Serious power loss
 

So im in need of some help identifying a what seems to be major problem.

Ok I took my 8 out today for a good drive and on the way home she started spluttering then the power dropped off and it felt like I was driving in to high a gear all the time and when I would accelerate the vibrations I was getting was mad ,
So I limped on then when I got home decided to switch on then restart encase it cleared the issue but it didnt and the car flooded and wouldnt restart, so I deflooded started her up still idling really badly I also noted the SSV rattling like mad and also another rattle which id guess was the SSV solenoid.

So what do you guys think am I in serious trouble engine wis:sadwavey:e or is a dodgy ssv or valve causing my issues.
I will be comp testing her this weekend aswell.

Lots of options are possible:
- E-shaft sensor magnet attracted a bit of metallic debris and the fuel/spark trigger is out of wack
- you started puking oil into the intake, fouling the SSV and causing major combustion problems
- the SSV solenoid lost all control of the valve and it was fluttering, making wild and random AFR swings
- one or more coils failed
- one or more plugs failed
- one or more wires failed (including a wire popping off a plug, it's happened)
- a major vacuum line failed, giving you a huge vacuum leak


Possible but unlikely:
- Cat failure (a clog typically is a smooth power drop, not all the vibration and sputtering you describe)
- the MAF took a dump (exceedingly rare)
- you lost an apex seal (i just don't get the impression that this is a seal failure, but it might be)

Probably some other options as well.

change your coils, all 4 of them.

Some good options to go through and RIWWP thanks for your optimism regarding it not being a seal failure it makes a change lol.
Ive ordered some new plug even though the current ones arnt a year old my coild and leads are from BHR and dont even have 10k on them yet.

TBH the way the SSV was going and the other noise from the back (hopefully the solenoid) im crossing my fingers for a simple-ish fix

For some reason I don't trust BHR coils. No intention to discredit the alternatives but I've seen pictures of failed BHR coils and its plastic was torn down and was looking horrible. The OEM coils on mine were 7 years old and they were still functioning, except on very high rpms.

And the plugs sometimes cause unsuspected problems. And both KAM and NVRAM resets must be done when several ignition parts change at once.

I've seen premature coil failure reports from every coil out there.

BHR has claimed a less than 1% failure rate. I expect the OEM coils have about the same failure rate, and the aftermarket OEM-like coils are probably a bit higher. It's nothing to actually worry about, and BHR will replace defective coils for free, which is more than just about any OEM coil supplier will do (excepting Mazmart and a couple autopart stores)

One thing I don't trust though, is OEM ignition after 30,000 miles. Not sureif you have exceeded that in your 7 years, but regardless, your coils are not "functioning" properly if they don't work in one part of the rev range. Advertising neglect of your car isn't likely to make someone believe your opinion about how long things last.

It was 115.000km (72k miles) when the OEM coils were replaced last May. Their code was N3H1 18 100, that's why I reckoned that they made all those 72k miles since 2006. Actually they were still functioning properly, only causing one explosion sound at the exhaust when pushed to the limits.

I think your definition of "Functioning properly" is different than mine. If your paycheck was missing some money and your boss told you "oh, you just aren't going to get paid for the last few minutes of every day", would you consider your paycheck to be complete?

That's true, they were not functioning properly. Otherwise I wouldn't replace them. But I've used that phrase considering that they had been used for 70k+ miles and still not failed too badly. Maybe I was lucky to have durable set of coils but they also seemed to prove why Mazda don't mention coil maintenance or change intervals in user manual.

In any case, I can never say the last word on the subject. I had one or two experiences but still I'm not so experienced as many other RX-8 users out there. For instance I haven't even seen an RX-7 in my life and never knew about Rotary engines until the end of last year.

Btw, I'm an enthusiastic reader of the article compiled by you, "new and potential users start here" it's not only a beginner's guide; it explains almost everthing about the Rotary cars.

I probably should have mentioned up until 6 months ago I was getting small amounts of coolant into the engine if it stood for more then a day in the cold,
I only mention this as when I started her up it was a similar situation where she seem to be only firing on 1 rotor but this would clear in less then a minute, so I contacted my rebuilder who had it for a week or 2 but said it was fine then said replace your plugs and coils so I bought new plugs and fitted some low mileage used oem coils this cured it for a month or so but then the problem returned.
It was only cured when the garage put something called K seal in which is like a rad weld (not sure what you guys call it) but it doesnt clog the system just fill holes and this stopped the coolant leak dead I just wonder if this is the issue and it held it off for ages then just gave up completely.

I still need to check it all over including coolant levels.

Should also not ive been having a rattling problem at high revs which ive documented here

You know my opinion Greggity greg...
Rape the engine builder.

Unfortunatly having a row will get me no where with them and taking legal action is time and money plus if they do offer to repair do I want them touching it again.
all I can do is treat it as a life lesson and hope my current issues can be solved without a rebuild.

One of the best videos showing how to revise the Renesis.

Coolant in the housings is ALWAYS a rebuild-only option for fixing. No way around it

Posted From RX8Club.com Android App

The coolant issue has gone away for now and I checked coolant levels today and there fine so current issue isnt coolant but im not saying its not related.

Thank god for this tread. I'm currently at big bear lake(middle of nowhere) and I had a power drop under 4k rpm. I thought it was because I was uphill on a mountain, but it stayed after the uphill. Thought it was the cat, but it wasn't a smooth power drop. Wish I brought my cel reader. -_- but I'm glad it's unlikely my cat. Wish me luck, still gotta get out of this place

Edit* came down from mountain, car seems fine. Maybe 7000 elevation difference isn't good for car?

Ok little update I went out to see if I could run her up in the hope it was just a glitch but due to not having a second vehicle to keep the batt boosted I couldnt deflood, but I did stick my AP on and ive got a P0610 PCM code which in itself isnt great but maybe a cheaper option then a new engine if it is the route cause,
and I was thinking the last few days that im sure this happened once before I took it in to the garage and they sorted it by cleaning the grounds up also in the last few months my power steering died if thats at all related.

Im gonna try and get it into the garage tomorrow for him to scratch his head over.

major power losses due to elevation are usually due to a faulty fuel pump, dirty pump strainer or cracked outlet on the pump itself. this usually shows up as fuel trims in the 10%+ range during the issue present.

Ok after some seriously bad weather I got out to see if there is anything I can find, I changed the plugs as they where a little crudded up but unfortunatly nothing so she is in on Friday for a check hopefully my FD should be ready to pick up so il have a car again.

Oh here is a video of the ticking noises im getting.