Well, I’ve only had her for about 2 weeks now, so she’s completely stock at the moment; so be gentle with me! 
She’s a 52 plate 03 registered 1.8 Sport with only 28k miles on the clock, 1 prev. lady owner etc… Oh, her name is Jessica and I love her lots! lol.
While im here I may as well enquire about a couple of “nags” im having with her…
2nd gear seems quite a
tough change (up) to get into, sometimes even sounding a bit “crunchy”
when the clutch is fully depressed. But it doesn’t seem to do it with
any of the other gears…?
And that the car doesn’t seem to want
to start first time, every time… On some of the REALLY cold
days/nights, I’ve had to try twice to start it before it fires up… But
so far the second time it has always started!? I’m thinking maybe I
should buy a WestCo MX-5 replacement absorbed-glass battery?
Im
also thinking of putting a K&N Typhoon induction kit on it… As
apparently it can smooth out the power for the mid ranges a bit. Could
be just folk lore though!? And maybe a new exhaust… although I don’t really have the space to fit one, not easily anyways?
Car looks great… like the colour as well, looks nice and fresh.
I may be corrected on this but my MK1 doesnt like 2nd gear unless the revs are high enough. Change is a bit notchy if Im not revving her happily!
Start up problems could aslo be fixed maybe changing the plugs? When was the last service done?
Cant comment on the induction kit but a nice new exhaust is always a good idea [;)]
Mines exactly the same, crunches slightly going to 2nd when cold I’ve heard that changing the gearbox oil can help and smooth it out a bit,as for the starting issue i wouldn’t worry mine does it to. As far as im aware (and i maybe wrong) it’s an issue with fuel pressure, for some reason there is no anti return valve in the line ans the fuel drains back over night so when its first turned over it takes a whilw for the fuel to come through, so on the second turn of the key it fires pretty much straight away…i wouldnt worry about changing the battery unless it’s slow turning over…
I have the typoon on my car and it makes a fantastic noise as well as smoothing out any slight hesitation IMO well worth it for the noise alone
Madboy : It could well be that im not giving it enough rev’s in 1st to make the change up, although I don’t like reving it too hard when i’ve only just started her up!
M4TTY : Nice to know that it’s not mine being wierd with the cold start issue, she’s due a service at the end of January so i’ll get them to take a peek at it then, see if they can spot any problems? As for the induction kit, think im even more tempted to try one out now… hmmm… “Oh Santa… can I make a slight change to my list?” hehe…
Which brings me onto my next point… Does anyone know any good Mazda specialists in/around the Cardiff area?
Hey car looks really great, if the car hasn’t been run very much or it’s been sitting on a garage forecourt for several weeks that may be a cause of poor starting, She needs a good thrashing for a coupla’ Months!!! I have a Typhoon fitted and it cured a mid-range flat spot that i had if it’s any help.
Enjoy the car!
Yeh true, never really thought much about the fact it’s been sat around for a while, I did clean out some of the cobwebs the other night; and hasn’t given me any trouble since then!
Im getting more and more tempted by the Typhoon… hmmm… May well have to beg the Mrs. 
The car looks really smart. I fitted a K&N Typhoon to my car & easy to fit.
Not a lot of change in the performance, but the noise is fantastic.
Ian[;)]
Ah yes there is nothing quite like “an Italian tune-up” to get your motor running sweetly! (ie. a good thrashing)
As for changing exhaust; a workshop shouldn’t charge much for the job - last time I got this done was £20 while-u-wait …get a quote first but once it’s up on ramp it should be a doddle for any half-decent garage…
I agree with Ian - the Typhoon makes the car sound like it looks. Next step for ours is a racing beat twin exit back box, just to complete the symphony[:D]
- Our 5 is also a bit sticky both from first to second (not horrendous, just a bit of extra pressure to push it through the ‘gate’), and second back to first when cold. Robbie did the gearbox oil at the last Major service, and it hasn’t made a lot of difference. I think, given the number of people that experience the same problem, its probably symptomatic of the six speed 'box.