TobiasRX

Does the RX-8 has the same flooding isues as the RX-7's has had?
If you shut down an RX-7 when the engine is cold it will get flooded. Is it the same with the RX-8?

dcfc3s

It can probably happen - it's moreso a problem on engines with a lot of miles on the clock, so it's really too hard to tell.

Mazda does have a technique in the owner's manual to help alleviate flooding during a cold start for a short move.

I've never found it to be a problem - just don't start the engine cold, move the car to the driveway, and shut it off.

The refinements in the fuel injection system on the 3rd gen RX-7 led to a LOT less flooding than the 2nd gen as far as hard warm starts and the like. I would imagine the same to be true with the RX-8.

Dale

j9fd3s

yeah, they pretty much fixed that on the cosmo's and the fd

mike

TobiasRX

In what year does the FD not flood?

Mine is a 1993 and it's gotten flooded.

daedelgt

I've never flooded mine and I've probably shut of off 10 times cold when I was diagnosing some coolant problems.

dcfc3s

I'm saying the FD is FAR less prone to flooding than the second gen, especially during hot start conditions. The fuel temp sensor and revised ECU help out a LOT.

If you have flooding problems with an FD, something is way wrong - ancient spark plugs, worn engine, etc.

Pretty much any rotary you can flood if you start it bone cold and move it a short distance.

Dale

TobiasRX

i've shut mine off only a few times, maybe 3-4 and it has flooded ones when i had it running about 30-60 seconds. With this in mind i'm probably not fair when i say it's a problem, but for me it feels very low budget if it can happen with a new car.

Bulldog6670

I heard one of the issues with a cold start and shutdown is the chamber has cold fuel left in it. Since the engine is not hot enough to evaporate this small amount of fuel, it gets to the seals and adds to the carbon build-up in the engine. With time, the seals erode if this happens too often.

Did anyone hear the same?

miata2rx8

my car flooded two days ago and I still cant get it started. Monday my tire alarm went off so I didnt drive the car. During the day I figured that it was probably the cold that caused the alarm, and that evening started the car (it was warmer) and the tire alarm didnt come on, so I turned off the engine. Next morning car would not start. Tried the ol' floor the gas pedal and even removing the fuel pump fuse. Nothing. Starter turns but doesnt even try to turn the engine over.

Called the dealer. Their advice was tow it in. For a flooded engine???!!??

Any other ideas?

My 8 has 3500 miles on it...

mikeb

wow
that is terriable
sorry to hear
please keep us posted on end result

miata2rx8

3 days of and the engine still will not start. this is so frustrating!!!

I can't believe the gas doesnt evaporate after 24 hours. maybe its another problem, but this is a brand new $30000 car!

khoney

Had this happen in my 7 once. It was just like a complete loss of compression.

You could try pulling the plugs and turn the engine over a few times - it'll throw some excess gas out the plug holes - keep towels around the plug ports to catch the gas.

The plugs could be wet too. If you try removing the plugs and drying them and cranking out the gas, and it still doesn't turn over once you replace the plugs, you may need to squirt a few CCs of ATF into the plug holes. It'll smoke like there's no tomorrow for about 10 minutes, but it should start. BTW, I'm not sure about the 8, but on the 7 the leading and trailing plugs are different. Don't mix them up!

miata2rx8

where are the plugs? the engine is so low and far back, I cant make out where they are

miata2rx8

BTW, a WEEK and my car is still out.

syntrix

So take it to the damn dealer so they can figure out the problem.

How do you know it's actually FLOODING?

Maybe it's ignition? Maybe you launched the car 20ft in the air and something broke? Maybe it's a loose wire? Muffler bearings?

Get it into the dealer now, and quit whining. period.

