How many miles on your car? and how old is the trans fluid?


Most of us can get a real good shift from 1st to 2nd, but if it feels like you're slamming it then be careful you could bend some crucial parts

1. Redlining - I'm not sure about 'meaning' of redlining except that it means you reached 9K RPM. But see below. Redlining is using the car's power when you need it, and of course, just to feel it go, one of the most fun parts of the car's attitude.

2. 3rd most definitely. On track 3rd is my favorite gear because most of the tracks have speeds where you end up staying in 3rd gear maybe 60% of the time, 4th gear 30%, 2nd gear 10% mix plus or minus. Something like that. So 6-9500rpm is the place the car runs at, RPM wise, for a good chunk of any 20 min track session. The engine functions nearly like an electric motor, it works until it stops spinning faster, quicker, then you shift. So you can theoritically, or even practically, be at 8-9K almost indefinitely. I'd say reality is more like 10s of seconds anyway.

If you're sort of new to the car, try this exercise. Drive say, on the interstate with little traffic, maintain a constant 60 mph and shift from 2nd, to 3rd, to 4th, rev matching the speed each shift, then shift back down to 3rd, then 2nd and notice what the engine does and how it feels. Try 75-80 constant speed and try 3rd, 4th, 5th, then back down again and discover how the car & engine behaves, the response it has in different gears, etc. Stay at whatever mph you want, then just move between the useable gears and see that the rotary doesn't much care and it works just fine for 10 sec, 30 sec, or whatever you please for however long you want. It's very different than a piston engine, it loves to go round and round :lol:

You'll enjoy the excercise, and learn alot about the redline and driving there and near there. Be safe.

Good deal
 

A lot of thoughtful posts, I appreciate it :)

Oh yeah, and.....

No Coke!!, ....Pepsi!!!

Oh, I meant the timing/footwork. The shift feels a little bit notchy, but I can usually get it into gear without any problems. I've got 29k KM on it (about 18k miles).

Its like a mythodical thing for some people here. I do it in this spot and in this gear but not that one and...

just drive the damn thing like its a sports car and things should take car of themselves. Why is this such a big deal?

the trans will let you know when its ready. you just have to guide the shifter to the right spot.

I think this has to do with the location of some of the RX8 drivers. Some have more room to fly around their local roads then others who have to pick their spots.

Good post. I too usually redline 1st, 2nd & 3rd while getting on the freeway when I am headed home. No one on the roads at 4:00 AM when I am cruising.

This is my first RX-8 and am liking it more and more!

Lots of good advice here. This question comes up a lot - I'm suprized that so many people took the time to explain it at length rather than refer you to the other threads.

+1 to all that was said here, but let me just add a quick 2 cents to the discussion:
Think of the rotary engine as a kitchen oven. You crank it up all the way and the temperature is no longer measured in degrees, it just says "CLEAN." The RX8's 'clean' setting is right around 7500RPMs on the tach. Assuming you haven't "babied" your car for an extended period of time, just a few seconds in the 'cleaning' RPMs is enough to break up about 500mi worth of carbon buildup. Keeping the RPMs above 4500RPMs for a few more seconds afterwards is enough to spew it completely out of the engine.

You don't necessarily have to "red-line" the car everytime (above the beep)...
You could just drive the car on the highway in 4th gear for some time (4th gear @ 70 to 80 miles per hour) should keep the revs above 5k. (ideally I would think between 5k and 7k for about 1 minute is sufficient for the engine).... and it sounds good also!!!

You can practice this, and the engine will build up more heat, thus lowering the chances of carbon build-up. It won't get rid of the build up already there, but it will minimize it....
Then, you can "red line" about once a day for the enjoyment of doing it....(and the enjoyment of the engine as well :) )

P.S. Everytime I drive the car, I red line it... ...several times....
I am just in-love with the sound and feeling of the rotary.

Thanks
 

Again, I appreciate the thoughtful nature of the responses and there is a lot of good information.

Information like this,

by Dillsrotary

I found very interesting and something that I wouldn't expect to find in the manual but seems like a fairly vital tidbit for an owner to understand with this type of car.

I sure don't profess to be a rotary expert but I am learning more and more about them all the time.

Likewise. Redlining is used in managing chronic pain of boredom due to its long duration. I think methadone has similar properties.

true, but methadone is not nearly as addictive.

I touch 1st/2nd gear redlines fairly often (daily). And 3rd redlining when conditions permit. What really helps is the mountain runs with sustained relatively high rpms (6.5-7.5K) in second and romps into third. It is good to see clean exhaust tips inside.

Rev this.....
 

Like I said in the other thread - high revs just won't do it.

Alone, high revs/redline is USELESS, and revving in neutral is WORSE than useless.:rant:

You need wide open throttle and sustained high power output, along with high revs, to clean anything.

Otherwise you could just shift into second gear on a long downhill, rev beeper bleeping steady, with the secondary and tertiary intake ports tight shut - that's not going to do anything at all.:icon_no2:

I read posts stating as gospel that "7500rpm is where the ports open" - taint so, the ECU will open those ports when it damn well needs them, not before. You can't just look at the dips on a full bore dyno chart, then extrapolate that the port opening point will be the same at all other throttle positions....that's just simpleminded.:banghead:

Give it a good full-bore blast occasionally!

S

I always do the "full throttle blast!!"... and the redlining...

If you wanna try something a bit advanced, cruise down a highway at 50 mph in 5th or 6th. Then rev match by "blipping" throttle to around 7000RPM then shift to 2nd. If you do do this well, your passenger shouldn't notice a thing (lurching) except the louder engine tone.

Then redline smoothly to 9000RPM (feel the surge) which should take you to about 65mph. Hold it there a while. Then shift through all the gears. Coast back to 50mph, then repeat twice more for practice.

One way to tell when you reach this zone is white exhaust tips. The only time I have gotten white tips is on the track. Makes one wonder what Mazda was thinking with a 9,000 redline & tertiary ports that most people never use.

I use on ramps alot to redline for 2nd gear. to much traffic for me to redline 1st thru 2nd .

I don't redline 1st much, but 2nd & third all the time. My daily commute is 40 miles, most of it highway, so I have nice nice ramp action to really wind it up on.

Oh and...
When I test drove the 8 for the first time, it was me, my wife, and the sales guy in the back seat. I pull out from the dealership, down a side road, and then pull out onto a major road. Redlined first, redlined second, then quickly snapped up through 3,4,5 before slowing back down to the speed limit.
The sales guy comments "I see you've driven rotaries before."
:D

What??

A car dealer that didn't think the RX8 had a V6???

I CALL SHENZ!

questions about legality... I do usually get a redline in pretty much every drive/once a day, but sometimes I wonder if there's any reason a cop could pull me over for it if I'm still in the speed limit... reckless driving or anything like that? And I do usually check, but sometimes you never know where those cops are hiding lol