No, I don't measn from rain. ;)

It's winter now and it does get cold at night...so I was wondering if anyone has ever had this issue. Or in the summer even.

almost six months later

no floods for me

Yes, I flooded 2 weeks ago. My car stalled and wouldn't restart. Had to be towed to the dealer. They said it flooded bad. I Got new plugs. They don't seem to make a difference. Last week I came out of work late and started the car, it immediately stalled. Tons of cranking and I was able to start it though.

nothing here.. though it was once kinda hard to start(on an incline at 4:00AM).. I just make sure I give it a good crank.

not me.... although mine is garaged over night......

I start it every morning at 4am and no trouble yet. Coldest I started it was 35 degree's at 4:30 a couple weeks ago and it turned over fine.:D

Well then that settles it. I called the dealer today and said cancel my buy. [they were installing the mp3 player and I have not signed yet] I am pissed off. This is just ridiculous. I love the car.

I am sorry but even ONE response to this question with a "yes" is unacceptable. And I have seen way more than just one person saying yes.

I don't care what you say or how rare it happens...because it does not seem to be that rare. I am not risking going through the hassle and EMBARRASMENT of my $30,000 sports car not starting. I don't care how many excuses you use. I can just picture a 100 scnerios.

10 years ago people may have put up with that...but not now...not with all the *choices* out there.

"Dear Mazda, FIX YOUR SHI-"!!

P.S. No wonder the local dealer is sitting on so many! Even at and BELOW MSRP!

I think you're being more than a bit unfair ; you can buy a $130K Porsche 911 Turbo and it may not start one day.

However I agree the flooding issue is unacceptable for a 2004 engine design, and certainly don't blame you for backing out of the purchase.

If the flooding issue were merely an inconvenience that required extended cranking, that's one thing; requiring a tow to the dealer is, unfortunately, entirely another... :(

Someone should forward this to Mazda US. Not that it would do any good but who knows?

Originally posted by Mr_Q
Well then that settles it. I called the dealer today and said cancel my buy. [they were installing the mp3 player and I have not signed yet] I am pissed off. This is just ridiculous. I love the car.

I am sorry but even ONE response to this question with a "yes" is unacceptable. And I have seen way more than just one person saying yes.

I don't care what you say or how rare it happens...because it does not seem to be that rare. I am not risking going through the hassle and EMBARRASMENT of my $30,000 sports car not starting. I don't care how many excuses you use. I can just picture a 100 scnerios.

10 years ago people may have put up with that...but not now...not with all the *choices* out there.

"Dear Mazda, FIX YOUR SHI-"!!

P.S. No wonder the local dealer is sitting on so many! Even at and BELOW MSRP!
Why are you so upset? You didn't buy the car!

Originally posted by jonalan
Why are you so upset? You didn't buy the car!

Probably cause he wants one (rx-8) but the flooding issue is too much to handle. I try not to thinking about the flooding issue myself but I get nervous each time my car doesn't turn over right away. Heh, i remember one time I started my car and I left something inside my house and I was in a hurry... I had to try to get my house keys of my keychain without pulling the key out of the ignition. That was stressful.

Almost six months (11 more days), about 4000 miles, no flooding.

Yes I am upset that I cannot buy it. Not with that issue.

I have the dealer, who also sells Nissans, working numbers on a loaded 350z...

Originally posted by Mr_Q
Yes I am upset that I cannot buy it. Not with that issue.

I have the dealer, who also sells Nissans, working numbers on a loaded 350z...

Good luck :D

Mr. Q:

I did not go as far into the buying process as you did, but basically gave the same reason to a dealer for not pursuing the car. I noted that it's a shame since I was a previous RX-7 owner (so that does half the selling right there), the price is not a sticking point, and having 4 passenger capabilities sealed the deal. Do you know how many companies would kill to have customers walk in with their checkbooks already opened for such a large ticket item?!

I'm constantly amazed at the willingness by many on this forum that can rationalize it all away as new model quirks. I would like to think I have matured enough not to need to spend $30K just to have people pay attention to me. {insert your own hair club / extreme makeover joke here}.

