zoom44

i thought i explained that


edit: oh that was in the other thread short vs. - its the EPA

bxb40

Yes, it is the EPA... and Mazda trying to save face for fuel economy. If that was better from the start, they did not have to compromise on the oil grade and replace lots of engines now... So I actually blame Mazda for this poor choice - and they are paying. If at least the LV dealers would care to use the right oil and inform customers to make an expection from the 710 EPA mandated inscription during summer months... Who likes to be without car for weeks just to get a new engine when you can just use the right oil and be happy? Not me...

sharward

Hey, maybe there will be a recall after the investigation is complete... A recall of the owner's manuals!

zoom44

yeah it sthe epa's requirment that the auto makers recommend the same oil that the automaker uses in emissions adn mpg testing.

fray

iTrader: (1)

Just an FYI, they do occasionally recall the owners manual. On my Jeep Wrangler there was a recall on my owners manual. They forgot a page explaining how to use the child seat restraints. (Got the whole notification letter and everything in the mail.. I promptly ignored it.. then the next time I went in, a new page was affixed to my manual...)

rudy8

lets all cry out together, 'FIERO, FIERO"!

Vertigo-1

iTrader: (3)

A bit of a different question, but is lugging damaging to an engine? If so, how exactly does it damage an engine, in particular, a rotary engine? Reason I ask is because the AT RX-8's engine practically spends most of its time lugging, particularly in heavy traffic environments where people get an AT in the first place.

I've always thought that it was a little peculiar that the AT RX-8 is the only AT I've ever driven where you can REALLY feel the engine lugging badly, to the point of hesitation/near stalling. I've mentioned it several times on this board, but nobody ever really gave a good reply as to why this was happening. I realize it's probably just bad AT programming logic for a rotary engine, but if lugging can cause engine damage over long term, could this constant lugging be part of the equation for these bad engines? I happen to drive mine exclusively in tiptronic and keep things well over 2000 RPMs usually, and rarely touch overdrive. A major reason, aside from having immediate access to power, is because the car just feels horrible when driven in full automatic mode at low speeds. It's always hesitating, vibrating, and generally feels like it's going to stall. What's the reason behind this, when other AT cars generally don't have such a problem?

Baller

Torque

faffy

Please read what derwankel wrote on the other RX-8 board. I think it will explain the solution to your problem:
http://rx8web.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1254

Csaba

Vertigo-1

iTrader: (3)

Well, that's not really a solution to what I'm experiencing per say...I know about the carbon build up thing, that's a seperate issue that I don't think I have a problem with, being a tiptronic driver 99.9% of the time. What bugs me is the way the engine lugs with the default AT programming. I really think Mazda should've programmed the AT RX-8 to keep the RPMs at a minimum of 2000 RPMs and no less, and to keep the car in lower gears if necessary. The default AT shifting logic that works for every other car out there just really doesn't work very well for a rotary...because, as Baller says, of the lack of torque. Just another little thing that makes the AT RX-8 feel like a rush job to the market.

zoom44

please read what i have written in this thread and others for the last 4 months. you post that like i havent said it over and over or like you dont know what this thread is about.

faffy

Wow, I am sorry, that I hurt your feeling that I did not quote you. Please grow up!

zoom44

good from now on understand what the thread is about before you post. glad to see my freind derwankel and others there are current on everything too. gets the word out to more people

Glyphon

there are numerous cars out there with less torque than the rx8 that drive perfectly fine with automatic transmissions. don't forget, the AT8 makes slightly more torque than the MT8 does.

OMCWankel

First of all, my condolences to those who have RX8’s laid up waiting on a new engine.

I am in Houston, Texas, have an AT RX8, and regularly sit in stop and go traffic with the AMB temp gauge at 100+. I have never had the engine problems described by others in this thread. I have been very aware of cooling issues from my experience with my ‘91 Miata. Mazda did not do a very good job with cooling issues on the early Miatas, and I had problems with overheating in the conditions described above. Making it worse, our license laws stipulate a front license plate, shrouding the Miata air intake by 30%. I solved the Miata issue by using good synthetic engine oil, larger than stock radiator fans, and using 91+ octane fuel. It is still running at 250,000 miles.

