Rx8 operating temps (coolant temps)
 

Hi team, i thought i would make a thread to share and maybe discuss coolent temps. i also want to see everyone else temps as well if thats cool :-)

Im turboed:
Live in Florida:

My car seems to love running at 104 C (219.2 F) this is what im reading from my handheld microtech.

Im looking to get a new thermostat soon to maybe help lower the temps a little. Im open to other methods that can help.

Thanks,

Thermostat wont help unless your factory thermostat is faulty, it should already be fully open (190 deg I think). Are your fans turning on at the factory temps or earlier? I dont recal the temps the stock fans turn on at, but I would start by lowering them.

The FMIC is going to restrict the airflow to the radiator and can cause the car to run a little warmer under normal conditions. It will run a lot warmer during heavy loads (AKA race track).

Check to be sure the factory radiator foam is in place and doing its job (keeping the air from going around the radiator when over 40 MPH. Adding additional foam and sealing everything up around the radiator can make a bug difference.

Next if everything else looks good and the car still runs warm, I would install a secondary radiator. Basicly a small oil cooler (10X6X2) plumbed into the heater core system. You can place it flat on plastic underpanel and cut holes under. The air moving passed it should do the trick.

my fans should be coming on at factory temps but ill look into lowering them. i have an after market radiator and im also working on ways to better the air flow to the radiator. Great tips thanks man. do you know normal operating temps for a stock rx8??

220*f is kinda hot in my opinion.

My 04 would turn the fans on @ 212*f, then turn off at 202*f.
I installed a fan kit that turns them on @ 190*f and back off at 181*f. I haven't seen my coolant temps go above 195*f since.

I'm pretty sure the thermostat opens at 180*f cause that's what temp I sit at while cruising on a open road.

Please note the kit I use is not popular here due to the fact that the man who makes it apparently scammed a bunch of members here under a different company name. My own personal experience dealing with him was good though... Buyer beware.

yes i agree 220 F is pretty hot.

That is a big improvement, what does the fan kit concise of??

My coolant temperature while driving on the freeway is 83 - 84 degrees Celsius, according to the ScanGauge II.

It comes with a temp sensor that mounts to the small coolant hose between the thermostat and over flow bottle (near the battery), wired to two relays that replace your oem fan relays.

The part I like the most is the ecu still has full control of the fans. So fans still come on with the a/c or any other reason the ecu might want them on before 190*f.

Real easy to install too, took maybe 10mins. Paid about $100 for it in his eBay store.

o ok thats good i would like mine around there but the only thing is my intercooler block my air flow to the radiator and my freeway temps are around 93 C (200 F) if that.

yea ok sounds really simple. i noticed my fans are coming on a little late so thats something i have to work on or maybe buy the kit.

o yea also what are your in traffic temps ??

Depends on the ambient temp of course but I don't remember seeing mine ever climbing over 96 or 97 degrees.

o ok thanks

ok so i was looking at what temp my fans come on and it say it come on at 90 C (194 F) and the problem is they never came on at the set temp. what could be happening for them not to come on at the tuned setting?? i also changed the temp to see if it would work but it didnt..

Around the 83-86C is normal op temp for all 8's while driving.

THE issue is when at long idle or in stop and go bumper traffic while outside temps are @ 35+C.

What Mazda did with the Series 2 (and IMO the most important change was to have a faster 3rd fan speed for when coolant temps get around the 100+C.

S2 uses the exact same two Fan Blades as S1, but larger Fan Motors.

I know it is almost impossible to alter existing OEM Series 1 set up to have another 3rd or higher fan speed like the S2's, but you can at least set up a manually wired switch for fans constantly on (or use an access port) when in stop and go would go a long way.

Also look at your S1 Fan Motors, these have been known to slow down with age/use.

ok ill look in to upgrading my fans or adding one because my OEM fans dosent come on until temps are way too high, it seem like they come on when they feel like it and thats what got me messed up.

i have an handheld computer and i can change the temps the fans come on but the fans dont come on when i change the temps.

so i thinking my fans could be bad or maybe my sensor could be going on me...
im open to other theorys why my fans are not working correctly... plz share

in addition to the on/off temperature settings there are also hysteresis settings that alter exactly when they may or may not come on, this keeps the fans from continuously oscillating on/off around a particular setpoint

also IMO you would be better served to up your OMP rate at idle/low speed rather than dropping your coolant temp because this is only where these fan settings come into play, but I seem to be the lone wolf in this belief ....

How do you change the OMP rate on an otherwise stock -8?
Will a scangauge allow me to finne tune the OMP rates & fan temp settings?

