Maybe you should post on a thread that deals with an automatic transmission, not a lower steering shaft universal joint.

In my case and possibly many others on this years old thread, we may not even own an RX-8 any longer.

 

I think I explained the relevance but thank you anyway for the snarky lecture.. Besides that doesn't really explain the lack of a response now does it? There may be a correlation between the two problems that's what I'm trying to sort out, did you actually READ the content of this thread where it deviates away from the actual thread title? Since the thread should renew to the top it shouldn't matter if someone is checking for new posts in a given thread?
BTW I did tag onto another tranny thread that was also related and have not received any response there either.

Guess I have a unique issue, but will know tomorrow if it's sorted having just tested, found and replaced a bad shift solenoid.

Update: Shifting issues nearly eradicated, bad solenoid and tranny fluid along with regular maintenance, running some proper fluid now to flush and dilute previous fluid and soon to remove through the fill tube, test drove the car today and while still having a couple issues they are mostly minor, traction light still came on but DSC light didn't, trans shifts mostly smoothly and is getting better the more it runs, no lock up anymore.

Strangely and disappointingly have to track a miss in #1 rotor, already suspected a bad new coil that the top rubber came off off when I first installed it new along with the rest of the coils when I changed over the engine and electrical but it did not solve the problem and all are new. Frustratingly did not keep track of the previous coils which were on this engine and it had no misses or CEL's at the time but wanted to change over to new to head off any issues and guess what? So need to go back to step 1 I guess? I've already changed out the suspect coil with no joy so I guess I'm sort of down to one. BTW it begins to miss at about 4500 RPM's which is where I can feel it and where the light begins to flash too.

No CAT though so tomorrow going to the track to be a spectator with my boys though I don't make a very good one. Then have to deal with the miss later, maybe I'll go out there and change the coil now as I think about it, it's the easiest one to change, yep going to go do it.

 

To add to this, the problem can also be that its so seized up that it needs worked loose. I had it removed and then worked it back and forth until it got easier. It is 100% the problem. I hate that Mazda decided to use this part for specifically the Miata and the Rx8 and nothing else because it's incredibly expensive and can't just have a cheap alternative used due to the splines.