Puttering in idle.....
 

Is it normal for the RX-8 to putter during idle? I have the "M" flash, which was partly supposed to correct the rough idle. I idle is actually quite smooth, except for the constant putter, which in turn cause the car to shake.....not so smooth anymore :( . Is this normal? Is there anything I can do to get rid of these putters?

I have that shitty idle like you are talking about. Smooth for a few seconds then it gets rough and then back to smooth. I have found that if I run premium fuel it is always smooth, but if I run regular or mid-grade it does the rough idle.

funny - I found the opposite- mine sputters less with regular than the 93 octane I was using when I first bought the car

The sputtering used to be a little disconcerting but now I just think of it as the car telling me it wants to get out and run and it's not happy just sitting there doing nothing!

low and hi idle cycles?

so this is normal? I always use 91 octane and my 8 always does this puttering. What is low and high idle cycle?

I had since the first day I got the car.

I believe it was explained as the injectors having a greater capacity than needed, so the ECU controls the idle by turning the injectors on and off, thus the puttering.

I dunno...I never had any problems with my idle, K flash or M.

Someonejust posted about this last week doa search. Noone knows how to fixit yet andso far everyonehas claimed thatits the nature of the rotary engine orsome bullshit like that.

I hope someone figures this one out real soon cuz the other day I stalled out at a red light. A friend suggested taking off the distributor cap and turning it back a degree or so. Does this sound right?

No. Tell your friend to get a new hobby, since he knows nothing about cars! :p OK, not modern cars, anyway - there is no distributor on an RX-8, and they're awfully rare on any new car these days - the ignition timing and spark distribution is all electronically controlled. The only way to do what he suggests (alter the idle ignition advance) is to re-program the ECU.

Regards,
Gordon

Thank you very much for the reply but I still don't know what to do. I just took my car in last week for an oil change and while it was there they said they did the new flash for my car. M I think. I told them about the idle problem and they weren't able to duplicate the problem, so they couldn't fix it. So far, they've had to replace my oil pan (the oil sloshed around and made my oil light come on), fix my brakes (unsuccessfully, they still squeel!) and now I have a problem with this idling. So far I haven't had much luck with my car! I definitely also see the problem with the air conditioner blowing hot air when sitting still or driving real slow.

Mine seems to idle pretty badly as well. I could put a glass of water on the dash and watch it ripple and even slosh around at times. I put a glass of water in my wife's Explorer and it's pretty smooth.

Could this have something to do with the spark plugs being fouled?

Mine sits just under 1000 rpm at idle, the needle never moves. Once every minute or so the engine rpm sounds like it changes for a split second, but the rpm needle doesn't move. There is no vibration except for the gear shift.

I've never seen my car under 900 rpm.

My car was built in Dec 2003

Mine idles around 750-800 and fluctuates constantly when sitting in idle, especially if I have the AC on. I called the dealership and they said that this is normal with rx8's. I don't think that's right.

Hey, just a thought for you guys...In my extensive discussions with CanZoomer about upgrades and such, we discussed the advantages of the upgraded MazdaSpeed grouding kit. He said that the most noticable advantage for him was a far superior and smoother idle.

Quote from our discussion:
"Engine bay grounding kit (Canzoomer or MazdaSpeed)

[me] ...you offer two grounding kits. I am wondering if you have a recommendation as to which kit, and/or if I should even do this. My current understanding of a grounding kit is to provie better general electrical grounding between the engine and the body of the vehicle at the various grounding points throughout the car. This may also provide for better grounding of electronics throughout the vehicle. As I am planning on making a vast amount of electronic upgrades to the vehicle, would you recommend this?

[cz] These work well.
In general you see differences like when you are idling, and turn on the heater or air conditioning, the idle hardly drops, where with stock it is quite noticeable...

[cz] I have one of the genuine ones install in my car..."

I might suggest this to those of you having idle issues. I would let you guys know if I was able to notice a difference, but...my car doesn't come in till the second week of july and I'm having the dealer send it out to get work done on it, including the upgrading grounding kit before I even get the car in my hands, so I won't ever know the difference...sorry!

Hope this might be a good lead for some of you.

so grounding kit is the only solution? mine has the same problem.....when in idle the needle twithces and drops to as low as 500. 500! this has been going on for a few days and today it just completely dropped all the way to 0. :( what can i do?

How many miles? Does it seem to be getting worse? Your car shouldn't stall. I'd take it in and escalate until they fix it.

happens to me all the time in the drive thru's

whats the word with the grounding kit? did anyone else try it and notice a difference

Nology - Hotwire plugs w/ Ground
 

I’ve been having a rough idle problem too... Before I installed my SR Motorsports intake the car idle was similar to what others have posted... about 700rpm +/- 100rpms.... After the intake install, the idle was horrible... stall out at the light... I fixed that problem by adjusting the intake and resealing all the connections before and after the MAF. The idle seems back to where it was.... so anyone with a rough idle should check all the hose clamps to make sure their tight and have a good fit….

I also installed some Nology "Hotwire" spark plug wires. They have a built in capacitor that causes more thorough combustion... These plug wires have a ground wire on each... I noticed the car is much smoother!!!! It purrs like a kitten!!!.... I think the extra grounding is a good thing!!!! These things are like Monster Cables for your car….

Every rotary engine i've ever heard "putters" at idle. Mine really spits and spats after a little hard driving, but the idle is smooth as denoted by the rpm not jumping up and down. Nature of the beast

shit i'm having this problem as well, every since i got the car, i notice this problem already, the needle move slowly up and down between 750-900 EVERYTIME i step on the clutch and wait for the red light, today it suddently drop to 500! 500!!! shit then it went up to 1000 it self, i didn't do anything. what the fuck is going on with my car? i have a 04 with about 9K mile. had a oil change 2 weeks ago. i think it's time to do a compression test or a big tune up, cuz this never happened to my FD before. car shakes like undersea vocano, you'll never know when the needle will drop or rise

Boy, this is getting confusing, there are so many different issues here.

Puttering idle:
It is common for the 8 to do this, some don't, but lots do.
It sounds like a little backfire, or misfire at idle. In a perfect world it should not be there, but it does the car no harm.

Puttering/rough idle after PCM reflash:
The PCM re-learns all of the fuel trim values after the flash, which may be what causes the rough idle.
If you have this problem, disconnect the battery for a couple of minutes, then reconnect it and depress the brake pedal 20 times in 8 seconds to clear the Keep Alive Memory. Then go for a good hard drive and see if that makes a difference.
Also, there are some rumours the M flash itself may be the cause of a slightly rougher idle. I have no info on that, it is just a rumour.

RPM changing when depressing the clutch:
You have a faulty clutch switch or neutral switch. Go see a dealer.

Grounding kit:
Hmmmnnn. I'm sure it works, but I personally have never noticed the idle dropping when switching on the A/C etc. (it fluctuates for an instant, then returns to normal). And honestly, so what if it does fluctuate? I can only see a use for such a package in racing...

Who all sells this, anyone have one?

Puttering idle:
It is common for the 8 to do this, some don't, but lots do.
It sounds like a little backfire, or misfire at idle. In a perfect world it should not be there, but it does the car no harm.


If I leave mine idling for long (~30 minutes) the service engine light comes on and does not go back off for a couple of days. Has now happened to me 3 times. Also has the "puttering idle." So as far as mine is concerned...it has to be doing something to the car in order for the light to come on. Hopefully I will find out this weekend sometime.