flyboyindy

Ok,
So I go to start up my car last friday... and yes, I do have the M flash, and I didnt shut the car off cold and .... BAM.... Totally flooded no start. They come to tow it away.... Just got my car back today after they cleaned the plugs, changed the oil, replaced the catalytic converter, and got her started.... Went to dinner at Applebees, and go out to start the car.... wont turn over.

Do I have a lemon or what? Ive been taking all the precautions... but I dont understand. I always make sure the car is warm.... never shut it off cold... and i never step on the gas before starting it.

I was hoping to get a replacement, but Indiana Lemon Law states that you must have 18k miles or lessl, and I have 23. =(

I know the rotary can be a bit tempermental, but when the towing company says "Ah yes... the Mazda RX-8, one of our best repeat customers".... Im starting to get worried!

What happens when the warranty goes out ? How much is this going to run us??

Tamas

iTrader: (1)

"won't turn over"? I think if that's the case then there's something else wrong... my understanding is that if flooded, the car will turn over but not start. Or did I misunderstand something?

WHealy

Sorry to hear this Frank. Where the other two time pre M flash? Have you checked you battery? I know someone mentioned that ours is NOT the maintenance free type. Just reaching and sympathizing ...

wakeech

not a lemon, but there's obviuosly something wrong with your car. no two cars are ever identical, and issues, obviously, can spring up unrelated to the normal design complications that can be associated with certian symptoms.

dude, it's easy to fix a flood, but certainly is a pain in the *** to have to do this periodically. you'll have to really get some initiative and find out if there are problems with your vehicle, such as faulty injectors or something like that.

has the dealership informed you of the measures they've taken to start up your car?? also, have you read the TSB on trying to start your car when you suspect it's been flooded (there is a procedure that you can try yourself).

sferrett

define your symptoms a little more clearly.. "wont turn over" is different than "cranks but doesn't start"

If it's really the first one you're describing then it's not flooding you're experiencing.

Either way there must be something else going on, your experience is certainly not the norm and if it's easily repeatable (sounds like it is) then have the dealer reproduce the issue so that they can understand this isn't a simple cold-flood issue. Not every "no start" condition is a flood, perhaps what you're experiencing is something else.

Simon

8's enough

since you have an automatic i would suggest getting a 6speed .i've never had a flooding problem.it maybe covered under the lemon law write mazda and see if you can change even up for the 6 speed.

NomisR

My car's been shut down cold before (not by myself) and no problem with it. Although I've tried to start the car with the pedal to the metal no flood procedure and the car simply won't start, however when I let go of the gas pedal, it started just fine again. I guess not having enough gas in the engine prevents it from starting.

Also, maybe you're not cranking the engine long enough, sometimes it takes a few for the car to start.

NavyDood

Huh? How the hell would this have any effect?

VikingDJ

Originally Posted by 8's enough
since you have an automatic i would suggest getting a 6speed .i've never had a flooding problem.it maybe covered under the lemon law write mazda and see if you can change even up for the 6 speed.




I'd like to know that too. It comes down to good and bad luck. I will assume ny " not turning over" you mean, it won't start. You definitely have a defect of some kind, and the dealership should be looking into it rather then just unflooding your car, and giving it back to you. If you are fully warming up car, and this hs constantly happening, you need to get on their case, and have them look into other problems such as injectors, ect. I feel for ya man, and if I were in your shoes, I'd be trading in my rx8 as fast as you can say rotary. I almost flooded once on a ten minute drive to the store. I can say that if it happened more then once to me when engine was fulyl warmed up, the car would be GONE. If they can't fix this, and it keeps happening, I recommend you trade it in for an 05, or be done with it. As nice as this car is, it's too much money to spend on a new car to have this happen.

MEGAREDS

Four times certainly suggests a problem, but is not necessarily an "off the charts/definitely a defect" problem. With 23k on your car, it sounds as if the first two floods were not very recent, so it may not be fair to count them as part of this particular problem. Still, two in a row. It's the summer time. It sounds like none of the floods were cold starts. I think it's reasonable to worry.

I'm convinced the auto floods more than the manual. The polls here show it -- perhaps as high as 2 to 1 -- and someone told me Mazda confirmed it to them in a phone conversation. Of course, the auto tends to be driven by more than a single driver (aka, the spouse that doesn't drive a stick), so it's not necessarily the auto per se to blame. My wife flooded ours... she just moved it and forgot to let it warm up. Totally predictable.

