clmantis21

My 8 flooded again for like the 4th time! (I hate my roommates).

The last time she flooded we were able to push start it and it worked just fine. We tried that yesterday and it didnt work.... so today I tried the fuel pump fuse removal method.

I took the fuse off, then cranked her for about 10-12 secs. Stopped, put the fuse back and tried to start her with foot down on gas pedal. Nothing.

Tried this a few times, but its starting to sound a bit weak, as if the battery is starting to die. I'm waiting on a buddy's cables right now to get jump assistance, but my big concern is the starter. We tried push starting it around 3 times yesterday and I tried to crank her another 3 or so today. How long before I call it quits and get it towed? I dont want to ruin the starter.

The dealerships here suck and always take forever... like 7 days last time she was in for flooding.

And, I'm right at 60k so no more warranty so it'll cost me $$$ !

Any help?

m3pkrobert

iTrader: (1)

i try everythig 2 but didnt work, i took the car 2 the dealer and they replace battery and deflooted it was around $280 just try to keep ur battery so is not gona b a extra charge when u take it to the dealer

clmantis21

plus the tow?

m3pkrobert

iTrader: (1)

oh no the tow was $50 extra than is around $330

Razz1

Buy the Mazsport ignition.

Spark too hot! No more floods.

DailyDriver2k5

No, take the fuse out, crank it for 10-15 secs ,put fuse back in, crank it for 10-15 sec or till it starts, but DO NOT HAVE YOUR FOOT ON THE GAS PEDAL, when it starts, then put your foot on the gas pedal, you may have to feather it , because when it cranked and i mashed the gas, it died. Feathering worked best. Hope this helps.

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

I'm flooded right now too because my coach moved it a foot and I didnt warn him grrr... I was thinking of just letting a dealer take care of it so I don't mess things up... But you say push starting worked for you a couple of times? How do I do that? Roll her down a hill while she cranks?

staticlag

Depends, most of the time when you flood it ruins the plugs.

chrism

next time tell them to just release the damn e-brake and push......its not a heavy car

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

well i can take my plugs out and clean them, no biggy... but all you have to do is put her and neutral and get her rolling down a hill... crank her while she rolls. that should do it, eh? what do you think?

mmats69

true....if you have the gas pedal to the floor that cuts the fuel completely. I used that method, although not recommended, and got her to start right after. Took it to the dealer, got the new starter/battery, plugs, flash, and was on my way.

I've seen a lot of threads like this lately that have one thing in common. People are parking in places where the car will have to be moved for a short distance. Try a different spot or if you can, keep the keys with you so you are the only one who can move it.

CyberPitz

Roll it down the hill while in gear, not sure which one...really depends on your speed. But with it in gear, and rolling, dump the clutch. It will buck, but start.

clmantis21

yep.

Since the road we are on doesn't have a hill, we werent able to get her rolling very fast.

My roommate has a truck and tow strap so we just might tow it and try the jump start one more time before actually calling the tow/dealer.

.... if it ever stops raining!

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

great advice, thanks man.

Mendossa

Is this a joke or has the Mazsport ignition solution really been proven to help starting flooded engines? If the mixture is too rich, it just won't ignite even if the spark is really strong... or so I believe.

rotarygod

Push starting works sometimes. Pull starting will work everytime unless you aren't getting fuel or ignition. If you can push start it, you probably won't be able to do the fuse removal method either. In the trunk, the car comes with tow hooks. These screw into the front and rear of the car. Obviously you only need one. Install it, get a tow strap, tie it to another vehicle, and tow it in 2nd gear with the key on. It'll start up pretty quick. You don't even need to go fast. Sometimes it'll start immediately after starting to move and other times you might need 20 mpg for a half a block or so. It depends how bad it's flooded. I've started blown engines with this method!

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

lol. "gravity" starting works just fine. saved me a tow. get a good steep hill and park your 8 on top. if it ever floods on top, just put her in neutral, give her a shove, put her in second, and start cranking. she grumbled, sputtered, and then ripped to life... growling and then purring back to normal!

i was so overjoyed i almost cried. just be sure you get the plugs and other things checked out. no sense in letting a flooding compound the engine and making it more susceptible to flooding again.

clmantis21

Pull starting works everytime!?!?!?

I was going to try this today, but hesitated (and it was raining non stop all day). Again, the only area of concern that I have is the starter going bad. I feel that if I keep cranking it... it'll go out.

Are there any signs that tell you when your started is bad?

I'm definately going to try the pull start method tomorrow. 20 mph should work? No hills in my neighborhoood.

Thanks again!!

clmantis21

SUCCESS!!!

Got the car started and it didnt cost me a penny!

Here's a recap so that anyone with this issue might find this thread while searching for a solution to their flooded RX8.

So here's how it went.

1. Cousin moved car without letting it warm up so RX8 flooded.
2. When trying to turn car on, it cranked up didnt turn over.
3. Tried doing the fuel pump fuse removal method to deflood. DID NOT WORK.
4. Tried push starting it. DID NOT WORK.

Then finally...

5. Using my friends truck we towed RX8 to about 15 mph then jump started in 1st gear. (Install the tow hooks to tow. They are located in the trunk under the plastic lid, next to the jack).

RX8 turned on for a sec, then died the first time. We tried again and it worked the second time. Advice, when the car turns on... dont step on the gas right away. Give it a second then feather tap the gas pedal slowly so you dont flood it right back. I then took the car for a 10 min ride to clean it out. Success.... deflooded 8!

b'Eight'

That was pretty dumb.

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

congrats.

i guess if you don't have to gravity to pull you around, use a truck? two floods dried up in the same week.

lesson learned:

don't let anyone else touch your damn 8.

rotarygod

What's so dumb about it? It's worked for the past 30 years. I don't recall the owners manual saying not to tow a car. Then again it also tells you to use only genuine Mazda parts and says nothing about aftermarket intakes, exhausts, turbos, etc... If they didn't intend for you to tow the car, they wouldn't have given you the tow hook to do it!

clmantis21

Thats exactly what I was thinking?

If that was so "dumb" then why would they give us a tow hook?

At any rate, it worked and we didnt have to pull the car for more than about 100 ft. so I'm sure it wasnt harmed.

Im guessing the next thing though is changing out the plugs??

CyberPitz

For some reason, I never understood the pull starting...I thought it was dangerous to have them pull you, and then you dump the clutch to start

But this makes sense, and seems perfectly safe....

endowdly

iTrader: (2)

yeah yeah. change your plugs or at least check them. did you buy your car used? if you did, make sure the recall updates happened on your 8. if they haven't been, you can get new plugs for free at any mazda dealer.