stasis1

Hi Guys,
after being absent for so long finally im back with my Rx8. Im now being reassinged so i will be staying with my rx8 now.

So here comes the question. I have a 2004 rx8 manual. I havent dont anything to the car except the air intake that i bought from a fellow member. Its the rotary extreme air intake. Apart from that everything else is stock std. The car had only done less than 8k all these years. Cos its only taken out once a week to warm up on the freeway. When i got back into the country and i fired up the car, i noticed the engine light was on.
So i took it in to the dealer and have it checked. And the dealer said that theres a problem in cylinder one. And he said probably its the injector that need cleaning and calibration.

Now i have tested the car while driving to the dealer and found no problem in idling and power was good across all rpms/ No sign of loss of power. Im very skeptical of wat the dealer said. I dont think its the injectors or any components in the fuel lines at all. I have always filled her up with Shell fuel which is the best available in Jakarta. So if anybody can give me an idea what wrong with it , i would really appreciate it.

Secing thing is the traction control is on. please let me know what you guys think.Thanks guys

takahashi

Reset the ECU and see if that persists. (ignition on and repeatedly press pedal for 30 times, watch the oil pressure gauge on dash sweep right)

And secondly, there is no cylinder in rotary engine!

EDIT: Also check your MAF sensor just further from the airbox in the intake tube.

stasis1

Ok I will try to ask the deales to do the reset.

Yea i know aout the clydiners. But i think wat the technician meant is the Rotor 1!!

i personally dont think thers an problem with the MAF cos the engine power is good across all RPMS.

takahashi

It could be just dirty and sense some wrong singals to the PCM

auzoom

Do the reset yourself (Hold the odometer reset button down while starting the car I think does a full reset).

Then stick a bottle of injector cleaner in your fuel.

Cheers

Andrew

stasis1

Yea i will be picking up the car on saturday morning and i will stick an injectors cleaner up the fuel tank and take it for a quick spin and see how.

Also after they reset the ECU the traction control went of. funny isnt it? Later on if the engine light is still on after i stick an injector cleaner in will it be able to switch off the engine light automatically or i have to get it reset agina?

auzoom

I believe you will be best to run the tank through, then reset the engine light and see what happens.

Did you get the code being thrown? It would be helpfull if you can get it.

If its a misfire code as the dealer to reset the crank angle sensor. Dont see why the sensor should go funny just sitting around but its I believe its step one on the list of things to do with a misfire.

Cheers

Andrew

stasis1

Ok. got the car back today. Wel the traction control is off. But the engine light is still on. I have stick a bottle of gas treatment which includes the cleaners for the fuel system. Diven it for about 20km on the highway. With rpms around 3-5k range. Power seems to be very good can feel the extra torque. but yea engine light still on.

I forgot to ask about the error code my bad Cos a nice sales girl wlked up to me and we chatter . but anyway what the next step? The engine is definetely not mis firing though or always i will hear a loud "bang". Let me know. As im leaving town on monday morning and wont be back for the next 2 weeks.

stasis1

Hi Guys.
finally got the chance to take a look at the car this morning.

All the lights are off!! . Wat did i do?

1. Took the battery terminal out.
2. Fiddle with the air intake for a while check anything thats lose and there was 2 clamps that was a little loose. Tightened thos clamps put everything back together.
Remember i have the rotary extreme air intake system that i bought it off from a forum member.

So its all fixed now.

stasis1

ok guys took the car for a spin yesterday arvo.

Started out fine. and after abt 10 min driving the engine came on again!! So it went on blinking for a while on the freeway and when i came onto a stop and the light went off. Give it a go the lights went off blinking again. man it got me confused!!

But anyway as i were reaching home and engine light went off again and it stayed off. I havent driven the car since. Any ideas of wat i should do guys? Thanks

ODDDOOD

iTrader: (3)

blinking CEL is bad. get the code read and post here asap. it will be much easier to figure out.

Have you had any flooding incidents?

My CEL started blinking wildly and it took almost 6 months for MAZDA to find a failing Catalytic Converter. They never diagnosed it until the engine would not run over 3.5k rpm and there was NO power. New cat, plugs, wires, coils and was good for at least 10,000 miles.

DrewMan

it could possibly the crank angle sensor?

mine broke recently and was doing the exact same thing

stasis1

Well like i said before the damn dealers told me at first it was the coil, then the injectors in rotoe 1. I told them its impossible cos the power is there across all rpms. How did the dealers finds out that it was your cat converter? Was yours blinking all the time. Mine will blink a few times and it will go off.

