Mikeluvs8

I to been having that sound but didnt notice any power loss and i have 6k miles

Old Rotor

I have run two tanks of prem-91 with a bottle of Cheveron-Techron. I put in reg-87 and It did not ping! I dont know if it cleaned out the carbon build-up or its prob because its only 70F out now. The real test will be when its over 80F, then well know if its helped.

m4f1050

iTrader: (1)

I got the same Shinka (Copper Red 06) and I got the noise after installing a GReddy turbo kit on it... It sounds constant, not changing speeds of like a screeching noise... There was a post of some temp air thing but I can't find it now searching... odd...

zenmoused

Has ANYONE gotten this fixed? There seems to be a consensus with it being a problem with the heater core- has anyone had it replaced? I think this is a substantial problem, as it makes a beautiful car sound like ****.

turbine

Note: I have the Throttle Body Bypass Mod, and it does not stop it.

Raptor2k

Zen: I know a couple forum members who have had it replaced, don't remember their names specifically, but it has happened

Astral

Can you disconnect the heater core to test out the theory that it's the core?

N10S

I have had my 2006 RX8 for a little over two weeks and have already put 1750 miles on as of todays drive. I bought the car in St.Louis and then proceeded to drive her down to my work location in Artesia NM. No weird noises, normal oil consumption, all working as it should. Then today, I decided to take a 200 mile round trip out to the mountains to Cloudcroft to do some shopping and enjoy the curvy backroads of highway 130.

The car ran great today, filled-up on the best octane fuel I can get which is 91 in these parts. The temps were in the mid 50's when I left Artesia and then as I climbed in altitude the temps dropped down into the mid 30's. When I took the 130 exit at Mayhill NM which is in the mountains, I had gained in altitiude from 4000 ft to around 8600' at Mayhill. I met a cop at my first entrance onto 130 and took it easy thinking he might loop around and follow me. Nope.., so I started to get into the road a bit and am running through some very tight and twisty segments of road.

During this period of time I was still gaining in altitude a bit, but I start hearing this rattle when I am in third gear at around 6k rpms. It would sound fine below that, but anytime I reached around 6k rpms in 2nd, 3rd, or 4th I would hear this sound. The sound seemed to be coming from the front of the console towards the area under the dash, and the car was not running well either. I figured with the rotary engine sitting back as far as it does it was coming from the engine/exhaust. The cars performance felt totally choked as though it was not compensating for the lack of oxygen like most current day electronically metered fuel injection systems do. Edit {I think the issues I was encountering could have been two seperate things possibly. The first is the car being doggy at altitiude, which is understandable considering lack of oxygen. The second "marbles" sound could definitely have been related to bubbles rushing through coolant system. At any rate, the sound subsided once the car sat for a couple of hours and I headed back down the mountain.} It continued to make the sound until I reached Cloudcroft where I let the car sit at 9400 ft for a couple of hours while I shopped. When I left Cloudcroft I took the direct route back and as I dropped in altitude I dropped the hammer to pass some RV's and she sung right up to redline with no problems in 3rd and 4thand no rattles for the remainder of the trip.

So....I am fairly certain that I have experienced this "marbles in the can" noise, and am also sure that it did this only when I was putting the engine under load at high altitude. I suppose it could have been aeration of the coolant due to the rapid change in altitude and the bubbles rushing through the lines, but I don't think I imagined the car running like a dog. It literally would not wind out much past 6k. I absolutely don't think it has anything to do with detonation either, because less oxygen means a likelihood that the car is running richer not leaner. It truly seemed like the car was not compensating for the altitude, and when I was reaching a certain rpm the engine was almost sputtering under load because it was not getting enough air.


Jeff

LionZoo

Jeff, if it feels like it doesn't want to go past 6,000 rpm I suspect you have a problem other than the coolant sound or at the very least have another problem besides that. It might be a good idea to check your cat as many people with early cat failures have reported high rpm driveability issues. Also, have you had the recall done to your car?

For people that have just the coolant/heater core issue, the car drives fine. It just makes a funky noise.

N10S

Thinking more about the problems I encountered yesterday, I think it was purely an altitude-related issue regarding the way the car was running, as it has been running fine since. I added an edit to my earlier post indicating that I had been thinking about the fact that it could have been two seperate issues, the one being sluggish running due to altitude/lack of oxygen, and the other being the marbles sound. They both happened at the same time during a 20 minute driving session at high altitude though, I know this for sure. It may have been two different problems exacerbated by the quick change of altitude.

