2018 MAZDA MODEL MX-5 Owners Manual (in English)

Do not drive with either seats reclined:
Sitting in a reclined position while the vehicle is moving is dangerous because you do not get
the full protection from seat belts. During sudden braking or a collision, you can slide under
the lap belt and suffer serious internal injuri es. For maximum protection, sit well back and
upright.
Do not place an object such as a cushion between the seatback and your back:
Putting an object such as a cushion between the seatback and your back is dangerous
because you will be unable to maintain a safe driving posture and the seat belt cannot
function at its full capacity in a collision, wh ich could result in a serious accident, injury or
death.
Do not place objects under the seat:
The object could get stuck and cause the seat to not be fixed securely, and result in an
accident.
Do not stack cargo higher than the seatbacks:
Stacking luggage or other cargo higher than the seatbacks is dangerous. During sudden
braking or a collision, objects can fly around and become projectiles that may hit and injure
passengers.
Make sure luggage and cargo is secured before driving:
Not securing cargo while driving is dangerous as it could move or be crushed during sudden
braking or a collision and cause injury.
Always leave your car locked and keep the car keys safely away from children:
Leaving your car unlocked or the keys in reach of children is dangerous. Children who find
their way into the trunk through an open trunk can become accidentally locked in the trunk.
This could result in death or brain damage from heat prostration, particularly in the summer.
Always lock the doors and the trunk.
CAUTION
 When operating a seat, be careful not to put yo ur hands or fingers near the moving parts of
the seat or on the side trim to prevent injury.
 When moving the seats, make sure there is no cargo in the surrounding area. If the cargo
gets caught it could damage the cargo.
 When moving the seats forward and rearward or returning a rear-reclined seatback to its
upright position, make sure you hold onto the seatback with your hand while operating. If
the seatback is not held, the seat will move suddenly and could cause injury.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
2-3
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

Seat
▼Seat Operation
Seat Slide
To move a seat forward or backward, raise the lever and slide the seat to the desired position
and release the lever.
Make sure the lever returns to i ts original position and the seat is locked in place by
attempting to push it forward and backward.
Height Adjustment for Front Edg e of Seat Bottom (Driver's Seat)
To adjust the height for front edge of the seat bottom, rotate the dial to the desired position.
Seat Recline
To change the seatback angle, lean forward slightly while raisi ng the lever. Then lean back
to the desired position and release the lever.
Make sure the lever returns to i ts original position and the seatback is locked in place by
attempting to push it forward and backward.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
2-4
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

▼Seat Warmer*
The seats are electrically heated. The
ignition must be switched ON.
Press the seat warmer switch while the
ignition is switched ON to operate the seat
warmer. The indicator lights turn on to
indicate that the seat warmer is operating.
The mode changes a
s follows each time
the seat warmer switch is pressed.
Low Mid
High
OFF
WA R N I N G
Be careful when using the seat warmer:
The heat from the seat warmer may be too
hot for some people, as indicated as
follows, and could cause a
low-temperature burn.
 Infants, small children, elderly people,
and physically challenged people
 People with delicate skin
 People who are excessively fatigued
 People who are intoxicated
 People who have taken sleep-inducing
medicine such as sleeping pills or cold
medicine
Do 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.
Do 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.
Do 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.
NOTE
If the ignition is switched off while the
seat warmer is operating (High, Mid or
Low) and then switched ON again, the
seat warmer will automatically operate
at the temperature set before switching
off the ignition.
Use the seat warmer when the engine is
running. Leaving the seat warmer on for
long periods with the engine not running
could cause the battery power to be
depleted.
The temperature of the seat warmer
cannot be adjusted beyond High, Mid
and Low because the seat warmer is
controlled by a thermostat.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
*Some models.2-5
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

Head Restraints
▼Non-Adjustable Head Restraints
Your vehicle is equipped with non
-adjustable head restraints on the driver's and passenger's
seatbacks. The non-adjustable head restraints consist of a trimmed foam covering over the
upper structure of the seatbacks and are intended to help protect you and the passenger from
neck injury. Adjust the seatback s to their upright, on-road positions so that the head restraint
is positioned as close as possible to the back of your head.
WA R N I N G
Make sure the seatbacks are properly adjusted to their upright, on-road positions before the
vehicle is driven:
Driving with the seatbacks not adjusted properly is dangerous. With no support behind your
head, your neck could be seriously injured in a collision.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
2-6
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

Seat Belt Precautions
Seat belts help to decrease the possibility of severe injury during accidents and sudden
stops. Mazda recommends that the driver and passengers always w ear seat belts.

