2017 MAZDA MODEL MX-5 RF Owners Manual (in English)

6–29
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
WARNING
Keep all À ames, including cigarettes, and sparks away from open battery cells:
Flames and sparks near open battery cells are dangerous. Hydrogen gas, produced
during normal battery operation, could ignite and cause the battery to explode. An
exploding battery can cause serious burns and injuries.
NOTE
Before performing battery maintenance, remove the battery cover.
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6–30
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
Battery Maintenance
To get the best service from a battery:
 


 Keep it securely mounted.



 Keep the top clean and dry.



 Keep terminals and connections clean,
tight, and coated with petroleum jelly or
terminal grease.
 


 Rinse off spilled electrolyte immediately
with a solution of water and baking
soda.
 


 If the vehicle will not be used for an
extended time, disconnect the battery
leads and charge the battery every six
weeks.
Inspecting Electrolyte Level
A low level of electrolyte À uid will cause
the battery to discharge quickly.
Upper level
Lower level
Inspect the electrolyte level at least once
a week. If it is low, remove the caps and
add enough distilled water to bring the
level between the upper and lower level
(illustration).
Do not over¿ ll.
Examine the speci¿ c gravity of the
electrolyte with a hydrometer, especially
during cold weather. If it is low, recharge
the battery.
Battery Recharging
NOTE
  Before performing maintenance or
recharging the battery, turn off all
accessories and stop the engine.
  To disconnect the battery, remove the
negative lead ¿ rst. Install it last when
connecting the battery.
  Be sure to remove the caps before
recharging the battery.
 (With i-stop system) Do not quick-charge the battery.




 If the battery quickly discharges
because, for example, the lights were
left on too long with the engine off,
slow-charge it as required by battery
size and charger capacity.
 


 If the battery gradually discharges
because of high electric load while the
vehicle is being used, recharge it as
required by battery size and charger
capacity.
Battery Replacement
Contact an Authorised Mazda Repairer for
a battery replacement purchase.
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6–31
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
Key Battery Replacement
If the buttons on the transmitter are
inoperable and the operation indicator
light does not À ash, the battery may be
dead.
Replace with a new battery before the
transmitter becomes unusable.
CAUTION
  Make sure the battery is installed
correctly. Battery leakage could
occur if it is not installed correctly.
  When replacing the battery, be
careful not to touch any of the
internal circuitry and electrical
terminals, bend the electrical
terminals, or get dirt in the
transmitter as the transmitter could
be damaged.
  There is the danger of explosion if
the battery is not correctly replaced.
  Dispose of used batteries according
to the following instructions.
 


 Insulate the plus and minus
terminals of the battery using
cellophane or equivalent tape.
 


 Never disassemble.



 Never throw the battery into ¿ re or
water.
 


 Never deform or crush. 

 Replace only with the same type
battery (CR2025 or equivalent).
The following conditions indicate that the
battery power is low:
 


 The KEY indicator light (green) À ashes
in the instrument cluster for about 30
seconds after the engine is turned off.
 


 The system does not operate and
the operation indicator light on the
transmitter does not À ash when the
buttons are pressed.
 


 The system's operational range is
reduced.
Replacing the battery at an Authorised
Mazda Repairer is recommended to
prevent damage to the key. If replacing the
battery by yourself, follow the instruction.
Replacing the key battery
1. Press the knob and pull out the
auxiliary key.
Knob
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6–32
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
2. Twist a tape-wrapped À athead
screwdriver in the direction of the
arrow and open the cover slightly.
Cover
3. Insert the tape-wrapped À athead
screwdriver into the gap and slide it in
the direction of the arrow.
Cover
Gap
4. Twist the À athead screwdriver in the
direction of the arrow and remove the
cover.
Cover
5. Remove the battery cap, then remove
the battery.
6. Insert a new battery with the positive
pole facing up, and then cover the
battery with the battery cap.
7. Close the cover.
8. Reinsert the auxiliary key.
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6–33
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
CAUTION
  Be careful not to allow the rubber
ring shown in the ¿ gure to be
scratched or damaged.
  If the rubber ring detaches, reattach it
before inserting a new battery.
Rubber ring
Ty r e s
For reasons of proper performance, safety,
and better fuel economy, always maintain
recommended tyre inÀ ation pressures and
stay within the recommended load limits
and weight distribution.
WARNING
Using Different Tyre Types:
Driving your vehicle with different
types of tyres is dangerous. It could
cause poor handling and poor braking;
leading to loss of control.
Except for the limited use of the
temporary spare tyre, use only the same
type tyres (radial, bias-belted, bias-type)
on all four wheels.
Using Wrong-Sized Tyres:
Using any other tyre size than what is
speci¿ ed for the vehicle (page 9-8 )
is dangerous. It could seriously affect
ride, handling, ground clearance,
tyre clearance, and speedometer
calibration. This could cause you to
have an accident. Use only tyres that
are the correct size speci¿ ed for the
vehicle.
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6–34
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
Ty r e I nÀ ation Pressure
WARNING
Always inÀ ate the tyres to the correct
pressure:
OverinÀ ation or underinÀ ation of tyres
is dangerous. Adverse handling or
unexpected tyre failure could result in
a serious accident.
Refer to Tyres on page 9-8 .
Use only a Mazda-genuine tyre valve
cap:
Use of a non-genuine part is dangerous
as the correct tyre air pressure cannot
be maintained if the tyre valve becomes
damaged. If the vehicle is driven under
this condition, the tyre air pressure
will decrease which could result in a
serious accident. Do not use any part
for the tyre valve cap that is not a
Mazda-genuine part.
Inspect all tyre pressures monthly when
the tyres are cold. Maintain recommended
pressures for the best ride, handling, and
minimum tyre wear.
Refer to the speci¿ cation charts (page
9-8 ).
(With tyre pressure monitoring system)
After adjusting the tyre pressure,
initialization of the tyre pressure
monitoring system is necessary to make
the system operate normally.
Refer to Tyre Pressure Monitoring System
Initialization on page 4-143 .
NOTE

