Hi all,
I’m sorry i’m sure this has been covered a thousand times but just i wanted a specific answer for my situation. I recently changed the shift boots, turret oil and shifter nylon bush a few weeks ago to make shifting more pleasurable, but i still get a very notchy transition into 2nd and reverse gear, even when the engine is hot it’s still noticeable. In general the gear changes are quite metalic and noisy but i know it’s not down to the way i shift because i’m already self conscious about it. When i replaced all the parts above there was also some O rings sitting inside the actual turret that i couldn’t get out, do these need replacing as well? I’ve some people mention that it could be down to score marks on the actual shifter. I bought the kit from mx5parts but there was nothing included. The only thing i haven’t done is change the gearbox oil which is going to be done at the end of the month.
2000 NB 1.8 by the way, thanks a million for any feedback.
Having had similar problems on my MK1 I did the turret oil and gearbox oil but despite glowing reports about red line and other oils I have not noticed much difference. It’s usually better after the oil has warmed up but I’ve kind of accepted that there’s probably not much more to be done.
The NC gesrbox suffers from a weak change from 1st to 2nd, as the saying goes “they all do that”.
Changing the gearbox oil will help somewhat otherwise it’s a case of slow shifting until the oil in the box has warmed up.
I’ve changed the oils and shift boots on my Mk1 and Mk2 which improved things, well shifting 1st to 2nd anyway. It’s not a complete cure, an improvement.
On to my Mk3 and I’ve done the same, except the shift boot, no worries there, although I did grease the top pivot points on the shifter and top up the oil there.
What you could try in addition to the stuff you’ve done is change the clutch slave, you say your change is metallic and noisy?? Cheap and easy enough to change and I also did that on my Mk1/Mk2.
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That’s a good shout with the clutch slave cylinder, i’m probably over reacting as this is the first car i’ve owned that has a bolt action feel to the shifter, i’m assuming there’s no linkages in the transmission as the box is right under the shifter. Just sounds like it’s in dire need of lubrication 
Gives you an idea what’s going on under there.
Recommend Castrol Syntrans for the oil change when you get around to it
Cheers for the input guys, that video is comical and interesting, i love this guy haha.
I have just purchased a nice '62-plate NC (the 1.8i SE model). Two immediate observations:
- Clutch bite point is pretty low (lower than I would like) and
- Finding it quite hard to select 1st - it’s a bit of a struggle to get it in. After that, going up through the box is not too bad. Not exactly crisp and precise (like I was used to with my NB). Trying to select reverse is quite tricky to select, like 1st.
Have watched a number of Youtube videos on this. A number advocate slight adjustment of the pushrod (at top of clutch pedal) - see link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLw-eOf-XmE and another reckons changing the gearbox oil to some American-made stuff called ’ RED LINE fully synthetic gear box oil MT-90 will miraculously sort all problems with notchy/sticky gear changing.
Would welcome owners’ thoughts/comments on this. I know it has been covered a fair bit on the forum and maybe it’s not an exact science in terms of how to fix. Thank you.
Mine was notchy. I replaced the oil with syntrans.
I think it made a very slight difference, or maybe that was just wishful thinking.
I’ve sort of gotten used to it now.
It’s only notchy for the first 5 minutes, by which point, I’m no longer in that rev range.
When it’s cold, I just take my time changing gear.
I’ll hover round in neutral just for a split second.