Hey guys, I know that you are going to tell me to search the forum for other threads regarding these questions but I have been searching and I haven't been very succesful in finding the info that I needed. But, I figured it was a good excuse to introduce myself and start posting on here.

I live in Peoria, IL and I am a mechanical engineer at Caterpillar in the track type tractors undercarriage division. I am into the St. Louis Cardinals and the Oakland Raiders and, of course, my wonderful 2 cars and motorcycle ('79 Kawasaki KZ 650 custom).

A little background on my history with rotaries... I have owned 2 rx7's and an rx8 now. I picked up an '84 gs with 60K on the odometer when I was 17 for $2500. I was 19 when it got rear-ended and totaled and I used the money to buy an '88 tenth anniversary edition which I still own. I got into rotaries because my dad had an '81 which he loved and never shut up about until he convinced me to buy my '84 and I thank him every day since. I was able to buy an '05 Shinka with 2200 miles on the odometer just last month and so far I love it. However I have a few questions concerning it (I know I am unfairly comparing it to my previous two cars but I can't help it cause the Shinka is the first "newer" car I have been able to afford and therefore have no basis for comparison).

1) What the heck is the burning plastic smell in the cabin? I have seen threads about this where the answer was anything from the clutch to the electronics of the thermostat. It is real sporadic and it only seems to happen when I have the defrost on. I have also been driving a manual since I was 16 and am now 23 so I hope that it is not my clutch operating ability. I am willing to take any criticism, but I havent toasted any clutches in the years that I have been driving my rx7s.
(My '88 had a new clutch on it when I bought it but I don't remember what it felt like as that was 4 years ago).

2) On the topic of the clutch, is the clutch so sensitive in the rx8 that you can feel its every instance of contact with the pressure plate and flywheel when depressing it or releasing it? It is so different from the rx7 clutches in the fact that they are much lighter and didnt seem to be as incredibly communicative to my left foot. I guess what I am saying is that it just makes me wonder if the clutch is normal or if there is a problem. I can elaborate further if I am being totally unclear, but I just get a lot of feedback on my foot when I am operating the clutch.

3) Is the throttle on this car "fly by wire"? Again, going back to the rx7, you can simply rest your foot on the gas pedal and the engine will rev up, whereas the rx8 seems alot less sensitive. Is this because it is not a direct cable linkage to the throttle body due to the traction control and stability control (i.e. fly by wire)? I have been having a fun time adjusting to this difference, namely in starting from a dead stop.

4) Finally (whew) when I bought the car there were some unsightly brake dust spots on the rims. It almost looks like someone got the dust on their fingertips and then grabbed the rims (little circles on the rims that are dark and discolored). I have tried everything that I can think of and even asked my uncle who details cars and he couldnt get them clean. I really dont want to have to strip the clear coat to get them clean but I will if that is the only solution left.

Thanks for any help that you can offer on these questions. If there is a link to a thread already that talks about the answers to these questions, by all means direct me there. I am sorry for the length but I wanted to get these questions all out in one thread. I am glad to again be a part of a car clique which is so unique and I am very thankful to have resources such as this. Thanks again guys!!!

 

Hello, welcome and good to have another engineer here!

I can't help you with most of your questions, except #3 - the drive-by-wire throttle. Yes, it's an electric motor, you can hear it squeal when you turn on the ignition and don't start the motor - give it some "virtual gas" and the tone of the duty cycle changes! The "gas pedal" is actually two resistor pots, one rises in resistance and the other drops. The throttle plate has two position sensors that work the same way.

The system makes the cruise control very precise - turn it on and it will hold the setpoint perfectly, there is no hunting or vacuum lag as it takes the slack out of a throttle cable, it is just ON, right now.

Have a lot of fun with the new car,

S

 

The clutch is pretty positive. My only recent MT comparison is my '87 Honda Accord, which I kept as a beater after buying my 8. When I drive the Honda after the 8, its clutch feels like I'm sticking my foot into a bucket of mush.

Everything about the 8 (clutch, steering, brakes, etc) feels so much more postitive than any other car I've ever driven.

Don't know about the smell. Mine had a distinct new car smell that my wife found unpleasant, but it was constant until it faded away after a month or two.

Don't know about the wheels. This is my first car with alloy wheels and I've been keeping them clean. If you decide to search on that, look in the "Show and shine" forum. Or maybe look for detailing-oriented fora elsewhere...I've stumbled on references to those in S&S threads.

Ken

 

There's a brake dust cleaner sold at walmart, comes in a purple spray bottle. It instantly turns caked in brake dust into a form that you can wipe away. I've bought a bunch of other stuff, but this one works wonders. On my third bottle now... just can't recall the name off the top of my head.

If it's a new car, you might smell a burning smell for a while because of the exhaust. The same goes if you buy an aftermarket exhaust - smoke and burning smell for a few days.

 

In regards to question 2)

I don't think there is a problem with you clutch. What you described is how I would describe mine. I drove a 89 RX-7 for years (and put a couple of new clutches in it) and it was totally different than the feel of the RX-8 engagement as was all the other manual cars I've ever owned.

Welcome to the forum and congrats on the new car. Post pics of it and your '88 10th anniversary rx-7 when you get a chance (I always wanted one of those).

 

Ummm... use to work for Solar Turbines in SD a CAT company.

Smell could be from residue of the plastic they use as a protective coating during shipping.

The smell will go away. Did you try brake cleaner?

Why fix rims? Just buy new ones. A nice set of wheels are much better than stock.

 

Hey shinka,

Welcome! You should head on up to Chicago for some meets. We have a pretty active rotary car club around here. Very informal group. You can get info on it in the midwest section here or at http://chicagorotary.com/.