TullioRX8

Hi RX8 lovers,
i recently replaced my 13B engine with an import after my old engine collapsed apex seals and lost compression.
Everything has been fitted and battery fully charged. It cranks but does not start. CHECK ENGINE light does not show on panel with ignition ON. It used to and would go off after engine starts. Plugged in scanner and it returned error code PO0610. What could be the fault? The electricals have never given me any trouble for past 3 years. Please help.

200.mph

iTrader: (9)

did you reset the ess?

CaymanRotary

Did you check if it has fuel pressure? Did you check coils plugs and wires for spark?

Edit: even with a PCM issue, the car should still start.

P0610 is a PCM configuration code.

Possible causes

Configuration procedure not completed
PCM malfunction.

TullioRX8

Thx guys for all the info.
I checked fuel pipe on ignition ON position and plenty pressure on fuel line. I also tried to check spark on leads but nothing there.
Am now thinking it’s something to do with ECU.

CaymanRotary

So you've checked all wires for proper continuity, checked your coils with the tool and verified spark plugs are producing spark? I still find it strange that it wont start. Are you sure it isnt flooded? You could try a deflood procedure and see if it kicks on.

A bad ecu it should still start. Probably wont run well but it should at least start.

TullioRX8

Am guessing it will never start if CEL does not light up with key in ON position.

TullioRX8

Ok so, I’ve just realized in order to get the correct help from ya’ll, I need to also mention that the Japan import engine is a 13B with the extra 2 ports on the intake manifold of which I removed and fitted the old intake on so as not to confuse the electricals. I plugged the 2 holes on the engine block as a modification. I heard from someone that this has been done before.
Many ideas.

dannobre

iTrader: (3)

So you have a 4 port ECU with a 6 port motor and a 4 port manifold?

mazdaverx7

iTrader: (6)

How did you plug the extra ports? I feel like this is a recipe for disaster. The engine will likely never run right as it's the high power version and needs the extra ports that allow more air in at higher rpm's. The 4 port and 6 port engines are vastly different.

I also wanted to ask if you've pulled the plugs to verify if the plugs were fouled with gas or not.

CaymanRotary

ummm... this was a very bad idea, it’s more difficult and expensive to do this type of conversion. There is a thread about it though. You will have to get 6 port intake manifolds, ECU etc. to get this working properly. Why didn’t you just get a 4 port engine? You could have saved yourself a whole heap of trouble.

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-spe...4/#post2563386

TullioRX8

Ok so, I want to believe a 4port motor has 2 Rotors and a 6 port has 3 Rotors.
I can confirm the import has 2 Rotors.
The difference was the intake. The import had the 2 extra holes which had 2 piston like thingys that I removed and plugged the holes so I could use the old manifold. I was hoping this would normalize sort of downgrade the new engine.

TullioRX8

I sent the dealer in Japan my chassis number and he said the engine would work perfectly. He didn’t tell me it’s an upgrade 13B and thus my situation now. I appreciate your help guys really. Please guide me in the right direction as this is very frustrating especially that I promised my wife that the car would be ready before Xmas. 🤦🏻‍♂️

CaymanRotary

They really screwed you over and sent the wrong engine. This is going to be very expensive and time consuming to solve I'm afraid. 6 port conversions require many component changes to work properly including and not limited to ECU, Intake and wiring harness.

Who installed this for you? Did the engine come with the transmission? What exactly has been swapped over?

CaymanRotary

Ohhh man... you really should have researched this a lot more. I'm starting to really feel sorry for your lack of knowledge this far into your build. All the information is widely available on this site.

Loki

iTrader: (1)

Yikes. Yeah, they really screwed you. It's not an upgrade per se, the 6 port is the most common version of the engine. 4-port and 6-port have the same number of rotors, you have a lot of catching up to do on how all of this works. The dealer just doesn't know how to tell them apart, I guess. However, there should have been alarm bells going off during installation when you found the extra ports. Do you have some confirmation this engine is actually good? Is it used or freshly rebuilt?

