respectfully... the FD twin turbos were lasting 50-75k, I've seen NA 3rd gens with 200k miles on the factory apex seals... and while the cooling systems are similar, I did say the FD had an insufficient cooling system, it was insufficient for a twin turbo setup which generates a lot more heat! as far as oil is concerned, I agree with you on the 5w-20, I run 10w-30 (would like to go thicker in the summer but not sure if the injectors could handle it at higher rpm's), I do however wait the recommended 7500 miles, I top off my oil every other tank of gas and even at 7500 miles it still looks nice and clean because it's constantly burning it off... if I were racing I'd do it a lot more often but I don't see it as an issue in the normal commute. with the programming, I believe you're mistaken... Mazda runs the car on the rich side to prolong cat life... thank California for the shitty programming, if it weren't for the emissions standards we'd be seeing a notable power difference from our cars (I've read that a 45hp difference has been achieved on a stock RX8, don't know how true it is, but I would love to find out)... do I think my car will make 300k? I doubt it, but I don't think 150-200k will be a problem and I'll honestly be surprised if it doesn't make it to at least 100k... the rotary still has imperfections and mazda has made a few mistakes and had some bad manufacturing instances (like bad housings, coils...) but the RX8 is no more problematic than any other car, just different... this all reminds me... I saw an 05 RX8 with a Greddy turbo kit, original motor, and 119,000 miles (turbo installed at 20k)...

 

What is "real?" How do you define "real?" If real is what you can feel, smell, taste and see, then "real" is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain.

 

Someone just got home from philosophy class.

 

Or he just rewatched "The Matrix" . . .

 

I basically agree with all of this, but I do not personally believe the revised OMP/injector on the 09+ will resolve the issues entirely. It will certainly help...how much, remains to be seen. I think it is like putting a band aid on a bullet wound. Maybe I will be proven wrong.


I actually know a lot more MT owners with replaced engines. My early build 04 AT made it 117k on original engine before I tore it down, and could have gone significantly longer in reality based on what I saw in teardown.

 

No, because there were never any NA 3rd gens. I guess you mean 2nd gens, and yes I have seen some with over 200k as well. They are still the exception rather than the norm, as I have parted out a couple hundred 2nd gens in years past, and also built a couple hundred more 2nd gen engines. Average for the 88 and previous non turbo rotaries was 150-175k, and 89-91 was 125-150k. Some died earlier, some died later, the majority fall into those areas.



I would agree with that, but I was pointing out that the same exact cooling system found its way into this car as well. I would call it sufficient, but not by a large margin, for this application. I am not a track guy, but I would bet weaknesses show up in a hurry for track use.



I dunno man, I would still call that suicidal. I would never dream of stretching a rotary engine oil change past 3500 miles under ANY circumstances. Hell, I run full synthetic castrol GT in my denali, and even then I never let it go beyond 5000 miles. With the relatively low cost of oil (compared to dealership troubleshooting visits or parts costs) I just don't see the reasoning behing taking the chance. Oil is the life blood of the engine. 2500-3000 mile oil changes may be overkill, but with rotary engines you need all the help you can get for reliability's sake.

Remember that rotaries tax the oil supply FAR greater than "normal" cars. Oil not only lubricates in our engine, but it does up to 40% of the cooling as well. And not only that, we have cars that are geared pretty insanely, like an older MR2 or something, so we regularly spin 4 or 5 grand consistently. This heats up the oil a LOT. Consistent heat breaks down the lubricating properties of oil.

Also note that rotaries CAN fuel-dilute the oil. On rx8s this does not seem to be too much of an issue. Probably because of the much more precise fuel injection control, and the cutoff ring helping oil sealing. However it is still possible given the design of the rotary, to get fuel diluting the oil supply, and making it less able to do it's job. Go ahead, pull out your dipstick and walk away from the car a couple of feet, and tell me you don't smell a bit of gas on there.

So why take the risk of running oil that has seen a lot of heat and potentially begins to break down, or oil that is even 5% gas diluted over all those miles, and potentially begins to break down. About 15 bucks is all it costs to prevent even the possibility of this.


If you re-read what I wrote, I said "lean OMP ratio", not "lean FUEL ratio". Yes, mazda fattened up the fuel mix, but the oil/OMP injection ratio is probably too lean. Check out my "117k renesis teardown" thread for more information and visual proof.

 

So with all the changes/improvements made to the '09, and assuming the use of 10W-30 changed at intervals of 2750 miles and/or 3 months, how many miles do you think the revised engine is good for (give or take 10K)?

A couple of the '09 owners here have reported that the new engines seem to be using noticeably more oil than their previous RX-8s, which might be a good sign in terms of longevity...?

 

I bought my 8 in October of 2004 and have driven it in all seasons. I have yet to experience the flooding issue. The only thing I do differently from other cars I have had is swap tyres in Spring and Autumn.

I've had better luck with Mazda products than with products from Nissan, Ford, Chevy, Isuzu (though it was cool for a while owning a car designed by Guigario), Plymouth, or Dodge.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should clarify that I have, historically, used 3000-3500 miles oil change intervals on all of my cars.

 

Looks like Stealth took out that crap about "socialist" tax plan. RX26b, you **** for brains, no religion or politics on this forum.

 

aren't there forum rules against these kinds of posts/comments? mods?

 

and neXib, i apologize if you felt at all offended, insulted, or belittled by what i saw in some posts from the previous page, which is not representative of what all americans are like...

 

I've met many different americans, so I don't take one opinion and jugde all Americans by that And no, I don't take it personal either way.

When it comes to these cars and oil changes and all. For me it's the point that do you want to save 50 bucks on delaying oil changes and having an engine failure being more possible, or do you want to take care of your car. I want the latter. I spend a shitload of money on my car.

 

I totally brain farted the OMP into AF, my bad, and you're right, the 200k rotary was a 2nd gen, I definitely see your point on the changing oil thing, $23 every 3k is a lot cheaper than $110 an hour to diagnose a problem and then the cost of fixing it... and considering that our engines do run a bit hotter than your standard motor the oil would break down faster... I've seen a couple 40-50k Renesis teardowns that were a tad disconcerting... seems a combination of insufficient lubrication and hot spots at the OMP injectors cause heat cracking around the opening to the OMP (I'm sure you've seen this), I'm considering premixing... I'm just worried I might screw it up, or if my engine does go and I've got a tank of premixed fuel (and an oil pan full of 10w-30) Mazda is gonna look at me and say... oh well, the new engine is gonna cost you $6k... to be honest, I just wouldn't be able to afford that... if I could, I'd already have a 20b in there...

 

I also have yet to have the engine flood on me. The car for the price is absolutely a pleasure to drive and makes me smile every morning on my way to work.

 

I was also terrified of flooding every time I got into the car and to be honest, I haven't tested it 100% yet, I'm still too paranoid, why take the chance...I always just make sure the temp guage shows the car is warm before I shut it off so if I've only driven a block or so in cold weather, I'll wait a few minutes or rev it up to 3K to get all the excess out and then kill it.

An example of how rare I consider flooding to be: My friend and I both have '04s and we had another 8 owner over with an '06 Shinka. Well the Shinka would not start, we didn't know why. I looked at my friend and said "Do you think it's flooded? Do you know what that even sounds like?" He said he didn't, he'd never actually flooded his. I said me neither. Neither had the Shinka. (Turns out he was just out of gas and his guage was off.)

Something we all talk about and know about but probably few of us have actually experienced. The only person I know who has flooded theirs said it was because they turned it on in cold weather, drove it three feet down the driveway and shut it off. Makes sense. Just don't do that.