My flood was classic, and I was sure it was going to be flooded when I turned the key -- as I had been well warned. That's why I say flooding has been a very consistent phenominon -- and you don't have any of the right things going on. The combination that is killer is cold weather, cold shut down, raining or a recent car wash, followed by leaving the car to sit for a few hours before attempting to restart. Giving the car gas on turning the key also is very bad. (The M-flash is supposed to help, but I'm betting we see these complaints even with the M flash this winter.)

I'd play with the car on the weekend a lot or some other time when you weren't depending on it to get you somewhere you had to be, when it wouldn't get me too crazy if it happens again. Drive it around for a bit; shut it down. Let it cool. Repeat, paying careful attention to whether the car starts on the first crank or not. You might also try a low grade of fuel. My dealer recommended that to improve the chances of avoiding the problem. I can't cope with being so far from what the manual suggests, so I use the middle grade. It's worked out fine (see my mileage record, in the signature). Finally, be sure you've been given the hotter plugs Mazda was recommending. They're more expensive, so your dealer may balk if you don't insist.

With regard to the what's-it-going-to-cost question, I was initially told my flood was not under warranty, and was quoted $150 for the deflood. I bet the tow would have been at least $100 off-warranty. Fortunately, Mazda NA stepped in and explained that flooding would always be covered as a warranty repair.

Wakeech said that "it's easy to fix a flood," but I'm not so sure, particularly if your driving an auto (no push starting) and the car floods far from home and in bad weather. I'd LOVE to see a DIY on this. What do you suggest Wakeech? I'm thinking remove the front wheel and pull the plugs? Carb fluid squirted into some secret place? It's was my experience that flooding on a Friday means you won't be driving until Monday or Tuesday. I'd like a way to get myself out of the problem reliably should it ever happen again.

Speed_D

What dealership are you getting it "fixed" at here in Indy?

boothguy

Try replacing the plugs rather than simply cleaning them. A longtime service manager for a Mazda dealership I was chatting with yesterday said that's the approach he's always taken with rotaries that had flooding issues.

Twin 8s!

Folks,

I do not know if this is the right thread but, we have two RX-8s. One with the M flash and stock (blue), and one with the M flash and a Canzoomer Stage One (black).

We were gone on vacation for 10 days and when I tried to back both cars out of the garage, the blue one would NOT start. After three tries, I decided to use the emergency start up steps. It finally worked, but it took seven sets of full throttle - no gas tries. The black on (w stage one) started on first crank but was rough for a few seconds.

Any idea whats up?

MEGAREDS

Personally, I find the car to start less easily with the M flash. That's the only thing I've noticed from the update. It always starts, but now it sometimes hesitates a bit. With the previous ECU, the car always started immediately, except for the one time it flooded.

dwill9578

got a burmimg question---think I have "L" in car now. was told when purchased(7/30/04) of flooding issue and how to avoid. Now--- should I get the "M" flash tomorrow????????? or leave well enough alone?

Sickass7

Try unplugging the fuel pump fuse and turning the car over a few times. Should start up, stutter, then die. Then plug the fuse back in and start it. Works well in the 7 in the few times I flooded it. Hopefully it should work in the 8. I don't know if it's located in the same area in the 8 but mine is under the dash left side fuse box, top row second from the right. 20 amp fuse. Temporary fix I know, but better than having it towed.

MEGAREDS

Get the M. Mazda's put a campaign in place to update all cars to the M and there is a TSB you can review to see why. They didn't do that with the prior ECU updates. They clearly view the M as "ready for prime time."

See this thread for more info -- it explains the various flashes and why they were implemented. Diehard types should also take a look at this thread, or go to the Tech Garage Section of the Forum.

241Commuter

I assume that you purchased the car used since all new cars being purchased now should have the "M" flash even if the dealer had to do it to old stock. Mazda recommends that your car get upgraded, so I'd do it.

Rob Tomlin

I've never once had a flooding problem with my 3rd gen RX7. I can't believe that the "new and improved" renesis would have this issue!

dwill9578

nope didn't buy used had 8 miles on it, went and got it flashed couple hrs ago and do notice a little more punch in mid and thats about it. It's been really warm since I got the car so no cold startin problems but nice to know that it's done and does seem to run better. It took 5 mins-guy cam out with strange looking laptop thing pluged it in 10 mins later I was gone. Glad I had it done----for now.