I'm not sure what the right direction here is. The cheapest/fastest option is to pull the engine out, sell the car car shell and buy a manual RX8 with a blown 6-port, and drop this motor in there. Finding a 4-port engine in good shape is expensive/unlikely. You may be able to swap your 6-port + cash for a fresh 4-port from RotaryResurrection (on this forum), Pineapple Racing, Pettit Racing or another qualified rebuilder. Where are you located again?

Have you contacted the dealer about this? If you gave them the chassis number, they should have caught this on their end too. To be clear, this is a Mazda dealer?

What exactly did you plug the extra ports on the block with? Short of welding them shut, I can't think of a safe way to do that.

CaymanRotary

Great advice. Best bet if you did this yourself is swap this into another RX8 6 port with a blown motor. If you did this through a dealer you need them to get the 4 port engine on order and take out what they put in. I find it hard to believe Mazda would be this incompetent though to actually not catch that it was a 6 port engine before install.

TullioRX8

The engine came complete with it’s harness. No transmission. No ECU. I didn’t order them with coz practically I figured it would be a straight forward fit. 😕 My brother and I basically removed and did what we could as explained above. I now have a feeling I will have to reverse all the wrong we’ve done and put stuff back the way it was. Then maybe get correct ECU for the new harness and maybe transmission Aswell.

TullioRX8

Where are you located again?

Have you contacted the dealer about this? If you gave them the chassis number, they should have caught this on their end too. To be clear, this is a Mazda dealer?

What exactly did you plug the extra ports on the block with? Short of welding them shut, I can't think of a safe way to do that.[/QUOTE]

Am in Zambia 🇿🇲 my fellow Rotarian, and engine came from www.Beforward.jp
plenty spares here mate. They are not Mazda dealers just car and parts resellers.
I used steel plugs, you know the kind that fits on engine blocks to seal water jackets.
I appreciate your help. 👍🏼

CaymanRotary

you best bet is in Loki's advice and buy a 6 port RX8 with a broken engine and swap the one you got in. Sell your 4 port as a shell to help fund buying the new 6 port car.

TullioRX8

Clearly you should have been my neighbor. ☹️
Anyway, am gonna run this by you all for some clever feedback.
My previous engine was as perfect as you would want the 13B to be. No problems whatsoever. Then suddenly one of the apex seals collapsed and that was the start of my problems. I have since stripped that engine and found everything still in very good condition as I bought the car with only 18,000kms and drove it to 68,000. So now my question is, if I open up the new engine, can I use the rotors from there and use my old engine parts to bring it back to normal as before?

TullioRX8

Am in Zambia 🇿🇲 my fellow Rotarian, and engine came from www.Beforward.jp
plenty spares here mate. They are not Mazda dealers just car and parts resellers.
I used steel plugs, you know the kind that fits on engine blocks to seal water jackets.
I appreciate your help. 👍🏼

Loki

iTrader: (1)

You can interchange the parts between the engine, but if you're going to take them apart, it would be best to get new seals. I certainly wouldn't reuse any of the water seals. How long do you want this rebuild to last? If you mix and match parts together, you may get an engine that runs but needs another rebuild in 10k. If you want a long lasting rebuild, you need to do this by the book with fresh or confirmed-good parts.

Also apex seals very rarely just up and fail. What are the actual problems you experienced? What diagnosis was performed to narrow down the apex seal? How do you know the root cause of the problem isn't still on the car? Do you have some confirmation the new used engine is actually good?

TullioRX8

Loki you are definitely someone who knows their stuff. Am so glad you are on this forum.
My engine failed after about 200kms of a wrong spark plug that a mechanic fitted. The earthing piece broke off the plug and caused the apex seal to dislodge. Luckily I switched off engine immediately I noticed the misfire and towed home.
Yes I have confirmation the new engine came off a running RX8 with 43,000kms. According to vehicle profile, it was badly damaged on the side pillar between the doors after major impact by another car.

CaymanRotary

Wow, things are really bad in Zambia. Even though this engine should work you should get it compression tested after getting it running.