Hi, I'm a new member and to be honest the main purpose is so I can sell my RX-8 that I recently bought but never should 've if I had done better research. It's the Grand Touring model with excellent interior and decent exterior, with several mods. It was starting and running fine, got a mechanic to look it over before taking the plunge who didn't see anything major, got some basic instructions from the previous owner, took possession of it and then by the next day would no longer start. A local mechanic got it running again but again didn't start by the end of the day. At this point we learned more about this special but complicated car and realized I'm in over my head. I can't put any more money or time into it and need to find a commuter car for my roughly 40 mile commute each way, so when the time comes when I'm allowed to post in classified I will be listing it for sale, unless I'm able to sell it before then. Thank you for allowing me to join.

 

with a little more info im sure we can point ya in the right direction to get it running or at least figure out whats wrong with it. plus answering some basic questions will get you closer to the post count you need to post a f/s thread.

auto or manual?
mileage?
any mods?
what did mech do to get it running?
if it starts, does it not restart after its warmed up?
does it crank?
how does it sound when/if it cranks?

 

Broken rx8's aren't worth a lot. Maybe there's someone here local to you who can at least diagnose and see if there are easy fixes. Where are you?
I agree that it's a poor choice for 40 mile commutes, but more than a few members here have bought non running 8's and got them back to health with basics. Just most mechanics don't know rotary basics.

 

im guessing hes in cali from the first letters in his post lol

 

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That narrows it down to a time zone

 

gotta start somewhere

 

auto or manual? Manual
mileage? 97500
any mods? Yes the previous owner installed or had someone install a Duraflex body kit, BC racing suspension, XXR 3 piece wheels
what did mech do to get it running? New spark plugs, new crankshaft position sensor, and fuel injection service
if it starts, does it not restart after its warmed up? It was warmed up before turning the engine off, then it didn't start again the next time I tried
does it crank? Yes
how does it sound when/if it cranks? It sounds like the starter could be dying when it cranks. Hard to explain but can send a video. The mechanic who initially inspected it said it will need a new starter soon, but the mechanic who worked on it and got it running again said the starter was fine, but neither of them have much experience with these cars

Also want to mention that after getting it home and doing a little digging, decided to try de-flooding it. I hooked up the battery to a running a car and followed the standard procedure that is similar to what I found on this forum. Tried 3 cycles but no luck. I saw some alternative de-flooding procedures on this forum so I may try one or more of those just to rule out the flooding possibility. Do you have any suggestions on which one to do next that is easy for someone with not much mechanical experience? Do you think it would be worth trying?

 

Yeah that's what I'm thinking, that it's not worth much with it not running. I found out the closest rotary mechanic is in Los Angeles, I'm in Santa Barbara county, so not really doable. There's one person here that claims they have some knowledge, but I'm hesitant at this point and think it may be a waste of time and money like what I've experienced so far with the other two.

 

Sorry, I should've been doing quotes so you know who I'm replying to. I'm new to this. Next time I will try that feature.

 

1) Pictures of car and of engine bay
2) City or Zip code
3) budget to get running

I'm in Bakersfield, and I know people around SoCal. Some individuals aren't as far from you as I am. If the problem isn't compression related, it might not take much to get you up and going.

 

One obvious thing that isn't on the list of parts replaced are the ignition coils. They could certainly cause flooding and the symptoms you're seeing. Do you know when they were last changed? Duraflex ,XXR, BC suspension.. these are not signs of someone who invests in quality parts and proactive maintenance, so I would treat everything on the car as suspect until proven otherwise.

Are you mechanically inclined? Can you read OBD codes?

 

Thank you. The problem is that it would take a tow truck, possibly both ways, plus at the very least diagnostic charges. After what I already spent in total, I don't want to add to that and still be left with a car not running if it ends up being more. The mechanic that worked on it didn't have the right tool to check the compression, but they were able to start it and then ran great until I couldn't start it later that day. I do think there's a chance it's something minor, like maybe even just a bad flooding situation, but at this point I'm pretty much at the end of my budget and can't afford to find out, unless it's someone right here. I'm in Santa Ynez Valley.

 

Thank you for that information. I'll look into that. I do not know when they were last changed unfortunately. I don't think the previous owner had the $$$ to invest in quality parts but it sounded like he took care of it with proper service, etc. It started up and ran great during all of my interactions with him but with the limited time I had with him and relying on what he told me, who knows. That's why I had a mechanic check it out, although I realize now it should've been the right kind of mechanic for that car. The guy was reputable though. My mechanical experience is very limited, but with the right instructions and not anything too complicated, I could do some work. OBD codes, no I cannot.

 

I'm not suggesting you tow it to me. I'm saying worst case scenario I'm not terribly far away nor would other members who could be even closer. I'd like to be able to offer assistance and feedback remotely for you to attempt to do to get your car running. For as unique as this engine is, there are a number of things you can do to troubleshoot that are fairly easy to complete. Thats also why I asked the other questions like asking for pictures of the car and budget for it (you'd be shocked how some components could cause major problems and cost as little as $20).

