2011 Mazda 3 6-speed - Difficulty with 5th Gear

[bbbwood]

Having a fairly consistent problem with getting my car to go into 5th gear (shift around 2.5-3k rpm). It feels as if there is something blocking the sideways movement of the shifter. I have to use a little force and it then pops in. No grinding, just extreme difficulty with the movement. When parked, there is no issue. Car only has 7000 kms on it.

Taking it to the dealer on Monday, but first wanted to see if this is an issue that others have experienced.

Could it be the fact that the car is new? Or could it be technique?

Gears 1-4 are used much more as I do quite a bit of city driving. And 6 is also fine, probably because there is no sideways movement.

Input is appreciated.

[SomeGuy]

5th is in a little bit of an awkward position on these cars...but I've never had any issues with sideways movement.

[Elusivellama]

No issues with any of my gears in my 6 speed MT. It's a bit clunky when the car is cold but goes away after about 5 mins of driving. I should also mention that I have a heavy shift knob installed (650+ grams), the stock shift knob weighed 265 grams and needed more effort to get into gear. However I've never had the issue you're describing with needing to overcome that block to sideways movement.

[grex]

I had the same issue when i first got my 3. I also asked some members here and the general consensus at the time was that this is an issue that everyone was experiencing. Over time it will go away...Ive noticed that putting it into 5th now is much smoother then when I first purchased the car a year and a half ago...guess you just kinda have to work it in....

[derekl]

I have a 6speed GT.
Fifth is def alittle awkward at first. but i got use to it
No problems for me.
However.. my 6th grinds =/...

[TheMAN]

give it more time to break in.... you need to vary your shift points with a new car to get the tranny to break in properly... forget granny shifting for now... just shift at different rpms, as high as you can at times also... engine is already broken in, so don't have to baby it
once you hit around 20k, change the fluid over to synthetic... you will never look back

[PR3Y11]

No issues with any of my gears in my 6 speed MT. It's a bit clunky when the car is cold but goes away after about 5 mins of driving. I should also mention that I have a heavy shift knob installed (650+ grams), the stock shift knob weighed 265 grams and needed more effort to get into gear. However I've never had the issue you're describing with needing to overcome that block to sideways movement.
where did you find a 650+ knob?.... heaviest i thought was the blox 490... :(

also no issues with 5th for me. in the winter 1st to 2nd would sometimes be a little rough but once warmed up it would be fine. also not sure about the regular 3s but it always feels like the car wants to be in slightly higher revs when shifting