Flooded.. again..
11-23-2022, 07:00 PM
#1
Flooded.. again..
Vehicle information:
2010 Rx8 R3
Upgraded BHR coils
new spark plugs, coils and wires
new battery
new air filter
clean MAF
regular oil changes. 10W-30 regular oil
Live in southern Ontario.
It seems I have an issue with my vehicle where it floods just after one week of sitting.
All summer long it starts no problem hot and cold.
I just had it sit for 1 week because we had a big snow storm. Went to try and start it (while the battery was fully charged and plugged in) and it didn't start up on first try causing the engine to flood.
This happens every single winter. My solution (because the de-flood procedure never works for me) is to tow it to Mazda and they do it for $100. It takes them a few min to get it started again. They will not tell me their secrets to getting it started.
I'm thinking there is something else wrong with the vehicle as I don't think it should be flooding that easily.
Does anyone have any tips and tricks or know what could be causing this issue?
Thank you
2010 Rx8 R3
Upgraded BHR coils
new spark plugs, coils and wires
new battery
new air filter
clean MAF
regular oil changes. 10W-30 regular oil
Live in southern Ontario.
It seems I have an issue with my vehicle where it floods just after one week of sitting.
All summer long it starts no problem hot and cold.
I just had it sit for 1 week because we had a big snow storm. Went to try and start it (while the battery was fully charged and plugged in) and it didn't start up on first try causing the engine to flood.
This happens every single winter. My solution (because the de-flood procedure never works for me) is to tow it to Mazda and they do it for $100. It takes them a few min to get it started again. They will not tell me their secrets to getting it started.
I'm thinking there is something else wrong with the vehicle as I don't think it should be flooding that easily.
Does anyone have any tips and tricks or know what could be causing this issue?
Thank you
Last edited by donb; 11-23-2022 at 09:12 PM.
11-23-2022, 08:16 PM
#2
Master of 9k Downshift
A few things to consider off the bat…
How's the idle? Is it idling higher than 700-800 RPM after warmup (I assume it’s warmed up before you shut off)? A higher idle would generally be running richer due to the warmup sequence and could leave fuel in chamber.
Is your Mass Air Flow sensor in clean condition and do you have good air flow intake into the engine?
Do you smell any fuel around the car or in the engine bay? Perhaps you have leaky fuel injectors.
Perhaps others have ideas but those are the first things I would consider.
How's the idle? Is it idling higher than 700-800 RPM after warmup (I assume it’s warmed up before you shut off)? A higher idle would generally be running richer due to the warmup sequence and could leave fuel in chamber.
Is your Mass Air Flow sensor in clean condition and do you have good air flow intake into the engine?
Do you smell any fuel around the car or in the engine bay? Perhaps you have leaky fuel injectors.
Perhaps others have ideas but those are the first things I would consider.
11-23-2022, 08:23 PM
#3
A few things to consider off the bat…
How's the idle? Is it idling higher than 700-800 RPM after warmup (I assume it’s warmed up before you shut off)? A higher idle would generally be running richer due to the warmup sequence and could leave fuel in chamber.
Is your Mass Air Flow sensor in clean condition and do you have good air flow intake into the engine?
Do you smell any fuel around the car or in the engine bay? Perhaps you have leaky fuel injectors.
Perhaps others have ideas but those are the first things I would consider.
How's the idle? Is it idling higher than 700-800 RPM after warmup (I assume it’s warmed up before you shut off)? A higher idle would generally be running richer due to the warmup sequence and could leave fuel in chamber.
Is your Mass Air Flow sensor in clean condition and do you have good air flow intake into the engine?
Do you smell any fuel around the car or in the engine bay? Perhaps you have leaky fuel injectors.
Perhaps others have ideas but those are the first things I would consider.
11-23-2022, 08:40 PM
#4
Master of 9k Downshift
MAF is clean, new air filter also. I can’t remember the idle but i always shut it off warm never cold. Like i said it has no issues all summer long starting cold and hot but after a week of sitting it doesn’t start up. I will inspect the fuel smell tomorrow. I’m overall confused. My first year with the vehicle i let is sit all winter and it started up no problem after sitting for 6 months.
How does it finally startup?
Also curious if it restarts fine hot…
Last edited by schm1347; 11-23-2022 at 08:42 PM.
