Set it on fire, its the only way to save it.

 

If I remember correctly, 5w30 motor oil will gel at around -35F. Now, if you had water in the oil, I could see having some ice crystals in it. But frozen solid? It'd have to be pretty damn cold. Pure antifreeze solidifies around -45F (again, iirc)

 

It might be really cold, but it gets really cold up here (Western Canada) too - and there's a bunch of us who are now starting our third RX-8 winter. Your coolant won't freeze unless your dealer has messed up the antifreeze to water ratio. Your oil can't freeze either - however, a common phenomenon with RX-8s in cold weather is that an emulsion forms in and around the dipstick tube that looks like foamy brown or beige mixture. THAT foamy emulsion is probably what you're seeing when you check your oil (and there are a bunch of threads about this foamy emulsion). Bottom line is that it's condensed water vapour mixed with oil from the engine not getting hot enough to evaporate off all the water vapour and condensed water. A loong drive with the engine warmed up usually reduces this, but in any case it is NOT harmful to the engine.

I can't offer suggestions as to what is causing your check engine light problem, but I've driven in -10F to -30F conditions quite a few times, and the RX-8 does OK. It's not that the RX-8 can't handle cold - your particular car has a problem, and your dealer needs to find it and fix it!

Regards,
Gordon

 

this same exact thing happend to me 3 days ago, when it was 14 degrees here. i had to get to one of my classes but my car didnt start, after about 10 minutes of trying it finally started. an oil light, battery, and tire pressure lights came on so i was scared driving it to school. i didnt know what to expect driving it. then the next day again, my car started but then slowly it shut down. i have no idea what is going on and i dont have time to go to a mazda dealership because finals are coming up and i have to have a car. last time i took my car in they didnt give me a rental so i was screwed, so taking my car in is not an option right now. and right now its snowing pretty hard, my 8 should be covered in about 5-6 inches of snow and i have a test tomorrow... god im hoping it starts

 

This thread makes me thankful I have a heated garage

 

And most importantly... If you keep taking it to the same dealer, and the problems never seem to disappear, you definitely need to find another. Some individual dealerships are simply incompetent on every level... Sad fact. Keep searching, and I'm sure you'll find a place that can take proper care of you.

And you said you've only had the car for about a year? Everything should still be under warranty. So keep going back until they fix the problem. Besides gas for the trips, it's no money out of your pocket.

 

is it helpful to make sure you start your car every day? even if you're not driving it ... just let it sit and idle for about 5 minutes? ive done this with every other car ive owned, BUT as we all know ... the 8 is UNLIKE every other car

and do i have to put different oil/fluids in for the winter? this is my first winter with the 8, so i want to make sure i do the right thing ...

also, (sorry for so many questions) i was spose to clean my airbox at 14K (YES i read the manual!) but couldnt get the cover off. im now at 17K, is this going to cause problems?

 

the air filter will just be a bit dirty, your gas mileage may suffer a bit, but you can wait til it gets a bit warmer to try to open the airbox

 

cool! thanks, tho i have noticed my 18mpg is now at 16mpg ....

 

I drove the 8 for the first time since it snowed here (about 1 1/2 weeks ago) yesterday. High temp was 6 during the drive.
Anyway, I thought I could see the fuel gauge drop. Is MPG really terrible in really cold temps?

 

Not a good idea to let any car sit and idle for more than about a minute. Better to take it for a short drive to warm it up, keeping the revs at 3K or less until the needle reaches it's parking point in the temp gauge.
Read the manual. Unless you are in a very cold climate, the recommended 5w-20 is fine. The tranny and differential fluids are fine also.
To get access to the air filter, unclip the two clips on the airbox, push backwards on the box--real hard--compressing the accordian tube, and it will pop out of the front grommets, then pull it up out of the bottom grommets. Then you can open the "door" to get at the filter. Check the filter and if it just looks a little dirty in places, it will still pass sufficient air. Unless you live in a dusty area or drive on dirt roads alot, you shouldn't need to replace the filter for a long time--maybe 40-50K miles.

Make sure the grommets do not drop out while reinstalling the airbox.

 

yea thats the part that own3d me .... ill just get some help with it in the spring .


thanks for the info!

 

sounds weird to me. oil that gets chunky? hummm

 

Are you using the 5-20w oil the car is supposed to use or you switch to 20-50w?

Tim