Winter Driving - Mazda 3 Owner's Manual

Before Driving
Driving Tips

Winter Driving

Carry emergency gear, including tyre
chains, window scraper, fl ares, a small
shovel, jumper leads, and a small bag of
sand or salt.
Ask an expert repairer, we recommend an
Authorised Mazda Repairer to check the
following:
Have the proper ratio of antifreeze in the
radiator.
Refer to Engine Coolant on page 6-29 .
Inspect the battery and its leads. Cold
reduces battery capacity.
Use an engine oil appropriate for the
lowest ambient temperatures that the
vehicle will be driven in (page 6-23 ).
Inspect the ignition system for damage
and loose connections.
Use washer fl uid made with antifreeze—
but do not use engine coolant antifreeze
for washer fl uid (page 6-33 ).
NOTE
Do not use the parking brake in
freezing weather as it may freeze.
Instead, shift to P with an automatic
transaxle and to 1 or R with a manual
transaxle. Block the rear wheels.
Remove snow before driving. Snow
left on the windscreen is dangerous
as it could obstruct vision.
Do not apply excessive force to a
window scraper when removing ice
or frozen snow on the mirror glass
and windscreen.
Never use warm or hot water for
removing snow or ice from windows
and mirrors as it could result in the
glass cracking.
3–54
NOTE
Drive slowly. Braking performance
can be adversely affected if
snow or ice adheres to the brake
components. If this situation occurs,
drive the vehicle slowly, releasing
the accelerator pedal and lightly
applying the brakes several times
until the brake performance returns
to normal.
Snow Tyres
WARNING
Use only the same size and type tyres
(snow, radial, or non-radial) on all four
wheels:
Using tyres different in size or type is
dangerous. Your vehicle's handling
could be greatly affected and result in
an accident.
CAUTION
Check local regulations before using
studded tyres.
Use snow tyres on all four wheels
Do not exceed the maximum permissible
speed for your snow tyres or legal speed
limits.
Europe
When snow tyres are used, select the
specifi ed size and pressure (page 9-11 ).