfaces such as ice or packed snow,
use sand, rock salt, chains, carpeting, or
other nonslip material under the front
wheels.
N O T E
Use snow chains only on the front wheels.
Floor Mat
We recommend the use of Genuine
Mazda À oor mats.
WARNING
Make sure the fl oor mats are hooked on
the retention pins to prevent them from
bunching up under the foot pedals:
Using a fl oor mat that is not secured is
dangerous as it will interfere with the
accelerator and brake pedal operation,
which could result in an accident.
Do not install two fl oor mats, one on top
of the other, on the driver's side:
Installing two fl oor mats, one on top
of the other, on the driver's side is
dangerous as the retention pins can
only keep one fl oor mat from sliding
forward.
If using an all weather mat for winter
use always remove the original fl oor
mat.
Loose fl oor mat(s) will interfere with
the foot pedal and could result in an
accident.
When setting a À oor mat, position the À oor
mat so that its grommets are inserted over
the pointed end of the retention posts.
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4–33
When Driving
Transaxle
Manual Shift Mode
The manual shift mode gives you the feel
of driving a manual transaxle vehicle by
allowing you to operate the selector lever
manually. This allows you to control
engine rpm and torque to the drive wheels
much like a manual transaxle when more
control is desired.
To change to manual shift mode, shift the
lever from D to M.
N O T E
y (For vehicles with type C instrument
cluster *1 )
If the engine speed is about to exceed
the permissible engine speed, the buzzer
sounds.
Refer to Over Rev. Buzzer on page
7-43 .
*1 To determine which instrument
cluster is equipped on your Mazda,
Refer to Meters and Gauges on page
4-12 .
y Changing to manual shift mode while
driving will not damage the transaxle.
To return to automatic shift mode, shift the
lever from M to D.
N O T E
y If you change to manual shift mode
when the vehicle is stopped, the gear
will shift to M1.
y If you change to manual shift mode
without depressing the accelerator
pedal when driving in D range, 5th
gear/6th gear, the gear will shift to M4/
M5.
Indicators
Manual shift mode indication
In manual shift mode, the “M” of the shift
position indication in the instrument panel
illuminates.
Gear position indication
The numeral for the selected gear
illuminates.
Ty p e A
Manual shift mode indication
Gear position indication
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