ODDDOOD

iTrader: (3)

If you have full power across your rpm's then I would not think it was the cat, unless it is just starting to fail.

I brought mine in when the CEL first started blinking but no noticable power loss. They said it was because of not using "top-grade" premium gas. I proceeded to only use "BP, Shell, etc" from that point on. After about a week to two weeks, the CEL would just stay illuminated for a day at a time, then turn off. Power output started to fall with every day until I couldn't rev above 4k rpm. I took the car in and refused to take it back until they diagnosed and fixed the problem. About one week later they said they found the "nearly exploded" cat completely destroyed.

After they installed a new cat, it felt like a had a brand new car (power wise). I'm not sure what engine code was being thrown. That was before I got very involved here on rx8club and knew to ask for it.

Good luck and keep us posted.

ODDDOOD

iTrader: (3)

If they do find the cat to be faulty, get it replaced under warranty. If your car is not under warranty and the cat is found to be faulty, order a RP supercat and install it yourself. It has been my favorite up-grade yet. It sounds better than stock and I swear the car drives much better. My experience with the hi-flow cat is that RPMs don't drop so quickly once you disengage the clutch which results in a quicker revving and more responsive engine.

Also, I don't feel guilty because I'm doing what is legally required for emissions. As opposed to a mid-pipe which will throw a CEL and releases so many unburned hydro-carbons to the environment. And depending on the officer that notices could result in a somewhat hefty fine.

Good luck

stasis1

im still very skeptical if its the cat though. Cos the car had only done under 10k over the years. So.. .

I will keep you guys posted on this. But another option is to get the hmee's scanalyzer and diagnosed it myself .

takahashi

There are surely CAN diagnostic unit you can buy. Where is your 8 again? I am sure Indo will have CAN scanner... Yun may be able to get you one for Jaycar here

ODDDOOD

iTrader: (3)

If the car has ever been flooded, there is a decent chance that it is the cat (depending how they cleared the gas).

If the fuel got dumped into the exhaust, it will collect in the cat and then burn when the car is started. Just a possibility.

If the car has never been flooded, I doubt it is the cat. Either way, you should still get an RP supercat...they are sweet.

stasis1

Ok im dumb found. Wats a CAN scan? Is it something to plug with a laptop and connect it into the car? ANd the car is in Jakarta. And i was thinking of getting the Hymmes diagnostic kit. Will it help to source the problem?

Well finally i gotthe chance to clean the air filter today. And unplug the battery terminal and the engine went off!! Well the last time i disconnect the battery the engine light went off. BUT the light came back on after 10 min of driving.

I hope to test the car sometimes tonite if not tommorow though. Wish me luck boys.

The car has never been flooded before. But IF supposedly the cat is screwed where can i get a chepo ones?

Yudy

takahashi

CAN scan.... something that scan CAN protocol in your car.

One commercially available product. www.obdkey.com. It works!

stasis1

So i get this OBD key and it will work for the rx8? It will automatically know that the car is a rx8? I mean the obd key will know its an rx8 when its connected to the car?

All i have to do is connect the obd to the laptop and connect to the rx8 and i should b able to see everything?

takahashi

It will work on any car. CAN system in the RX-8 is not the only thing of its kind, most Mazda uses the same protocol and Nissan too. Any CAN able scanner will take the diagostic trouble code. This one works for everything, even later model of diesel engine (has to verify the latest Golf TDi, Timbo but I am looking at another car now ---- getting more expensive everytime... might just buy a 911 GT3 )

Have a laptop or Window CE with bluetooth - buy the bluetooth model. Less wire. I recommend you this because you are overseas and you can buy it off their website.

stasis1

ohh ok. So this one is better than hymees' or its just a cheaper thingy? But i will take it anyway since its cheaper than hymees product.

Ok wheres the damn com port located at for the rx8?

takahashi

All products are the same. Even Hymee one is not RX-8 specific. You can hook Hymee CANscanner in any Mazda

Hymee one you need a PC and cannot be used in racechrono, Window CE/Palm PDA, or Windows smart phone.

The port is under your steering wheel to the right

stasis1

Another thing i notice. When i just reset the warning light via undoing the battery terminal when i switch the engine back on and everything is ogg. I revved it randomly between idle and red line ( after the engine is watmed up and still no engine light. It camo on after driving like for about 10 min of easy driving. weird huh?!