Mr. Q,

Its like Jonalan said, why are you so pissed? You didn't buy the car! Everyone has their own reasons for buying and backing out on a deal; yours seem bitter to me... Flooding is just a phenomenon that "can" occur due to the design; its not a defect.

BTW, with automotive design and technology being as advance as its it today, spending $30K on a car is not that much if you think about it. I bought the car because it looks different, plain and simple. Now if I spent $50K or more on a car that dies while starting, that would be somewhat embarrassing. But like Billk said, you could own a Ferrari and it'll still could die on you.

Anyway, good luck with your 350Z; hope you don't back out on that deal if you find something wrong with it (any recalls?). Stop on by and browse through this forum anytime. Oh, and I'll be sure to look out for you in my rear view mirror :D

Cheerios!

Personally I wanted to buy an 8; I've wanted a rotary for at least 15 years now, but alas didn't fit at all in an FD RX-7.

I would not even be looking at the RX-8 were it not for the engine; however reality dictates that I should have a car that has a reasonable chance of starting again if I screw up and my foot slips off the clutch while backing out of my parking space at work. Being towed to the dealer for a day or two is not an acceptable alternative.

So I'll just sit back and hope Mazda fixes this issue quickly and in the mean time, as I mentioned, if they realize they need to allow buyers to delete the sunroof from the GT package, even better...

(It would be nice if they could do something about the obnoxiosuly sharp cutoff of their HID headlights too, but that's another story...)

Originally posted by Koala Joe
Mr. Q,

Anyway, good luck with your 350Z; hope you don't back out on that deal if you find something wrong with it (any recalls?). Stop on by and browse through this forum anytime. Oh, and I'll be sure to look out for you in my rear view mirror :D

Cheerios!

HAH! Dude, it's not like the tail light falls out or the parking brake doesn't engage. The car FLOODS. That is just too much.

And I am so pissed not that the car does it, but that I can't buy the car because of it. To clarify.

272hp Vs 247hp? Even with the Z being 300lbs heavier...it'd be close! ;)

Ah, understood, and Agreed :D

Originally posted by Mr_Q
Well then that settles it. I called the dealer today and said cancel my buy. [they were installing the mp3 player and I have not signed yet] I am pissed off. This is just ridiculous. I love the car.


Congratulations! You did enough research before purchasing. I almost bolted out the door when they told me the thing eats oil. Ya gotta be kidding. I barely accepted that rotary quality. But, if I knew what I learned on this board - no way in the world would I had completed the deal. If I knew my car would spend more time in the service department in the first two months than cars I've driven 170,000 miles... I would be laughing at Mazda to think they can take peoples money for this. They ought to pay me to drive it - afterall, I'm doing their testing for them! I hear "It's design that way". Bunk! It's a design fault then.

Zeltar, do you even know how a "rotary engine" works? Do you know why it consumes more oil than a piston engine? I don't understand people's mentality: You complain about the design and you don't the car, yet you continue to come aboard and read threads and vent about topics that has nothing to do with you... go figure??

For those who have flooded - what's your driving style like? Do you keep it under 3k rpms, when do you generally shift?

I think the flooding issue has something to do with how the car is driven... pure speculation so feel free to just skip to the next post if you want to get huffy about it.

This may also corroborate why we've seen a higher percentage of auto owners flooding - generally you rev less and lug more with an auto. My thinking is that folks who chronically get flooding generally don't work the engine enough to keep the plugs clean and they foul over time, increasing the possibility that it may flood at some point.

I'd like to hear from anyone who's flooded thier car, and:
* Regularly blows past 6k RPMs on gearshifts
* Experiences the redline buzzer generally once per trip
* Occasionally cruises in 4th or 5th gear (@5k or 6k rpms)

I bought mine without knowing about it and have no regrets - now that I own it and have enjoyed this great car. But... I definately would NOT have bought it if I had known that I would have to run it for 5 minutes to warm the engine before I could back it out of the garage and shut it down. It is a real nuissance and it eats a lot of gas since I often take very short trips. I am not worried about flooding, since I have had it drilled into my head so much, but it is still a big problem and Mazda needs to come clean in their advertising and sales pitch, and in the Quick Start guide which barely mentions the short trip requirement and DOES NOT explain the consequences at all!