 Always check tyre pressure when
tyres are cold.
  Warm tyres normally exceed
recommended pressures. Do not
release air from warm tyres to adjust
the pressure.
  UnderinÀ ation can cause reduced
fuel economy, uneven and
accelerated tyre wear, and poor
sealing of the tyre bead, which
will deform the wheel and cause
separation of tyre from rim.
  OverinÀ ation can produce a harsh
ride, uneven and accelerated tyre
wear, and a greater possibility of
damage from road hazards.
 Keep your tyre pressure at the correct
levels. If one frequently needs
inÀ ating, have it inspected.
Tyre Rotation
WARNING
Rotate tyres periodically:
Irregular tyre wear is dangerous. To
equalize tread wear for maintaining
good performance in handling and
braking, rotate the tyres every 10,000
km (6,250 miles), or sooner if irregular
wear develops.
During rotation, inspect them for correct
balance.
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6–35
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
NOTE
Because your vehicle is not equipped
with a spare tyre, you cannot do a tyre
rotation safely with the jack that comes
with your vehicle. Have an expert
repairer, we recommend an Authorised
Mazda Repairer perform tyre rotation.
Do not include (TEMPORARY USE ONLY)
spare tyre in rotation.Forward
Also, inspect them for uneven wear and
damage. Abnormal wear is usually caused
by one or a combination of the following:
 


 Incorrect tyre pressure



 Improper wheel alignment



 Out-of-balance wheel



 Severe braking
After rotation, inÀ ate all tyre pressures to
speci¿ cation (page 9-8 ) and inspect the
wheel nuts for tightness.
(With tyre pressure monitoring system)
After adjusting the tyre pressure,
initialization of the tyre pressure
monitoring system is necessary to make
the system operate normally.
Refer to Tyre Pressure Monitoring System
Initialization on page 4-143 .
CAUTION
Rotate unidirectional tyres and radial
tyres that have an asymmetrical tread
pattern or studs only from front to rear,
not from side to side. Tyre performance
will be reduced if rotated from side to
side.
(With limited-slip differential)
Do not use the following:
 
 Tyres not of the designated size 
 Tyres of different sizes or types at the
same time
  Tyres not suf¿ ciently inÀ ated
If these instructions are not followed,
the rotation of the left and right wheels
will be different and will thus apply
a constant load on the limited-slip
differential.
This will cause a malfunction.
Replacing a Tyre
WARNING
Always use tyres that are in good
condition:
Driving with worn tyres is dangerous.
Reduced braking, steering, and traction
could result in an accident.
Replace all four tyres at the same time:
Replacing just one tyre is dangerous.
It could cause poor handling and poor
braking resulting in loss of vehicle
control. Mazda strongly recommends
that you replace all four tyres at the
same time.
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6–36
Maintenance and Care
Owner Maintenance
*Some models.
If a tyre wears evenly, a wear indicator
will appear as a solid band across the
tread.
Replace the tyre when this happens.
New treadTread wear indicator
Worn tread
You should replace the tyre before the
band crosses the entire tread.
(With tyre pressure monitoring system)
After adjusting the tyre pressure,
initialization of the tyre pressure
monitoring system is necessary to make
the system operate normally.
Refer to Tyre Pressure Monitoring System
Initialization on page 4-143 .
Replacing a Wheel
WARNING
Always use wheels of the correct size
on your vehicle:
Using a wrong-sized wheel is
dangerous. Braking and handling
could be affected, leading to loss of
control and an accident.
CAUTION
A wrong-sized wheel may adversely
affect:
 
 Tyre ¿ t 
 Wheel and bearing life 
 Ground clearance 
 Snow-chain clearance 
 Speedometer calibration 
 Headlight aim 
 Bumper height 
 Tyre Pressure Monitoring System *
NOTE

 When replacing a wheel, make
sure the new one is the same as the
original factory wheel in diameter,
rim width, and offset (inset/outset).
  For details, contact an expert
repairer, we recommend an
Authorised Mazda Repairer.
Proper tyre balancing provides the best
riding comfort and helps reduce tread
wear. Out-of-balance tyres can cause
vibration and uneven wear, such as
cupping and À at spots.
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