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Comments
Most traffic collisions happen on short trips, close to home. Sure, it's your choice, but did you really think you would get people here to help you do stupid things?
As I said in my original post, I do use my seatbelt on most trips, but when I have to go to my local "mom and pop" store, which is approx 1.7 miles from my house, on neighborhood streets which have speed control devices to slow people down, I dont want to be bothered. Again, it's my choice.
Thanks for the response mz6greyghost. Not the answer I was hoping for, but it will get done during my first oil change.
Because their argument was that people driving cars don't have to wear them. Wearing a seatbelt in a car saves lives but would most likely kill on a motorcycle as you usually do want to be thrown from the thing in an accident.
Wearing a helmet in a car (which might be something you should consider given your seat belt habits ) would save lives too but we're not forced to wear them and now bikers are not either. I don't agree with it 100% but this is really how our government works. Furthermore, go to any local racetrack with your car and see if they'll let you take a few laps without a helmet.
Since you live in PA too you've probably noticed that about 95% of all bikers are not wearing helmets now. WDVE here in Pittsburgh posed a question to bikers a few weeks ago asking if they think the changed law is for the good. Nearly all who called in were in favor of the no helmet law and some stated that they were actually in the process of trying to get the seat belt law repealed via petitions or something like that.
So when you ask the dealer to disable your seat belt chime you might as well ask to have the front air bags diabled too. I mean why not go all the way and give yourself a nice clear path to the hood? :P
I always wear my seatbelt, and my car doesn't go into gear unless everyone else is buckled up as well. It's also law up here in NY. Saying that, I don't give anyone else a problem if they don't wear their own in their own car, it's simply their own decision. They HAVE to wear it when they ride with me, but it's also my car as well. If people don't mind paying the fines when pulled over, and are willing to risk their life making a short trip, that's their decision.
Beside, they know they're breaking the law, and they know the risks involved. I hate getting harped on by people for doing some things I do, even though it doesn't affect them. Why should I do the same thing to someone else?
It's good that you buckle up most of the time but you're fooling yourself thinking that drivers "1.7 miles" around your home cannot hit you or that whiplash is only possible outside that radius. The best drivers prepare for the mistakes of others; buckling up takes a second and can save a life.
How about this? I'm driving in your neighborhood, I make a mistake like pulling out in front of you because I don't see you emerging from behind someone's untrimmed hedges, you t-bone me going 35MPH and you end up injured and not able to work or dead because you weren't properly restrained and your head bounced off the door pillar, so your family sues me for lost income and now I have to live with that for the rest of my life. Now perhaps I win in court and don't have to pay a dime because you were negligent by not wearing your seatbelt, but the point is that someone other than you has to deal with the consequences and probably suffers because of it. Of course you can say I have no idea who you are, so I don't know you and I don't care, but if we all think that way about each other then doesn't that make this a crappy freakin' society to live in?
There's the insurance aspect of this issue, too. If enough people like you get into accidents and get injured because your seatbelts didn't get put on, that's probably resulting in higher health care and auto insurance premiums for the rest of us. Yeah, you can tell yourself I'm just one person and how much does that really matter in the grand scheme of things, but in a country of 300 million people I'm sure there are at least 10's of thousands out there who are thinking the same thing, and then we may have a significant problem, right?
I understand where you're coming from man, I really do because I used to think the same way myself but at some point I realized that there's just too much of that "America is a free country I can do what I want with my own life" attitude around, because many people just take it way too far. We don't all live in isolation, so people can and do get hurt or killed when just a few of us decide to thumb our noses at the laws and trade safety for convenience out there on the roads. It only takes a one small mistake and a couple seconds to ruin the rest of your life and someone else's in a motorized vehicle, so just put on the seatbelt!!!
Sorry moderator, that was way off topic but I couldn't resist jumping on the pile.
I used to run the SCCA circuit, so no need to inform about the rules of the race tracks, definitely not apples to apples there...
"So when you ask the dealer to disable your seat belt chime you might as well ask to have the front air bags disabled too. I mean why not go all the way and give yourself a nice clear path to the hood?"
Guess I should have them disable the side airbags too, they might get in the way too..