In short, I love the car but I'm pissed at Mazda.

Originally posted by Koala Joe
Mr. Q,

Its like Jonalan said, why are you so pissed? You didn't buy the car! Everyone has their own reasons for buying and backing out on a deal; yours seem bitter to me... Flooding is just a phenomenon that "can" occur due to the design; its not a defect.


it's either poor design or it's a defect. you can pick which ever one you think sounds better.

just get a z. then if mazda ever fixes the problem and you have to have an rx8 you can sell the z and buy an rx8. no big deal.

Originally posted by sferrett
I'd like to hear from anyone who's flooded thier car, and:
* Regularly blows past 6k RPMs on gearshifts
* Experiences the redline buzzer generally once per trip
* Occasionally cruises in 4th or 5th gear (@5k or 6k rpms)


Actually I know I would drive the car like that. i.e. I would not get out of 1st gear in 405 rush hour in LA. I also know I would always do a 5 min warmup. Although at lunch I could see my fellow co-workers slapping me in the head saying "get yer ass going man!"

My concern is that even if you do all those things. It still floods! At least those are the kind of things I am reading here. Also what about stalls? We all sometimes munge the clutch and stall. Even if warmed up people are still flooding, right?

Have I said how much I love the RX8? Dammit I want this car! I feel like I have found the sexiest women in the world and she wants me but if I kiss her I will get some terminal disease.....

Originally posted by Mr_Q
I also know I would always do a 5 min warmup.


Warming up prior to driving the car, IMO, is a waste of time. Driving it around the block if it's not warmed up and you want to park it, is not.

My concern is that even if you do all those things. It still floods! At least those are the kind of things I am reading here. Also what about stalls? We all sometimes munge the clutch and stall. Even if warmed up people are still flooding, right?

That's my question - I think if you're driving it hard enough to keep the plugs clean (ie: you're driving it like a rotary), then your chances of flooding are virtually nil. My thought is that driving style has a lot more to do with if you flood or not, rather than if it's warmed up or not when you shut it off.

You're killing me. You're making me believe if I drive it like a rotary I will be good to go......dammit.

The dealer will just love it if I ping pong yet again. Jeebus!

Bahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

Why couldn't the car just look ugly? Then it would be easy. I am turned off by the 350z's understeer and 300+lbs or it would be the an easier choice.


P.S. Since you know how to fix it if it occurs....It's cold right now...even SD....go outside. Start your car. Let it warm. Then drive it. Purposely stall it. See if it starts, then do it again. Just to test. Course then you would not be driving it like a rotaery. :) But it would be interesting/reassurring if it did not flood.

Originally posted by sferrett
I'd like to hear from anyone who's flooded thier car, and:
* Regularly blows past 6k RPMs on gearshifts
* Experiences the redline buzzer generally once per trip
* Occasionally cruises in 4th or 5th gear (@5k or 6k rpms) [/B]

That would be me, what would you like to know? Note that I've only ever owned rotary cars and that flooding has been a historic problem for Mazda since the rx-4 that I know of. My only gripe is I'm surprised that after almost 30 years they released a brand new car with the same problem. But enough of that I've posted my gripe in a few threads already.

Seriously, if theres anything you want to know or would like me to try for you, I'm willing.

I'm tempted to wander out and start it, then stall it in the driveway to see if it floods or not. That said, however, I'm much more tempted to not have to put on warmer clothes, go outside at 1am and dick around with the car...

As for Artifex's post:
Interesting. I wonder if the engine "knock" (or otherwise undertermined noise) and hesitation you've posted about in other threads could have something to do with it also? (perhaps indicative of some other factor) My question(s) would be - what is your driving style (general shift points, etc), is the car AT or MT, how many miles on it, does the occasional "knock" noise make you adjust your driving habits at all?

