fisherdn

Guys here's one of those threads on shifting below 3750 rpm for better mileage:

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...highlight=3750

Its brief, worth checking out

WaterLogged

now where's the fun in 3750?

fisherdn

That's why I don't get very good gas mileage! Though lets be honest, its still not that great even if you abide by the 3750 rule.

chico elder

Yea........I read about shifting under 3750 in the AARP driving for retired individuals manual. Are you kidding??? I try not to shift unitl the rev limiter is about to beep. So much more exciting...so exciting I could probably steer with my erection. Sorry to much information there. But you get what I mean. (did I mention.........from the back seat). Ha!! Sorry guys boredome really gets to me. When is the next meet? Any thoughts?

fisherdn

Chico, there are so many things I could say....


Anyway, I remember you saying you'd never shifted above 5k! Now you're billy bad ***!

fisherdn

Good news guys, my car won't start!!!! Last time I drove it was sunday, been garaged the whole time. I go to start it, and nothing. This is fan freakin tastic. Might have to get it towed tomorrow, or I'll just leave it since I go out of town again saturday (and just hope it fixes itself by the time I return).

WaterLogged

Not turning over or battery completely dead? I've notice my car being harder to start since the last flash from Mazda. Have you gotten this one? I believe it's the one from the recall.

fisherdn

It turns over like a champ, but no starting. I got the most recent recall, I think it was about 5 months ago or so. I know flooding is a possibility with the 8, but it sat for 4 whole days. This sucks.

WaterLogged

If you're still under warranty you'll most likely get your tow covered as well as new plugs, flash & what-not. baseballgenius would know more, though. He's had this problem.

chico elder

Fish......Let me know if you need anything. I am off today so if you need a hand just call me.

fisherdn

Thanks L - they did get me a rental.

I got it towed in to the dealer. The first guy came with a dolly type tow (car rolls on 2 wheels) but he said he couldn't get it under the car, though he's towed 8's before (obviously mine's lowered) (and hey, there aren't many 8's around, and he's towed multiple??). Anyway, he called a flat bed, which towed me to the south county mazda. He said its likely flooding. I thought in 4 days it would have dissipated, but he said it won't deflood until the plugs are changed and the engine is deflooded. They got me a rental car, which I'll have to keep until wednesday when I return to St Louis (leaving town tomorrow).

Its my fault for only idling it for 2 minutes when I pulled it in the garage sunday night. I should have let it warm up more.

baseballgenius80

Here's my two cents from past experience fisher.

For one, always make sure that you have that 8 towed on a flat bed. The dealer told me that due to the way the traction control system works and what not, the drive systems is set up to the car almost identical to an AWD (all wheel drive) car. Towing any other way can really mess that car up.

Now to your problem. The reason the car did what it did is yes it is flooded. The cause: The 8 is designed with direct fuel injection. Meaning that every time you start the car, fuel is injected directly into the engine. So, if the excess fuel from the previous start is not fully burnt off, this causes a flooded engine upon your next start. Letting the car sit will not fix the problem, for the fuel will still be there. The best way to prevent this is prior to turning off the engine, rev the car up to 4k rpm three times in a row. On the third rev, turn the car off when it is above the 4k rpm mark. With the car off, and the engine revving down, the excess fuel from the direct injection will flush itself out. The 8 is notorious for this. Mazda is aware of this bug with the direct injection...but has no plans to correct it at this time. I have had this happen three times. But ever since I was told of the "three rev" method, it has not happened since.

Give it a shot next time, I hope it helps. You should get new plugs out of it from the dealer. Possibly also a new starter and battery. They replaced all three for me the first time it happened. Since then, the other two times only the plugs needed replaced.

fisherdn

So they gave me new plugs, a new battery and a new starter (which spins so fast I think they supercharged it, kidding its a new, faster spinning starter). It was in fact flooded, as I suspected and you said Phil. I let it idle for about 2 minutes, but that wasn't enough. They got it back to me in one day, so I'm happy to have her back.

