Ok this has got to be the most monumentally stupid question, but are there any special tricks to driving a rotary engined car?

I'm not asking about racing, just good driving technique. For example, is there an optimal rpm for gear upshift during acceleration, and is it constant through all gears? (For ex the Miata always seemed to shift best around 5.5-6K rpm)

Don't y'all start laughing at me at once...

 

wish i had some advice to give on this matter......
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MARIJUANA STRAIN INDEX

 

I think it's a seat of the pants feel you will get from the car when you get it.. give it a few weeks and depending on your learning aptitude, the car should just become an extension of your body, like my car is now.

 

IF YOU WANT POWER.. REV IT.

 

It has gears...just like a Miata. Use them. In Normal, non-highway driving, probably 4th gear is as high as you'll go to keep the revs in the 4-5k range. 6th gear would be saved for highway driving...cruising over 60 mph. 4th or 5th gear would be used for acceleration over 60 mph. Just a guess, but that's where the Miata seems to work best. I use 4th all the way to 100 mph past 60 mph. But with the RX-8, you'll want to be in the 5-7k rpm range most of the time.:D

 

Pretty much what he said. Different shifting patterns for different needs and different drivers. Many Americans are afraid to come close to redline. Often because it sounds like it may explode. You won't find that the case with a rotary. Rev it til you dare and then some. It has a cutoff so you can't hurt it. Not recommending you cruise 10RPM below the cutoff. One interesting thing I've noted - most if not all car magazines when testing acceleration (0-60, 1/4 mile, 0-100, 0-120, and on to top speed) nearly always take the car to redline in every gear. You'll see that esp in R&T when they show speed in gears and the associated (RPM) level. IF you feel like flooring it every time you take off - do so. You'll find you hit the local speed limit rather quickly (mostly 25-35 around here). For everyday driving you may feel comfortable in the 3K range. If you want power in an instant you'll want to downshift to the appropriate gear to get in the 5-6K range. If you are autocrossing or on track - you'll may want to keep it in the 6K-9K range as you feel comfortable pushing your own car. It's not a stupid question. I still see a lot of people even here speculate on what oversteer or understeer is. [If you don't know, when on the snow, in a rear wheel drive car, if you turn the wheel and hit the gas you generally will experience 'oversteer'] And I've never taken the time to learn a proper heal/toe technique. Just don't generally have the need for it. If I was racing once a month or more you can bet I'd learn it. I can do it, just not comfortable around traffic. I'll certainly try to learn it in the RX-8 as I feel it's more likely designed to accomodate it more than most cars.

I went back and reread your question. I think the answer is to shift at a point where, after shifting, you are not lugging the engine. Kinda goes for any stick. Example, in my Miata, just around town, if I shift into 3rd or 4th, and the new RPM after shifting is under 2K, it will put too much stress on the engine. I generally keep it in the 2500-3500 range around town, sometimes 2000-2500 if just cruising (no hills either) or 3500-4000 if accelerating a little harder. In similar speeds in the RX-8 those RPM numbers will be a little higher - I doubt I'll ever have it much under 3000RPM. Hope this helps!

 

Like most of the other posters have said, it does depend on what your tastes/needs are. Rotaries are not known for their low-end grunt, so you will be revving the engine higher than usual for a comperable car. Redline on a rotary comes quickly, and without much fuss. I remember the first time I set off my shift buzzer. I was giving the car some juice and enjoying the moment when suddenly:

BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think I nearly wet myself. There is absolutely no protest from these motors when they rev.

There are couple of things to remember about rotaries, most of which have been covered in other threads, but briefly they are:

1) If you start your car, make sure it's completely warmed up before you shut if off again. Failure to do so may flood the motor.

2) When the motor is cold, keep the revs down, because excessive revving can warp the rotor housings over time.

3) Just because it's a rotary doesn't mean the redline is irrelevant. Mazda put that glorious 9500 redline there for a reason.

4) Have fun!

