I am a mechanic and purchased an RX8 in Ontario and drove it out to Saskatchewan. I had the foam all the way out there so driving a long distance does not get rid of it in all cases. It bothered me so I took it in the shop and took off the oil pan. The small amount of foam was just up around the dip stick tube because it is cooler there. I will never worry about it again although it can make checking the oil a little more difficult. BTW it it easy to take a pan off of an 8.

 

Hey Dave
You should install an Oil Temp gauge.

You would be really really ... REALLY surprised at the oil temperature (read lack there of) in the winter conditions.

On a cold day ... say -10c my temperature gauge won't even move (+60c)
And that's a long drive from Orangeville to Burlington

 

So if I install an oil temp gauge and it says my oil temps are low, what do you do to increase the temps of the oil? 60C is about 140F. Oil in my air cooled buel never got above 180F

I don't drive the 8 in the winter as we stay in Arizona during the Canadian winter.

 

then you'll get to see your oil temp at its other extreme, between 190-210

 

Oil at 190 to 210 is ideal. No problem.

 

I get a little warm in my seat when my oil temp reaches 210 as I know water is right behind it.

 

Yeah ideally you want your oil in the 200-210F range. Provided you run the right oil and change it often that is. But being turbocharged you might want to look into some upgrades in the oil and coolant cooling department. I struggle to get my oil above 205F so when hitting it hard oil and coolant stays in the 200F range even with the turbo adding heat to the coolant and the oil.

 

I have a 8 I live in England take out the dip stick and push a 18 inch hose pipe on the dip stick tube it act like a breather problem solved.safe driving

 

It has alot to do with the weather ..

 

I know that this is an old thread but I just read it.

Had this problem with my car a few years back, took to dealership for assessment. They said there was a problem with the dipstick tube allowing condensation to enter. Can't remember what they said they did if they replaced dipstick tube with a modified one or worked on mine, but problem was solved.

 

there's a retrofit kit you can buy but it's a PITA ... also resolves our second most popular thread title, oil in intake.

 

The symptom was partly solved. Foam still collects other places.
The problem is very very low oil temp in cold weather
Highway driving will never warm the oil to 80C (180F) in winter no matter how far you drive.
Although the oil coolers have thermostats and those are closed there is simply a lot of metal in the breeze and oil is always flowing through it.
Get an oil temp gauge then rig up some baffles to keep the oil coolers out of the breeze enough to get oil temps up. That will solve the problem.

(Make sure you take the baffles out in the spring)

 

I use synthetic in all my vehicles and have started to use in in my 2004 RX8, but I still have the problem some of these guys are having with condensation and foam. I removed oil cap and cleaned the dip stick, so after doing this and waiting while running for 20 minutes it cleared up. One of the guys had mentioned doing this once a week, but I have found that doing this three times a week keeps it clear. I also ventured into taking the PCV hose that runs from the side of the fill neck into breather and plugging the neck, then I made a connection on top of the filler cap. I kept noticing that the cap was getting full of condensation from evaporation, but since it was collecting past the PCV and in the cap I figured that the moisture at the highest point didn't have anywhere to go but back into the oil. This has seemed to fix the issue, I've been driving like this now for over a month and dipstick is clear.