lugging at first throttle
 

So, I went for a drive in the miata today and when I first hit the throttle to go anywhere near wot, it has a lot of lug before it comes up. Just bought the car and it is not greddy'd yet, but will be here really soon. I just want to make sure that the car is in prestine condition prior to bolting on the greddy. Would this be because of the timing being retarded. I do not actually know if it is, but I will be checking here very shortly once I can find someone with a timing light. Also, about how long does it take to change out the timing belt and the waterpump. Mine is going out and would like to get it changed here soon if possible.

What year is your car? If it is a 90 or 91 I would check for the crank keyway starting to fail. Do a search before you take anything apart.

By lug do you mean its slow to rev up? Alot of things can cause this. I would start by checking your timing. As for the timing belt and water pump, search this site as well as miata.net. You will find EVERYTHING you need to know as its a very common subject.