CERAMICSEAL

Why does everyone want to do things themselves? Is it for financial reasons or adventure or curiosity? The internet age has encouraged a strange mentality.Everyone's an expert, everyone's a tech. There's nothing wrong with educating oneself and being informed so you don't get taken advantage of, and if you already are skilled in the automotive field with proper equipment and excess time on your hands then cautiously approach some of the repair and service procedures on your car.Some people have a hatred for the dealer(occasionally warranted), I've always said folks should find a shop/dealer they can trust and who prove themselves knowledgeable to take their car to. A good example of the reason for this is the need for the correct equipment and price thereof. How about diagnostic equipment costing in excess of $20,000. That's what the current Mazda dealers are obligated to have. For those of you who insist on doing some of your own work like I do just be cautious and wise.
Now to the flooding deal. I'm not going to explain the causes of it again. The last time I posted my thoughts on this there were smarter people than me who said this was not a problem with modern rotaries(FD) and would not be a problem with the 8. Anyhow as someone else here pointed out Mazda insructed the dealers what they need to do to avoid flooding. Now there's a bulletin released instructing them to install hotter leading plugs (6s instead of 7s)
So in full agreement with syntrix take it to the dealer.

Charles Cope

You have free roadside assistance!

My dealer warned me about flooding when I picked the car up. The service manager told me they had to tow an RX-8 in because it flooded.

With my '88 RX-7, it was a constant concern. If the car is cold and you move it, say from the driveway - into the garage... you're in for trouble. The easiest solution is to leave the car running for a few minutes to heat up the plugs.

The RX-7 solutions (if you didn't leave it running) included removing a vacuum hose on the intake manifold and squirting about a 1/4 cup of ATF into it. When you started the car it would smoke (I mean smoke!) for about 3-4 minutes, then all would be well.

Another method (didn't work as well) was to remove the fuse to the fuel injection and crank the car for 30 seconds without touching the gas pedal. Replace the fuse and...

I try to remember to leave the car running a few minutes, just in case. As you can see from those that have experienced it, the frustration hard to explain.

For those rotary newbies out there, this is one quirk that you will have to accept, cuz I believe it's inherent to the technology. HEY, use the roadside assistance!!!

LL7

My car had the same problem. I called the roadside assistance number and they arranged a tow to the dealer. They fixed it in about an hour. Now I am very carefull about turning off cold. In fact I was so carefull that I accidentally left it running for 2 hours just to get it warm after I had to move it yesterday - oops.

HeTz

This morning, while I was sleeping, my mother tried to pull my RX-8 from under the carport because we are remodeling under there and she didn't want to scratch it. Well, she started it fine and was pulling it out when it died. Then, she said it wouldn't start. She woke me up and told me it wouldn't start. I went to give it a whirl and sure enough, it wouldn't start. The starter would just turn without catching. My first thought was it was flooded. I called my Mazda service and I told him what had happened and that I thought it was flooded. He said to put the pedal to the floor and try and start it. That didn't work so I ended up having to have it put on a trailer and taken to the dealership. Turns out it WAS flooded. They had to clean out the injectors... I hope this doesn't turn out to be a persistent problem Just wanted to let everyone know about this.

RXhusker

Moral of the story -- "Don't let your mom drive your 8"

She likely stalled it and then flooded the engine trying to restart. Historically the rotary has been somewhat prone do to this -- hence the short trip driving procedures outlined in the owners manual and quick guide.

mikeb

maybe it wasn't your mom

I never start and then turn my 8 off
I let it run for atleast a full minute or two before turning it off

sorry that sucks man

r0tor

iTrader: (1)

I pretty much start it up, pull it out of the garage, wait for 20 sec and turn it off to wash it at least a dozen times now... no indication that it was effected at all ever.

...if it was that bad at flooding, I would have had to have it towed into the dealer immediately since I couldn't drive stick :p

mikeb

wow
2 hours
did you have any gas left

Rick

Same here, I back it out of the garage ,let it idle less than a minute, then shut it down. I never flooded my 82 FB, 88 FC or my 94 FD . I hope to have the same luck (knock on wood) w/ the 8.

miata2rx8

I flatbedded the car to the dealer. I appreciate that there is free road side service, but my work schedule does not allow me to take half a day off to take the car into the dealer. Also, I don't see whats wrong with wanting to understand how the car works- what happens if you flood the car in the middle of nowhere?