While I can't say that I've only ever owned rotaries, of all the cars I've owned, the majority have been rotaries. I've have had my FC flood on me twice in the ~70k miles I've owned it (140k on the clock now) and the FD has been (quite) hard to start once in the 10k miles I've owned it (64k on the clock) and I believe that was due to a not-very-well-charged battery.

I agree with you that a "modern" car should not have such an issue as this. What I'm trying to do is not say that its OK or not a problem, but see if I can characterize it a little better so we can perhaps determine why some people (such as yourself) have such bad luck with it while others (such as myself) don't seem to have similar luck. My original thought was perhaps carbon (or other) buildup on the plugs due to driving style, perhaps that's not it.

Simon.

Originally posted by Mr_Q
You're killing me. You're making me believe if I drive it like a rotary I will be good to go......dammit.

The dealer will just love it if I ping pong yet again. Jeebus!

Bahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

Why couldn't the car just look ugly? Then it would be easy. I am turned off by the 350z's understeer and 300+lbs or it would be the an easier choice.


P.S. Since you know how to fix it if it occurs....It's cold right now...even SD....go outside. Start your car. Let it warm. Then drive it. Purposely stall it. See if it starts, then do it again. Just to test. Course then you would not be driving it like a rotaery. :) But it would be interesting/reassurring if it did not flood.

I wake up for work every morning at 4:30am and drive to work at 5am. When I am half asleep on the road I have stalled a couple times. Each time the car has started back up without a hitch. Since I have owned this car (OCT) with 2500 miles I have not had trouble starting the car yet.:D Just an FYI to help assist your decision. Its best to have as much information as possible before a buy.

I'm not an 8 owner yet. However I will be in February even with all of the flooding/fouling issues that I've read about on these forums.

It's my understanding that the fouling of the spark plugs is primarily due to excess fuel being left in the rotor housing where it can contact the plugs. This should only occur if the motor is shut off and then left off in a cold state.

If the car stalls backing out of the driveway, simply restart it.

If you bork the clutch and stall it, simply restart it.

If you shut it off cold and realize your mistake, simply restart it.

I do realize that there have been a few cases where simply restarting it didn't get the job done. That appears to be a battery problem, not an engine problem. Would an improved battery solve these issues?

Am I missing something here?

ok.. here are some of Ken's mishaps...

Started it at work(cold I was going home) forgot I left it in gear released the clutch stalled it within a second. Started up with NO (hold on one more time for the slow) NO problems.

First week, Still trying to get better at MT I stalled it trying to get in my driveway after having it outside for a while. Started up again with no problems and drove it into the garage.

Still that first week. Stalled it not even a minute after i started it. Still started with no problem.. Lets count the other times I stalled the car that week and I would say we would have a nice sample size...

so two conclusions, I am really lucky..(where is my lotto ticket) or the flooding issue is not that bad.

Remember your RX-8 isn't just a car. its something you need to take care of and learn how to use properly. If you want something just to drive go get yourself an econobox. Read up on the rotary engine you will be surpised how innovative and unique it really is!

sigh..

Originally posted by Kaliken

so two conclusions, I am really lucky..(where is my lotto ticket) or the flooding issue is not that bad.


Hi Ken - interesting info. I'm in your boat at the moment, so far I've not had any issues.

Rather than luck I wonder if there's some other factor which makes some folk's cars susceptible to the issue... Initially I thought driving style, but that may not be a factor based on other posts to this thread.

I dont think its just that the issue isn't that bad - it sounds like for some people it's quite chronic. Perhaps it's not as widespread as the posts on the issue make it seem (ie: we shouldn't all be living in fear and paranoia about the car flooding at the drop of a hat, or summarily saying that the rx8 is junk because it floods for some people), but certainly for those folks that it affects, it's certainly a real issue.

I can't imagine that it's just luck - there must be something else going on also. Perhaps a build quality issue, or something...

Simon.

Originally posted by Pavehawk
If the car stalls backing out of the driveway, simply restart it.

If you bork the clutch and stall it, simply restart it.

If you shut it off cold and realize your mistake, simply restart it.

