Hello all!

I have a new member thread that mainly involved my search for an 8. But I have since found myself a car so I thought I'd start a thread here so I can share my new "adventure" with this car.

I'll get some proper pics later on, but here's a pic I took of the car when I picked her up.



Some info on the car:
2004 model year, 6-speed manual, 75k miles on the chassis, 3500 miles on the motor. Previous owner did new coils, wires, plugs, intake, exhaust, lowering springs, clutch, flywheel.

Yesterday, I threw her on the lift while I was at work to do a trans and diff fluid change. Also to check out some other things on the car while I had it up on the lift.



I had intended to do an oil change as well, but it looked perfectly clean still. I decided to prioritize the trans and diff fluid since the previous stated it had been a decent while since those were changed. I'll do the engine oil next weekend or something. I did check the level and top it off, though.

The car also threw a P0610 code that morning as well. Don't worry. I searched on here. lol. I'll try all the ideas I came across in my search. Hopefully I can get away with not having to replace the PCM.

Anyways, that's all for now. Will post more later on.

 

Welcome to the addiction.
I wish I had a lift. If you still have a cat you mightvwant to drop it and inspect it to be sure it's still good.

 

Yeah, it still has the cat. Thanks for the tip. I'll inspect it next time. Although it will be getting replaced with a cat-less mid pipe pretty soon.

 

Looks great man!! Would love to see more pics of the car!! Do you know any back history on the car? It looks super clean!

 

Thanks a lot, man!

I will get some more pics on the weekend when I take it out again.

Most of what I know about the car is what I posted in my first post of this thread. Previous owner was also the original owner of the car, though. He even gave me the original window sticker for the car. Doesn't appear to have been in any major accidents aside from a few small dings. Also, if you look closely at the first picture, you'll notice the clear coat is fading on the roof and hood a bit.

I was actually surprised how clean everything underneath the car looked when I had it up on the lift. It looks like the guy took pretty good care of the car. It was mainly his weekend car.

 

I also want to point out that you have the Mazda accessory rotor center caps on your wheels. I ordered a set for my 8 and yours is the only other 8 that I've seen with those center caps. I'm sure they're out there but they are few and far between. They are not a cheap set to order new.

Here's one new just out of the package:



And here they are on my car. A pretty rare accessory indeed:

 

Well that's certainly nice to know that I have something that's no so common on my car. I noticed those when I bought the car and I thought it was a nice little touch.

 

It's not a lot, but I took a couple more pics of the car for you guys.









I also got around to doing an oil change even though the previous owner claimed to have done it recently. But he said he used 5w-20 conventional oil and I switched to Mobil1 0w-40 full synthetic after hearing about some decent reviews on that oil and also due to it being available off the shelf at a local parts store. And yes, I did a fair amount of reading in regards to dino vs synthetic oil and chose to go with synthetic.




And since I do plan to make this my weekend track car, I decided to start removing some of the interior. I just did the rear seats, some panels, and the carpet in the trunk for now.

 

What a beautiful 8! Its the color combo that I've been searching for for some time now, lol. Some nice add ons with that RB REVi intake and it looks like an aftermarket exhaust is on there as well.

 

Hey thanks a lot man!

Yes, that is an aftermarket cat-back. I think it's a Corksport exhaust. Two of the hangers broke on it, though. Now that I removed most of the interior panels, the rattling sound is a little louder. lol. I'll drop by an exhaust shop sometime soon and have some new ones welded in there.

 

Yeah, they'll get it taken care of pretty quick like. Will be a fun car to take to the track on the weekend that's for sure!

 

Yeah, I can't wait to get on the track with this thing. I can't wait to go the track in general. lol. I haven't been in a decent while since after trading in my speed3. Still got a few things I want to address before taking it out there. But I can already tell this thing is going to be tons of fun out there.

 

The balance of the 8 is amazing and the feel of the steering really sets it apart from other cars. I have had Corvettes and Porsche 944's, RX-7's, an MR2, and while they are fantastic cars with stellar handling, they just don't have the road carving feel of the RX-8.

 

This car certainly isn't anything special in a straight line. My 2nd gen Mazdaspeed3 I had prior to this was much quicker. But ever since I drove one for the first time a few years, I could tell it was something special. I've always valued the way a car felt and handled much more than it's straight line acceleration. Don't get me wrong, the feeling of quick acceleration from a powerful car is pretty awesome, but I've always enjoyed a well balanced and good handling vehicle over that. I am definitely glad I finally got myself one of these.

