logalinipoo

I don't know of anyone. I can't stand hiley or autonation for their rx8 service. So I do all my work myself.

jchrest95

Yeah Hiley is crazy and ridiculously priced. So based on your knowledge, after the coolant cap check, where should I go from here? Youve been a great help.

logalinipoo

it's hard to guess without a little more info. It could be spark plugs/wires/coils. It could be a bad/clogged cat. If the coolant bottle boils it is a bad engine.

You could clean the ESS and do a 20 brake stomp reset.

It could be a learning issue with the car because someone disconnected the battery. Are you all the way up in keller?

to check the cat. it's under the passenger seat. Jack up the car and it's 3 bolts to release the front. Then 2 in the back and the 02 sensor wires.

jchrest95

I am in Keller. And im kind of concerned, because when the mechanic put on my cat, he welded a couple of things, so im not 100 percent if i can just take it off now...

Second off, right now my overflow coolant resivoir is completely dry... When I put it through the races to try and correct the sensor, and parked and shut off. It smoked for just a little but and the fans blew on super high. Should I add coolant before I perform this check? And none of these problems arose until after the cat was installed. Just a little more info.

logalinipoo

I'm south of ft worth, but tomorrow I have to head downtown for a booster shot.

yes add fluid first.

the stock radiators are known to have a nipple on top crack off and they won't hold fluid either. it might not be too bad, but that leads to overheating.

as for the cat. it sounds like you just had a muffler shop install one. If so. it will probably go bad very quick. Rotarys run much hotter than piston engines.

jchrest95

that "learning" issue you mentioned. That really seems like what is happening. The car idles at around 800RPM and it either gives too much gas, which floods it out and it dies, and sometimes, it figures out it is doing that and corrects by giving more air. If i rev myself and dont let the computer think, it doesnt stall and die. I have cleaned the MAF but that didnt help.

jchrest95

I did have a muffler shop do it, oh noes, was this a catastrophic mistake???

logalinipoo

almost definately.

logalinipoo

but that would not explain the dying at speed.

jchrest95

crap... if that is the case, now what do I do?

logalinipoo

I can't even guess, don't drive it over 4K rpm's until you get this stuff straightened out. That will help keep the exhaust temp down. Check to see if they have a warranty of any type or what it is rated for. you might be able to argue they put on something incomparable with you car.

I'd personalty put on the other exhaust and go try to get an inspection. then when It fails I'd go back to the dealership and lean on them for selling a car that can not pass emissions.

A proper cat is like 1400 bucks.

jchrest95

I have already put in the workings on the state emission legislature. The 2 parties involved with selling me the car are meeting on friday to see what that can do for me before they get cited 25k for selling me the car... i guess until then, ill just check the coolant and keep it in the garage. Probably doesnt help that the muffler shop just sawed the straight pipe where the cat should be and welded a 500 dollar one on eh? Should have thought this through a little more.... thanks so much for your help!

jchrest95

could you maybe send me a link for a proper cat? in case i end up having to repair everything at my expense... which im hoping isnt the case..

logalinipoo

np man, I wish i could help you better. There is a lot of learning pains with this car for things like the cat.

http://www.mazdapartsusa.com/2006-mazda-rx-8.html

jchrest95

More and more im starting to realize... once everything works though, I am excited for the car it can be...

logalinipoo

go through the new owners thread and you'll learn a bit.

I just sent you a PM-private message

jchrest95

Okay I have performed the cap off test. No fluid boiled over at temperature... thank god. Now where to go from here?

iwannarun

so im gonna bump up this old thread. Im having a hell of a time with my RX8. just put a fresh motor in it along with new coils, plugs, wires, and radiator. it will rev just fine and idle when cold. but when it goes into closed loop, it wont idle. just stalls out. the throttle response off idle(<2500 rpm) is hesitant and choppy. there are no backfires and starting is ok. it has a new battery as well. I checked for a cat issue by removing the cat with no improvement. when forced into open loop(unplug MAF), it will idle fine and rev. it does not throw any codes. im thinking bc the problem is in closed loop, it is most likely a faulty O2 sensor. but no code puts me off on spending about $300 on an O2 sensor. So what do you experts think?

HotIcedTea

Had a similar problem. I have an 04 greddy turbo. I put screens before and after the maf and fixed it. Sounds like you may have a maf issue though. Try swapping it with a friend's and see if it fixes it. My brother has a mazdaspeed 6 and his maf worked in my 8.

iwannarun

forgot to mention, I got a new MAF and the problem was unchanged.

iwannarun

So I went for a new O2 sensor. Didn't change anything. New coils.... Nothing. I did notice today that the car is going very negative STFT, bogs down, then back towards zero and smooths out. The stfts are erratic high negative and more or less drowning the motor. Anyone have any ideas what would cause this! I'm pretty stumped.

iwannarun

Changed the O2 and no change. New coils. No change. The car idles fine for a moment after cranking it up then falls on its face and dies. No codes. When i had the scanner out i saw the STFTs were very erratic. They would jump around between 0 and -25. It will save itself and go back to zero occasionally and then fall at -25 and die.

Difflockcliff

I have the same issue. changed maf and it became drivable at least. I now sit with the issue where it does it once a week and the only way i can fix it is by resetting the trims by disconnecting the battery. obd reset doesnt help at all. After I disconnect the battery i can drive for a week. after which it starts again and stalls at every stop and if i drive long enough it wont even idle anymore. I changed the 02 sensors but now my car isnt reading the new 02 sensors so now im basically driving without 02 sensors. without 02 sensors its completely drivable besides for the major increase in fuel consumption and an occasional accelerator lag/stutter. Trying to save up to get Dealer 02 sensors as generic sensors don't work AT ALL. Good luck though. would like to know if you sort this out

ShowHBK

Is it doing this by chance? This was my issue a while ago and I was able to fix it. Let me know.

Sgtpepper

If you have ever taken and unhooked your battery then your fuel management system isn't timed right. If you turn your key to the on position without starting it and hit your brake repeatedly until your temp gauge on the right spikes. Then turn the key to the off position and start your car. Let it idle for 10-15 minutes and you should be fine. I have heard that it cab take 100 miles for it to be good again.
I had the same issue about 3 weeks ago and had to use this method. After I let it idle for 15 minutes it didn't stall again but the engine was cold too not sure if that had anything to do with it.