Mazda 3 Owner's Manual page 218

When Driving
Switches and Controls
CAUTION
When the wiper lever is in the
AUTO position and the ignition is
switched ON, the wipers may move
automatically in the following cases:
If the windscreen above the rain
sensor is touched or wiped with a
cloth.
If the windscreen is struck with a
hand or other object from either
outside or inside the vehicle.
Keep hands and scrapers clear of the
windscreen when the wiper lever
is in the AUTO position and the
ignition is switched ON as fi ngers
could be pinched or the wipers and
wiper blades damaged when the
wipers activate automatically.
If you are going to clean the
windscreen, be sure the wipers are
turned off completely (when it is
most likely that the engine is left
running) this is particularly important
when clearing ice and snow.
NOTE
Switching the auto-wiper lever from
the to the
driving activates the windscreen
wipers once, after which they operate
according to the rainfall amount.
The auto-wiper control may not
operate when the rain sensor
temperature is about –10 °C (14 °F)
or lower, or about 85 °C (185 °F) or
higher.
4–78
position while
NOTE
If the windscreen is coated with
water repellent, the rain sensor may
not be able to sense the amount of
rainfall correctly and auto-wiper
control may not operate properly.
If dirt or foreign matter (Such as
ice or matter containing salt water)
adheres to the windscreen above
the rain sensor or if the windscreen
is iced, it could cause the wipers to
move automatically. However, if the
wipers cannot remove this ice, dirt
or foreign matter, the auto-wiper
control will stop operation. In this
case, set the wiper lever to the low
speed position or high speed position
for manual operation, or remove the
ice, dirt or foreign matter by hand to
restore the auto-wiper operation.
If the auto-wiper lever is left in the
position, the wipers could
operate automatically from the effect
of strong light sources,
electromagnetic waves, or infrared
light because the rain sensor uses an
optical sensor. It is recommended
that the auto-wiper lever be switched
to the position other than when
driving the vehicle under rainy
conditions.
The auto-wiper control functions can
be turned off.
Refer to Personalization Features on
page 9-13 .