Installing the Spare Wheel

1. Use a cloth to remove dirt and debris from the wheel and hub mounting surfaces and from the bolts.

WARNING

Before changing a wheel or replacing a tire, make sure the wheel and hub mounting surfaces and the wheel nuts are clean: When changing a wheel or replacing a tire, leaving dirt or debris on the wheel, hub, or bolt mounting surfaces is dangerous. The wheel nuts may loosen while driving and the wheel may come off, leading to an accident.

2. Install the spare wheel.

3. Screw on the wheel nuts with the tapered side facing inward; tighten them by hand.

WARNING

Do not lubricate the wheel nuts and bolts, and do not tighten the nuts with a torque greater than recommended: Lubricating the wheel nuts and bolts is dangerous. The wheel nuts may loosen while driving and the wheel may come off, leading to an accident.

In addition, the wheel nuts and bolts may be damaged if they are tightened more than necessary.

4. Turn the jack handle counterclockwise and lower the vehicle to the ground. Using the wheel wrench, tighten the wheel nuts in the order shown in the illustration.

If you are unsure how tight the wheel nuts should be, have them checked at a qualified service facility; we recommend an Authorized Mazda Dealer.

WARNING

Always tighten the wheel nuts carefully and correctly: Wheel nuts that are incorrectly or insufficiently tightened are dangerous. The wheel may vibrate or come off while driving. This may cause loss of vehicle control and lead to a serious accident.

Make sure you install the same wheel nuts that were removed, or replace them with metric nuts of the same specifications: Because the wheel bolts and nuts on your Mazda have metric threads, using non-metric nuts is dangerous. A non-metric nut may damage the metric bolt and fail to secure the wheel, which may cause the wheel to come off and lead to an accident.

5. Remove the wheel chocks from under the wheels, and stow the tools and jack in their proper place.

6. Place the damaged wheel in the luggage compartment.

7. Check the tire pressure. See "Tires" on page 9-10.

8. Have the tire repaired or replaced as soon as possible.

CAUTION

(With Tire Pressure Monitoring System) After installing the spare wheel, do not press the tire pressure monitoring system setup button.

This button may only be pressed after installing a repaired or new tire (page 4-40).

WARNING

Do not drive if the tire pressure is incorrect in even one tire: Driving with incorrectly inflated tires compromises safety.

Tires with incorrect pressure affect vehicle handling and may cause an accident.

Check the pressure in all tires, including the spare tire.

CAUTION

Secure the jack and tools properly so that they do not rattle while driving.