WitheringShadow

I just recently bought a 2004 Mazda rx8 with a 6 speed transmission in it and 114k miles. I saw it at a mechanics shop and they never could get it to start so they said it needed a new engine. The guy didnt believe them so he took it to the dealership and they said the same thing. Said it was losing compression. So I bought it for $500. Got it to my house and out of curiousity i went out and tried to start it. After turning over for about 5-10 seconds it finally started. I was as giddy as a school girl. I drove it around for about 30 minutes and it drove wonderful. Great pick-up and take off and ran fine at idle. Got home and killed it in the driveway and tried to start it back up and it wouldnt start again. I let it sit for about 5 minutes or so and tried to start again and after about 10 seconds of cranking it started up again.

From what i read on the forum my rx8 wont start when hot which is either a fuel pump issue or a compression loss. If it is the compression loss what can i do for it? I really could use the help. This is my first rx8.

Dirtyswiff

if its compression loss in which most likely it is, your gonna need either a rebuild or a whole new engine, if you really love the car invest some money into it. Your probably going to end up spending the same amount of money that you could have used as a down payment for a newer car. So if you don't want it, my suggestion is to sell the car part by part through this forum just make sure you do some studying on the resale value of certain parts and you could get a hell of a lot more then the $500 you spent on it. But if you decide to get a rebuild or new engine, ask whoever you take it to, what else you might need to replace while they are working on it, then you can go from there. Good luck.

WitheringShadow

Ok so if i want to go ahead and rebuild it where do i get the rebuild kit from? What all will i need? Im asking bc there is absolutely no one around here that will touch it bc its a rotary engine. And this way i can get the stuff i need to rebuild it. I went to school for aviation maintenance and we did some work on rotary engines so i know a little bit about them. Not too much though.

Brooksy

Just to confirm, I believe the aviation rotary engine you're thinking of is a bunch of Pistons around a shaft in a circular pattern. The Mazda rotary engine is 2 "triangles" rotating around a shaft. I'm not an expert in engine rebuilds so maybe someone else can comment further on what/where to get. It depends on what is damaged inside, could be a $500 kit, could need a $2000 kit.

ken-x8

Unless that school was during WW I, those aviation engines would have been radial, not rotary.

I've always wondered what it would take to put a Le Rhone rotary into a car.

Ken

Dirtyswiff

Where are you from? there's gotta be someone who can work on it. The thing about a rebuild kit is that it's useless unless you know what you need to repair. If there is no one with any knowledge about rotory that will take a look at it at a local shop, then your gonna have to take it to a Mazda dealer and have them diagnose it. Then if you decide to work on it yourself then you can purchase a kit here Mazda Rx7 & Rx8 Rotary Engine Rebuild Kits