 

The first time my wife drove my miata she almost got wiped out by a transport truck. She was shifting at the same level as she did in her jeep, 2500rpm. When I told her to not shift before 4K and to have no fear if she hit 7K since the shutoff would save the engine, it was like giving her the keys to a candy store. We have never looked back.

 

Very good question and one that all those new to the rotary engine should be asking.

In the UK the first 1000 orders received free track day lessons worth about US$ 800 which is a must. I have a Audi TTC 225 which I drive in high revs to get the most response from the engine but with the rotary the revs will climb with less effort and the lack of torque but straight line acceleration needs to be understood properly.

Get some lessons or an automatic.

rael.

 

One of the things I'd like to mention is clutch slippage.

Many moons ago when I went from a toyota (22R engine) to my first rotary, I stalled it once in a while. Do NOT hyjack this thread, but there is a "difference" in the torque delivery between a piston (esp a larger 4banger) and the rotary.

Don't be afraid to rev the engine up before you pull the clutch pedal.

Next, I always shift around 7k or above in 1st, even if I'm not using my lead foot.

Don't lug the engine, row the gear box, and most of all have fun. You non-rotor transplants will be bit by the Rotor bug in no time!!

 

The power delivery is completely linear. There is no powerband "per-se" and no valvetrain thrashing at higher rpm. Set a cup of water on the hood and slowly bring the R's up and you'll see little difference in ripples in the entire RPM range. Sewing-machine smooth. Those sitting on the fence I suggest you take a test-drive.

 

An automatic ?! What did I ever do to you :-)

Well, ya know, there are other options, like reading the manual, asking people who know, and as somebody else pointed out, good old seat of the pants and experimentation. I learned a lot from the Miata club magazine (hey, will there be an RX-8 one?)

Actually I did know about the free UK lessons, but there won't do me any good in Hawaii - when I first moved here (from the UK as it happens) I tried to find a driving instructor to give me a couple of lessons on US driving - couldn't find one. (Needn't have bothered anyway - turn right on red proved to be the only difference).

If there any Brits here who are going to the introductory course, maybe they could let us know what information is covered?

 

In an RX-7, I rarely ever used 5th gear. I really had to be hauling to use 5th. The Rotary's power comes from high RPM. Keeping it between 4 to 5k gives you good pickup speed on the highway. Nothing worse then being in to high of a gear and trying to pass someone. Don't at all be affraid to get close to the red line. I assume that the RX-8 will have a redline buzzer to remind you where your at.

 

It does. There are videos, taken at the LagunaSeca, where it shows the buzzer going off at redline. Video is found in the RX-8 Multimedia/Photo Gallery forum.

 

Yes, I heard that buzzer go off more then once on my '84 GSL-SE RX-7. The Rotary just sounds good at those high RPM's.

 

Um, that's what downshifting is for.

 

BLAAHHahaHaHaHaHHHHaHaHaahAHahahahahaHahahaHahahah aHaHahaahahahahahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHA

WOOOOOORRRRRRRRDDDD!
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Yamaha Zuma Specifications

 

I wonder at what rev's the automatic changes the gears - and did Mazda set it for a fuel efficient drive or a sporty drive? I doubt we'll get the auto in the UK (as it's unlikely to sell) so it's probably a question you stateside guys can answer best.

 

I read about the new rpm warning buzzer in an article and it said the previous RX-7's "beastly buzzer" is now a very soothing chime-like beep. It also said the seatbelt warning buzzer gets louder and louder until you want to pull over and yank the fuse, if you could find it.

 

Um, or WEAR your seatbelt.

 

buzzer is at 8500, red line is 9000, yet a lot of the discussions about how to get to 60 fast involve running up to 9500. is this a rotary-ism that it's okay to run it there? i thought i saw a review in the early stages talking about 11000 redline.

just wondered since i've successfully bent a bunch of valves once. 'course it took the dealer about 3 months to figure out why my boost gauge no longer went past 1/2. i can't imagine what old codger mechanic they must have had around who finally told them to compression check the cylinders. apparently the diagnostic computer kept reporting random answers.

 

Well you won't have that problem with a rotary!