Or do I need to "hack" the ECU?

I'd like to be able to fine-tune setting, without straying from the OEM hardware.

You'll have to change the corresponding parameters in the ECU program, via a Cobb AccessPort.

this is what you need:

this is something i can look in to, i just have to see if my handheld is capable of this function.

o ok

You need a Cobb AP to alter those values

:suspect:

Not at all. That is a very plausible approach.

i bought this and my fans stay on while driving and temps are 158 F (30- 40 mph). while parked they come on at 176 F and go off at 158 F. i think thats a little to much. whats your thoughts?? did i get a sour kit?? 158 F is too cool and i dont like my fans running constantly.

Hmm sounds like a bad sensor or something, I would contact them and see what they say. Mine is still working the same, fans come on around 190-195 turn off at 181.

Did you use the coolant hose that goes by the battery box?

-Shawn

Yes......and I'll try and message them today.

Let me know how that goes if you don't mind.

When I bought this kit I didn't do much research on it and it turns out "MindsEyeEngineering" is really a guy named Scott that owned another company that ripped off some forum members here. When I delt with them I had no problems though.

didnt read all, but i have a mazsport cooling mod that may help some?? i live in florida as well

nvm, i see you have already

So far service is good we're trying to figure out what could have happen to make the kit act the way it is but he said this the first time it happened so hopefully we can work something out. I'll keep u posted.

Yea Scott that's the guy I'm talking to.

Are u selling?? If so how much?? Just in case this kit don't work out.

Thanks

i could sell, but im looking for a replacement hose for its spot. :)

if i come across one il sell this one for 85.00 with shipping

alright

sooo if you can find me a return hose, i can sell you this part :) i have tried in the car part outs but they dont respond back, or they keep it.

^ yea ok i look around for you.

I was wondering what your reasoning is on raising the OMP rate, I dont see the connection between coolant temps and lubrication of the apex seals

Better Apex Seal lubrication will lower friction, therefore heat...therefore coolant temps.
I believe it is a logical conclusion, however why not do both.

did you finish grade school?

what happen to COMMON SENSE these days ? ... :dunno:

only to a point - there is an optimum level and exceeding that has no benefit .

Anyone care to explain in ATR what these do?

Fan2 - VSS (MPH or KMH??)(Speed at which fans turn off?)
Fan2 - VSS Hysteresis (with in X miles of set speed?)

thank you, that does sound like a logical conclusion... I am assuming that the only way to increase the omp rate and decrease the temp that the fans come on is with a cobb or something similar?

I am sorry that not everyone can be a ******* genius like you :wallbash:

Warning Given...perm ban if happens again...ASH8

for the omp adjustment--that is true. You have to have something that will access the pcm software.
For the fans you can buy a separate fan controller and install it. You dont need to access the software in the pcm to do it that way. Or you can do it through the pcm with the same tool you do the omp adjustments. Things do get a bit complicated for me in using the software. Others can do it without a blink of the eye.

The kit I used in this thread worked great, in fact I will be selling it as soon as I finish removing it from my car (need to fix/replace hose first.). It's actually a new kit I just got too, I broke the original one when changing my hoses out to silicone 2 months ago.

I just wish I could understand ATR a little better.. I don't like making changes without being 100% sure of what I'm doing. There is a lot of info on this site about it. But getting threw the countless pages of arguing/BS is taking a lot of time.

what is the kit called so that I can do some research on it

and I know how you feel with the bs... people come on here and flame without putting in any useful info and it makes you have to sort through 10 pages of crap to find the one post with any useful info

MindsEyeEngineering, simple little thing.

Lets see.. Here in Southern California its averaging 98F - 105F, The 04' Rx8 is running at 180-195.. Been watching for about 2 months now.. Saw 211F once o_O

If you want to increase OMP injection without buying an Accessport, there is the vacuum hose that gives the OMP vacuum. The series 2 tube has two holes compared to the series 1 having 3, or maybe its the other way around. Either way, you can get more injection. Not exactly sure how much though.

Series II RX-8's have a completely different MOP set up.

None of your recommendations work on a Series II with the two EMOP units, plus the 6 Oil Injectors ( 3 on each Rotor Housings) are also different to S1 and do not have any vacuum/barometric tubes attached to them...All the S2 Oil Injectors have a single oil feed line to each with no one way check valve in Injectors or lines like S1.

So far I know of no ECU (PCM) override for S2 EMOP System to increase rates.

I was talking about this.

https://www.rx8club.com/tech-garage-...-hoses-197314/