And I agree with you, that the best drivers do prepare for the mistakes of others, but in this situation, it doesn't make a difference if a person is wearing a belt or not. When I drive outside my neighborhood, I wear the belt, simply because I do not trust others.
That's the great thing about this country, frivolous lawsuits! Here comes another! :P This is why I have a limited tort option on my insurance, because if I do get hurt, and it is of my own doing, I am responsible enough to live with the decisions I made, and not try to blame someone else. Sure, this is probably not the way a lot of people think today, but I do. Lawyers chasing the ambulance (or spilled McDonalds coffee cups) are ruining this country.
Amen....
I have called Mazda HQ. They claim dealers may not want to make change out of concern for lawsuit. I have been told there is a process that consumer can disable, but it is very involved I could not get to work. I will put up with it - not the worst of problems. But I still say it is a crappy design. Warn me so I get the message and then shut up.
If your dealer refuses (like my did) I'd advise calling Mazda and get the detailed procedure. It is quite lengthy. Maybe you have more patience then me in trying to get it to work. They wouldn't email written insturctions.
Again, I'm a big advocate of seat belt use - but there are times when drivers seat belt may warrant unfasten. I believe Mazda will eventually concur with mistake and change to eliminate the continual audible warning. Just my opinion.
It still amazes me that people are so willing to jump on a guy for making a choice of his own free will. That's the sad thing about forums like these. Someone asks a question, and a lot of people get the "holier than thou" syndrome. Those types of responses would scare a lot of people away from ever posting to places like this, and potentially deprive the forum community of good input.
I'm done on the subject...
Now if there's a "Seatbelts: Why Should We Wear Them?" forum...
BTW, Mitch, have you taken the car in to disable the chime yet? I'm curious to see if they DO charge you or not...
Just wondering if this "parked pinging" is normal for this car..since i have not experienced this in the all the Honda's I have owned in the past
After the car is shut off, the "pinging" sound is made from the engine components cooling down and contracting, mainly the exhaust manifolds, the catalytic converter, and the heat shields surrounding it.
BTW, the engine is tuned to run at max power and efficiency using 87 octane. Using higher grades slightly lowers MPG and wastes your money.
I'm done with this too ...
Not yet. My first oil change will be in another two weeks or so, and I plan on getting it done in conjunction with that.
If they refuse to do it, I'll take cards_200 advice and call Mazda HQ. (btw, thanks for the advice!)
Yes! I learned this from the Mazda dealership guy, who took the car out for testdrive. What the dealership people do, to avoid the annoying beeps, while they move the cars on the lot (for instance detailing, washing, waxing etc etc) is following: take the seat belt from the passenger side, and put the passenger clicker into the drivers side clickee.
Then the obligatory nag: alway wear setbelts, while driving. My own trick of "training" non-complaint passengers, especially the backseat refusers, is to say that my car has real nice accelleration and quickly spool up to 30 mph - then I snag the brakes real nasty! All belts are on in about 2 seconds! :surprise: click click.
We have the click it or ticket campaign going on in Texas, which hits the nail right on on the spot (probably elsewere too). Consider this: unless you face looks like Mr.Frankenstein, you will appreciate the protection the seatbelts offer, even in ridicilously low speeds. Bruises on your face doesn't look flattering, and if the compression wound is severe enough, it will result in visible, permanent scarring.
Remember that airbags sometimes fail to deploy. Please use your Mazda seatbelts. The Mazda3 comes with seatbelt pre-tensioners for enchanced protection. Thank you Mazda.
As for getting jumped on, you really didn't get it that bad. Anytime you post comments on big issues like seatbelt or helmet use/laws, a heated discussion is sure to follow. I've seen some pretty brutal forums, but these on edmunds.com are pretty tame. I doubt we really scared anyone off with this thread. It is the Internet, and yeah you can get beat up once and a while just for posting your opinion but how much will it really hurt?
To steer this more on topic, I'll agree that the lack of a timeout on the Mazda6 seatbelt chime does seem a bit extreme. I'm sure there are legal reasons for it as you and others suggested. Enjoy the car, hope you find the solution you're looking for.
