warning MAZDA MODEL MX-5 MIATA RF 2021 Owners Manual

We want to help you get the most driving
pleasure from your vehicle. Your owner's
manual, when read from cover to cover,
can do that in many ways.

Illustrations complement the words of the
manual to best explain how to enjoy your
Mazda. By reading your manual, you can
find out about the features, important
safety information, and driving under
various road conditions.

The symbol below in this manual means
“Do not do this” or “Do not let this
happen”.


Index: A good place to start is the Index,
an alphabetical listing of all information in
your manual.

You'll find several WARNINGs,
CAUTIONs, and NOTEs in the manual.
WA R N I N G
A WARNING indicates a situation in which
serious injury or death could result if the
warning is ignored.
CAUTION
A CAUTION indicates a situation in which
bodily injury or damage to your vehicle, or
both, could result if the caution is ignored.
NOTE
A NOTE provides information and
sometimes suggests how to make better
use of your vehicle.
The following symbol , located on some
parts of the vehicle, indicates that this
manual contains information related to the
part.
Please refer to the manual for a detailed
explanation.
How to Use This Manual
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Interior Equipment (View A)
ƒDoor-lock knob..................................................................................................... page 3-18
„ Turn and lane-change sig nal..................................................................................page 4-51
… Lighting control.....................................................................................................page 4-45
† Wiper and washer lever......................................... ................................................ page 4-52
‡ DSC OFF switch................................................................................................... page 4-69
ˆ Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS) OFF switch........................................page 4-82
‰ Outside mirror switch.......................................... ..................................................page 3-27
Š Door-lock switch................................................................................................... page 3-17
‹ Power window lock switch................................................................................... page 3-30
ΠPower window switches.......................................... .............................................. page 3-30
Pictorial Index
Interior Overview
1-2The equipment and installation position varies by vehicle
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Interior Equipment (View B)
ƒAudio control switches......................................... .................................................page 5-21
„ Dashboard illumination knob................................................................................ page 4-16
… Instrument cluster.................................................................................................. page 4-12
† Cruise control switches....................................................................................... page 4-109
‡ Push button start...................................................................................................... page 4- 4
ˆ Retractable hardtop switch..................................... ............................................... page 3-41
‰ Hazard warning flasher switch.................................. ............................................ page 4-58
Š Seat warmer switches........................................... ................................................. page 2-12
‹ Steering shift switches...........................................................................................page 4-38
ΠLock release lever................................................................................................... page 2-5
Trunk release button.............................................................................................. page 3-19
Ž Hood release handle............................................ .................................................. page 6-17
Pictorial Index
Interior Overview
The equipment and installation position varies by vehicle1-3
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2Essential Safety Equipment
Important information about safety equipment, including seats, seat
belt system, child-restraint systems and SRS air bags.
Seats.................................................... 2-2 Seat Precautions............................2-2
Seat............................................... 2-5
Head Restraints........................... 2-11
Seat Warmer.................................... 2-12 Seat Warmer
*.............................. 2-12
Seat Belt Systems...... ....................... 2-13
Seat Belt Precautions.................. 2-13
Seat Belt......................................2-16
Seat Belt Warning Systems.........2-17
Seat Belt Pretensioner and Load
Limiting Systems........................ 2-18
Seat Belt Extender...................... 2-19
Child Restraint................................ 2-21 Child-Restraint Precautions........ 2-21
Child-Restraint System
Installation.................................. 2-25
Child-Restraint System Suitability
for Various Seat Positions
Table........................................... 2-27
Installing Child-Restraint
Systems....................................... 2-29
SRS Air Bags....................................2-36 Supplemental Restraint System
(SRS) Precautions.......................2-36
Supplemental Restraint System
Components................................ 2-42
How the SRS Air Bags Work..... 2-43
SRS Air Bag Deployment
Criteria........................................ 2-46
Limitations to SRS Air Bag........2-47
Passenger Occupant Classification
System........................................ 2-49
Constant Monitoring...................2-55
*Some models.2-1
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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 h ead restraints consist of a trimmed foam covering over the
upper structure of the seatbacks and are intended to help prote ct you and the passenger from
neck injury. Adjust the seatbacks to their upright, on-road pos itions so that the head restraint
is positioned as close as possible to the back of your head.
WARNING
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 seri ously injured in a collision.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seats
2-11
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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 passenger always we ar 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.
WARNING
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 full 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
2-13
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▼Unfastening the Seat Belt
Depress the button on the seat belt buckle.
If the belt does not fully 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.
Seat Belt Warning Systems
If it detects that the occupant seat belt is
unfastened, the warning light or beep
alerts the occupant.
Refer to Taking Action on page 7-40.
Refer to Seat Belt Wa
rning Beep on page
7-48.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-17
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Seat Belt Pretensioner andLoad Limiting Systems
For optimum protection, the driver and
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:
When a collision is detected, the
pretensioners deploy simultaneously with
the air bags.
For deployment details, refer to the SRS
Air Bag Deployment Criteria (page
2-46).
The 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.
A system malfunction or operation
conditions are indicated by a warning.
Refer to Taking Action on page 7-40.
Refer to Air Bag/Sea t Belt Pretensioner
System Warning Beep on page 7-48.
In addition, the pretensioner system for the
passenger, like th e front and side
passenger air bag, is designed to only
deploy when the passenger occupant
classification sensor detects a passenger
sitting on the passenger's seat.
For details, refer to the passenger occupant
classification sensor (page 2-49).

