Engine cover: do you need to keep it on the engine?
 

Is a plastic engine cover necessary to be kept on the engine? When I need to add oil in the engine occasionally, it is inconvenient to take it off each time. If the cover is for an aesthetic purpose only, I would like to keep it at home.

it supposedly helps the air flow, but can be left off no problem.

is it really that inconvenient to take 2 seconds to pop it out and set it aside?

Just a decoration.

My RX8 is equipped with the K&N ram air package. So, one of the cover's clips has to get off the ram air's air box, which is a little tricky as I cannot simply yank it off (because that may broke off the air box). Instead, I have get my air under the cover to pop off that one clip to remove the cover.

To me, it's an extra 2.5 pounds.

If you don't leave it on your apex seal will break.

BTW only the 3rd seal of the rear rotor. The cover pertains to that specific seal.

Good thing I read this... I always thought it was the 4th apex seal.
I was about to change out the seal for a cloth material that last longer.
Extra life is added to the seal by soaking it in Acetone or MEK.

My cover has been off for 3 years. When you put the mazdaspeed strut tower on, you have to modify the cover if you want to leave it on and I'm not into messing with the OEM cover because I may want to take it back to stock when/if I sell. You will not have any problem removing it. Please ignore the negative comments. They make some people feel important.

SonicSE3P, great comments for your first and second post. You should be received well on here! :icon_no2:

I was referring to the plastic engine cover thingy in the engine bay. I doubt there is any connection between the plastic engine cover and the apex seal. Or, does that engine cover actually have the mechanical purpose of protecting the apex seal?

Ignore those comments, they are not really meant to be of help to you. They were for personal amusement of the poster.

And some people were born without a sense of humor... try not to take life so seriously.

ys2003: Some people like to have fun every now and then... but we wouldn't leave you with false information.
And don't take anything personally here, you'll do fine!

decoration only? no. it is there for heat extraction and to protect the hood from said heat.

Yeah, since we've had so many cases of melting hoods lately.

I'd love to find out who told you that? The engine cover is for decoration, that's it. People will say it's used for:

1. air flow
2. heat
3. noise
4. dust

Weird thing is that nowhere in the owners manual, shop manual or any piece of paper from mazda does it say any of those things about the cover. Road and Track, Modified, Automobile, and a few other car magazines have all had articles about the proliferation of engine covers and why they feel they're silly and useless weight.

If you like a tidy looking engine bay, keep the cover. If you dont like having to take off the cover to inspect the engine of change the oil, leave it off.

Decoration. :)

Airflow sounds silly, but if you watch how the air is directed underhood, it might be feasible that it helps route the air to some degree.

With that said, your car will operate just fine without it.

Heat isn't a big deal, the underside of the hood has stuff to protect it.

I think the #1 reason is for decoration. Maybe airflow as #2.

It's not so good at dust since by that point any dust would be all over your engine and other parts under hood. Noise? It isn't going to do much for that either.

If you look at the underside of the cover you'll see it's not really conductive to airflow.

As always good looking out Silver!

My understanding was the cover helps airflow by directing the air over the components under it, and then out toward the fender vents where hot air can flow back out. However if you're just sitting in traffic and not moving, it probably helps to cook your engine bay a bit more...

That is precisely correct. The underhood "blanket" is indeed a fire blanket, with low melting point plastic fasteners. It is also intended for sound deadening. That blanket is NOT window dressing, btu I'd be surprised if the engine cover was intended as anythign but a heat trapping decoration, which is why it sits in my garage.

fender vents are also for decoration.....

Decoration but I leave mine on becuas it keeps my engine bay looking sleek....but the 2 seconds to add oil is worth the neat looking engine bay....

It looks way neater without it.

These two threads might be of interest.

https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-discussion-3/rx8-seen-predator-96062/
https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-multimedia-photo-gallery-6/thermographic-pics-83423/