xr4tii

I want to know who has the most miles on the original motor. Not a replacement, but the original factory motor.

Also : What do you do to maintain it?

ArXate

Merkur xr4ti. I remember that car in the 80's.

I have about 154,000 miles. I do very little to maintain. Sorry, I'm too lazy to give details.

Kaiser bun

iTrader: (2)

im thinking he meant rx8 lol

xr4tii

The Merkur was a great idea, but the execution missed some details. I got 155K by working them out.

mscamp02

iTrader: (3)

81k miles still running.

I run mobile 1 10w 30 every 2500 miles

replaced sparks plugs and wires 5k miles ago

Roidz

Isn't 'never' and 'Over 100K and still going" the same thing? Just sayin.

mscamp02

iTrader: (3)

^pretty much

xr4tii

Vote early and often

SilverStreak

118K miles on my 04 MT. change oil 3 to 3.5 K. Castrol GTX started with 5W20 first 50K, then switched to 5W30. Now running 10W40 summer, 5W30 winter. Idemitsu pre-mix at 4 oz per fillup since 56K. Replaced plugs at 35K, 70K and 105K. New plugwires (racing beat) and new coils (Mazda OEM) at 105K. Regular gas in winter, plus or premium in summer.

Engine still running strong with no problems. I also kept up on the latest ECU flashes. I have a little idle issue with the AC on, pretty certain I need to replace the motor mounts.

Other than that, I do my own brakes (currently Akebono ceramics all around).

Huey52

iTrader: (2)

I applaud this poll in principle. Nice counter to all the 'I had to get a new motor' threads.

At under 30k miles on my '05 vehicle/engine I don't really qualify for a longevity poll, but anyway I run 5w30 oil (changed every 3k miles) and pre-mix my gas with Idemitsu (even tho' I have the increased OMP setting). I also redline frequently.

Supporting cast related, I have a BHR ignition system and regularly clean my air filter, MAF, etc. In general I'm big on regular (severe schedule) preventive maintenance.

No operational problems for me.

maxxdamigz

iTrader: (1)

Well I'm replacing a motor at 56k, but it's not really the motor's fault. I done went and killt it.

xr4tii

How did you kill it?

supergoat

His aftermarket intake did it.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

a bit over a year ago, someone showed up on the forums with a 2004, 153,000 miles, 4th owner, never treated right by any of them. She thought the engine was dead, but turned out to be badly flooded and no ignition left really. Local members got it up and running for a few beers and a few hours every other weekend or so.

It was over 165,000, I think close to 170,000, when the car was totaled, engine still fine.


Though I think that record has been beaten by others since...

newcastle

iTrader: (3)

Engine was replaced under warranty at 67K. Engine seemed to perform well, however, my dyno numbers were poor and when Jedi54 and myself ran a compression test the numbers came up[ low on the rear, front was borderline if I recall correctly.

New Yorker

Original motor? I regularly replace the oil filter, fluids and, every few years, spark plugs, brake pads, cabin filter, maybe coils – but the motor?? Uh no, I will be keeping the "original motor" (fyi, that's a phrase reserved for classic, vintage and race cars) for the life of the car.

I've owned 9 cars over the last 28 years and have "kept" every "original motor" for the life of the car. Weird, huh? If you're "replacing" yours, you may be doing something wrong - check your owner's manual; are you following the manufacturer's recommendations for oil viscosity? Do you check the oil level every other fill-up? Have you replaced any OEM mechanical parts with aftermarket (i.e. turbo, air intake, etc.)? Have you removed your catalytic converter? Have you dumped any additives into your fuel tank? Are you sure??

If so, might want to rethink that.

Vlaze

iTrader: (14)

..............are you serious?

You've been here since 2003 so I would presume you should already know about the Renesis problems regardless even if the manual is followed and if pro-active measures are done to extend the engine life regardless.

There's a reason a manufacturer ups the warranty to 100k - 8 yrs; it's not because people are abusing their engine.

AJRx892

iTrader: (2)

theres someone here with 200k i dont remember where i saw it

not sure if its on their original engine though as the thread asks but i dont recall

oh and 78k and still going got the car at 63k..... 10w 40 castrol changed regularly

i drive her hard and she likes it haha only aftermarket parts are aem cai and mazmart water pump

now come to think about it the coolant light hasnt come on since when i put that in..... it used to sometimes come on on high rpms on the interstate.... i thought it just went away but maybe it was the pump....

replaced coils wires and plugs 5k miles ago

everyonce in awhile i put chevron techron form the local auto parts store in my tank and thats about it besides regular maintenance

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Doesn't Lambert have close to 200,000 miles, and he's done little more than change the oil/oil filter and maybe a set of plugs?

P.S. - I accidentally mis-voted by saying 60,000 to 100,000 miles when I'VE NEVER HAD TO REPLACE MY MOTOR. COULD A MOD FIX THIS SOMEHOW? THANK YOU.

New Yorker

All engines have problems, the Renesis is no different. But it is a different kind of engine, and requires a different level of routine care. Talk to Mazda techs - they'll tell you most Renesis problems occur from owner's failing to follow one or more of these Mazda guidelines:

• Check oil level every other fill-up; add if necessary
• Use 5W-20
• Let the engine warm up a little before driving
• Do not turn off the engine if it's not warm
• Rev the engine freely and often
• Do not use synthetic oil
• Do not put anything except gasoline into the fuel tank
• Do not alter or modify the engine or related components

Unfortunately, the vast majority of 8 owners maintain their cars the same way they maintain their other cars - casually, if at all. While a "casual approach" to maintenance may cause reciprocal-engined cars to suffer a bit in performance, or reduce somewhat the life of engine parts, the consequences of a similar, casual approach to RX-8 maintenance can be devastating, as we have seen.

So yes, there is a reason why Mazda extended the warranty, but it's not because owners were "abusing" their engines. It was because they were, by and large, ignoring them. Extending the warranty was a necessary PR move to assure people that the RX-8 is "okay". The alternative – alerting potential and new customers about just how critical it is to religiously follow simple, routine maintenance – would simply scare most people away.

Mazda even went to the trouble of slightly modifying the lubrication system in recent Renesis engines - again, to increase the margin of error resulting from owner maintenance neglect. The same neglect they show their other cars. Except when they neglect their other cars, the consequences are usually less than dire.

xr4tii

I chose the RX8 because it was stylish, and handles well. The 13B motor was reliable when not turbo charged, so I figured the Renesis was a safe choice. I did not even want to consider the WRX, due to the turbo and the cheap interior.

But the gods of irony struck

I was doing some home improvement, and needed a cheap end of life wagon to carry paint and doors. A friend of my brother graduated lawschool. He wanted to dump his wagon cheap. For $500, I would buy anything.

I am now the proud owner of a 1994 Subaru Legacy turbo wagon with 203K miles.

xr4tii

Sorry couldn't edit.

CyberPitz

hahaha, You and me both. That's what I get for checking a thread out when I've just woken up. I'm like "I've got 20k miles, I'll vote that.......****."