I do realize that there have been a few cases where simply restarting it didn't get the job done. That appears to be a battery problem, not an engine problem. Would an improved battery solve these issues?
That's the general problem - we don't know.

What you say about "simply restarting it" in these situations is what one would do - but we have no assurances from Mazda that it will be possible and that, in fact, it won't be:

If you bork the clutch and stall it, try to restart it then wait for the tow truck to come and pick up your car and wait for two days while your car is being unflooded at the dealer, and it's not at all clear if this procedure will be covered under warranty more than once.

That's the risk I don't want to take and no one has been able to confirm or deny as of yet.

If flooding only happens if you shut off the car cold and let it sit, that's one thing, but we do not know, and I don't think anyone's willing to stall their car after a cold start every day for a week and see if their car floods on any of those occasions...

Originally posted by sferrett
I'd like to hear from anyone who's flooded thier car, and:
* Regularly blows past 6k RPMs on gearshifts
* Experiences the redline buzzer generally once per trip
* Occasionally cruises in 4th or 5th gear (@5k or 6k rpms)
Never flooded, but...

*I occasionally blow past 6k rpms on gearshift, ususally in 1st or 2nd. But not always.
*I try to hit redline at least once per trip.
*I NEVER cruise @ 5 or 6k - what's the point of that? All that does is waste gas.

OK tonight I purposefully stalled the 8 about 30 seconds after starting it up. I'm going to continue to do that in the morning and afternoon for a week to see if I can get the car to flood. I'm very curious if this flooding issue is car-centric or not. Still not conclusive (very difficult to prove something to never happen) but at least some more info perhaps.

This will certainly be interesting :)

FWIW, flooding is a design flaw, not a defect. The reason why rotaries flood is because the combustion chamber is never open to the atmosphere, unlike piston engines which actually open up a hole in the combustion chamber, rotaries sweep the air from one side of the housing to the other, so the area around the spark plugs will never see the atmosphere. This is a problem because if you start the car and it doesn't get a chance to warm up, when you stop it, the air trapped around the spark plugs could be too cold. This will cause the gas mixture to condense around the spark plugs, inhibiting spark the next time you try to start it. With no spark but a continuation of fuel, the flooding will get worse. If it gets bad enough, the oil film that normally sits on the rotor housing gets washed away by gasoline, causing a massive drop in compression, at which point you will probably need a push start or the "ATF" trick if you know what that is. Once you deflood the car and proper compression is restored, all is well, no permanent damage, although repeatedly doing this is probably very bad for the catalytic converter. If you suspect you have flooded your car, cranking the engine with no fuel (gas pedal to the floor) should circulate enough fresh air to evaporate the condensed fuel so you can start the car normally. In 4 years of owning an RX-7, I have never flooded the engine, and many many times I have let it warm up for less than 60 seconds before shutting it off again (car wash anyone?), so it really hasn't been a problem for me, but your mileage may vary. I live in Cali where it is usually quite dry and it doesn't get too cold, so this promotes evaporation, making it less of an issue.

Answer me this.

Are the people having flooding issues running 87 octane gas or 91?

I would believe that it would be easier for unburnt fuel to collect with 87 octane than with 91. Since 87 octane gas resists combusting more than 91.

Whatcha think?

Actually it's the other way around. 91 Octane resists combustiing more than 87. That's what the anti knock index is about. The higher the octane rating the more resistant to early combustion (pinging) the fuel is.

Originally posted by sferrett

As for Artifex's post:
Interesting. I wonder if the engine "knock" (or otherwise undertermined noise) and hesitation you've posted about in other threads could have something to do with it also? (perhaps indicative of some other factor) My question(s) would be - what is your driving style (general shift points, etc), is the car AT or MT, how many miles on it, does the occasional "knock" noise make you adjust your driving habits at all?

I've have had my FC flood on me twice in the ~70k miles I've owned it (140k on the clock now) and the FD has been (quite) hard to start once in the 10k miles I've owned it (64k on the clock) and I believe that was due to a not-very-well-charged battery.