 

It's been a bit since I've updated this, but at the same time, I do not have much to update. lol.

Lately, I've been adding a little bit of Idemitsu premix oil to the gas. Just for a little peace of mind on combustion chamber lubrication.

I hooked up a little scan gauge reader I've had laying around as a leftover from my speed3. Figured it would hurt to have something to more accurately monitor coolant temps as opposed to the factory gauge. Temps stay at roughly 190-195 at cruising and 202-210 in stop and go traffic.

This gauge also had the option to monitor fuel trims. I've noticed my long term fuel trims range from +5 to +7 while driving and +7 to +9 at idle. Thought that was a little odd so I decided to clean the MAF and reset the computer. Cleaned the MAF and noticed the o ring was missing and was replaced with teflon tape. Figured maybe a small vacuum leak was causing the fuel trims to be what they were. Replaced the o ring. Idle sounds a little cleaner. Fuel trims are about the same still, though. I'm wondering if the check engine light currently has something to do with it. It's still throwing a P0610 code.

Going to do some more reading to hopefully find an answer. Unless anyone reading this happens to have any advice, it would certainly be appreciated.

Anyways, once that is sorted out, I'll probably be getting started on some cooling system upgrades. And hopefully I'll be able to take her for a test at the track sometime after.

 

From the FSM:

DTC P0610
DTC P0610 PCM vehicle options error
DETECTION CONDITION
PCM data configuration error.
Diagnostic support note
This is a continuous monitor (CCM).
The MIL illuminates if the PCM detects the above malfunction condition in the first drive cycle.
PENDING CODE is available if the PCM detects the above malfunction condition.
FREEZE FRAME DATA is available.
The DTC is stored in the PCM memory.

POSSIBLE CAUSE
Configulation procedure has not been completed
PCM malfunction

Diagnostic procedure

STEP INSPECTION ACTION
1 VERIFY FREEZE FRAME DATA HAS BEEN RECORDED
Has FREEZE FRAME DATA been recorded?
Yes Go to the next step.
No Record the FREEZE FRAME DATA on the repair order, then go to the next step.
2 VERIFY RELATED REPAIR INFORMATION AVAILABILITY
Verify related Service Bulletins and/or on-line repair information availability.
Is any related repair information available?
Yes Perform repair or diagnosis according to the available repair information.
If the vehicle is not repaired, go to the next step.

No Perform the "PCM CONFIGURATION", then go to the next step.
(See PCM CONFIGURATION .)

3 VERIFY TROUBLESHOOTING OF DTC P0610 COMPLETED
Make sure to reconnect all disconnected connectors.
Clear the DTC from the PCM memory using the WDS or equivalent.
Start the engine.
Is the same DTC present?
Yes Replace the PCM, then go to the next step.
(See PCM REMOVAL/INSTALLATION .)

No Go to the next step.
4 VERIFY AFTER REPAIR PROCEDURE
Perform the "AFTER REPAIR PROCEDURE".
(See AFTER REPAIR PROCEDURE .)

Are any DTCs present?
Yes Go to the applicable DTC inspection.
(See DTC TABLE .)

No DTC troubleshooting completed.

 

Thanks for the run down on what the code entails.

Looks like I will have to pay a visit to the dealership on this issue then.

 

My husband made a good point. If you like the stock wheels and intend to keep them, the price of the center caps is far less than a new set of wheels so the price is justifiable. I was like "Hey, thanks for giving me your blessing" haha!

 

A little update since I have not done so in a while.

Installed a Racing Beat race pipe. The dual resonated version.

Found out the previous owner wasn't so truthful on the age of the clutch, as it started slipping very slightly on me. Ordered a Exedy stage 1 clutch. Haven't gotten around to the install yet. I also decided to do the coils, wires and plugs. I figured better safe than sorry if the previous owner wasn't fully truthful on that part either. Went with OE coils(revision C), NGK wires, and OE plugs.

After that, the car runs absolutely beautifully now. However, I noticed a slightly inconsistent idle and my long term fuel trim has shot up to the +18 range. Thought it might be a vacuum leak, but after a relatively thorough investigation, I have not found a leak. I am suspecting the MAF after some searching around on here, so I have one on order. Will update afterwards.

I forgot to take pics with all the updates I just did. My apologies. Next time I do some work, I'll take the time to take some pics.