Do you leave your engine running the whole time you're sitting on grid? Do you leave the hood open? This is regarding autocross.

 

Typically we would leave the engine running so that the water pump continues to circulate coolant. We would also open the hood, remove the engine cover, and spray the engine, intake manifold, etc. to promote additional evaporative cooling.

If you shut the engine down between runs, you're trapping coolant in the block or engine housing, which can get superheated. Fans don't really help much if the water pump is shut off.

 

Those are interesting statements.

First, as a new 8 owner, I look in the engine compartment and wonder why on earth, other than for decoration, does the engine have a cover? No other reason, I guess. Assuming that's the case, why not leave the engine cover at home? Or is it a legal issue with B stock? It's not a performance item.

Second, I can understand that on a hot day you might want to leave the hood open between runs, but why would "superheated" coolant be an issue with the rotary to the extent that you would leave the engine running and spray it with water? I assume that you only keep the engine running for a short period of time. Is this a rotary vs. piston issue? What do you do after a highway run on a 90 degree day when you stop at a rest area or get gas?

I ask these questions as there are not many RX-8s autocrossing on Long Island.

 

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...light=fastmike

 

OK, I just read that whole thread. Was anything resolved? Is it a 2 1/2 year cliff hanger? Did Mike ever find his true love?

And what's the deal with 87 octane fuel?

 

unfortunately above the warm-up mode the engine doesn't run any leaner because the PCM compensates for the variables, just one more time of people taking an old general theory that doesn't apply to the situation at hand, in this case a carburetor theory applied to an engine management fuel injection scenario

too cold or too hot can mean less power, there's a sweet spot range in there but it's fairly wide

in all likelihood it doesn't matter much either way because on any give day at any given event the driver who does it one way can be faster than the driver who does it the other, and vice-versa.

there are bigger things to focus on ...

 

i found this, dont know if its helpful or not

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-tech-garage-22/engine-cover-134350/

 

Thanks for the link. As I check the oil, I wonder how the engine cover will hold up after taking it on and off a gazillion times......

Is there anything to 87 octane gas increasing performance? How could that possibly be?

 

I'm new to rotarys but if 87 > 91 in them then I'm the king of Sweeden.

 

I agree, your Highness.

 

Hey Gymdent - if you don't mind, where do you autocross, and with what group?

I'm in central nassau and I'm pretty interested in some relatively casual autocrossing in the area. I plan on doing one or two full-scale track days with EMRA (www.emraracing.org) this season, but it'd be nice to do a few slightly less-likely-to-total-my-car driving events closer to home. Thanks...

 

We usually run at Nassau Coliseum with the NYR SCCA, the NY BMW Club and the Metro NY Porsche Club. The NNJ Porsche Club runs at the Meadowlands as does Motorsports NE. The NNJ SCCA races at Englishtown. You can Google them for their sites and schedules. Autox4u.com also has a list of many of the events and club links, though all the clubs don't post there.

Porsche will be running at Tobay March 30th and early April, but it's closed to members only. They may let you in as a spectator. That'll be my first event running my silver 8. I've been running a Miata in CSP. The NYR SCCA and BMW haven't finalized their event schedules as of yet. I'll be with them at Pocono on April 19th.

So you're a neuroscientist in Parkinson's research. I have quite a few patients with it. As a matter of fact, one of them owned one of the original Mazda dealerships on LI. He gave me one of Mazda's 1972 promotional plexiglas desk models that demos how a rotary operates.

Steve
http://merrickdentistry.com/

 

In my testing with Cobb Tuning we determined just the opposite ....