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Open/Close Center Vents

9K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  Funkagenda 
#1 · (Edited)
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:
 

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#3 ·
Thank you sir! I was super excited to get my hands on this.

I did reach out to the seller on ebay and let him know if he comes across anymore to let me know and I'll snag them up. Never hurts to have inventory on hand...
 
#4 ·
Makes you wonder why they would omit that in the US market, even on the higher trims

But cool mod thanks for the info
 
#7 ·
Sir. your mods are amazing. My wife is always cold and I am always hot so a constant battle, and I saw the closing vent on the 6 so figured they did not put it on the three to keep the 6 more upscale, I was wrong. Wish I had the skills you do, good job.

You will have a gem of a car when done, top of the line in the world, if that makes sense.
 
#8 ·
You are too kind Johny. Extremely easy mod though if you're not having to switch out the bezel trim. I could walk you through it if you're ever able to get your hands on one. Cheers
 
#9 ·
Interesting how not just the interior options, but the wheel style and the wheel color changes throughout different countries. This is not true of course for just Mazda.

Must be some really smart color and option analysts in every car companies marketing departments, for them to predict and then require customers in this country to get only standard wheel XYZ in silver, but in an adjoining country, you can only get wheel standard wheel ABC and only in a medium gray -- and these mandated standards are for the identical model in the identical trim version.

Yes, lots of the above said, "tongue in cheek."
 
#11 ·
I've got my eyes peeled M. I'll snatch these up as I find them, but as I'm sure you've discovered, this is not an easy part to find.

The best thing we can hope for is a member like @sevec who already lives in a country where this is available, and God willing lives close to a Mazda dealership too. From there, we just send that member a bunch of money + plus a "finder's fee" to order like 20 of these things through the dealership and ship them over here. Then we can auction them off here...but don't let arathol know *nudge nudge* lol

Not looking to make profit of course, just to share the joy of Mazda!
 
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#14 ·
Oh shit! It's the 5-0! Run!!!
 
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#18 ·
Those vents are on the top trim UK models. I have a 2014 sport nav
 
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