My original thought was perhaps carbon (or other) buildup on the plugs due to driving style, perhaps that's not it.

Simon.

I had the best luck with my T2, I think it's only flooded on me 2 maybe 3 times, and all easy restarts. The 8 just plain stalled from when it flooded, I've never seen that before.

Answers to your questions:
I do personally think the other engine symptoms I've reported in other threads are connected, it just seems like the ecu goes in and out of a closed loop mode.

6sp touring, 5500mi.

When I loose power, I don't change my style too much, I doesn't feel like detonation in the rx-7s that makes you want to let up on the gas immediately.

The engine itself is strong because when the power is there its decent. I've experimented with different octanes, bsaically same results.

Regarding buildup I pulled the trailing plugs(leading plugs were way to hard to reach from the top) tonight to take a look, and was really surprised to see liquid oil sitting in the spark gap. I wonder if the metering oil pump is not metering so well. Any thoughts?

New to the forums, so please forgive me if this is a stupid question.

Is there any reason, upon the car flooding, that you can't pull the plugs, clean 'em off, and put 'em back in instead of having it towed to the dealership? My 1973 XL250 had a habit of flooding, so I just kept a dry plug and a spark plug wrench under the seat.

Mine has flooded twice and each time must be towed in. Mazda USA refused to pay for the second time but was convinced otherwise after much screaming. They have stated that if this occurs again they will not pay for it because it is driver error(They will pay for one time because they said they need to educate people on starting procedures better). That is a big joke. I know how to treat the rotary and the proper procedures. You might want to check with your dealer because there is a kit for the dealer to install (Hotter plugs). Just watch out for the second time because you'll have to pay (About $275.00 according to my dealer). Until Mazda admits and figures out the fix, you're screwed(as I am). The 8 is the sharpest looking but on a redo, I'd pick the Infiniti G35.

When you flood a rotary, pushing the pedal to the floor won't work. In a normal fuel injected engine, this shuts off the fuel and you can crank until it fires. The rotary will continue to pump worsening the problem. If your starts after flooding feel very fortunate. Most do not.

Originally posted by luredale
When you flood a rotary, pushing the pedal to the floor won't work. In a normal fuel injected engine, this shuts off the fuel and you can crank until it fires. The rotary will continue to pump worsening the problem. If your starts after flooding feel very fortunate. Most do not.

See the owner's manual, page 7-20. Foot to the floor should stop delivery of fuel and give a flooded car the chance to start. For me, it didn't work:

Flooded - Emergency Start Procedure Let Me Down. (http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=17608)

Originally posted by luredale
Mine has flooded twice and each time must be towed in. Mazda USA refused to pay for the second time but was convinced otherwise after much screaming.

I also was told that they would not pay for a second flood repair if one were to occur... they also initially refused my first repair:

Flooding Not Covered Under Warranty (http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18010)

I sent my letter to Mazda NA complaining of this treatment. I'm reserving judgment on what to do until after I get a reply. I'll keep people posted...

Originally posted by luredale
When you flood a rotary, pushing the pedal to the floor won't work. In a normal fuel injected engine, this shuts off the fuel and you can crank until it fires. The rotary will continue to pump worsening the problem. If your starts after flooding feel very fortunate. Most do not.

There has been a lot of discussion about pushing the pedal to the floor when trying to start a flooded engine.

First, that's the procedure in the owner's manual. While it may not be foolproof, it's surely doesn't worsen the problem.

Someone here has actually verified that when you try to start the engine with the pedal completely on the floor, the fuel injectors shut off completely, so no fuel is getting in.

Regarding warranty coverage, I specifically asked Mazda of North America about this. Their answer was "Mazda will cover for the towing and the repair if the RX-8 does become flooded."

Now I didn't ask "How many times?", but they didn't say "towing and repair once if..." either, so I will expect them to live up to their words, each time the RX-8 becomes flooded.

Originally posted by MrBill
Regarding warranty coverage, I specifically asked Mazda of North America about this. Their answer was "Mazda will cover for the towing and the repair if the RX-8 does become flooded."

