I feel like an idiot. I should have read the flooding issues in the Tech Section. Took out the car out of the Garage, wash and Zainoed it, and drove it back into the garage. Remember to let the Engine warm up for 5 min . I had to drive the bike to work. I'll try to start it when I get home. If it doesn't start, I'll have to call the road side assistance number.:(

I wonder if this problem is increased with the whole air/fuel mixture thing that canzoomer is trying to resolve. If the engine is running rich in the first place, would that increase its chance to flood?

I dont think letting is sit will help- I waited a week and it didnt. Call RoadSide and they will probably tow it to the dealer. Hopefully they wont want to replace your engine, too!

You done the 'usual' thing for clearing a flooded 8?

Turn the engine over with throttle on max (cuts fuel) for 5-6 seconds a few times, then try normaly?

Originally posted by miata2rx8
I dont think letting is sit will help- I waited a week and it didnt. Call RoadSide and they will probably tow it to the dealer. Hopefully they wont want to replace your engine, too!

They actually replaced the Engine? That sucks. Did you get your car back yet? Are there any special instructions from Mazda now that they analyzed your engine? Let us know.

Originally posted by RobDickinson
You done the 'usual' thing for clearing a flooded 8?

Turn the engine over with throttle on max (cuts fuel) for 5-6 seconds a few times, then try normaly?

I wasn't sure what to do this morning. Never flooded a car before. I'll give it a try when I get home tonight.

If that doesnt work, someones had luck with removing the fuel pump fuse and cranking for a while.

I flooded mine and had it towed to the dealer. They cleaned the spark plugs and it was fine.

Originally posted by RobDickinson
You done the 'usual' thing for clearing a flooded 8?

Turn the engine over with throttle on max (cuts fuel) for 5-6 seconds a few times, then try normaly?

Rob;
You're the MAN! Went home during my lunch break and tried it. It took 5 or 6 times, but finally got it started:) . There was a huge cloud of black smoke, but the exhaust cleared within a minute. Do the spark plugs need to be changed after this incident? Any thoughts? Performance has not diminished, but I'm totally paranoid now and keep hearing things (Gremlins :eek: ).

I've pulled out of the garage to wash the car without running it for 5 minutes with no troubles, several times. Perhaps I will be more careful about this in the future.

These engines are REALLY sensitive to this problem aren't they?! I'd read the 'advice' in the manual but I'd not realised quite how critical that advice is. To the average non-rotary-head owner this must be a big deal and quite a nuisance as it generally doesn't happen so easily with boingers.

Interestingly I had a 2nd gen and a 3rd gen. I was never aware of this problem until I started coming to this forum a few months ago. I never had this occur with my other 2 rotaries and I'm sure I must have done this a few times. Is the 8 more sensitive than the others have been in the past?

It must be due to the last minute ECU changes the US got- we havent heard of these issues in Japan. So maybe there won't be this problem for the European market.

In my experiance, if this EVER happens, the easiest way is to get a tow and "bump start" the vehicle, using a 2nd or 3rd gear start. U only need a tow at about 20mph to do this, and the Rx will raoar into life. Happens with many cars, although tends to be more likely on older vehicles. Its NEVER a good idea to move a car without allowing temps to "normalise" as most wear occurs during warmup, and there is enourmous amounts of moisture and nasties generated during warmup. That said, its not always convenient to wait for things to warm up....

Originally posted by RobDickinson
You done the 'usual' thing for clearing a flooded 8?

Turn the engine over with throttle on max (cuts fuel) for 5-6 seconds a few times, then try normaly? Interesting!

I didn't know that cranking it @ max throttle cuts fuel. Boy, these new cars nowadays, huh?

Originally posted by 787B
In my experiance, if this EVER happens, the easiest way is to get a tow and "bump start" the vehicle, using a 2nd or 3rd gear start. U only need a tow at about 20mph to do this, and the Rx will raoar into life. ... Gee, sounds like a good way to grenade the chamber in the compression stroke. :confused:

You know, I've found the RX-8 hard starts sometimes when it's partially warmed up. Takes 7-10 turn overs. I always thought it was the ECU not compensating the right AF ratio for the engine in that temperature range. But hey, what do I know?

Originally posted by RX22
Interestingly I had a 2nd gen and a 3rd gen. I was never aware of this problem until I started coming to this forum a few months ago. I never had this occur with my other 2 rotaries and I'm sure I must have done this a few times. Is the 8 more sensitive than the others have been in the past?

I had this problem frequently in my 2nd gen TII - for years I did the old 'pull the fuse under the hood' maneuver. What a pain. Take it out. Get in and crank for a while. Put it in. Try to turn it over. No luck. Repeat.

Finally had my mechanic install a fuel cut switch under the dash. Then spent the next couple years wishing I'd done it sooner! :)

My car also had a leaky injector, which was the primary source of the problem. But I didn't want to fix it because pulling the injectors required enough disassembly that I figured one of my brittle wiring harnesses od connectors would break.

I'm not missin' my 7 a whole lot right now...

Did you use the fuel cutoff switch before shutting it off when you think it might flood if you don't?

Originally posted by rxtreme
You know, I've found the RX-8 hard starts sometimes when it's partially warmed up. Takes 7-10 turn overs. I always thought it was the ECU not compensating the right AF ratio for the engine in that temperature range. But hey, what do I know?

interesting. mine has started on the first try every time no matter what the engine temp.

Originally posted by Racer X-8
Did you use the fuel cutoff switch before shutting it off when you think it might flood if you don't?

All the time. Well, almost. I forgot once after I pulled the cold car into the garage after washing it. Total loss of compression - had to use the ATF trick to get it going again (what a relief).

