So this is more informational than anything else folks.
Yet another component of the car that I've researched, found, and played with.
So as some of you may know, Mazda is a global company with models like the Mazda3 in MANY different countries. Each country may or may not have its own differences in models.
Examples:
- Some models have the door lock/unlock buttons, others do not (country dependent)
- Some models may have a robust reverse camera with front and rear sensors, others do not (again, country dependent)
- Some countries have an option for the 2.5L, other countries, their top-trim model only has the 2.0L
You get my point...
So in this post, I explore another country-specific option: Center vents that can open and close. (Pictures below)
So I ordered the center vent and it came from Lithuania (via ebay). Important to note if you're looking for these, the car comes with two bezel trim colors; one is more of a matte silver, the other is more of a shiny silver. The upper trim models normally come with the shiny bezel trim, the lower trim comes with the matte silver.
The part I ordered had the matte silver on it. So I had to remove that bezel trim which is held in place via plastic tabs that have been soldered. So you'll need to dremel the soldered pieces of plastic off to free the bezel trim. From there, it's just a series of clips that haven't been soldered that pop right off. Remove your current vents from the car and repeat same process on the shiny bezel trim. Place new bezel trim on new vents. You should have enough plastic clips left over to hold it in place. I threw on some super glue just for added hold.
Now, you can forego the above-mentioned step if you're fortunate enough to find one of the vents that already have your desired trim color on it. In which case it takes less than 5 minutes to install.
A couple notes.
- When you do find the center vent, it doesn't matter if it's coming from a right-hand drive, or left-hand drive car. The center vent is symmetrical and will work regardless.
- I tried to confirm part numbers, but the part number given doesn't show up in the U.S. parts catalog.
- From what I can tell, you can't just order one vent, or a bezel, or anything like that. It's a whole unit and must be ordered as a whole unit (both vents, center surround, and bezel trim)
- The one part number I could find was BHR164931. The U.S. part number is BHN164931 (you can find this one in U.S. catalogs, but no open/close function). Note the difference between "R" and "N' in the part numbers. I'm imagining if one of you folks around the world that has access to your dealer, you could ask them to look up the "R" part number and see if they come up with anything. Otherwise, just keep your eyes on ebay every so often. That's the only other way I can think of getting this part -- it's a rare part, no doubt.
Hope that helps you folks looking for this part. Pictures of my install below.
And here's a super fun dancing banana :dancin 1:
Yet another component of the car that I've researched, found, and played with.
So as some of you may know, Mazda is a global company with models like the Mazda3 in MANY different countries. Each country may or may not have its own differences in models.
Examples:
- Some models have the door lock/unlock buttons, others do not (country dependent)
- Some models may have a robust reverse camera with front and rear sensors, others do not (again, country dependent)
- Some countries have an option for the 2.5L, other countries, their top-trim model only has the 2.0L
You get my point...
So in this post, I explore another country-specific option: Center vents that can open and close. (Pictures below)
So I ordered the center vent and it came from Lithuania (via ebay). Important to note if you're looking for these, the car comes with two bezel trim colors; one is more of a matte silver, the other is more of a shiny silver. The upper trim models normally come with the shiny bezel trim, the lower trim comes with the matte silver.
The part I ordered had the matte silver on it. So I had to remove that bezel trim which is held in place via plastic tabs that have been soldered. So you'll need to dremel the soldered pieces of plastic off to free the bezel trim. From there, it's just a series of clips that haven't been soldered that pop right off. Remove your current vents from the car and repeat same process on the shiny bezel trim. Place new bezel trim on new vents. You should have enough plastic clips left over to hold it in place. I threw on some super glue just for added hold.
Now, you can forego the above-mentioned step if you're fortunate enough to find one of the vents that already have your desired trim color on it. In which case it takes less than 5 minutes to install.
A couple notes.
- When you do find the center vent, it doesn't matter if it's coming from a right-hand drive, or left-hand drive car. The center vent is symmetrical and will work regardless.
- I tried to confirm part numbers, but the part number given doesn't show up in the U.S. parts catalog.
- From what I can tell, you can't just order one vent, or a bezel, or anything like that. It's a whole unit and must be ordered as a whole unit (both vents, center surround, and bezel trim)
- The one part number I could find was BHR164931. The U.S. part number is BHN164931 (you can find this one in U.S. catalogs, but no open/close function). Note the difference between "R" and "N' in the part numbers. I'm imagining if one of you folks around the world that has access to your dealer, you could ask them to look up the "R" part number and see if they come up with anything. Otherwise, just keep your eyes on ebay every so often. That's the only other way I can think of getting this part -- it's a rare part, no doubt.
Hope that helps you folks looking for this part. Pictures of my install below.
And here's a super fun dancing banana :dancin 1: