khoney

I received the car back last Friday. They did not find any problem related to why it stalled on me. I am updated to P flash now, so I guess I'll just see what happens this summer. My mileage on my first tank since the P flash is the lowest I've had since I was breaking it in a year ago.

On the bright side, replacing the engine mount seems to have helped the vibration at idle somewhat, although it still exists. They also replaced the A/C amplifier for the second time, and the A/C performance is better than it has been.

I have been running 93 octane for the last couple of tankfuls, and I usually use 89. This may explain the crappy mileage - I have always gotten worse mileage from 93 than from 89.

Anyway, I'll give the dealership an A- for effort, although the results were not quite what I hoped for.

GoDevils

Ever since temperatures have been above 90+ degrees in PHX my car has had similar problems. After being on the freeway for 15 miles or so, with the AC on, my car losses power, to the point were I have had to pull off the freeway. I have had it in two dealerships a total of three times and the last time I left it for 5 days while I was on vacation and they put 350+ miles on it (they claim only 150 miles). The problem still exists and they say there is nothing they can do about it until Mazda comes out with a PCM update in a couple of months. That is insane. Am I supposed to just grin and bare it?

I hope you have better luck than I have had.

eclps0

happened to me last night, it was hot out with alot of humidity. I was driving on the highway aNd then boom power loss and engine shut off, it would not start up at first and then my engine light was flashing. I pulled over and poped the hood didnt see anything ( a couple of days ago i had a major blow by with alot of oil in the intake system) well i start it up agian and i drive slowly in the right lane i try not to let the car idle becasue that is how it died at first. A couple of times the car shut off but went back on by itself. after that i go to the club and get home around 3:30 am.


I think the problem was i had a after market intake with a S&b filter, the filter was prob to small and did not give enough air during idle because of the high humidity

army_rx8

wow sorry to hear this guys, this is the first i've heard of this knda problem...i've thankfully never exsperianced it...knock on wood...i did live in Georgia (fort stewart) for the firtst year of the car's life...it got hot there with lots of humidity..but she ran like a champ.....but that was on the m flash...dunno if that has anythign to do with it.

hope everythign gets sorted out and fixed so you can enjoy your 8's :D

zoom44

godevils or eclipso are you ATs?

eclps0

6speed

Razz1

eclpso it's your after market intake. It's a know problem. Do a search.

If you want a god intake, sell that pc of crap and get a Racing Beat Revi8 intake.

GoDevils

Mine is a 6 speed and it does not have an after market intake.

jerryf

So Showcase Mazda in Phoenix had my car for 2 full days, then contacted my wife. They told her that they were fully aware of the problem, and that there would be yet another PCM reflash to fix the issue. They had to timetable for the reflash though, because it failed the EPA review the first time it was submitted.

They reccommended a stronger battery and an engine carbon flush, saying experience has shown this to help the condition. Since this was not the actual fix however, it would not be done under warranty. Sum total was like $190. This angered my wife, who then fought with Mazda NA until they agreeed to pay for it as a "goodwill" gesture.

With that stuff done, the car hasn't died yet. It has cooled off here a bit since the work was done, so time will tell. I can't believe they will just say "wait for the flash" for a condition that causes a car to unexpectedly lose power or stall. This can be very hazardous on the roadway. Mazda doesn't seem to be showing adequate concern for the safety of the drivers of it's flagship automibile.

khoney

If it's any consolation, I haven't had any funny stuff happen since I got mine back, although it hasn't been super-hot. Maybe the P flash made a difference. I've also been using only 93 octane for the last few tankfuls. Also, my mileage took a hit after the flash, but its back up to 20 again. Maybe it had to relearn a few things.

zoom44

eclps0- intake. godevils- not sure but i dotn think it is the carbon problem the ATs are seeing. go rev the hell out of it and see if the problem returns

jerryf- they admitted there was a problem, suggested an temporary resolution but were going to charge you for it? WTF kind of nonsense is that? they have got to be out of their frikking minds- they are replacing engines BY THE DOZEN in texas but they want to charge you to clean one.

eclps0

i found out the problem, it was the filter i was using, it was to small and had oil from the prevoius blow by of oil. also it was very humid outside.

GoDevils

Zoom44,
The engine was replaced last dec. and I try to redline it as much as I can without getting speeding tickets. The problem occurs during the heat of the day when temp. is above 95 degrees, also it is most notable when the AC is on, with is a must in Phoenix this time of year. Any other ideas would be helpful. Thanks.

jerryf

Well, it was 108F today, and the car ran flawlessly. The bigger battery / carbon flush combination therapy seems to have helped a lot. I am quite sure it would have died on me today if that hadn't been done.

Anyone in PHX having this problem should insist on the bigger battery and a carbon flush. If they want you to pay for it (like they tried to make me do), call MAZDA NA and scream at them until they pony up. The car is truly unsafe to drive with unexpected poer loss/stall.

All that being said, I hope to heck I'm not back on here tomorrow posting about how it died again. I was truly surprised at how well it ran today. I was expecting it to die, because it is HOT today.

zoom44- I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought it was crazy! When it was on my dime, they were like THIS NEEDS TO BE DONE TO MAKE THE CAR DRIVABLE. Once we inquired why it wasn't covered under warranty (<24k miles, BTW) they were like WELL, IT'S REALLY ONLY A SUGGESTION.

Charles R. Hill

iTrader: (7)

I recently had to remove my battery and check some connectors for the APV and MOP harnesses. When I reinstalled the battery I decided to just rag the Hell out of the engine and it seems to run better after having done that, alomost as if some of the carbon has blown out(?). I will try the carbon cleaning idea as soon as I am able. Thanks for the info.

CRH

olddragger

iTrader: (3)

I remember speaking last year of how damn hot the engine bay gets(rotory curse) in the summer. Is it possible that the car is going into a fail safe mode? Sure cant trust the instrumentation.
just a thought. I m sure when the car is checked that would show.
olddragger

jerryf

It was hot today in Phoenix, 113F. And the car died again today. Stalled 3X. The worst yet. The way it ran the other day (see above) I really thought that things were OK. They are not. The car is primarily driven by my wife in mucho downtown traffic, and is simply unsafe to operate. I was so stoked when we bought this car, it was the coolest car on the road in my opinion. Now the thought of another trip to the dealer turns my stomach. It's going in on a hook this time, as I don't trust the car to make it across town anymore. What should have been an awesome ownership experience is being ruined.

rxeightr

I wonder if you have some fuel vapor lock going on. That's a distinct possibility.

zoom44

from http://type2.com/bartnik/pump.htm

jerryf

Got the car back today. They replaced the catalytic convertor. They said that they never got it to stall, but it did lose power on a freeway test drive. They also threw in the "abuse" allegation, saying that the heat shield was ripped off the convertor. Keep in mind that the last time they gave me the car back, the front undertray was hanging off the car. So I am abusing it??? I am afraid not. Then they told me that I can only run 92 octane Chevron gas from now on. There is a Chevron station by where I work, but that is a little ridiculous.

We'll see if the new CAT fixes it or not. I doubt it will. Otherwise they'd be replacing them by the dozen in TX, not engines. They stand firm that my problem is unrelated to the engine issues experienced primarily in TX. So we shall see.

khoney

Well, I've been away from my baby for for a couple of weeks now, on vacation in Wisconsin. I'ts really hot in Texas now, so I'm looking forward to getting back and seeing how mine behaves in the severe hot weather. The only thing they did (to my knowledge) was reflash me to the 'P' version. They supposedly tested my cat and said it was fine. Keep us posted, jerryf, I'll be following your case closely.

Razz1

Sounds like that new CAT will work.

Kwullen

There is obvioulsy a problem with high air temp. I have been having the same problem since the temps have gotten up there in North Florida. I thought it may have something to do with the K&N Typhoon intake so I took it off, to no avail. BTW I don't like the K&N anyway, the car runs better on the stock intake system.
I had it to the dealer after the first problem and they could find nothing, but of course they checked it in the morning during cool temps.
Now, check this out, it happened the second time in the same spot, out on the highway!?
I was in a low area on an expressway and, both times, the outside air temp was near 100. It loses power, rattles like it is detonating and basically will barely run. It was on the 4th so no dealer open and I continued toward home at the coast. The closer to the coast I got, the lower the outside air temp and the better it ran again. By the time I was near my home, the temp was down to 85 and it ran great. On the way to the dealer after the last episode (PM -July 5, 97 degrees) I had to shift down to fourth gear to maintain 60 MPH going over a bridge. It would also not maintain speed going over simple overpasses. The biggest problem is the only 8 tech at the dealer just returned from 2 weeks vacation and they can't even look at the car until the 12th.
After the first episode there were no codes. I at least got to talk to the tech, a very good guy who really cares about his job, and explained exactly what it was doing and it was definitely related to outside air temp.
Even though I chocked it up to high altitude, it did the same thing last summer on our vacation. We were in Montana going through the mountains and the temp was 101. I canceled going further into nowhere land because I was afraid to go farther away from a dealer. We went south from that day and the temps were not nearly as hot. We had no further troubles on the trip.
Even though I have little time to come on the forum, I'll try to get back to tell you what is found. I will also contact my poeple at Mazda North America and see if I can get through to a tech person to see if they are aware of the problem. Just being aware doesn't mean they will have a solution.

Kwullen

Okay, I just got off the phone with Mazda North America. My contact is in purchasing but she keeps abreast of what's going on. She couldn't have the head tech guy call me back because he's in Phoenix.
The current situation is that MNAO and Mazda - Japan are aware of the problem. The big problem is they are having one hell of a time identifying what is actually causing the problem. They have a team of people from MNAO and Japan in Phoenix and another in Dallas working on the problem.
I know patience is a virtue that's tough, but they have every asset available working on the problem. Your dealer is not at fault, even though most tend to come across as uncaring and always look for a chance to claim "not warrantee."
The teams have tried several things which have seemed to work but then it comes back.
I've worked with Mazda engineers (transmission division) for nearly twelve years, and beleive me, I've never worked with people more dedicated to the good name of their company. They will find and fix the problem.
My contact suggested asking you guys to ALL call Dealer Assistance Group and complain about this problem, the squeekier the wheel, the more priority will be put on it.
That number is (877)727-6627

Kurt

eclps0

Wrong number^