my dealer here in Santa Barbara is very small and reall a Lincon Mercury Dealer. They carry the MAzda Line but there hardly a Mazda Dealer. Anyway they said they would flash it up to "M" just bring it in.. So there all starting to get a clue now.

 

Went to the Mazda dealership last Thursday and got my M Reflash. Just talked to my regular service writer and he set it up for me, no questions asked.

I tell you, it added at least 50 HP, I now get 45 mgs around town, it reduced braking distance by 20 feet, caused the windows to become tinted, turned my hair back to dark brown and took three inches off my waist.....

Don't buy that? Well it did smooth the engine out something fierce. It is now a much smoother and easier car to drive. I did not expect such a noticable change. Matching speeds for gear shifts is so much cleaner. Revs are like silk going both up and down the range.

I think this is a lot closer the the engine we were originally supposed to get, even if the all the HP still isn't there. Combined with the RedLine MT-90 transmission oil I put in last weekend, this baby is awesome to drive (not that it was all that bad before).

Needless to say I am very impressed. Run (don't walk) to your nearest Mazda service dept and get this done!

 

im gonna go in mon and have the flash done, ill just say, hey, my car is having long starts, and i paid tooooo much for this car to not get the free upgrade that im entitled too.

im also going to stop at car toys and have my dvd wires clipped so i can watch movies!!! yay, and maybe a ps2 installation.

the ps2 would go in the trunk, facing the front of the car, when i want to put a game in, i just pull the middle section of the back seat down. the controller will probably need an extention and be ran under the carpet and be concealed somewhere like in the gove box.

 

whats the trans pan about ?

 

I would like to give everyone a mileage report after the "M" flash!
I made a run to Charlotte NC from Savannah GA .


304 Miles and I used 13 Gallons, That included driving around town! Average speed 78MPH!

On the return trip!


312 miles so far, haven't filled up yet but I will give a report!!


Note: I have 16100 MILEs on the car so far!!

 

In my case, the work order / receipt did specifically mention the reprogramming. In fact, it stated that the ECM was as Revision "J", and they flashed it to revision "M". I also remember reading in another thread that they'll put a sticker on the ECM stating the revision that they've updated it to (but I haven't checked mine to see if they did that too).

Alan

 

Update to on return trip!!

326.7 and 13.7 Gallons of gas.....WOW!

Average return speed was around 74 MPH

 

I am getting 18.7 from my first tank with M.

 

I took my car in two weeks ago for an oil change and asked him to flash my 8 up to the latest version. Since I got one of the forst ones to the US I am sure I was running probably one of the earlier versions of programs. I know about the pedal pump and the oil press gauge sweep for a L version, but is there any indications for a M flash. When I did the pedal thing my little amber engine icon flashed on three times. Could this possibly be the way Mazda indicates a M flash?
It keeps getting stranger and stranger.

 

Around town mileage is up to over 20 after flash.

 

Where can I find the service bulletin for the m flash so that I can print it out and show my dealer? The dealer says he never got a notice to M flash the car.

 

http://www.finishlineperformance.com...1-04-1273d.pdf

 

flashed last friday, so I was in the middle of a tank. refilled today will post my milage for all to see. i can only hope i get anywhere close to 20 like tms.

 

The service bulletin (above) is for the hard start or no start condition, but in the text on the first page it clearly states that ALL RX-8's should be brought up to calibration level "M", regardless of the repair or service that they are in for.

 

Thanks, I`ll check tonight when my car was built to see if I need the flash. Just bought it April 14th so it might be ok.

 

I took my 8 in to pick up my tags today. I spoke with my sales guy first and told him that when I went in to check on my air bag recall about a week ago, (which they did, just didn't put a sticker on the hood) I asked for the "m" flash and the service guy said they would only do it when the engine light came on. (this is before I got the TSB from the forum.)
I told my sales guy I wanted the flash today and so he walked me over to the service dept. and told the service guy that I was having hesitation in 2nd and 3rd. I just smiled and said "...ok?". They said to bring it in at 3:30 so I will let ya'll know. I'm currently getting about 14mpg in the city with 1300 miles on the car.
We will see.

