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Brake System
Foot Brake
This vehicle has power-assisted brakes that adjust automatically through normal use.
Should power-assist fail, you can stop by applying greater force than normal to the brake pedal. But the distance required to stop will be greater than usual.
Do not coast with the engine stalled or turned off, find a safe place to stop:
Coasting with the engine stalled or turned off is dangerous. Braking will require more effort, and the brake's power-assist could be depleted if you pump the brake. This will cause longer stopping distances or even an accident.
Shift to a lower gear when going down steep hills:
Driving with your foot continuously on the brake pedal or steadily applying the brakes for long distances is dangerous. This causes overheated brakes, resulting in longer stopping distances or even total brake failure. This could cause loss of vehicle control and a serious accident. Avoid continuous application of the brakes.
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 affected.
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Do not drive with your foot held on the clutch pedal or brake pedal, or hold the clutch pedal depressed halfway unnecessarily. Doing so could result in the following:
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The clutch and brake parts will wear out more quickly.
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The brakes can overheat and adversely affect brake performance.
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Always depress the brake pedal with the right foot. Applying the brakes with the unaccustomed left foot could slow your reaction time to an emergency situation resulting in insufficient braking operation.
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Wear shoes appropriate for driving in order to avoid your shoe contacting the brake pedal when depressing the accelerator pedal.
Parking Brake
Driving with the parking brake on will cause excessive wear of the brake parts.
Setting the parking brake
Depress the brake pedal and then firmly pull the parking brake lever fully upwards with sufficient force to hold the vehicle in a stationary position.
Releasing the parking brake
Depress the brake pedal and pull the parking brake lever upwards, then press the release button. While holding the button, lower the parking brake lever all the way down to the released position.
Electric Parking Brake
The electric parking brake equipment applies the parking brake using an electric motor. When the electric parking brake is applied, the electric parking brake switch indicator light turns on.
Do not drive the vehicle with the electric parking brake applied:
If the vehicle is driven with the parking brake applied, the brake parts may generate heat and the brake system may not operate, leading to an accident.
Before driving, release the electric parking brake and verify that the electric parking brake indicator light is turned off.
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The electric parking brake cannot be applied or released while the vehicle battery is dead.
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An operation sound occurs when applying or releasing the electric parking brake, however, this does not indicate a malfunction.
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If the electric parking brake is not used for long periods, an automatic inspection of the system is performed while the vehicle is parked. An operation sound can be heard, however, this does not indicate a problem.
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When the electric parking brake is applied and the ignition is switched OFF, an operation sound can be heard, however, this does not indicate a problem.
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The brake pedal may move while the electric parking brake is being applied or released, however, this does not indicate a problem.
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If the electric parking brake switch is continually pulled while driving the vehicle, the electric parking brake will be applied and the electric parking brake warning beep will be activated. When the switch is released, the electric parking brake is released and the beep stops.
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If the electric parking brake is applied with the ignition switched off or in ACC, the electric parking brake indicator light in the instrument cluster and the indicator light in the switch may turn on for 15 seconds.
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When running the vehicle through an automatic car wash, it may be necessary to switch the ignition off with the parking brake released depending on the type of automatic car wash.
When applying the electric parking brake
The electric parking brake can be applied regardless of the ignition switch position.
Securely depress the brake pedal and pull up the electric parking brake switch.
The electric parking brake is applied and the electric parking brake indicator light and the electric parking brake switch indicator light turn on.
Refer to Warning/Indicator Lights (Search).
When releasing the electric parking brake
The electric parking brake can be released while the ignition is switched ON or the engine is running. When the electric parking brake is released, the electric parking brake indicator light and the electric parking brake switch indicator light turn off.
Electric parking brake manual release
Securely depress the brake pedal and press down the electric parking brake switch.
Firmly depress the brake pedal and press the electric parking brake switch.
If the electric parking brake switch is pressed without depressing the brake pedal, the indicator light in the instrument cluster notifies the driver that the brake is not depressed.
The brake pedal operation demand indicator light in the instrument cluster turns on.
Electric parking brake automatic release
If the accelerator pedal is depressed with the electric parking brake applied and all of the following conditions met, the parking brake is released automatically.
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The engine is running.
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The driver's door is closed.
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The driver's seat belt is fastened.
(Manual transaxle)
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The change lever is in a position other than neutral.
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The clutch pedal is depressed halfway
(Automatic transaxle)
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Selector lever is in the D, M, or R position
If something such as the driver's foot contacts the accelerator pedal with the engine running and the electric parking brake applied, the parking brake may be released automatically. If you do not intend to drive immediately, shift the change lever (manual transaxle) to the neutral position, or shift the selector lever (automatic transaxle) to the P or N position.
Warning Light
The warning light turns on when the system has a malfunction.
Refer to Warning Lights (Search).
Brake Pad Wear Indicator
When the disc brake pads become worn, the built-in wear indicators contact the disc plates. This causes a screeching noise to warn that the pads should be replaced.
When you hear this noise, consult an expert repairer, we recommend an Authorised Mazda Repairer as soon as possible.
Do not drive with worn disc pads:
Driving with worn disc pads is dangerous. The brakes could fail and cause a serious accident. As soon as you hear a screeching noise consult an expert repairer, we recommend an Authorised Mazda Repairer.
Brake Assist
During emergency braking situations when it is necessary to depress the brake pedal with greater force, the brake assist system provides braking assistance, thus enhancing braking performance.
When the brake pedal is depressed hard or depressed more quickly, the brakes apply more firmly.
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When the brake pedal is depressed hard or depressed more quickly, the pedal will feel softer but the brakes will apply more firmly. This is a normal effect of the brake assist operation and does not indicate a malfunction.
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When the brake pedal is depressed hard or depressed more quickly, a motor/pump operation noise may be heard. This is a normal effect of the brake assist and does not indicate a malfunction.
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The brake assist equipment does not supersede the functionality of the vehicle's main braking system.