 

lots of good info and whatever members are still here and most are happy to help.

not restarting after its warmed up is a sign of low compression which is the most expensive/worst case. ignition health is very important on these cars and easy to fix (coils, plugs, wires). im guessing you still have a cat in the car because you are in cali?

the reason i asked about the sound when cranking is if its flooded it will sound like its spinning faster with little resistance. its pretty noticable if you have heard it before.

the upgraded s1 2kw or the s2 starter can help band aid a low comp engine if the ignition is healthy. we would need a pic of the starter to see whats there

 

At 100k miles with hot start issues compression certainly is a lingering issue, we need pictures of your ignition coils first though as not firing could leave you prone to flooding with fuel. Assuming it failed to hot start and then failed to cold start the next day tells me it is likely flooding. Just like any other car or engine, what is it flooding with? You can take the spark plugs out and slowly turn the engine by hand on the front hub to see what comes out. Otherwise if you can get it to run again blue smoke is oil, Plumes of thick white smoke that smells sweet and burns your eyes is coolant.

Otherwise it will be fuel from failed combustion. How did you fail combustion??? Well the stock ignition coils are prone to failing at 30k miles. Timing can also prevent combustion, but generally the timing Eshaft crank sensors just get dirty. Fuel delivery could be injectors or fuel pump assembly(doubtful if you drove the car fine before). Air or vacuum leaks could also cause an issue, which is fairly easy to check with a smoke tester or cigar. Lastly and most likely is compression, without enough compression you wont get good combustion.

Rotary wise compression changes in two major ways. The faster it spins, the more compression it makes. The colder the engine is, the more compression it makes. So likely what could have happened is two things. Either the high miles means compression is failing, upon trying to hot start with low compression it was flooded by someone constantly retrying, now that it is cold it simply wont start because the chambers are full of fuel. Or your coils finally failed and wont run with the possibility of also now flooded with someone constantly retrying.

On any Rx8 the first steps are

1. New battery ~300 (higher cca helps make sure stater can spin as fast as possible)
2. Starter ~70$ on amazon (upgraded starter helps you spin faster = more compression)
3. Coil upgrade and sparkplugs ~700 (for complete combustion)
4. cat/midpipe (cali probably has some hippie laws that'll screw you) ~700 (the stock cat clogs due to failing coils at 30k miles eventually causing overheating issues in the exhaust ports, cooking seals.)

Down the line other common fixes are:

1. New fuel pump assembly
2. AN oil lines and use a toothpick to straighten cooler fins.
3. Silicone coolant and vacuum lines

Touching the fuel injectors can easily be a pain because mazda labeled the wires nearly identical. Like the front rotor wire has white tape.....and the rear rotor has pale tape right next to it......super easy to mix up. On a different set they use black and blue twice. Certainly something I always check over very carefully. How did the car run after someone messed with the injectors?
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I would put the battery on a tender or jump to another car. Then try a basic deflood by leaving it in neutral with your foot on the clutch. Hold the gas pedal to 100% to cut fuel. Crank for 7s and then wait a minute. Continue to hold the pedals. Crank for 7s and wait again. Do this 7 times.

Give it a day if you can, then make sure the battery and starter has as much juice as possible to give it a go.

 

Ah got it. I will post some pictures soon, can't at the moment.

 

I'm sorry, I misunderstood the question earlier. When you asked about trying to start after it had warmed up, I was thinking was it warmed up before stopping because I know that can cause flooding if it isn't. Here's what happened: It was running great after picking it up from the mechanic. Later on the same day after it had been parked for a while and cold, I tried restarting with no success and haven't been able to start it since.

It doesn't sound like that. More like something is dying like the starter. I will send a clip of how it sounds when I have a little more time.

 

I gave some clarification on another post just now as I misunderstood an earlier question. It was not warmed up when it decided not to start again. It was running great and then after it was parked for enough time that it was cold again, I tried starting it with no luck. As far as the rest of your reply, I want to wait until I'm not in a rush so I can take my time and attempt to fully understand it. Sounds like great information.

 

if its not starting when cold its most likely flooded. as stated this can be from weak battery, the early smaller starter, bad ignition (very likely), low compression and any combo of these issues. did i miss weather or not you mentioned about having a cat in the exhaust system?

also simple things to do are clean the mass air flow sensor (located on intake pipe before the throttle body) only use maf cleaner and be careful not to break the "bulb". theres also the 20 brake stomp which "resets" the computer for lack of a better term

 

Ok so cold start issues are a very good thing and usually simple fixes. Hot start issues usually aim towards engine compression/rebuilding

 

Did the mechanic who changed spark plugs examine the old ones? Aside from the most likely problem -flooding, another option is internal coolant leak. This would be apparent from deposits on the old spark plugs.

+1 again for pictures. Things like having all the under engine plastics in place are key for cooling and understanding what's in play here

 

A quick message to thank those of you who reached out to try to help me. I appreciate all of the advice and willingness to help walk me through this. I wish I had the time right now but if I reach a point where I can devote a little time I will return to this thread and hopefully pick up where we left off. What a great group a people, almost makes me want to hang on to it (jk about hanging on to it, needs to go asap lol!)