Now I didn't ask "How many times?", but they didn't say "towing and repair once if..." either, so I will expect them to live up to their words, each time the RX-8 becomes flooded.
Someone else PM'd me with the same story of being told, in writing, that Mazda would cover flooding "under warranty." As I said, I've asked them to clarify their policy on flooding. I also asked them to explain whether the coverage, if any, was considered a "service adjustment" (one year) or "basic coverage" (48 months).

FYI I've either stalled out or cold-stopped the car each morning and afternoon since my previous post and so far no hint of any issue. I'm favoring shutting it off since stalling out seems like quite a strain on everything.

So I'm curious what factors are making some folks flood-magnets...

I hate to dominate the thread, but another person reported to me (again, in a PM) that Mazda told him in writing that the ATs are having a bigger issue with flooding than the MTs. My car was also flooded on a cold rainy day. It had been driven about 30 feet and may have been started by simultaneously pushing the accelerator with the key turn. In other words, it was the worst of all possible combinations.

well, you can add me to the flooded list. wouldn't start this mornin. fired for about 3 seconds then died. =( i'm hoping letting it warm up in the sun and trying again this afternoon will cure it, else i'll have to get a tow. sigh

auto/manual? Also what was the condition when you shut it off last? (just warmed up, been driven for hours, etc.) ? Also have you been getting good/bad mileage and what's your oil useage like?

Will the people that have been saying this is an isolated issue affecting only those that don't know how to deal with this car's unique character please step forward.

I think it's isolated to a few people. I do not make any assertations or statements about the owners or people that are being affected, however.

Like I said - I spent a week stalling and shutting my car off cold to see if I flooded - I did not. I believe there must be some other factors involved and could be as wide ranging as something do to with build issues, other manufacturing issues or possibly user behaviour.

I do think that there's a lot more paranoid and fear being rallied around than is warranted and people having chronic issues need to take it up with their dealers for a resolution.

Sorry guys - but I think this flooding issue is way overblown. Some quick math just revealed that I've got ~290,000 miles in rotary engined cars, all of which I still own. I've flooded both my FC and my FD (not my 8) but have yet to break out the spark plug wrench or call AAA. And the only time I needed help in the form of a jump-start, it was because of a bad battery that happened at the same time as the flooding.

There's a simple procedure for re-starting a flooded rotary that's been covered in this thread and Lord knows elsewhere on this forum ad nauseum. It involves flooring the gas pedal and leaving it there, cranking the engine in maybe 10-sec bursts until you hear your compression come back, then releasing the pedal and cranking it again. We're talking a coupla minutes here.

Leaky injectors in my FC made the flooding problem a weekly occurrence until I installed a pressure relief gizmo from Mazdatrix which solved it permanently. But I have never been stuck or stranded by this problem.

I think that keeping your plugs clean, which is a fun exercise in itself, helps. If you're really concerned, always let your motor run until the idle drops to normal before shutting it off.

Like any car, it's a complicated machine with its own quirks that takes some understanding, knowledge and practice to use properly. If you're just not simpatico with machinery or don't want to be bothered, you're probably better off with public transportation. But I'm with sferrett: I think there's way more FAT (fear, apprehension and terror) surrounding this issue than is deserved.

The last time I got my car serviced I ask the mechanics how many flodded RX8 did they serviced, he said about 6 out of 700 sold so far. I am leaving in southern California.

these are the solutions:

1. warn urself not to make mistakes.

2. keep screaming at Mazda to fix that damn problem.

actually i have a question... mazda understand/ know how the floodings occur since RX-blah, can't they "FIX" this problem? instead of repairing? is this the best they can do? can't they make something like "easy-removable-plugs" or "automatic-plug-cleaning-system" or simply re-re-design the engine? geez... btw, is this a serious matter in japan? (i'm a mechanic idiot:P )

no matter what, the flooding issue can't stop me from buying a RX8 since it has a lot more pros than cons. ofcox,it will be perfect if they can fix it:D

(err, after that, ppl will have other complains again...like MPG, aux input....)

reading this thread...man.

i'm not a rx8 owner but the way you guys do to justify this car's problems is way beyond my understanding. It's not even peformance justification it's a justification of the method on rotary knowledge?