(Except Mexico)
All of the seat belt retractors are designed to keep the lap/sh oulder belts out of the way when
not in use.
The driver's seat belt has no pr ovisions 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 passenger's seat lap/shoulder belt retractor opera tes in two modes: emergency
locking mode, and for child-res traint systems, automatic lockin g mode. If you must use the
passenger seat for a ch ild, slide the passenger seat as far back as possible and make sure any
child-restraint system is secured properly.

(Mexico)
All the seats have lap/shoulder belts. These belts have retract ors with inertia locks that keep
them out of the way when not in use. The locks allow the belts to remain comfortable on
users, but they will lock in position during a collision.
WA R N I N G
Always wear your seat belt and make sure all occupants are properly restrained:
Not wearing a seat belt is extremely dangerou s. 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. So, if your seat belt is twisted, you must straighten the seat belt to
remove any twists and to allow the fu ll width of the belt to be used.
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. Ne ver use one belt for more than one person at a
time and always operate the vehicle wi th each occupant properly restrained.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-7
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

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 pr ovide adequate protection in a collision. Have
an Authorized Mazda Dealer inspect all seat be lt 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:
Always have an Authorized Mazda Dealer imme diately inspect the seat belt pretensioners
and air bags after any collision. Like the air ba gs, the seat belt pretensioners and load limiters
will only function once and must be replaced aft er any collision that caused them to deploy. A
seat belt with an expended pret ensioner or load limiter is still better than wearing no seat belt
at all; however, if the seat belt pretensioners and load limiters are not replaced, the risk of
injury in a collision will increase.
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 yo ur neck, or on your upper arm.
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.
CAUTION
Belt retraction may become difficult if the belts and seat belt guides are soiled, so try to keep
them clean. For more details about cleaning th e seat belts, refer to "Seat Belt Maintenance"
(page 6-64).

Seat belt guide
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-8
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

▼Pregnant Women and Persons wi
th Serious Medical Conditions
Pregnant women should always wear seat belts. Ask your doctor f or specific
recommendations.
The lap belt should be worn SNUGL Y 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 b elts. Check with your doctor
for any special instructions regarding specific medical conditi ons.
▼Emergency Locking Mode
When the seat belt is fastened,
it will always be in the emergency locking mode.
In the emergency locking mode, the belt remains comfortable on the occupant and the
retractor will lock in position during a collision.
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 loos en, then pull it out again slowly.
(Seat Belt with Auto matic Locking Mode)
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 ou t to its full length. If the belt
feels tight and hinders comfortabl e 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 c omfortable emergency locking mode, wait until the vehicle has stopped
in a safe, level area, retract the belt fully to convert it bac k to emergency locking mode and
then extend it around you again.
▼ Automatic Locking Mode*
Always use the automatic locking mode to keep the child-restrai
nt 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 chi ld-restraint system. It will retract
down to the child-res traint system and stay locked on it. See t he section on child restraint
(page 2-15).
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
*Some models.2-9
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27

Seat Belt
WA R N I N G
Always wear the seat belt with it correctly
routed in its guide:
Wearing a seat belt without the seat belt
routed in its guide is dangerous because
the seat belt would not be able to provide
adequate protection in an accident, which
could result in serious injury.
Seat belt guide
▼Fastening the Seat Belt
Seat belt tongue
Seat belt buckle
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 Take up slack
Too high
▼Unfastening the Seat Belt
Depress the button on the seat belt buckle.
If the belt does not fu
lly retract, pull it out
and check for kinks or twists. Then make
sure it remains untwisted as it retracts.
Button
NOTE
If a belt does not fully retract, inspect it
for kinks and twists. If it is still not
retracting properly, have it inspected at an
Authorized Mazda Dealer.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-10
MX-5_8GF7-EA-17J_Edition2 2017-10-31 14:07:27