Having racked up 57k miles over the past 14 years in my Plus 4, I thought it time to check the oil level in the gearstick turret. This is one of the first fitted with the Mazda MX5 (type N7S) box. For those who may be unaware, it should contain something like180ml of gear oil which is separate from the main gear box oil itself.
After removing the gear knob and rolling back the tunnel leather, the gearstick clamping plate is easily accessible, held by three bolts.
Removing the bolts, the lever is easily pulled out. Although my idea was to suction the old oil out, I managed little more than about 25mm.
I have now refilled with recommended gear oil (Morris FS 75w90) until it fully covered the mechanism (about an inch below the top. That took about 180 ml.
Cleaning up the ball part in the clamping plate, I noticed that there was a small split in the rubber bellows. So, if anyone proposes doing this job, it may be worth getting a spare bellows in advance as they are only around a tenner.
I very much doubt that this task is done during dealer routine servicing unless the customer specifically asks.
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