Evening guys(and ladies),

as the forum section would suggest, i am new to the rotary engine stuff. So far my experience is not great. Lets start off with the car

2005 rx8
Base model with no traction control or leather seats
Automatic transmission
111k miles

The car has had quite a few issues in the past few months. The list is as follows:
Bad vibration idle- 1,500 rpm
More than i would expect exhaust gasses with a very very light blue tint
Stalling when warm and at idle
Low power and lots of bog
CEL light
Power steering loss
Randomly unable to maintain 60mph

more about the car
4 brand new coils
Previous owner "gutted" the cat
A/C does not work
Freash oil change
Checked and cleaned all connections for the power steering

Im at a loss with what to do. Im used to working with old iron so please forgive some rotary ignorance.

Any guidance about what to do would be helpful

 

Vibration: Motor mount failure
Smoke: Probably normal for a gutted cat rotary, depending on how much
Stalling when warm: Compression loss
Low power: A huge list of possibilities
Bog: A huge list of possibilities
CEL: Depends on which of the 125 codes it is
Power Steering: Fouled electrical connectors or corroded harness
Highway Power Loss: A huge list of possibilities


Do the basics first:
- Clean MAF
- Reset Fuel Trims
- Clean ESS
- Reset ESS profile
- Get an OBD2 adapter (bluetooth or wifi, $15 on amazon) and see what your data looks like. STFT, LTFT, and MAF can confirm or rule out a vacuum leak, give you that code behind the CEL, and run tests on your other sensors

And get a compression test.

 

He said it all...

I would also suggest the congrats thread in my sig. Lots of easy things that will help. Several are pointed out above, the DIYs are detailed in the thread.

IMHO, I would spring for an ultragauge. Is more than a basic scanner, but give you good live data and can be easily mounted in the car.