"now if mazda had made the seat belt chime one continuous fog horn sound it would have been ok....but one beep every 10 seconds is negligence on mazda behalf....my client is should be paid $50 million because mazda wants to kill people."
Thanks
As far as I know, there aren't any major issues with the automatic. The transmission is known to run at a higher temperature than other autos, not causing any short-term problems, but long-term reliability becomes a question if you run the car hard frequently (i.e. "shotgun" starts, autocrossing on weekends, etc.). Then again, if you do that frequently, you'd want a manual 5-speed instead.
I'm not sure if this will end up being the transmission that the 3 will use. Rumors have it that they may go to a different supplier, but nothing is comfirmed yet...
Call dealer service; reply: 'Check gas cap, blah blah...'
Take it into dealer service...'repaired'. Get home CEL glows bright again.
Take it back to dealer service. Daily calls about status of repair.
Response: 'We are waiting on Mazda to send us a new Throttle Body...'
Finally get car back after 2 weeks - dealer removed Throttle Body from a new car on their lot and transplanted it to mine - problem solved.
Car is now 15 months old, so far so good.
Now if only I could get over the:
- Sloshing sounds from the gas tank
- Crunchy 1st. - 2 nd. gear shift
- Occasionally 'slippery' clutch
- Really loud AC Fan
- Loose screws appearing on the floor since the dealer got their 'techs' into the car
I'd really like this car.
Previous car 1988 Mazda 626 Hatchback w/manual transmission; owened from 1992-2004. Go figure.
As for the others...
- Sloshing sounds from the gas tank
I'm sure we've seen that complaint before, my wagon does it too. I only notice it for a short time after I fill the tank, and only when I'm bouncing over the drain gutter at the bottom of my driveway.
- Crunchy 1st. - 2 nd. gear shift
This has come up in the forums before, but I don't really notice it much unless it's pretty cold outside. I plan to switch the gear oil to Redline MT-90 sometime, it worked well in my '00 626.
- Occasionally 'slippery' clutch
Not sure what you mean here, unless you're referring to the fact that the clutch doesn't always seem to engage/disengage at the same point, which I believe has also been discussed on one or more of the Mazda6 forums here in the past.
- Really loud AC Fan
My fan isn't what I would call quiet but it hasn't irritated me much yet. I think others here have complained about theirs, but I don't remember if anyone actually went to the dealer for it. Try a search on this and the other Mazda6 forums.
- Loose screws appearing on the floor since the dealer got their 'techs' into the car
Yikes, that doesn't sound good. Now I'd be wondering where those came from, and what is about to come loose or fall off. Hopefully they traveled into your car from the shop floor on the soles of someones boots!
When cruising at a normal speed there is a noticeable low-volume, high pitch whining sound while pressing on the accelerator. When you let off the accelerator or hit the clutch it stops. This is not always noticeable but seems to be consistent.
This is very subtle and I dont want to take it to the dealer and be without my baby if it turns out to be normal. Any help or advice in this matter would be more then helpful.
Engine light had come on three times now. I have about 35000 miles on my car now. I took it to the dealer the first time. It was fixed. Second time it happened my husband disconnected the battery to reset the computer programming in the car. The engine light came on again within 1 week. I am going to take it to the dealer tomorrow.
Good luck.
There is a plate on the drivers door that lists the month and year you car was built.
The day is not on it. I guess that prevents anyone from having a birthday party for their 6.
Was the noise problem solved?
Sounds like your fuel pump was problematic. Did they replace it?
p.s. the check engine light comes on when one does not sufficiently tighten the gas cap
One of the fobs for the keyless entry doesn't work. The local dealer said it would cost 45 for a new fob and about 50 for programming.
I think I should be able to do better than that. Is there any aftermarket fobs that will work?
I changed the battery.
Just make sure you get the fob for your particular car. The fob for the sedan is different compared to the hatch/wagon.
Once you get it, check out page 91 (I think) of this thread on how to program it.
Good luck...
Only had the car for a couple days but I really like it.
2003 6i auto with factory alloys, spoiler, skirts etc. Storm Gray
33,000 miles. Noticeably tight and rattle free.