11-23-2022, 09:09 PM
#5
I guess the question is whether it’s flooding during shut off or flooding on startup. I wonder if it would start fine a few days later if you pulled fuel pump relay to starve the engine to shut off the car. If it still doesn’t start well then it’s happening during startup. And then the question is why running rich or not igniting fuel.
How does it finally startup?
Also curious if it restarts fine hot…
How does it finally startup?
Also curious if it restarts fine hot…
11-23-2022, 09:22 PM
#6
Master of 9k Downshift
not sure why happening now although could just be coincidental with winter.
11-23-2022, 09:57 PM
#7
Registered
Did you figure out which fluid is flooding the engine? Fuel, oil, or coolant?
Once flooded, your spark plugs should have the fluid stuck in them. Otherwise, once started white smoke is coolant(should be thick, smell sweet, and burn your eyes). Blue smoke is oil. If you happen to ignite it, gas flooding can potentially go off in your exhaust and will be rather loud, usually you will smell gas out the exhaust before starting.
No matter what, the Renesis engine sucks to deflood since it has the side exit exhausts. You may be able to get away with doing the accelerator pedal to the floor trick, which stops the ECU from injecting gas. There are a multitude of threads with different ways of deflooding, most of which are easy to do and most certainly not worth a tow and paying the dealer anything.
If you can google and pull fuses/sparkplugs you can deflood.
-------------------
Once you figure out which fluid,
Fuel > look into injectors, make sure you double and triple check that you properly labeled your harness as you take the injectors out. Getting to them is pretty much all 10mm. The fuel rails can be a pain to get out.
Oil > your oil control rings may be shot on a rotor. Rx8 rotors have 3 on each face with two O-ring seals as well. You would really only have issues with these if you experience a lot of blowby from excessive exhaust backpressure(clogged cat, a typical rx8 issue due to bad coils at 30k miles). These seals would only be fixed on a rebuild. It is possible that the warm weather in the summer swells the seals enough to hold oil.
Coolant > Your coolant seals could be split. This happens usually closer to 100k+ miles. Only rebuilding can solve this. Again when hot the seals may swell enough to prevent leakage. Over time I would expect it to leak during the summer as well. (Do not try stopleak or any headgasket sealer.) This is typically caused by excessive exhaust temp and pressure, due to a clogged cat or an issue with your coolant system.
Once flooded, your spark plugs should have the fluid stuck in them. Otherwise, once started white smoke is coolant(should be thick, smell sweet, and burn your eyes). Blue smoke is oil. If you happen to ignite it, gas flooding can potentially go off in your exhaust and will be rather loud, usually you will smell gas out the exhaust before starting.
No matter what, the Renesis engine sucks to deflood since it has the side exit exhausts. You may be able to get away with doing the accelerator pedal to the floor trick, which stops the ECU from injecting gas. There are a multitude of threads with different ways of deflooding, most of which are easy to do and most certainly not worth a tow and paying the dealer anything.
If you can google and pull fuses/sparkplugs you can deflood.
-------------------
Once you figure out which fluid,
Fuel > look into injectors, make sure you double and triple check that you properly labeled your harness as you take the injectors out. Getting to them is pretty much all 10mm. The fuel rails can be a pain to get out.
Oil > your oil control rings may be shot on a rotor. Rx8 rotors have 3 on each face with two O-ring seals as well. You would really only have issues with these if you experience a lot of blowby from excessive exhaust backpressure(clogged cat, a typical rx8 issue due to bad coils at 30k miles). These seals would only be fixed on a rebuild. It is possible that the warm weather in the summer swells the seals enough to hold oil.
Coolant > Your coolant seals could be split. This happens usually closer to 100k+ miles. Only rebuilding can solve this. Again when hot the seals may swell enough to prevent leakage. Over time I would expect it to leak during the summer as well. (Do not try stopleak or any headgasket sealer.) This is typically caused by excessive exhaust temp and pressure, due to a clogged cat or an issue with your coolant system.
11-24-2022, 05:34 PM
#8
Attempted de-flood procedure with no luck.
I can never get it. Mazda seems to be able to do it for me no problem (they've done it 3 times now.)
While doing it it does seem like i'm smelling gas? or like a more "burt" gas smell I'm not sure how to describe it.
I can never get it. Mazda seems to be able to do it for me no problem (they've done it 3 times now.)
While doing it it does seem like i'm smelling gas? or like a more "burt" gas smell I'm not sure how to describe it.
