So I was driving to Home Depot when my 04 rx8 just shut off while I was driving. I pulled over to the side and had to push it to a Goodyear dealer. The car would not turn over or anything. It seemed as though the battery was dead because all you could here was clicking. They said that they would do an inspection for 90 bucks but would not charge me if they couldn't fix it. They did the inspection and found out that the alarm for the key was on in the dashboard. They asked if we have always used the key and I said yeah how the hell would we have started it. He said it had to do with our key or something. I find it hard to believe. I had to have it towed to a dealer ship. Does anyone know what is wrong?

P.S I just had my car towed two weeks ago because it wouldn't start. I am pretty sure it was flooded or something. This is the third time I have had to have it towed for not starting. I am getting really pissed now. Could this be a lemon law issue?

 

the only thing I can think of that has to do with a key is your security system?? the car won't start if it is not reading the key correctly....???

 

have an 04 to had a lot of problems, trading it tomm for an 06 i think, the 04 autos are just crazy with problems

 

I know my dad told me to sell the car. I don't want to though

 

04's seem to be so problematic for so many people. Sorry to hear.

 

ya man go to the dealer or something and just look for an 06 or something, i know not every 04 had problems but i guess i was one of the lucky ones

 

I just purchased an 04 a few months ago, problem free, and so much fun to drive. I think as long as you have all the recalls done (like mine has too), you are pretty safe.

 

Are the newer model RX-8s any better than the 04? I've been having the issue with the car dying at stop lights/stop signs etc... the same issue it seems thousands others have been having and Mazda has no clue what to do about. Im thinking of trading my car but im dying because I have loved my RX-8... I dont know what to do.. I dont know If I should get a later year model and hope that something has changed or if I should just get something other than a Mazda.... I dunno... what do yall think?

 

I have an issue free 2004. The only problems I've had have been a result of my tinkering.

 

MS3. Fun little rocket.

 

I had my '05 towed twice. The first time was in Nov. '06. The dealer said I flooded it so they replaced the plugs. Same thing again in March of this year. I had it towed to a different dealership. They said that Mazda had them replace the battery, the starter and the plugs all under warranty. It must be a redesigned starter because it cranks much faster than the original. No problems so far. Hope this helps.

 

hmm. thats odd. Usually when the car dies out and when u try to restart it and u hear a click.... Well sounds like a clasic sign of a faild alternator, however, U would normaly get symptoms of a dying alternator via a battery/check engine light, the lights are dimmer, some options shut down to conserve power such as a/c, power steering, traction control, etc... and this usualy happens an hour or so before the car totaly fails to the point where the battery is completely drained where it can no longer sustain engine operation and the inevitable is that the engine cuts off and when u try to restart the car u get a clicking sound.
My moneys on the alternator failing but cant tell for sure as i dont know the car as well as other forum members here to give u a more accurate resolution. In any case.... Good luck and keep us posted on the solution.

 

Maybe it could be a loose wire on the alternator.. a poor connection that shakes loose with vibration...Would that show up on the computer? It might be something very simple like a bad battery cell...I'm not sure they still have Solenoids on the starter but I remember that clicking to always be a Solenoid on the starter ...If it is a loose wire wouldn't that drain the battery too...it might cause a shutdown? I have taken mine out and shut it off before total warmup and nothing happened. I was told that as they get older if the seals warp that it can marginally lessen the compression causing hard starting and those type problems. Maybe bad plug wires. Lousy gas would do it too ...A clogged fuel filter? There are so many simple things it could be that you have to eliminate every one to find the answer. Then you also have to decide if there is something you are doing that is a cause.
As a point of info, is yours an automatic transmission ? Do you drive easy or hard or somewhere between ?
My mechanic says that the cars that have the most problems are the automatics and mostly women that own them and they baby the car. They never redline or jackrabbit start, they drive easy ( Please know I don't mean ALL women, many know more about driving than i do for sure , and drive much harder) But anyone that always babies the car it seems. There are a lot of folks that know nothing about their car...It's like patients that know absolutely nothing about how their body works...you can't take care of it or fix it if you don't know how it works....I was always told to drive it hard but not crazy. It's just the nature of the Rotary Engine.

 

Had the flooding issue in 05', had the starter, plugs, etc. changed in 06' and it WAS fine until last week when it got over 90 degrees here and it started doing the same thing AGAIN. This is a problem on many of the RX-8's.... Mazda cant seem to fix the issue. I LOVE my car... I just dont know if I can afford to deal with these problems. I was hoping that someone could tell me that the newer models have some change in the engines that take care of this issue....

 

I have owned 04' 6spd GT model for 2 years.

Engine flood 2 time, battery problem so replaced, tranny problem, starter and

plug replaced...and so on....

I still love my car, but it is hard to keep it....

A lady works at service department knows me...."u again?"

If I find another problem, I will seriously think about trade in.

 

I haven't had any problems with my 04. Its flooded once because a friend of mine cut it on and off too quick when I left it at his house.

 

I haven't had any problems meriting a tow or stranding me. I just got all the recalls and relevant tsbs performed and it has been a champ. No make/model of a car is ever trouble free. Some are worse than others its the luck of the draw. I've been strande by my 02 dodge ram twice, hard to believe a good ol' american pickup would be so problem ridden, but it is. Like I said, its sort of the luck of the draw.