More of a post than a question, do let me know if in the wrong place.
I found that my recently purchased NC was having trouble shifting into 1st and 2nd gear.
I replaced the reverse lockout plate, and upgraded the plastic gear bushing to a brass one, and that’s made a noticeable difference.
May change the transmission oil for good measure, but this an easy low cost mod that works.
Yup. The lockout plate should be part of each 50,000 mile service, as should a thermostat.
And each 80,000 should include a new coolant expansion tank. A cheap Mazda one - no need for an expensive ally one. Everyone knows the tank is under pressure, and the filler neck develops micro cracks over heat cycles, right?
Does the lockout plate issue only effect the 6 speed box ?
My NC is 5 speed
Yes - because reverse is towards the driver and back on the 5 speed so it is no where near the 1st/2nd shift.
Don’t know, sorry, as I’ve only ever had 6 speed ones. You’d notice if the change into 1st and then into 2nd became a little fiddly.
DOH how daft have I just made myself look 
No such thing as a daft question.
Coming from a training background - I would rather someone asked what they wanted to know rather than assume something.
I believe even us 5 gear guys can still do the brass bush swap though…so I’m sort of half involved with the topic
While the cracking in the neck of the tank appears to affect those owners living in especially hot area (e.g. the southern states of the USA), I have yet to hear of a single case of this happening in the UK.
Just to add my “two pence” to this; my 25AE came to me with 174,000 miles, and even though I can’t be absolutely certain that the tank had been changed before, I am fairly confident that it was the original unit from the factory.
All that mileage and 11 years of heat on it and yet, it was/is still in good condition. I changed it for peace of mind, prior to our European trip.
