My 2004 MT RX-8 is on its last leg I think. Not sure what the problem is exactly but I am certain a new Engine is necessary. Probably a new cat as well. Is this something that a dealer can do? Or only rotary specialists?

Any recommendations in DC, VA or MD?

Also, how much should I expect to pay for parts and labor for a remanufactured engine?

 

Sadly Whitney Automotive (Ray Whitney) is no longer in business in the Chantilly Area. Brown Mazda had a good reputation though but will be expensive.

 

A rotary-specific compression test will tell you if your engine is failing. Any symptoms you can tell us about ?

One of the closest expert rotary dogs near you is JPR Imports in south NJ, about a two and half hour drive from the DC area. Of course there are several other top rebuilders recommended by forum members here like: BHR racing, Pineapple Racing, Pettit Racing, Racing Beat, Rotary Performance, but much further away from the DC area. This is not a complete list, there are other expert rebuilders out there.

http://jprimports.com/
http://black-halo-racing.myshopify.com/
http://shop.pettitracing.com/
http://www.pineappleracing.com/
http://www.racingbeat.com/
http://rotaryperformance.com/

There may be others closer to you, hopefully someone with a good experience with another closer rebuilder will chime in here.

 

Mazda should pretty much be your last choice, it's often the most expensive. The dealer is not allowed to rebuild the engine, there is a facility for that, but they will have to take it out and put the new one in, which takes some experience to do correctly.

Want to tell us what the symptoms are? It would suck to get a new engine and immediately inherit the root cause of the current engine's problems.

 

You can get a Mazda reman for $3250 including freight shipping to you... Then you just have to get your old engine back to them or pay a $1000 core charge. Still, get it installed and then drive it down yourself.


ENGINE, SHORT M/T. ENGINE & GASKET SETS for 2004 Mazda RX-8. #N3H302200RV0

 

If after diagnosis of your symptoms (rotary compression test, etc) you still find you need a rebuild, you may be able to get it done for less that this one listed from Jim Ellis Mazda in Atlanta. It will all depend on what salvageable parts there may be in your used engine.

First, what symptoms are you having? As Loki says, you need to know what may be causing your issues. We can help with feedback here if you tell us what is going on.

Second, get that rotary-specific compression test. The only real way to know if you have low compression or not.

Third, if you have low compression, then do some shopping around with these rebuilders and find the best estimated price, along with any shipping, removal and installation costs. Once any rebuilder has your engine apart, they will be able to know what, if any, parts are salvageable for a rebuild. If you have any salvageable parts, that could reduce your total costs of the rebuild. There may be NO salvageable parts, but it is worth the look.

 

Pettit did mine, he will sell a complete Off the Shelf engine and use yours as a core. I have heard that mazda remans are hit and miss.

Rotary Resurrection, I think, will sometimes have a complete engine. But, that is a far north as I know.

 

Thank you for your responses. I have 73,000 miles on the 2004 MT RX-8. The symptoms I am having are

1. Excessive oil consumption (1 quart per 250 miles)
2. Clouds of white smoke at startup until the Engine is at operating temps (5-10 minutes)
3. Occasional missfires (P0300) when trying to drive the car hard. (I have new sparks, coils, wires)
4. The Catalytic Converter gets very hot! The metal bracket holding the passenger seat to the floor gets super-hot after driving 1+ hours.

They could all be related. Don't know. I have not had anyone look at the car yet. The excessive oil started first. I used to use Royal Purple 5W30 for 10 years. But then the car started consuming oil more and more frequently, so I switched to mineral oil 5W20 or 5W30 cause it was started to be expensive just dumping Royal Purple in there. The oil has to be consumed somewhere in the engine, since there is not a drop anywhere else on the ground. I was putting a quart per week into the car since I drive a lot. In the last few weeks I switched to 10W40 Castrol High Mileage. It has helped a lot. Now the oil is consumed much more slowly. I also use premix in the gas tank.

I am guessing my cat is gone. But the engine still seems to run just fine when the engine is hot. I redline it regularly and drive it aggressively once fully warmed up.

From what I am reading online, maybe the oil control ring/seal is worn out and hence all the oil is dripping into the Engine when its still cold? I also checked the intake and there is no sign of excessive oil in the filters or the tubing. The coolant is fine. Nice and green without any weird smells or oils.

I should do a compression test, but my question is will the compression test be valid with a bad cat and/or the smoke issue? And if the compression is bad and the cat is bad, I assume I need to fix both at the same time otherwise it will just cause more problems in the replaced part.

 

I agree that it sounds like your cat is clogged. This could lead to irreparable engine damage (if it hasn't already) so stop driving your car until you diagnose the cat. It's not hard to disconnect it from the exhaust manifold and have a look to see if the catalyst matrix is clogged or disintegrating. Be aware that not seeing an obvious problem doesn't mean it's fine; it just means it's not an obvious problem.

It doesn't sound like your CAT is clogged enough to matter for a compression test. The engine just isn't pumping that much air at 250-ish RPM.

 

I got the compression test and Rotor 1 has reading of 6.2 and the other has readings of 7.1. Looks like at the minimum I have fix my Engine. I've been calling some of these rotary mechanics but none seem to answer their phones

 

im in north carolina i can build you a motor usedcarpartss@aol.com

 

Like Charles of BHR suggested, leave a message. I know many of these modern guys, like Jim of JPR Imports, will respond quicker to a text message or email. Try that. They do want your business.

 

I tried to call Jim's number online (856)-227-1808, but that is a landline so no texts. I did leave a message.