Mr_Q

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.

mikeb

almost six months later

no floods for me

Artifex

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.

Kaliken

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.

RXcellent

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

8ZoomZoomZoom8

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

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!

BillK

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...

Sea Ray

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

jonalan

Why are you so upset? You didn't buy the car!

meeh

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.

TownDrunk

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

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...

8ZoomZoomZoom8

Good luck :D

JaegerNH

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}.

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.

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!

BillK

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...)

Mr_Q

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!

Koala Joe

Ah, understood, and Agreed :D

Zeltar

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.

Koala Joe

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??

sferrett

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)

gingersrus

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.

ml2316

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

ml2316

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.