In the RX8, I also run 91+ octane fuel. The higher octane will produce a slower burn, and less heat transferred to the rotor. I am also aware of the carbon issues, as the rotary has 2-stroke like ports. Using a supplemental fuel lubricant/cleaner is essential, in my opinion. The amount of fuel lubricant/cleaner in even the best name-brand gasoline is miniscule. I use Fuel Power, but other products like Techron or some of the synthetic 2-stroke pre-mix oils will also work. Good quality engine oil, replaced frequently, is a must. I use Motorcraft (Conoco) semi-synthetic with good results so far. I am also very careful to clean the oil cooler regularly.

The engine cover intrigued me. I could not see why Mazda would spend the money on a beauty part under the hood, hidden most of the time. On one hot day, I had the hood open and was inspecting the hot air flow around the engine. The airflow pushed by the radiator fans through the engine bay was re-directed downwards toward the engine block with the engine cover in place. The cooling air flow around the engine was lost without the cover. Could the engine cover be an airflow re-director, aiding in engine cooling?

I think Mazda had to make a trade-off in the amount of oil injected into the engine versus higher emissions. I am only using ½ qt per 2500 miles in my AT RX8. This low consumption is why I turned to a supplemental fuel lubricant/cleaner.

Oktobernv

OMC

thanks for your post - very helpful

what is the best way you have found to clean the oil cooler?

how often are you doing the cleaning? once a month? when you change the oil?

how much pre-mix are you adding per tank? what brand?

Thanks in advance

Rob in Vegas

Dinhx8

Omc-do you have an 04 or an 05?

pcimino

The engine cover is (officially) supposed to help direct airflow around the engine to keep it cool(er). Some people in the threads claim that their engines run cooler without the cover. The only thing is they didn't state how they were measuring the temp, presumably with the water temp gauge. No idea how accurate their observations might have been

OMCWankel

Hi Rob,

I wash the oil cooler during my weekly car wash, using a soft brush to get the detergent in there as far as possible, then using the garden hose sprayer set to the strongest stream. If your cooler needs a stronger cleaner, go with spray Simple Green or Gunk (rinse overspray off the paint immediatly).

The product I use in the gas is Fuel Power available from Lube Control Distributors: http://www.lubecontrol.com/. It is called FP60 on the site, and you use 1 oz per 5 gal of gas. When I was running pre-mix I was using a 300:1 ratio, which is 4 oz per 10 gal of Castrol TC-W3 outboard pre-mix oil. The thread with that discussion is at: https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=41024

My RX8 build date is 06/04.

crossbow

Fuel power is a fantastic product.

Btw, question to owners waiting for engine replacement...

Were any of you running synthetic oils?

Oktobernv

Crossbow:

I was NOT running Syn oil when my motor blew.

I have a 2004 manual stick.

Had it for about 1.5 years now.

Had 13,000 miles on it

ALWAYS ran 5w-20 oil in it. NEVER ran syn oil.

I was NOT adding anything to the gas.....no premix....no extra cleaners.

I "usually" ran 91-93 octane. BUT since gas was getting $$$$$ I had been running some 87-89. That may have contributed to the problem. But if so, that is still pretty weak.

It was going through it's 2nd hot summer when the engine failed.

Mostly city driving.....some freeway driving.


Rob in Vegas

33 days without my car and counting.......

Baller

We will find that all of the failures were running regular oil, not Synthetics.

cleoent

why are you people putting 87 in a car that was designed and asks for 91? Does the $2 savings per tank really make that big of a difference? If that ends up being the problem i hope mazda makes you pay for your engine.

Glyphon

they couldn't do that. it states in the owners manual that 87+ is perfectly fine for the vehicle, though 91+ should be used for optimal performance.

they only way they could do that is if the manual stated only to use 91+ and nothing below that. otherwise they would almost certainly end up with a class action suit on their hands.

cleoent

If that's what it says in the manual (never read taht in there, but it still could be in there) i will proceed to stick my foot directly into my mouth :D