Howdy,

Firstly Merry Christmas to everyone!

Went to start my RX8 this morning and the Radiator warning light remained on, reversed out of my garage to find a puddle of coolant. I immediately filled the now empty coolant reservoir with some distilled water and went about checking the engine.

My original thoughts were, oh no - cracked engine housing - new engine required - damn and I'm out of warranty, however, after closer inspection it appears that the coolant hose connecting to the engine is leaking. It had baked on "green gunk" and feeling around the hose confirmed it was wet.

Being Christmas and all, I rang the NRMA in case they could do something to get me by - didn't want all the coolant to escape and cause untold damage to the engine. Unfortunately they weren't able to help - they pressure tested the radiator and confirmed the leak from the hose, however, the hose is in a not so accessible area and they weren't able to stop the leak.

Has anyone experienced this issue in Australia? A search of the forum shows that it has popped up a few times on the US side.

Anyway, it would be great if anyone can recommend any Sydney Mazda/Rotary shop that can look at this promptly - not keen on going back to local Mazda dealership.

Cheers,

Pappy

 

There have been some cases of the radiator overflow being faulty. Lets hope you just need to replace the hose....

 

Yes, I experienced this problem just before I sold my RX-8, and it was traced to a faulty thermostat -- your symptoms sound almost identical.

AT the time, my dealer discovered there were no replacement thermostats in stock in Australia, meaning I would have been u/s for a week or so , but luckily I know the dealer principal, who authorised the part to be cannibalised from a new 8 in the showroom

 

Ummm am I missing something here or has Pappy identified he has a cracked hose, so no sticky thermostat causing his puddle of coolant.

Pappy, I have not heard of this before. If you are out of warranty then avoid the dealers. Their hourly rates are ridiculous and a local rotary shop would probably have more of a clue than the dealer anyway.

Good luck

Cheers

Andrew

 

Agency Power sell a set of replacement hoses that are most likely better than stock (if thats the problem that is)

 

At first I thought it was just a clamp issue on mine, but a leaking hose is often a symptom, so it's wise to get the thermostat checked.

 

Well I'm out of warranty and unfortunately not aware of any local Mazda/Rotary shops - so having to fix this fairly quickly left me no options but to go to the local dealer (John Newell).

Took the car in this morning, they rang back after a few hours saying that the radiator/engine coolant hose needs to be replaced, cost for part & labour $265!! Part not in stock, will arrive tomorrow, car is being kept overnight at the dealers.

Hopefully their diagnosis is correct and that there isn't an issue with the thermostat as Timbo has mentioned.

Drewman - if I had time on my side I would invest in those replacement hoses.

Cheers,

Pappy

 

Exactly what I suffered Pappy except mine was alot slower and missed through a service. Sounds about the same as I paid also, I was a little suprised they didnt have the part in stock either.

 

Picked up the car yesterday afternoon, hose replaced and all looks OK for the time being. They must have disconnected the battery as all my Radio presets and the trip meter had been reset - don't understand why they would do this.

Total cost $260, split as ...

Hose: $47
Coolant: $50
Labour: $163

Oh - they threw in a complimentary wash & vacuum - it's chargeable these days - gosh I remember the good old days when this was free.

 

Agreed - it is surprising they don't keep some of these type of spares handy.

 

They have to remove the battery box to get easier access, and thats a bit slack they should have reset the radio to what it was before, no mine wasnt covered under warranty hoses arent classed under it.