MizShann

Hello RX8 people!!

I just moved to the Raleigh/Durham, NC area! Any good recommendations on a mechanic here?

Your input will be greatly appreciated!!

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

The RX-8 is still a car, doesn't require a special mechanic unless you are dealing with engine failure, low compression, or an engine rebuild. Most mechanics know nothing about the engine itself, but the rest of the car is otherwise a rather simple car to perform repairs and maintenance on.

Easy enough that many owners become knowledgeable about the issues and just handle everything themselves, including owners that never thought they were capable of doing so.



https://www.rx8club.com/new-member-f...t-here-202454/

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

To clarify. If you know what needs to be done ahead of time, any competent mechanic can do the work as long as it isn't rebuilding the engine.

If you bring it to a mechanic for them to troubleshoot, they have almost no chance of figuring it out. So if you run across a problem, come here first, we can diagnose it for you, then you can bring it to someone to tell them what to do.

Or we can show you how easy it is to do yourself, for even cheaper.

MizShann

Thank you so much for your reply! I am actually having an issue.... I don't know if this will make any sense, but whenever I try to accelerate, my car would "stall" and when I press the gas pedal a little harder, it would "jerk" (I think when it reaches 3000 RPM).... I've recently replaced my coils, spark plugs, and wires! So it's running a little bit better, but I'm still concerned about the jerking.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, that isn't normal. It should be buttery smooth the whole way to 9,000rpm with a slight surge of power spread from ~2,500rpm to ~5,000rpm.

Good on replacing the ignition parts, that is always the first recommendation we have.

A few quick and easy things to do that might solve the problem:

1: Turn the steering wheel completely to the right while parked, then reach in behind the driver's wheel to the spark plugs and wires. Make sure each plug wire is firmly seated on the plug. Sometimes they can pop free, or come loose. You can reach them right through where this picture shows the ratchet extensions passing through.


2: Buy a can of MAF cleaner from an auto parts store. Get a phillips screwdriver and gently remove the MAF, which is this flat piece secured to the intake tube, easy to get to.


When the MAF is out, it will look like this:


Hose down the MAF all around with the MAF cleaner. Like 2 seconds worth. Let it dry (it will dry super fast), then hose it all down again, and let it dry again.

Reinstall the MAF the same way you pulled it out. Be gentle with the screws anchoring it into the intake tube, just get them snug, don't try to tighten them or you will strip out the plastic they screw into.

3: Clean the E-Shaft Sensor. This one is harder to get to. It is down next to the front main pulley, and there is no really simple way to get to it, since the engine is so far down and back in the engine bay. From below is easiest, but that has it's own difficulties.


It is just a simple electromagnet within a plastic casing, so metal bits can get stuck to it from time to time. Clean them off to keep them from interfering with the signal it sends. Wiping it off with any rag will work for a cleaning method.

Once the ESS (e-shaft sensor) is cleaned, you want to reset the sensor profile. Turn the key to On (not "start"), and immediately pump the brake pedal a few inches, 20 times within 8 seconds is the standard, though focus on pumping fast more than trying to count to 20. The oil pressure gauge should sweep to the right, then back. That signals that the profile has been reset



If you still have problems, let us know, since there are other things it could be. This is just the easiest and cheapest possibility and part of good standard maintenance anyway, so start with that.