As a matter of practice, though, I used the fuel cut switch to kill the engine, thereby depressurizing the fuel system. When I started it, I would crank the engine, then flip the switch on to give it fuel. Worked great!

As an aside, when I started having the flooding problem, I took the car to a Mazda dealership, and they said I had low compression on a warm start, and needed a new engine!

I later took it to an independent rotary mechanic, and he properly diagnosed the leaky injector. That was back in '95, and I still have the same engine. Beware of dealership mechanics...

how the hell do u guys manage to flood your engines.

khoney has a leaky injector in his rx-7. That will flood your enigne & also dilute your oil with that dribbling gas after shutoff. (Piston engines anyway. Rotaries too?)

I haven't had any problems yet myself. :)

interesting that your dealer wanted to replace your old 7 engine when bringing it in for flooding. Same thing with me- flooded the engine, and the engineers who came to see it said it had low compression and wanted to replace the engine.2.5 weeks later, I might get my car back tomorrow...

makes me wonder if there really was a problem all along.

Sounds like most guys on here don't have much rotary history.

2nd gens, primarily the 86-88 cars are prone to flooding. In 89 Mazda changed the design so that when you floored the throttle it cut off the fuel.

3rd gens aren't as prone to flooding but they still do and when they flood they seem harder to get started in my experience. What do I know, I've only had 15 of them.

So it seems the RX8 floods too. No biggie, start it by flooring it OR tow starting (which is much more of a PIA). It also seems to help on the earlier cars to SLIGHTLY crack the throttle when cranking. Don't rev it up when it starts, just crank the throttle when it cranks, when it fires lift...

Racer X-8... Dude learn a little, tow starting the car won't hurt the motor, "grenade the chamber" LOL...

Originally posted by desmo996
Rob;
You're the MAN! Went home during my lunch break and tried it. It took 5 or 6 times, but finally got it started:) . There was a huge cloud of black smoke, but the exhaust cleared within a minute. Do the spark plugs need to be changed after this incident? Any thoughts? Performance has not diminished, but I'm totally paranoid now and keep hearing things (Gremlins :eek: ).

:Bow:

Sorry but I cant take credit. I dont even have my car yet. I think I read it on the Canadian(or oz) forum somewhere :)

(I get my car 2-4 weeks from now :bounce:)

I thought tow starting a car was bat for the cat - unburnt fuel etc?

I suspect starting a renesis after it floods will be a little harder than a regular 13b because of the side exhaust port. Just follow the same procedure that is used in the 2nd and 3rd gen RX-7 and you should be fine. It shouldn't be too flooded unless you kept cranking it. If that's the case you might have fouled up the spark plug and you'll have to clean them.. Good luck

desmo996,

What method did you eventually use that worked? Did you pull the fuse or use full throttle? I think I came pretty close a couple of times before I read about flooding on this forum. The engine had to turn over a few seconds but enventially started. I guess I was luckey.

Originally posted by JoeRX8ter
desmo996,

What method did you eventually use that worked? Did you pull the fuse or use full throttle? I think I came pretty close a couple of times before I read about flooding on this forum. The engine had to turn over a few seconds but enventially started. I guess I was luckey.

Full throttle, like Rob described. Crank it for 5 seconds and stop. Let the starter have a break. Repeat this operation untill you hear the engine coming back to life. Try it again w/o throttle. Don't freak out about the smoke.

Originally posted by tribal azn2

how the hell do u guys manage to flood your engines.

In my case, not letting the engine come up to operating temp. Why would this cause flooding: Not really sure.

I had 5 N/A RX-7s; of those, at least one was prone to flood - by memory I think it was my 1st GSL-SE, though I think it happened to the 2nd one a time or two as well. Advice then was same as now - crank with it floored for up to 10 seconds. Just have to watch the throttle when it starts - kinda have to let up quickly then.

(if someone has already typed this .... sorry... didnt have time to read the entire thread)

you're freaking out over nothing..........

this used to happen to me all the time with my 89-91 RX-7's.

Crank the engine with the throttle on max, then crank it with your foot off the gas.......... repeat until the car sputters to life, blows a bunch of smoke out the tailpipe and then drive it like a madman after it warms up.

Wouldn't hurt to run some fuel injector cleaner in it and then have the techs check the sparkplugs

Originally posted by turbojeff
Sounds like most guys on here don't have much rotary history.

2nd gens, primarily the 86-88 cars are prone to flooding. In 89 Mazda changed the design so that when you floored the throttle it cut off the fuel.

3rd gens aren't as prone to flooding but they still do and when they flood they seem harder to get started in my experience. What do I know, I've only had 15 of them.

So it seems the RX8 floods too. No biggie, start it by flooring it OR tow starting (which is much more of a PIA). It also seems to help on the earlier cars to SLIGHTLY crack the throttle when cranking. Don't rev it up when it starts, just crank the throttle when it cranks, when it fires lift...

Racer X-8... Dude learn a little, tow starting the car won't hurt the motor, "grenade the chamber" LOL... Seems ike you have a problem with running into someone who doesn't know something that you already know. Hope you had a good laugh.
I was thinking that maybe there's liquid gas, trapped in there, in the compression stroke, keeping the starter motor from turning over the engine. So, the brute force of "tow starting" the engine might break something, like the apex seal maybe.
Maybe I can go to a forum or somewhere so I might learn something.

next time remove the fuse to the fuel pump and crank the engine a couple of times and it will start with no problem.

This is the usual method for starting most flooded engines. I've started many flooded two cycle boat engines this way. The full throttle, the cranking, and then the smoke. I was under the impression that flooded rotaries were a whole different story. Cool, I learned something. Thanks again to this forum for making me a little more knowledgable.

-JiM