Hello all, first post here.
Just signed on a 2011 Mazda 3s sedan not 2 hours ago. Granted I won't have the car until Wednesday, I'm already thinking about doing a few things to it, which is what brings me here.

1) This is my first manual car, I've driven manual for all of 2 hours in my life (got it because I'd much rather a 6 speed than 5 speed). I've been told that the new manual Mazdas are good to start out on. Any thoughts, comments, or suggestions?

2) As for performance upgrades, I know there's not a whole lot I can do since it's not a turbocharged car. But I have been told to look into a cold air intake, and cat-back exhaust. What kind of performance differences will I see (in terms of torque and HP, and at what RPMs) with these upgrades? Also, any other suggestions? Can a non-turbo car be chipped for any performance gain? I really know absolutely nothing when it comes to this, so any input would be great! Also, the car is on lease, so anything I do needs to be reversible.

3) HIDs? yay or nay?

4) Can I put studded snow tires in the front (power wheels), and normal snow tires in the back, or should I make them all the same? I'm coming from an AWD car (Subaru Legacy) so this car will have a little competition in the snow.

5) Anything else at all I should do that would make the car more fun to drive/better?

6) Seriously, anything?!

7) Thanks!!!

edit* Is it OK to get on the highway and drive a few hundred miles, while the car only has 60 miles on it? I know I shouldn't redline it right away, but anything else I should/shouldn't do?

 

See my comments below in RED.

Let us know how you make out learing how to drive a stick.

 

Thanks for the speedy reply!
Why no HIDs btw? If no HIDs, I'm guessing no xenons either?

Also, I don't really understand how a new intake can squeeze a few more HP out at high RPMs, but reduce low and mid-range torque. Doesn't the 3 have relatively low torque as is in the low-mid range, until it hits around 4K RPMs?

Also why no studded tires? I was thinking studded on the power wheels just to get me out of some unfavorable snowy spots every now and then.

 

I've had Xenon/HIDs on a couple of cars now and can say with some authority that the Halogen units in the Mazda3 are probably 98% as effective. I really don't think the time and expense of installing Xenon's is justified by the minimal extra illumination.

Regarding the intake, resonance and velocity of the intake charge are key components of generating low and mid-range torque; opening up the breathing for two to three extra horsepower at redline almost by definition means the loss of said resonance and velocity on the low end.

While studded tires are good for ice, they're good for little else. The rubber compounds used in modern winter tires are very good (relatively speaking) at gripping on ice; however, unlike studded tires, they don't tear up the roads, they're very capable in snow (studs provide zero benefit in snow), they're not noisy, and the handle reasonably well (not as well as a high performance all-season or summer tire, but much better than a studded tire).

FWIW, modern all-season tires are getting to the point where dedicated winter tires are no longer necessary unless you live in an extreme area. I live in southern New Hampshire and we've had quite a number of winters over the last decade where we've been gifted with over one-hundred inches of snow, and with the exception of my RWD 530i (which needed winter tires due to being shod with summer performance rubber from the factory), all-season tires have been more than a match for the snow and ice around here.

Edit: I should have said top-tier all-season tires have been more than a match for the snow and ice around here. Why? Because the tires that came on my Mazda3 were absolute junk; I bought the car in November of 2009 and yanked the tires after only 714 miles in favor of a set of Michelin Pilot Sport A/Ss.