 

I took my RX-8 in last Tuesday for the airbag and heatshield recall and inquired about the reflashes. The service writer said everytime a car comes in under warranty they check for a new version of the ECU (I think he may have called it the PCM) and automatically install it.

When I picked it up they had reflashed it but he said they had no idea what the designation was, it was the "latest" version is all he knew. He further stated they download it directly from Mazda as they come available.

First impressions are that the gas mileage has drastically improved, although I have not done an exact MPG comparison yet. I know that I could only make it to Thursday afternoon on my daily commute on a full tank of gas before I'd have to fill up again. With the reflash I made it through the entire week on one tank of gas.

I have noticed that the "kick in the ***" surge you feel at about 5,500 RPMS is gone when you go wide open throttle. It previously felt like a turbo charger kicked in at about that RPM. That is now gone and it is smooth all the way to the redline.

I e-mailed Mazda USA and asked about the reflashes and if they in any way affected horsepower or torque. They stated "No" the horsepower and torque would not change with a reflash.

So far I am happy with the latest reflash (I did the 20 taps on the brake pedal in 8 seconds and the oil needle responded, so I assume it is the "M") and will see what the gas mileage is on the next fill-up.

By the way I bought the Mazda at Browns Mazda in Fairfax Virginia and their service department has treated me GREAT. I would rate them as an EXCELLENT!

Glen

 

I have a theory, Do you think it take a little longer for the car to learn the new program. I have noticed that it seems stronger now after about 5 days after the reflash! It seems most people our baseing there experences on that day after the reflash! Just an idea....

 

Man, if the ECM could learn and record your driving habits, and then make adjustments on it. I wonder if there some way we could find that out.

Think about it - it is very possible. The ECM could record limits and constants in your driving characteristics and then adjust the engine for optium zoom(!)......

Probably nobody drives their car the same way as anybody else - except for throttle at 100% for the desired amount of time - and once an average sampling of engine data is acquired over a set time period adjustments are then made on the engine's operation settings. The engine basically learns your driving habits.........

Wow............. thoughts?

(and I don't mean, like 'duh! - yuh think??????')

Tall...............................

 

Contacted my dealer today and he has never heard of the M flash update, he never received a service bulletin. I live in Canada, is the bulletin only for the US or is the servive department trying to BS me?

 

Why don't you print it off and send it to him?

 

The nice thing about the internet is that you can print out the TSB and go in. Maybe you'll be doing him a favor by enlightening him to this "new" upgrade, or maybe he knows of it by a different name. I don't actually believe those reasons, I was just throwing them out there...

 

heh

read the small print on the tsb....

you're not supposed to print it

 

I printed out the TSB when I went in to buy my RX-8. Even though it says 'North American' on the top, they claimed it is only applicable to U.S.

Regarding the M-flash, they don't use the same terminology. Instead they go by Update # (on CDs they receive once or twice a month). The service rep was knowledgable in that he knew about the flooding problem (what m-flash fixes), and although the update was already available for US, Canada typically releases their version of the update 3-4 weeks later.

He did end up updating my 8 with the latest revision. Whether that is L-flash or M-flash, I have yet to figure out still... I did the stomper test, and indeed it worked... so I have at the very least L-flash.

Wish there was an easy way to tell.

This was about 2 weeks ago, at the same time the M-flash was released. So, long story short, unless he's lying, the M-flash is likely not yet available in Canada. At least, not for another week or so.

Has anyone heard otherwise?

 

Just back from my dealer. I bought an early car(1313) in december to be delivered in the spring. (Got it at dealer cost so I let them keep it in their showroom). Was there when tech tried to reflash. They get the weekly email updates into their WDS. It said that I have calibration H , and that it should be updated to M. HOWEVER, they have not received the CD with the M flash codes yet, so they cant upgrade. This is not BS- I was with the tech when he tried to reflash. So the Canadian dealers know about the M flash, but havent gotten the CD to do it. Enzolor got to his dealer before the L flash was superceded, so he gat the L flash. I got to my dealer after the M was released, so I am stuck with H until Mazda Canada sends its dealers the latest CD.https://www.rx8club.com/editpost.php...postid=338418#
https://www.rx8club.com/editpost.php...postid=338418#