I'd just realized that my Mazda 3 and VW Passat have a lot of controls in opposite direction. This confused me when I switched driving these two cars. I pressed buttons or shift gear wrong a lot of times. Just want to share this with you guy. Nothing serious !!!

Mazda 3
Volume control - on left side of steering wheel
Cruise control - on right side of steering wheel
Windshield wiper control - push down steps
Gear shift - up (+) toward yourself

VW Passat
Volume control - on right side of steering wheel
Cruise control - on left side of steering wheel
Windshield wiper control - push up steps
Gear shift - down (-) toward yourself

โดย: yworr   วันที่: 10 Dec 2004 - 12:35

 ความคิดเห็นที่: 21 / 25 : 022536

โดย: Nuay

Almost cars with sequential shifting like this, which want to provide the sport feeling, like Mazda3, doesn't shift gear up when running into the red line. That doesn't weird, but the engine will cut-off to protect itself.

Some cars with higher tegnology can shift gear up automatically just like your Passat but some doesn't want this function because they don't provide the real manual transmission feeling.

A lot of difference for these two cars!!

 ความคิดเห็นที่: 22 / 25 : 022611

โดย: yworr

Khun Nuay, another difference is direction of gear when entering manual mode. In Mazda 3, we need to pull toward the driver, while in VW Passat, we need to push toward the passenger.

So if I am driving Mazda 3 at high speed and want to shift down (to slow down or some how), I can use manual mode by pull it toward myself and shift up (-). If I forget that I'm driving Mazda 3, not Passat. Then I will push it toward the passenger and shift down. So the car (Mazda 3) will be in neutral which is quite dangerous in high speed.

I didn't mean which one is better. Just that I use Passat everyday, and when switch to drive Mazda 3, I found all these difference.

 ความคิดเห็นที่: 23 / 25 : 022821

โดย: Nuay

Khun yworr, I understand your point krub. I'm thinking that I'll also get confused, If I were you. Haha

for the direction to switch into Manual Mode, may be because the different nationality for them? I mean, in German, they drive in the right so the driver will shift toward himself for manual mode which opposite for Japan-producted car.

Thanks for a lot of information you provided.

 ความคิดเห็นที่: 24 / 25 : 023187

โดย: Old lady

Hi! yworr.
your picture was wrong. In Thailand please see the right picture in WWW.mazda3thailand.com

 ความคิดเห็นที่: 25 / 25 : 023208

โดย: yworr

Hi Khun Old Lady,

In which picture that you say it was wrong. Please clarify. Maybe because of my car is US version, so it has everything opposite fromThai version.