Mazda 3 Owners Manual: Underbody Maintenance
Road chemicals and salt used for ice and snow removal and solvents used for dust control may collect on the underbody. If not removed, they will speed up rusting and deterioration of such underbody parts as fuel lines, frame, floor pan, and exhaust system, even though these parts may be coated with anti-corrosive material.
Thoroughly flush the underbody and wheel housings with lukewarm or cold water at the end of each winter. Try also to do this every month.
Pay special attention to these areas because they easily hide mud and dirt.
It will do more harm than good to wet down the road grime without removing it.
The lower edges of doors, rocker panels, and frame members have drain holes that should not be clogged. Water trapped there will cause rusting.
| WARNING
Dry off brakes that have become
wet by driving slowly, releasing the
accelerator pedal and lightly applying
the brakes several times until the brake
performance returns to normal:
Driving with wet brakes is dangerous. Increased stopping distance or the vehicle pulling to one side when braking could result in a serious accident. Light braking will indicate whether the brakes have been aff ected. |
Bright-Metal Maintenance
Use tar remover to remove road tar and
insects. Never do this with a knife or
similar tool.
To prevent corrosion on brightmetal
surfaces, apply wax or chrome
preservative and rub it to a ...
Aluminum Wheel Maintenance
A protective coating is provided over the
aluminum wheels. Special care is needed
to protect this coating.
CAUTION
Do not use any detergent other than
mild detergent. Before using any
...
Other materials:
Supplemental Restraint System Components
(With Front Passenger Occupant Classification System)
(Without Front Passenger Occupant Classification System)
Driver/Front passenger inflators and air bags
Roll-over sensor * , crash sensors, and diagnostic module (SAS unit)
Seat belt pretensioners
Front air bag sensors
Side c ...
Air Bleeding
CAUTION:
If the strainer is removed, impurities may penetrate the power steering system
and damage it. To prevent this, always bleed air with the strainer installed.
Do not maintain the steering wheel fully turned for 5 s or more. The oil
temperature could rise and damage ...
Locking, Unlocking
Locking, Unlocking with
Transmitter
All doors and the liftgate can be locked/ unlocked by operating the keyless
entry system transmitter, refer to Keyless Entry System .
Locking, Unlocking with Door-
Lock Switch
All doors and the liftgate lock
automatically when the lock side is
pressed. Th ...
