The sputtering issues and shifter vibration make sense now if it is going to be the mounts, and the mounts correlation to the engine timing.

I'll check into this tonight.

I'm also going to clean the MAF with the above replied DIY.

Are the mounts something I can replace on my own with standard garage tools?



Guys thanks for the help. I think we may be isolating the issue here.


ps: replacement of the spark plugs, spark plug wires and coils has definitely done tremendous things for this cars performance. it ripped on the highway this morning like it used to when I first got it. I recommend that if you've gotten "meh" used to your engine being a little too tame or not as potent as it used to be lately that you replace most of the ignition components and then FEEL THE DIFFERENCE.

+1 on the maf cleaning -> i'm about to do mine

& I never would've thought to connect the mount issues to timing either! (woo -> learned something new!)

gonna keep this sagging right mount in mind as I rack up the miles.

Yes. It just takes a floor jack and 14mm box wrenches and sockets.
The trick is to get the car on jack stands, loosen all of the mount bolts and then raise the engine with the floor jack to unload the mount. It is best to put a piece of wood on the pad of the jack to keep from duffing the oil pan as you lift the motor.
The whole operation takes me about 20 minutes.
Figure about 2 hours for the uninitiated.

A DIY for this would be swell.

I'll check the mounts tonight.

Where can I get replacement mounts?

Rosenthal didn't have them as far as I could tell by browsing the site.

There are a pair for sale somewhere on this forum.
www.onlinemazdaparts.com has them, too.

Update:

Spark Plugs replaced
Spark Plug Wires replaced
Coils replaced
Air filter cleaned
Oil / filter changed
Mass Air Flow Sensor - Cleaned


I picked up some CRC brand MAF cleaner yesterday and cleaned the MAF.

Still no good. Rough idle.

I've only driven it to work, so maybe it will take a few more trips to reprogram itself?

My last resort / hope is that it's a motor mount.

Let us know........some are watching to see what becomes of all this.

if you are on the last flash it does take a while for the ecu to relearn, but motor mount are going to be it..

beers :beer:

Welp.

I have an update.

And a significant one at that.

After all my personal troubleshooting I could not get the issue resolved on my own.

So I brought my 8 to Liberty Mazda in Hartford Connecticut yesterday. I was there a week ago to get a tailight replaced for condensation, but I didn't tell them about the idling issue because I wanted to spend more time on it on my own.

I was so impressed with their friendliness and customer service with the tailight issue that I decided to bring it in yesterday for the idling issue.

They did a quick listen and told me the idling issue was definitely something major. So I went home without really knowing what it was because they were closing at the time I was there and that was all they could tell me.

So I got a call today from the Service Manager there who told me that they called Mazda and Mazda told them to replace the engine.

There was a compression issue with one of the rotaries, and it was apparently beyond repair.

So after all that troubleshooting it was something that couldn't be repaired with any of the following:

Replacing spark plugs
Replacing spark plug wires
Replacing coils
Cleaning the MAF with specific MAF cleaner

The engine is being shipped in from where ever.


So I don't really know what it is, or was but I'm kind of surprised it turned out to be this big of an issue.

I'm glad I'm getting a new engine in the long run.

Just wanted to get that bit of info out there.

If your still under warranty and you have the knocking rough idling issue and you've tried a few things to get it running right again, use my story to guide you in the right direction.

I'll let you know how the new engine goes once its in.

Thanks for all your help gents.

btw...


2004 MT
48k miles
Oil changes every 3k miles.
Air filters replaced on a regular basis.
Daily driver.

Don't know what I could have done, if anything, to prevent this.

Oh well. New engine :lol2:

This has me very concerned now. I just got my car and less than a month ago I test drove a few 8’s before I decided on my current one. They all had rough idle except 1. My car does have a rough idle and backfires “quiet popping”. It really didn’t bother me at all just figured it was semi normal and except it. Did you notice any power lose? I’m really hoping they replaced your engine because of the low compression and not because of the rough idle. Hoping mine can be fixed with a motor mount.

What type of driving did it get, hwy, city, agressive, gas reg-prem, ping(MIAC), TSB's all done. Anything you can think of.

The rough idle was a result of the compression issue.

You should be concerned. You need to bring your car to Mazda asap to have them check it out.

While there are most DEFINITELY different types of rough idle, mine was pretty violent. If you think yours is bad, and you shouldn't have to think too hard about it, bring it in. If you don't get a good answer from one Mazda location, go to another.