Back at 4000 ft I am running fine as always, and a clogged cat would cause problems at any altitude. No more marbles noises either. This sound was quite distinctive when I heard it and the 6k rpm level seems to jive with others experiences as well.

Thanks for the feedback and warning on the early cat failures, always good to know the possibilities.

Jeff

grnsharingan

well i just recently got an 07 galaxy grey 8 and i get the noise as well reving up past 5800...have we found a solution....i have driven it 1200 miles ive only had it two weeks...ne ideas?

Phantom Menace

I was driving to the store and all of the sudden, at around 7kRPMs...I hear it! Damn, I thought as I was rolling over new pavement. I was afraid it was loose gravel or sand kicking up against my right side. It sounded just like sand or small grit bouncing around inside--just behind the glove.

Then I remembered! MARBLES IN A CAN! Nooooo. I thought. I have just over 2kmiles and have never experienced this before. I have always used Chevron 91. I did not change elevation nor did the ambient tempreature change dramatically. I always warm the car up before driving and was only a few blocks away from my house when I heard it...It could not have been a change of gas, elevation, or tempreature.

Then I parked in my garaged and revved it up to about 8.5k a few times. The sound does increase in volumen and "speed" with the engine. It is not that loud, but I can definatley hear it over the engine and intake. I know this sound will drive me nuts and I'm afraid I'm tempted to start ripping my dash apart looking for my marbles. Is there a TSB for this?

LionZoo

No fix that we know of. If you make it out to this Friday's meets, we can compare marbles.

deadphoenix52

i dont know if this is the same thing, but my car started making the same noise that old computers would make when booting up and working, that clicking kinda noise. i think its coming from the transmission because when the car isnt moving the noise isnt there. i have an 05 6-speed. any ideas?

EDIT: it sounds like its coming from inside the dash in the car, and is there when the car is not noving, and it increases with rmps

grnsharingan

same sound we are all getting. seems to be no solution. im taking it in tommorow to see what they say...ill ask about the heater core replacement seems to be the only "fix" we have...no one has replied about the replacement working yet?

Razz1

It's normal or all the RX's would be blowing up.

Many are over 100k now.

grnsharingan

yeh normal or not i would prefer my engine sounding over like sand in the glove compartment u know....either wya my fuel cap needs to be fixed so im taking it in but i figuered if we could fix the sound it would be nice...im just as paranoid about rattles too..prefer nothing then VROOOM ...the unique sound of a rotary engine u know

Phantom Menace

Guess what guys? Now that I don't own the 8 anymore, Mazda calls and tells me that there is A FIX for the marbles sound NOW! YES. For a long time they claimed it was bubbles in the heater core. Now, there is a part that can be installed. It is a two day deal and it is covered under warranty!

My wife will be driving a loaner while they fix her car. I want her to try and get a speed 3 or 6 but I guess what ever is available. I'll keep youse all posted...

LionZoo

Well if it's not bubbles in the heater core, what is it?

Phantom Menace

Gremilins, brah...fu@cking little green gremlins.

Nawh, really...I'm not sure. Mazda just called my wife and told her that they have a fix for her car now. Alls I know is that she said "its a part" and "it'll take two days to install." Maybe, she'll get a new Renesis?

techserv

Once the work is done, can you scan and post your service reciept that has the part number and description of work done? It would be nice to have that to shove in the tech's face at the dealer when he looks at me like I am crazy.

Good luck, keep us posted!

Shinka-05

I have had my car at the dealership since wednesday (today being friday). I just now found this post searching for stuff on this, and the dealer has not even diagnosed it. I wonder what "fix" it is so I can tell the dealership. This should be a SB (a.k.a Service Bulletin) but I haven't seen it on there. From the looks of things a lot of people have this problem, which really makes me wonder why its not a SB. When I hear more on this, or from my dealer I will post.

Oh and BTW whoever said this is normal... HA! sure the car is drivable, but there is now way it should be making a noise like that. Why would a car make a noise like that only in high rpms?!

LionZoo

I would greatly appreciate that too.

Phantom Menace

No problem bros. As soon as I hear anything, I'll post it up. And, yes. I'll scan and post the recipt, etc.

Senna

Hey guys when I switched to Mobil 1 synthetic oil the marbles problem ceased immediately!!





Sorry I couldn't resist...I'm still a club marbles member eager to see what Mazda does for Phantom's wife's car.