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, th e 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.
WA R N I N G
Wear seat belts only as recommended in
this owner's manual:
Incorrect positioning of the driver and
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 2-16).
Have your seat belts changed immediately
if the pretensioner or load limiter has been
expended:
Always have an Authorized Mazda Dealer
immediately inspect the seat belt
pretensioners and air ba gs after any collision.
Like the air bags, the seat belt pretensioners
and load limiters will only function once and
must be replaced after any collision that
caused them to deploy. A seat belt with an
expended pretensioner 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.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-18
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Do not use an improper extender:
Using a seat belt extender that is for
another person or a different vehicle or seat
is dangerous. The seat belt will not provide
adequate protection and the user could be
seriously injured in an accident. Only use
the extender provided for you and for the
particular vehicle and seat. NEVER use the
extender in a different vehicle or seat. If you
sell your Mazda, do not leave your seat belt
extender in the vehicle. It could be used
accidentally by the new owner of the
vehicle. After removing the seat belt
extender, discard it. Never use the seat belt
extender in any other vehicle you may own
in the future.
Do not use an extender that is too long:
Using an extender that is too long is
dangerous. The seat belt will not fit
properly. In an accide nt, the seat belt will
not provide adequate protection and you
could be seriously injured. Do not use the
extender or choose one shorter in length if
the distance between the extender's buckle
and the center of the user's body is less
than 15 cm (6 in).Do not leave a seat belt extender
connected to the buckle:
Leaving a seat belt extender connected to
the buckle without using the seat belt is
dangerous. When the seat belt extender is
connected to the driver's seat belt buckle
(or passenger's seat belt buckle), the SRS
driver's (or passenger's) air bag system will
determine that the driver (or passenger) is
wearing the seat belt even if the driver (or
passenger) is not wearing it. This condition
could cause the driver's (or passenger's) air
bag to not activate correctly and result in
death or serious injury in the event of
collision. Always wear the seat belt with the
seat belt extender.
Do not use the seat belt extender when
installing a child-restraint system on the
passenger seat:
Using a seat belt extender to fasten a
child-restraint system on any seat is
dangerous. Always follow the
child-restraint system manufacturer's
installation instructions and never use a
seat belt extender.
NOTE
When not in use, remove the seat belt
extender and store it in the vehicle. If the
seat belt extender is left connected, the
seat belt extender might get damaged as it
will not retract with the rest of the seat belt
and can easily fall out of the door when
not in use and be damaged. In addition,
the seat belt warning light will not
illuminate and function properly.
Essential Safety Equipment
Seat Belt Systems
2-20
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Child-Restraint Precautions
Mazda strongly urges the use of child-restraint systems for children small enough to use
them.

You are required by law to use a child-restraint system for children in the U.S. and Canada.
Check your local and state or pro vincial laws for specific requirements regarding the safety
of children riding in your vehicle.

Whatever child-restraint system you consider, please pick the a ppropriate one for the age
and size of the child, obey the law and follow the instructions that come with the individual
child-restraint system.

A child who has outgrown child-restraint systems should use sea t belts, both lap and
shoulder. If the shoulder belt crosses the neck or face, move t he child closer to the center of
the vehicle.

A rear-facing child-restraint system should NEVER be used on the passenger seat with the
air bag system activated.

To reduce the chance of injuries caused by deployment of the passenger air bag, the
passenger occupant classification sensor work as a part of the supplemental restraint system.
This system deactivates the passenger front and side air bags and also the passenger seat belt
pretensioner system when the passenger air bag deactivation ind icator light illuminates.

When an infant or small child sits on the passenger seat, the s ystem shuts off the passenger
front and side air bags and seat belt pretensioner system, so m ake sure the passenger air bag
deactivation indicator light illuminates.

For more details, refe r to "Passenger occupant classification s ensor" (page 2-49).

WARNING
Use the correct size child-restraint system:
For effective protection in ve hicle accidents and sudden stop s, a child must be properly
restrained using a seat belt or child-restraint system depending on age and size. If not, the
child could be seriously injured or even killed in an accident.
Essential Safety Equipment
Child Restraint
2-21
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