I went to 3 different places before I finally found one who actually cared about my car.

• I do a balance of both. My house is a good 15 miles from the highway, so my morning commute consists of about 20 minutes of city driving, or country road driving if you will, then 10 minutes on the highway.
  
• I drive to the beach often which is also about an hour on the highway.
  
• All around the balance between city and highway driving is about even.
  
• I do drive it aggresively quite often. Nothing completely asshole-like, or extreme, but I get on the gas and definitely put it through its paces about 2-3 times a week.
  
• For gas I've been using 87 since I got the car since after reading on the boards here that people who were using above 90 were getting some pinging and ticking.
  
• I've used different types of oil. Nothing above 5w-20 though.

The car was never right from the beginning. *edit* By saying the car was never right I don't mean that I bought it knowing it had a shitty idle. I bought it at the time not knowing that an idle like that was completely abnormal for an 8. After hearing from numerous rotary techs that an 8's engine should idle silky smooth I then knew that "all this time" the car was never right from the beginning. I just want to make sure no one thinks I bought the car with an engine issue, then neglected it, and continued to beat on the engine*edit* I bought it used with 33 thousand miles on it. The engine has gotten progressively worse from day one.

My fear is that we may never end up knowing why my car went down this route without being able to speak to the previous owner.

Mine is an 06 and has always had a bit of a rough idle. at 1k its fine at 800-900 it sounds like it's laboring a bit. I was thinking of just asking to have the idle bumped to 1k next time I'm at the dealer.

Mine was fine at 1k too.

Sometimes it was drop to 500 at a light and the car would shake like a bitch.

I wonder how long I drove the car with a huge lack of power.

More than that I wonder how long I thought my car was running at full power, but really wasn't. I wonder what the engine should REALLY feel like in terms of power.

I reckon you gonna find out!

I just hope the new engine fixes the issue.

I've heard of alot of guys having worse luck with the rebuilt engine.

[QUOTE=swoope;1883643]going with motor mounts, and reset your ac amp... it does make a difference..

you dont mention the year, or mileage.. but at 50k miles mine were done.. they have changed the mount also.


How do you reset the AC amp? This can help idle? Interesting.


Should a (decent) dealer be willing to do a compression check under warranty if you have rough idle or possible power loss? Sometimes after my 8 has been idling for a min. or two when completely warmed up, it will hesitate or need more throttle to get going in a 1st gear take off...Any ideas? I have done the TSB test for bad motor mount and it seems like I need to get a new mount b/c it fails the test.

https://www.rx8club.com/showpost.php...54&postcount=8

the link for the ac ?

the other two are yes.. if you found the tsb for the mm tsb the last recall notice should be simple..

good luck it is sooooo much nicer when smooth..

beers :beer:

^Hey according to my local service rep the car is supposed to vibrate like that.............. :uhh:

After I start my new job I'm going to Synaptic 3 in NH and having them do a compression test on my baby and then compare it to the papers I have stored somewhere (I hope I still have 'em). I have a A/T and well yeah sucks to be at a stop light and then have this quick violent shudder run through your entire body. I got the motor mounts replaced awhile back and it made it softer thats it. Hearing this story is getting me somewhat concerned but at the same time relieved since I may not be pariniod.

Mine nver drops below 800, so I'm sure it's normal, just seems to run so much smoother with another 100-200 RPM.

[QUOTE=Rhythmic;1905692]
I may be misunderstanding you but they did a compression test for you, found it was bad, and did nothing to try to remedy your issue?

Or did you mean you did the TSB check on your own?


I brought mine to 3 dealers in Connecticut before one was willing to help me. I called Liberty Mazda in Hartford CT, they had me bring my 8 in the next day. They did a test, told me compression was bad and told me the car needed a new motor. No hassle, no waiting, no bs.

A good Mazda Dealer should be willing to help you. If Mazda neglects there RX8 customers they know they could be losing future Mazda sales in general. This is my 3rd Mazda. MX6, M3, and the RX8.

If I continue to receive amazing service from Liberty Mazda, who I only recently discovered (unfortunately) I will definitely consider jumping into my 4th Mazda when the time comes. (or the next rendition of the Rotary comes out)



No updates on the new engine yet. I assume it is shipping in from overseas?

Its good to know that you have a good dealership around you.

I've already been to 3 dealerships(NYC) and they're just a bunch of dicks.

Im gonna try my 4th one soon .... I have some TSB for them to do. wish me luck ...