I have one more question, will it hurt the tire pressure sensor to use tire sealant in the tires (since the car doesn't have a spare tire) how much space in the trunk does the optional spare take up?

 

The tire sealant ruins the tire and after using it, the tire will have to be replaced. ( According to Mazda.)

 

Alhtough I plan to follow the short trip guidlines very carefully if i do flood the engine how hard is it to remove the spark plugs and remove the excess fuel from the chamber (what is the exact process to do this) thanks.

 

I am seeing about the same. Before the M flash the best I would get was 13 MPG and now no matter how I drive, I get 18-18.9 in the city. This is after keeping track of 10 fillups and I even did some drifting with the DSC and TC off and that tank was 18.2.

Throttle is smoother and low end torque appears to be better. I saw this because it pulls much better at low rpms.

 

Hello, anyone...

 

but have had (KNOCK on WOOD) absolutely no complaints of my 8 flooding. I've had it for 8 months and have 6600 miles on it. Have seen many threads on this issue and haven't had the "M" flash... Had the "L" flash a month ago.

The only complaint I've had is the gas milage...and even that is improving. I'm now getting around 19 mpg avg in city driving.

 

My mileage went from 18 to 20 or 21 for mostly freeway driving after the reflash on my low VIN# (< 4000) RX8. Thanks Mazda for the 15% improvement.

I have never flooded my RX-8, but I once flooded my 1976 Cosmo after driving it less than a mile on a cold December day in Michigan.

My wife once flooeded her RX-7 on a cold day after neglecting routine maintenance. Spark plugs last a lot longer these days.

Bottom line, don't shut it down cold. and all will be well.

 

Just got my 8 back with the "M" Flash. I thought I'd test out the rumored "better" MPG, so I drove it all day with a little more excitement then usual. After 120 miles, i filled up and hit 19.8 MPG!! WOOHOO!!! Like everyone else has experienced, it's much much smoother than before, and at 8 mph in 2nd gear is more bearble. But the top-end....OMG! My 8 has definitely been handicapped. I had no idea the loss would be these great. At 8000RPM I now have a moan instead of the old buzz like a swarm of bees.

 

I thought that as well at first, but I think the smoother feel is misleading. I did a few 20 mph rolling start runs against a friend in his stock vette who made no changes and the low end is much better as we all have felt, but the top end still allowed me to catch him at 140 in 5th at about the same distance or less than when we ran before. My friend still walks around afterwards shaking his head and saying he needs a cam and heads because I shouldn't be able to keep up with him.

I know, not very scientific and no dyno involved, just pure gut feeling and observation against a known.

 

3000 miles = 14.5 mpg average for my auto.

M calibration last week.

First tank afterward = 16.0 mpg.

Second tank = I'll know this afternoon. More to follow...

 

it seems to have fixed my rough idle problem, but that was only after 8 miles with the'm' flash...but it seems to maintain a much more consistant idle, no needle dance!

 

The modification number on the sticker the dealer installed after the M flash is: N3H6-18881-M

 

If the flash was done before the purchase of the vehicle, it may not have the mod sticker on it. Is there some kind of way to determine the ECU flash revision by examining the OBDII data or by querrying the "secret screen" on the NAV Setup menu?

 

I dont see any sticker regarding the "m" calibration on my car. Some people say they see it under their hood, or by the driver's door, but I don't seem to have one. Is it required that they put one on after the re-flash? Should I check back with them? And how do i really know if they did anything?

 

I had the "M" flash done and found a sticker on the left side of the engine (under the hood), on what I guess would be called the firewall.

The flash didn't get rid of my persistent CEL. I'm taking the car to another dealer to see if they can find the problem. If they fail I'm going to "Lemon Law" the car. It'll cost me a few thousand but I'll eat it and pick up another 8.

 

WHat code did they pull on the CEL?

 

The tech is a nice guy, but the car has been in 3 times for the CEL. An Evaporative Leak could be many things, but I think a decent tech should be able to find the cause pretty quickly.

 

I haven't had any flooding issues either with 2000 miles on the car. Got the M flash about 1 month ago and didn't notice any significant MPG increase...combo of city/hwy driving and averaged 19 MPG. I just recently went on a long trip and averaged 23.1 MPG which means I should get about 350 miles on a tank with a little less then a gal of gas remaining (if it will still run on that). I suppose I should be happy with that considering what some have said they were getting.

As far as the power up hi, I still feel a pretty good kick in acceleration above 4500-5000 rpm. I seem to notice that with the A/C running it seems to take a little longer to get there though. My A/C cools ok when it's 85 to 95 degrees out...nothing great but good enough with window tinting of course.

BTW, I received the usual Mazda survey in the mail and I was sure to write in the remarks that it seems to be common that service departments across the board seem to know little or nothing about TSBs that come out ...customer generally has to research TSBs themselves and bring a copy in and convince the service department to perform the maintenance!

 

Hi I finally pick up my new rx8 in a weeks time, Have grilled the service provider already on what flash the motor will come with. Especially the miles per gallon ratio. ( Being Scottish doesnt help when you work in England) and fuel here is that expensive you would think it was made from distilled prehistoric plankton.

Anyway to the point. What is the 20 tap test and how do i perform it.

The dealer already knows he cant whitewash me with jargon lol esp since before i started sending rockets to mach 3 i worked for caterpillar and eddie stobbart right next door.


Has anybody got new mpg stats for the m flash as well. how much improvement is there

cheers

andy x x

 

Hi I finally pick up my new rx8 in a weeks time, Have grilled the service provider already on what flash the motor will come with. Especially the miles per gallon ratio. ( Being Scottish doesnt help when you work in England) and fuel here is that expensive you would think it was made from distilled prehistoric plankton.

Anyway to the point. What is the 20 tap test and how do i perform it.

The dealer already knows he cant whitewash me with jargon lol esp since before i started sending rockets to mach 3 i worked for caterpillar and eddie stobbart right next door

 

You take alot of short trips.. maybe your plugs are fouled.. or you have other problems.. I had a bad O2 sensor harness and it threw a code, but the CEL never came on..

My point is, maybe there's another reason besides the flash making your MPG progressively worse. Also, have you done any mods?

 

That DOES suck.....what is your driving style? Are you sure that you don't have a hole in your fuel tank? LOL

 

This seems well below the bell curve even with aggressive driving. Better get it checked out. Did you ever have a flooding or hard starting episode?

 

Seems amazing to have a car that uses more fuel when idling than when driving, but that seems to be the universal experience. So maybe yours ain't so unusual.

 

Second tank = 13.38 mpg