Under powered Engine?

[el toro]

It's not in Canada either... still haven't figured out why that is. Think it may just be the nature of what gets towed in the UK vs. NA and the general knowledge levels as well. Basically Mazda NA doesn't want to deal with a whole bunch of idiots who have killed their engines/transmissions trying to tow their 5000 lbs boats!

Anyway... you had to drill holes to install your hitch?? Why didn't you just buy the U-haul, Hidden Hitch, Curt or Draw Tite hitches made specifically for the 5? They all just bolt onto/into existing holes, very quick and easy to install. This is a great site to find hitches, ball mounts etc... based on your vehicle - http://www.etrailer.com

I bought the hitch on etrailer indeed. Believe I needed to drill, but don't remember for sure. Might have been on our Subaru...

 

[jmcglynn]

Don't get me started on that whole towing issue... basically no regular "passenger car" is rated for towing in the US, although many of those same vehicles are rated for towing in other countries world wide with smaller engines. If you want to tow in the US, you need a truck, or an SUV (I'm classifying most "cross-overs" in that category). It all has to do with the automakers not wanting to take on the liability for any issues, in cooperation with the insurance companies, the lawyers, the regulators, and our overly litigious US society. And it's no coincidence that such action supports the sales of all those US built trucks and SUV's (which all have factory installed tow packages).

That said, I was long considering a tow hitch for my 5 once the warranty expired, but in the end I felt it would be too much for the 5. This coming from a guy who used to tow his watercraft with a 1.6 liter VW Rabbit convertible.

 

[phunky.buddha]

The axle ratio or final drive ratio is the ratio of the number of turns of the engine to the number of turns of the driven wheels in the highest gear. You can lower the axle ratio by buying larger diameter tires. On the mazda 5 using 215/55/17 instead of the OEM 205/55/17 lowers the drive ratio by 5% since the tire circumference is 5% larger. (upto 5% variation is DOT kosher.) I tried these on both our 5's and got about 10% higher gas mileage overall, with no change in driveability. But the tires are wider too, hence suffer excessive wear on the inside front so switched back to the OEM size on the latest batch.

In the 2006 models, the Mazda 5 with 2.3L engines have an axle ratio of 4.39 while the Mazda 3 with 2.3L engines have an axle ratio of 4.11. Consequently, the Mazda3 have better gas mileage, 32MPG hwy vs 27 on the Mazda 5. For the same engine, a lower axle ratio results in a higher throttle opening, so the engine operates under higher cylinder pressure and higher efficiency.

The high gear ratio is cause the Mazda 5 sold in North America has the same gearbox as 5's sold elsewhere, despite the larger engine. Likewise, the plastic cowling under the engine has the oil filter hole in the wrong place!

Huh? Practically every front wheel drive car has its normal gear reduction ratios through gears 1-5 (or however many gears you have) and then another reduction through the FINAL DRIVE that's carried on the ring gear of the differential, and which has its own ratio.

Example:
1st = 3.307
2nd = 1.842
3rd = 1.310
4th = 1.030
5th = 0.795
Final Drive = 4.588

The MZ5's overall ratios per gear are the product of the gear ratio x final drive ratio.

Or maybe you meant the same exact thing.