Hi everyone I just purchased my first 2005 RX-8 6-speed Has 99,647 miles and was driving ok I've only had it a month and it's not drivable right now. I took it to Mazda dealership and they said I have no compression in the rear rotar and only 65 pressure in the front Rotar they gave me a price of over $2500.00 to get it fix with new seals and replace any bad sensors it might have. Now I have to know if this is a ok price for what I'm paying to fix or is it over priced? And someone please help explain the compression and how much pressure it's supposed to be. I love the car and want to keep it and learn more so I can maintain the car for a long time. Thanks

 

Hello, Rotary06

Unfortunately, low compression is common on these engines. An engine tear down and rebuild is the only way to fix it. They are offering you what we call a reman, an engine that is used, has been disaassembled and rebuilt using a mix of new and used components. These engines can be a risky proposition, many customers went through two or three engine replacements. They will reuse many of your existing accessories, including ignition components. It is possible that faulty ignition components caused your engine to wear prematurely. As such, it is better to get new components with your "new" engine.

It is very unfortunate to put a new engine in a car you just bought. We (rx8club) always recommend a rotary specific compression test before a car is purchased.

The other option is to purchase a new motor from someone else, or send your damaged motor to be rebuilt. These other rebuilding services will be more thorough than Mazda, but can be more expensive. Lastly, you could purchase a motor from a junkyard or a Japanese importer, and put that engine in your car. Ideally, the seller includes a warranty.

 

Thank you for the response it's really help to understand the car more. Any suggestions of places I can order a new engine? If I'm going to spend so much money I rather spend it on something completely new.

 

Where are you located?

 

if they are offering u 2500 /w engine installed, do it.

 

Or not since that's a price that's bordering on "too good to be true".

 

Unfortunately, a completely new engine is not cheap. Probably close to ten thousand dollars installed. Not all of your parts need to be replaced, so why pay for them? To my knowledge, they are not sold, Mazda will only offer you a re manufactured engine.

Members here have had good luck with Pineapple Racing, they will do a high quality rebuild of your current engine. Mazdatrix sells engines also. If I remember, Mazdatrix sells Mazda engines, but they are bench tested first, and any problems are repaired on site.

 

Located in Saint Cloud Florida and the dealership I went to gave me the wrong price they contacted me and said to rebuild the engine it would be over $5000. So what are my best options guys just doing a rebuild or new engine. I know it depends on budget of course but what would you all do in my position. Like I said I want to keep it but for the repairs is it really worth it? And also what is the compression in the Rotars supposed to be so I can know what I'm talking about when I speak to the mechanic that will fix the car? And thank you all the the responses it's really helping me out.

 

The dealer will install a Mazda remanufactured engine. I have nevers een them do anything else

The remans are 3.5K plus. Not sure of the current pricing. There is about $1500 of dealer labor to re/re the engine

There are alternatives to Mazda remans. Some are cheaper and others about the same price....and you can pay up to 10K depending on what you need for parts

Compression should be around 100psi on all 3 rotor faces. It takes a special compression tester to do a rotary engine compression test...not the usual piston engine one. The rotary one also needs to measure the cranking RPM...as the pressure result is very dependent on cranking speed

 

You answered your own question- it all depends on budget. Don't ask over the Internet "what would you do", because everyone's situation is different.
Decide what works best for you.

And read the new owners thread. All the compression info you seek is in there...

 

Dannobre and RX8Soldier thanks for all the info. I'll take my chance on the rebuild and see how it goes. Thanks everyone

 

For what it's worth, there are several experienced rotary shops in Florida. Rx8performance and Petit Racing are two of them. Both of them could rebuild your engine, and you wouldn't be getting second hand parts. Cam at Petit has built hundreds of engines.

 

Any knowledge on price range to rebuild at those shops?

 

There's no real way to know an exact price in advance. It depends on the condition of your engines internals and they won't know that till it's out of the car and disassembled.

 

Unfortunately, it is hard to predict in advance. You have no compression in one rotor, so it is damaged. It is likely that when it lost compression, there was a catastrophic failure, where parts broke off. This will damage the side housings and possibly the rotor itself. All of these parts are expensive when new, meaning a higher priced rebuild.

When my engine went, I had low compression on the rear rotor, but it was still moving some air. I was hopeful that there would not be physical damage. I was wrong, and the rear housing was completely trashed and etched out. It's a guessing game until the unit is taken apart

 

The Mazda rebuild option is the default. If you have no other option, go with that. However they're not the safest or most cost-effective option. I would recommend you at least get in touch with Pettit and evaluate the situation. Pettit are rotary professionals with a long history. Random Mazda dealership could have an awesome rotary tech, or a guy who is doing the engine removal/install for the first time. I'm sure you know which one is more in your interest.

 

Call Pettit and talk to them on the phone. Details of the rebuild and the resulting price are not something we can help you with over the internet.

Also keep in mind that Mazda remans have history of being hit-or-miss. Some last 100K miles, and some last 10 miles. They are assembly line items. For my money, I would rather pay a master craftsman to rebuild my engine than roll the dice on some nameless, faceless assembly line workers who may be hungover on the Friday of my reman assembly. In other words, "exacting" is worth a few hundred or thousand dollars over "close enough" in the rotary world. You are literally buying drivable miles with that money.

The warranty experience with bad remans is also hit-or-miss. It all depends on the particular dealership.

 

Excellent point, Steve. Several members reported having serious problems getting their reman engines covered under warranty. If I recall, 9k gave up on Mazda engines for this reason. There was also that gentlemen this summer up in Canada with the Series 2. He had a hell of a time getting a working engine.

 

I will definitely give them a call and check them out. What do you all do to keep your engines running strong to avoid these problems in the future?

 

We read THIS and THIS found HERE

 

Good luck and let us know what you choose to do...It's never a fun ordeal..I been in your position several times (Roughly 10-15 years ago though)...

 

Hey guys so a friend of mine has had a 2005 rx8 collecting dust in his garage. Only 8000 MILES on it. He won the car in a poker bet back in 2005. He kept it in his garage cause he has 4 cars and the windshield is broken so he didn't find the point of driving it and didn't want to sell it. I spoke with him and he said I can take the engine for $2000. The car hasn't been turned on in years so to get to the point do you guys think it's worth it?

 

Read the new and potential owners sticky found at the top of the new members forum.
If you feel you're up for owning and maintaining it, then I say it's a good deal (EDIT- if the engine passes compression!!). But it all depends on your initiative.
Read that thread and let us know what you decide.

 

Forget the engine ... make him an offer for the car. A broken windshield, oh my.

 

A thousand times yes. Just buy his car and move on.