11-25-2022, 06:16 PM
#11
11-25-2022, 07:03 PM
#12
The Mazda one:
- gas pedal to the floor, turn the key to start and keep it starting for 5-8 seconds
- 20 second break, repeat
- on the 4th round gradually lift the gas pedal off the floor and if it sounds like it wants to start, modulate the gas to help it- if it doesn't sound like it wants to start, take a few minutes break and repeat 4 rounds.
Continue until it starts.
If it's really badly flooded you could pull the spark plugs and dry them off, but if the car is healthy you should be able to get somewhere just with this. It will take longer than you think so make sure your battery is charged or charge it between attempts. As long as you keep the gas pedal on the floor, no new gas is injected and the flood should clear eventually.
Goes without saying that a healthy car shouldn't flood in the first place. I wonder if your battery or starter contacts corrode while sitting in the winter and your starter isn't turning fast enough to start the car? How exactly do you store the car for winter?
- gas pedal to the floor, turn the key to start and keep it starting for 5-8 seconds
- 20 second break, repeat
- on the 4th round gradually lift the gas pedal off the floor and if it sounds like it wants to start, modulate the gas to help it- if it doesn't sound like it wants to start, take a few minutes break and repeat 4 rounds.
Continue until it starts.
If it's really badly flooded you could pull the spark plugs and dry them off, but if the car is healthy you should be able to get somewhere just with this. It will take longer than you think so make sure your battery is charged or charge it between attempts. As long as you keep the gas pedal on the floor, no new gas is injected and the flood should clear eventually.
Goes without saying that a healthy car shouldn't flood in the first place. I wonder if your battery or starter contacts corrode while sitting in the winter and your starter isn't turning fast enough to start the car? How exactly do you store the car for winter?
11-25-2022, 07:27 PM
#13
The Mazda one:
- gas pedal to the floor, turn the key to start and keep it starting for 5-8 seconds
- 20 second break, repeat
- on the 4th round gradually lift the gas pedal off the floor and if it sounds like it wants to start, modulate the gas to help it- if it doesn't sound like it wants to start, take a few minutes break and repeat 4 rounds.
Continue until it starts.
If it's really badly flooded you could pull the spark plugs and dry them off, but if the car is healthy you should be able to get somewhere just with this. It will take longer than you think so make sure your battery is charged or charge it between attempts. As long as you keep the gas pedal on the floor, no new gas is injected and the flood should clear eventually.
Goes without saying that a healthy car shouldn't flood in the first place. I wonder if your battery or starter contacts corrode while sitting in the winter and your starter isn't turning fast enough to start the car? How exactly do you store the car for winter?
- gas pedal to the floor, turn the key to start and keep it starting for 5-8 seconds
- 20 second break, repeat
- on the 4th round gradually lift the gas pedal off the floor and if it sounds like it wants to start, modulate the gas to help it- if it doesn't sound like it wants to start, take a few minutes break and repeat 4 rounds.
Continue until it starts.
If it's really badly flooded you could pull the spark plugs and dry them off, but if the car is healthy you should be able to get somewhere just with this. It will take longer than you think so make sure your battery is charged or charge it between attempts. As long as you keep the gas pedal on the floor, no new gas is injected and the flood should clear eventually.
Goes without saying that a healthy car shouldn't flood in the first place. I wonder if your battery or starter contacts corrode while sitting in the winter and your starter isn't turning fast enough to start the car? How exactly do you store the car for winter?
11-25-2022, 09:43 PM
#16
Will report back.
11-27-2022, 11:30 AM
#17
My ODB scanner doesn't read RPM, could you recommend me one?
Lastly the smoke that was coming out was white when I got it started for that one second before it died.
Thank you
11-27-2022, 03:50 PM
#18
Sounds like you're almost there. Keep doing it.
There's a scenario where if coolant is leaking into the combustion chamber slowly, it will accumulate while the car sits a long time, but not enough to cause problems when the car is used regularly. I'm not saying you have that, but it's possible.
White smoke for 1 second couls be anything: condensation, fuel vapour, etc. But if it huffs white smoke after it is running and smells sweet you may want to check your coolant level.
There's a scenario where if coolant is leaking into the combustion chamber slowly, it will accumulate while the car sits a long time, but not enough to cause problems when the car is used regularly. I'm not saying you have that, but it's possible.
White smoke for 1 second couls be anything: condensation, fuel vapour, etc. But if it huffs white smoke after it is running and smells sweet you may want to check your coolant level.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
donb
Series II Technical and Trouble shooting
9
11-19-2021 05:02 PM