1. Verify that the joint shaft is not twisted or cracked.
2. Turn the joint shaft by hand and verify that the bearing rotates smoothly and freely.

Drive shaft
Joint shaft removal/installationMazda 6 Service Manual: Driver Air Bag
The driver's air bag is mounted in the steering wheel.
When air bag crash sensors detect a frontal impact of greater than moderate force,
the driver's air bag inflates quickly helping to reduce injury mainly to the driver's
head or chest caused by directly hitting the steering wheel. For more d ...
Mazda 6 Service Manual: Selector lever inspection
1. Turn the ignition switch to ON (engine OFF).
2. With the brake pedal depressed, verify that there is a "click" at each
range when shifted.
3. Verify that the selector lever can be shifted.
4. Verify that there is a "click" at each position when shifted from P
position to L range.
5. Ver ...