Reading the press release it indicates that there is an option to turn of some the options but it didnt say you were able to switch of traction control. Does anyone know if this is possible?

reason i ask, remember the snow flurries back in Jan/Feb which brought the south east to a standstill. Well it took me 18 hours to get home. From Stevenage to Watford !!!!


If it wasnt for the option of switching off traction control on my lexus i would have had to park up and sleep it out. - it also had some button called "snow" which ive been able to fathom out cause it doesnt work ... in the snow that is. It appears to drop the torque to stop spin but dont make a blind bit of difference to me.


I know its a relatively small point but its those days when you wished you knew in advance.

 

How I understand it is theres a button/switch.

Press it once and it disables all but ABS UNLESS ABS kicks in then the rest comes back into play.

Press and hold for 6 seconds and all but ABS is disabled (until restart?).

Havnt heard of an easy way to disable ABS - or if the press and hold method disables ABS too.

 

I think I read somewhere about holding some button down for 6 seconds to override.... I am sure it is in a thread somewhere. Try a search.

So yes - think it is possible , but dont remember how.
Sort of useful - but not quite.

 

You cannot disable ABS. In fact I don't know of a car where you can.

ABS is a good thing

 

On a similar vane does anyone know it the passenger airbag can be disabled?

Chris

 

yes their is a button (pic around here somewhere) near the glove compartment (not sure what you blokes call that) for disabling the airbag. let me see if i can find it.

yep here it is.came originally from rotarynews.com. i think Dan was driving while Bern snapped the pics hence the blurriness:D

 

We call it a glove compartment too - although I am yet to see gloves in one.....

 

Well I've always called it a glove box - never kept gloves in there either though.:p

 

Great news, it looks like the nipper and the car may be compatible, I think I will just have to leave the wife at home as I don't think there will be room in the back seats for her and the nippers things.

Chris

:D

 

Be careful regarding the child seat, if the cars is as the rest of Mazda's range it will not be a button to disable airbag.

All other Mazda's (323, Mazda6, Mazda2, Premacy and MX-5) use a transponder system. You have to have a mazda approved baby or child seat with the transponder in. The passenger seat has a corresponding relay which automatically shuts bown the air bag, and shows a warnign light identical to the photo above.

 

I have just confirmed with the RX8 help-line that indeed a special Mazda car seat is required to disable the passenger airbag.

I am assuming that these can only be purchased from the dealers at an exorbitant rate and will no doubt be completely incompatible with anything else.

Chris:

 

Chris, you synic you!

 

Aha!

excellent. I have a deal with T W Whites that our existing car seat must work and fit in the 8 or else he will supply one - and thats been added to the T&Cs I signed at the Start of March.

Looks like I get the car seat then since I wont be able to use mine in the front....

Si

 

picture recall test

 

wow a reply after 4 years!

BTW for anyone thats remotely interested, on the UK car there is a switch to turn off the airbag in the front of the car so you can use any normal (and isofix) car seat