At what point should I shift gears?? Don't want to tear up my car, but I like to go fast, and hear it wind..... another question what is the (!) light that comes on? Also thinking about getting some Strakes, should I have the dealer put them on? I should get my manual next week.

 

You should hear a buzzer when it's time to shift.
If not shift before your revs get into the red range.

Heres a Link on the discussion of the break-in period.

 

Till I hear a Buzzing sound..... does this mean I will be getting some tickets or what??????

 

Where in Ohio are you at?
If your in Columbus I'd be more than happy to show you first hand how to do this.

Did you get a used '04? Odd you didn't receive a manual with it.

 

Yes 04 used... I've had since 04/11 and I'm use to only 4sp...older cars (had 67'mustang).. I'm close to cincy, so that's not very close to you, but love the offer.. :o

 

Here is a link to the Owners Manual

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/pdf/...004_owners.pdf

 

Here is another link on the break-in periods. I believe it's the last post in this thread.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...light=break-in

BTW,the buzzer only sounds when your around 8500 rpms. I don't recommend hitting 8500 rpms
on every shift during the break-in period.

 

If you didn't find it in the Manual already that's your tire pressure monitoring indicator. When it comes on (During driving) it means one (or more) of your tries is dangerously under-inflated.

You should always be sure to check them yourself on a regular basis as well though.

 

You can safely shift at 9k rpms all day long and not damage a thing (as long as you're broken in, anyways), and yes you WILL be getting quite a few tickets. :D The car really doesn't build a significant amount of power until you hit around 4500-5000 RPMs, though. Conversely, that is also the smoothest point at which to shift if you aren't concerned about going too fast.

Finally, if the car is still in it's first 600-1000 miles, it's reccomended that you keep the rpm's at, or below' 4k to ensure proper break-in. There is a TON of debate on this topic, but it couldn't hurt to be easy on it for just a little while.

As for the strakes, I've heard it takes all of 15 minutes to do. Sounded incredibly simple, and I believe there are walkthroughs somewhere on this forum on exactly how to do it.