If that is the case then their should be rotary classes for those who purchase any kind of "Rotary engine" from the dealership. Or basic procedures on how not to "flood" a car? etc.

i don't care what car you have...it shouldn't be too complicated to start, use, take care of unless it's strictly for the racing scene i guess . my american 93 buick lesabre(180,000) and 97 oldsmobile cutlass supreme(130,000) are have never had this problem and i treat them like crap.

the only z problems that are of major concern WAS the transmission(nissan FIXED that problem) and the z recall(one hundred sixty something )which was the engine ecu-shutting down the z-did no engine/car damage(FIXED)...only damage was possibly towing fees... most of the z members are complaining about the "tire tread"

all of us(who purchase new model cars) will have minor problems and possibly major ones, but when you have to do more procedures then the basic "just start and go"... like warming up the car for five min....press the rpm to a certain level...that's alot of maintence which is unnecessary. most of the people seem to be from california?...where are the people on the east coast? are they "flooding" as well..

i love my z and fortunately my z has been an angel with 13,000 miles...no probs except the minor window grease. i really like the rx8 and i definitely hope mazda get's their act together.

so keep preaching to mazda. good luck.

p.s every forum will have a lemon....some will have more then others...and let's not forget the thousands who just drive and never come online=)

I personally don't think the flooding is that big of an issue. Of course I've only had my 8 for a couple of days but it doesn't take my car more than a couple of minutes to warm up and it takes me more than that to get wherever I'm going. Of course the first time mine does flood (hopefully never) I'll probably be raising holy he11 screaming for a fix. Also very true about there being lemons for every car and nobody comes on here and posts HEY, I drove to work and back today and nothing went wrong. So it kinda skews things to look a little more negative than they really are and this is true of any forum, rsx, 350z, rx8, even the accord forums probaly are loaded with complaints about certain defects. If you worry too much about every little complaint about a car on a certain forum, you'd end up riding a bicycle to work every day.

LOL

well, it's not a big issue until it happens to you, dude.

Wow, I hope this doesn't happen to me! so far so good. Leaving my car on an extra few minutes then revving up past 4k has been a rule of thumb for me, however I've neglected it a few times without any affect. I doubt those guys at the dealership know this issue.. perhaps the mechanic, but i think those helpers that move the cars back and forth don't pay any attention or know about this issue. Or perhaps they do?

anybody have any factual evidence of this, regarding dealership mechanics and technicians heeding warnings about RX-8 flooding issues?

My salesman, when I first looked at the car, drove it first for a few blocks presumedly to demonstrate the acceleration and driving characteristics. He then said that many people stalled the 8 the first time they drove it. I didn't know about the flooding issue then, but hmmmmm...

It makes me wonder if he drove it first to warm it up, so if I stalled it, it wouldn't flood. I've never had a salesperson drive the car first.

Most dealer sales people, regardless of manufacturer, tell me they hafta drive the car off the lot. No one's ever explained why, and I frankly doubt that there's a real reason. It did give me an opportunity to experience the back seat in the 8, if only for a couple of miles, which turned into a positive for the car.

I've also heard another good procedure to prevent flooding is to rev it and turn off the engine as the engine is still reving.

The mazda dealer did the same, they took the car out first, that was the first dealer that I've gone to that drove it around the block first before letting me drive.

Originally posted by sferrett
auto/manual? Also what was the condition when you shut it off last? (just warmed up, been driven for hours, etc.) ? Also have you been getting good/bad mileage and what's your oil useage like?

sorry it took so long to respond

manual, just got done washing the car after driving home so it was fully warm. by the time i was done washing, had to move it ~20 feet and temp gauge was about 25% but i figured it's close enough...guess not- anyhow i covered the car. 6 days later took the cover off started it, it fired up for 3 secs and died. not to start again.

mileage has been 18-22mpg and oil usage is a quart and a half for it's 6k miles it has.