I did something extremly stupid yesterday. I had a dead battery in my 2004 RX8. I went to jumpstart it, and accidently reversed the jumper cables. The cables on the car used to jumpstart it was fine, but the pos/neg ends were crossed on the battery in the 8. It didnt spark nor blow the battery, it didnt do anything when I tried to start it. Once I realized, I corrected the cables and it started just fine. My question is how bad did I mess up my 8?

 

Since the battery was dead anyway I'd suggest getting a new battery. If it started and you didnt get a CEL you're probably ok.

 

you are one lucky man... could have easily blown every fuse in the car along with the starter and computer..

 

invest in a good set of jumper cables that have cross polarity protection.

 

or just look for the + and - symbols.

 

Got a completly new battery, hooked it up, starts and runs fine. Except the Dsc off light is blinking as well as the yellow light came out with the car and skid marks. I assume I blew a fuze? Which fuze is it? I can't find it.

 

Isn't this the dsc calibration that can be corrected by turning the steering wheel all the way to the left, then all the way to the right?

 

wow, go buy a lottery ticket, some people have lost their sight over that

 

Dumb question...but why doesn't our car have one of those remote positive terminal things? I've had to jump another car twice with my 8 and moving a warm coolant hose to get to the battery is not fun.

 

Thank you.

 

Or Red and Black???

 

The DSC disables when you disconnect the battery. The manual describes how to reactivate.

"If the battery is disconnected, the DSC
will be inoperable. In this case, the DSC
OFF indicator light flashes and the
TCS/DSC indicator light illuminates.
To make the DSC operable, do the
following procedure.
1. Turn the ignition switch to the ON
position.
2. Turn the steering clockwise fully,
then turn it counterclockwise fully.
3. Make sure the DSC OFF indicator
goes off.
4. Turn the ignition switch to the OFF
position, then turn it to the ON
position again.
5. Make sure the TCS/DSC indicator
light goes off.
If the TCS/DSC indicator light and the
DSC OFF indicator light remain
illuminated even after turning the
ignition switch to the ON position,
consult an Authorized Mazda Dealer."

 

I left my 8 parked at my brothers while I was working out of town for almost 2 months. I came home to a rainy night and a dead battery. I hunted around and found a set of cables (all black), only color was grease colored tape...and I crossed the cables.

The horn came on and I thought it was the alarm telling me I had a low battery so I tried to start it. I'd guess ten or so seconds passed connected like that.

I disconnected it and dropped in the battery from the trolling motor, no start.
List of things that work: Passenger side headlight, both high beams, hazard lights, brake lights, fuel pump.

Everything else is dead, radio, meassage board, A/C, interior lights, starter solenoid.

Checked fuses and they are good. Checking relays under dash,

I love this car, and now I need to bring it back from the dead. Please help.

 

Recheck the fuses - sounds like you missed a couple.....

Did you check the ones in footwell?

Do the locks work, with or without the remote?

I'm sure the members here can help, we have solved problems harder than this before......

S

 

Rechecked fuses in footwell and under hood. There were some bad the first time around and replaced. Ignition and headlights. Swapped the relays for IGN,ST, HEAD; no change. Thanks for quick response S.

 

I forgot to say that I had replaced the fuse for the drivers side healight so it goes on the list for working. Typical nubee.

 

Does the engine turn over when you try to start it?

 

Not even a click. Leads me to believe I have no circuit to the solenoid. Or the interior when I open the door. Or the locks from the remote. Thanks for the question. I am under the car testing the leads to the starter.

 

The solenoid has power when the key is on. under the hood, the two leads that feed the fuse block, the one closest to the firewall is hot and the other is not, no matter what state the key is in.

 

Engine should turn over if there is power to the ignition, and there is only a fuse between the battery and the motor.

Do you get power AT the fuses? If you use a meter, is there 12v at each fuse?

Sounds like the big 'main fuse' is gone......

(you are pressing the clutch in when you start, right?)

S

 

I don't know......his last post said a battery wire is getting hot no matter what state the key is in. Now............if by hot he means "hot" and not that it just has 12v, then he's got a massive short somewhere.

 

Yes, Clutch is in, and it seems like its not, accept for the radio, message, interior, lighters, etc... being dead and the fact it won't turn over, I would say that it was the ignition fuse. I will take the meter to the fuses and report back the volts at each.

 

I should have been proper. Troubleshooting 101 no short cuts. 12v at the solenoid. No 'hot' or warm to the touch wires in the loom.

 

Phew.....that's good to know!
Sorry........I wasn't sure if you meant hot or hot.


You've checked all the fuse in the engine bay and in the cabin?
YOu might need to start checking all the relays. At least you have a meter, that's a good thing.

 

Check to see if you have power at the starter. A bit of a pain, but that will tell you a lot.