Also, Phil, one thing. The 8 is not direct injection, but it does inject a lot of fuel when cold. Some of the new mazda vehicles (CX7, MS3) are.

baseballgenius80

I couldn't think of the correct term for it, but you get my drift. Did they flash it for you at all when doing that? They did some special flash for mine at the time. Mine is an '04 though. Can't remember the year on yours, which could make a difference.

sizzlin8

guys do cold air intake woid warranty?????

WaterLogged

So far mine is keeping me in warranty, but it's left up to the discretion of the dealer. Of course mine isn't readily obvious.

fisherdn

Sizzlin8 - There's a lot of info on the forum about this. If you buy mazdaspeed cai and have the dealer install it, it carries your warranty. Otherwise, I'd say it just depends on how nice your dealer is. Legally, the dealer would have to prove taht the intake you put caused whichever failure is in question (ex. if your engine went bad). From that stand point they can't just look at your aftermarket intake and void your warranty, that would be illegal. Try a few searches and you'll find everything you need.

chico elder

I have the same intake as Waterlogged. We both have the Revi intake with ram air duct. I asked the dealer directly and they told me it would only void those things related with the intake and another tech from the same dealership said no it doesn't. I think it depends on what make sense. (both from a dealership point of view and a legal point of view) It's basically an insurance policy - some claims go better than expected and some are a nightmare.

WaterLogged

Well, my 8 was hit once again...

This time I was picking up my asst. coach early Sunday morning at Lindenwood University on the way to a meet. Parked in front of his dorm waiting for him, a Jeep pulled up super close to me. I rolled down the window and I asked "can I help you?" (assuming the driver might be an RA or something and wondering why I was stopped in front of a dorm at 6:30).

"Can I help YOU? What are you doing?" he said in a sarcastic tone.

At this point I realize the two punk stoner-looking kids were definitely not RAs. Maybe it was the fact that at this point they lit up a one-hitter and passed it.

"I'm just picking up someone" I said and proceeded to roll up the window hoping they'd just **** off.

My asst. coach hopped in the car and I proceeded to drive away. They were riding my *** hardcore and I finally decided rather than have this kid rearend my car I'll pull over and find out what this kid's problem was. So I hop out of the car, walk back and he throws open the door (hitting me in the process) and jumps out while the jeep is still running and in gear. Like a genius he realizes this too late as it proceeds to slam into the back of my car.

"Ok, now I'll need your insurance information" I say.

"**** you" as he proceeds to hop in the Jeep.

His passenger, realizing he's in deep **** at this point hops out. I quickly ran behind the jeep to get the license plate and fumble for my phone to contact 911. The driver throws it in reverse and proceeds to try to run me over. I dodge out of the way and he continues to swerve to try and hit me. I finally got out of the path and he turns around and screeches off.

Working with the police I was able to find the jeep parked on the other side of campus. The kid apparently had a revoked license. He's also already in trouble with Lindenwood for 4-wheeling on campus property. The police assured me that he would be charged with leaving the scene of an accident and reckless endangerment. The campus security guy said he will be expelled from school since this is the second time local police had to be involved with this kid on campus property. I'm sure he'll just end up with a slap on the wrist since it always seems that kids like this end up skating through the system their entire lives.

Oh well, I just want my car fixed... again.

terretsboy

Damn kids and their rap music and their drugs... That sucks Bill. Hope everything works out.

WaterLogged

Hurry up and pass the bar Mike! I think I have enough business to keep you busy!

fisherdn

Sorry to hear Bill. At least you're ok. I doubt he'll get off easy, in fact you can probably call the pd back and find out what happened. I'm mainly concerned for your 8, she's had a tough go round.

chico elder

Sorry to hear that Waterlogged. How bad was the damage? At least your ok, the accident was not your fault, and you are insured. Let me know if you need anything.

WaterLogged

The damage is minor. The bumper is misaligned with several scratches on it and my license plate got bent up.

Thanks for your concern guys. I'll be fine. Just tired of my car being a big red target. Of course every car I've ever had has been through this. My luck is the suck.

fisherdn

Just fix the damage your self and put the payoff directly into the supercharger fund.