Ok, I got my RX8 yesterday (Sept. 18, 2004) and am happy to join you as RX owners. But the dealer told me to warm it up for 10 minutes if I have to go on a very short trip (and that's the rotary engine for ya). But the dealer said to do this only on cold days .

How long do you really warm up your RX8 to prevent flooding and how cold should the outside temperature be?

I've searched the forum and seen the techniques of some - like revving engine to 4000 RPM before turning it off but not waiting for a long time.

How many minutes is your "comfort zone" that you feel you wont be a victim of flooding? And how cold should the weather be ?

For example, if you have to chart outside temp vs. warm up time for short drives (less than 1-2 minute drive to my subdivision clubhouse or corner gas)

from 70 - 100 degrees ... no warm up needed ?
from 60 - 70 degrees .... 2 minutes warm up?
from 50 - 60 degrees .... 5 minutes warm up?
from 40 - 50 degrees ... 10 minutes warm up?
Below 40 ...................... 15 minutes warm up?

I'm just assuming I have the lastest ECU programming

 

i watch the temp guage. when it gets about half way, i add 5 mins from that point. this is because the fluid warms up much faster than the metal parts in the motor.

 

First of all....Congrats on the purchase!!

I have had my car about 3 weeks and what I do is to ensure that the needle in the temp guage is at the normal operating temp (usually only takes about 4-5 minutes), then rev the engine to 3000 rpm (hold it there for about 10 seconds) then shut it down. So far I have had no problems. That is only for short trips (ex. backing car out of garage to wash). Longer trips, I don't do anything special......just shut it down normally.

Where at in NC are you located?

 

most days two minutes would be fine. that's just for a quick start and stop (like backing out of the garage to wash it). If you drive it more than 60' you should be fine to shut it down. I've seldom ever 'revved' it for shut down. Just turn the key off.

Since you just acquired it - I let mine idle for 20 or 30 minutes the first morning I had it home. I think it a good idea to keep the revs < 6000 I think it is during the first 600 miles. I then increased to 7K to 700 miles, 8K to 800, and hit 9K a few times before 1000 miles. Then I took it to Deal's Gap / the Dragon in NC. Recommend you do the same!!

 

Hey man, I'm in the Triad area ... where are you from?

 

I'm in the triad area also.......about 15 minutes from Greensboro NC

 

I thought this was all a thing of the past, with all the flashes?

 

I'd say at least until the temp gauge is at the half way point then add a few minutes to make sure.

 

You're confusing several seperate issues.

There was a flooding issue, which M flash appears to have fixed.

There is the issue of reving the car before shutoff, which helps get fuel out of the motor before it's turned off. This was supposed to help with flooding, but it's good to not have unburned fuel in the motor, especially if it's sitting for a while.

And then there is the issue of warming up the car properly before you start to rev it and push it, which means getting all the engine parts up to speed, and not just the fluids.

 

Here's a situation. Say I drive down to the gas station to have my engine oil and transmission fluid checked (AT RX-8). When they get to the transmission fluid, they tell you to start up/stop the car. Would this pose a problem, considering the car has been driven around before getting to the gas station? Obviously I would prefer not to have to make a big fuss and rev the engine before shutting down.

 

Thanks for clearing that up for me. Regarding the above, warming up just takes a minute right? for the gauge to go just above halfway?

 

I'm 15 minutes away from Greensboro too!

 

The gauge is misleading because it only tells you the temp of the fluids, not of the engine.

The engine itself takes longer to warm up, usually about 5 mins of driving should be enough. The reason why warming up the engine properly before you start blasting is because the engine parts are made out of different metals, and so they expand differently. You don't want to bang on it while parts are not in the proper operating temp.

I'm not sure how long it takes for the fluids to reach mid way - my fluids actually are below midway because I have water wetter in there.

 

I usually let it warm up for a couple of mins before I move the car to get the fluids going...I then baby it while driving for another 5min or so untill the car is warm.....then I can start getting into the throttle.

 

Here is a current thread in the Aussie section. Click the link below

Warm your engines- or else

REgards

 

Warming the engine properly is important.

I let it idle for two minutes before I start to drive in the morning. Then I drive it easy (no more than 4k rpm, or less) for at least the first 6-8 minutes. After that, you should be pretty close to fully warmed up.

More time would be necessary if you are in a cold climate (I'm in SoCal)

 

Just be careful while warming your car in the early morning. If you go outside and start it, then go back in the house for more joe, your car might be missing when you go back outside. Polished car theives use this scenario to jack your car. I fill up my mug with joe first, then sit in the car each morning listening to the headlines while it warms up. Just a thought since Winter is coming...

 

The car is fully warmed when the coolant gauge moves off the peg and heads "north".

Moving the car, to avoid the flood issue, I just wait for the engine to come off high-idle before shutting it off - normally about a minute from an ice-cold start. Once the idle drops below 1000 rpm, the engine is out of "cold start/rich" mode, and is much less likely to flood.