Hi i'm from brunei and purchased a japanese spec se3p rx-8 yr 2004. Been using it for 3 months milage 25k and all of a sudden it wont start anymore.

I change the exhaust to a hks legamax for the first month. Drove it around and it was fine, then i replaced the centre pipe with a straight pipe, and drove it around. It was all fine and dandy and then it won't start anymore.

This happened 6 months ago, i tried sending it to the agent where i bought it but they say they can't be responsible. Went to the mazda dealers and also say they cant accept it due to they dont have OBD to detect DTC. Tried soo many things to start, but finally i manage to start it by using the alcohol method (deflooding procedure). When running i had to rev it high cos it wont idle properly. It kept on dying. I read from Hymee of aussie that they have a sCANalyser Live that will detect wats the problem. Wil that help me really?

Now it just sits at home and collects dust. Theres no proper workshop to handle bacause its a new engine design and is mosly electronic. So help me guys before it become a 60kBND pile of junk.

Thanks and regards

 

Pretty hard to diagnose a car in Brunei !

....but here goes - the only thing we have to go on is that it ran when you deflooded it, but would not idle.

To me this sound like badly fouled sparkplugs, maybe only one out of four is firing. New plugs are quite expensive, but the old ones are probably just badly fouled, a clean with brake cleaner solvent and maybe a gentle sand blasting will put them right.

Turn the motor over without the plugs, to clean it out, then re-install them. Make sure the battery is fully charged, then try to start it.

If it still doesn't start, you have more serious problems, but maybe it will run, total cost = a little labor!

S

 

4got to mention. installed new sets of spark plugs already. still the same, nothing's change.

 

Check the coils, one or more can be shorted or overheating.

 

Ahhh... you must be the one with the winning blue, license plate XX 2002, working in shell. Last thing I heard, your car was losing compression, only crankable when oil is pour into the manifold. Try PM rotarygod.

 

first thing you need to do is determine that the engine is proper by having the compression checked. Is there anyone in your area that has a rotary engine compression tester?

 

Guys, he's (RX8 Brunei) gonna need a lot of help from everyone on this one, as far as I know noone in my country is actually competent enough to fix it.

 

I would try swapping back the OEM exhaust and then taking it back to the dealer. At that point they can't really refuse you. Do you still have the original components?

 

Yup that's me (but i'm not working in shell). That's wat the mechanics said, lost compression w/o checking the engine with compression tester.

Engine is crankable but no start. Manage to start it by injecting alcohol to maintenance ports (deflooding).

 

haven't check the coils yet. that'll be the next..

 

i second u. the truth is that in Brunei there's so many mechanics claim they're rotary experts (but problem unsolved)... wat an imposter

 

Do you think your apex seal are busted???

 

as per rotarygod, if the engine manage to start then apex seal is still ok.

 

In my mind, the only way to get rid of this problem is to purchase Hymee Scanalyzer etc. I should get one a.s.a.p.

 

Well... your engine doesn't start properly, does it

 

mmmm... meaning? kindda hard to start i think.

 

I'm no expert but since the engine has so little moving parts and you are losing compression, i thought it might be some of the seals. So what did rotarygod say???

 

RG 1st reply to my msg:

rotarygod is Offline:
Heavy Metal Moderator Join Date: May 2003
Location: Houston
Posts: 3,378

Re: engine flooding & lost compression

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Try pull starting the car behind another one. This will always start it. If it is severely flooded it will run rough for a few minutes. You may have to hold your foot on the gas so it doesn't die. Drive it around for a few minutes and see if it gets smoother. It should. If it doesn't and still won't idle after several minutes then you may have engine problems. If your apex seals are broken, you won't get the car started at all.


Quote:
Originally Posted by RX8 Brunei
greetings mate.

i am one unlucky 8 owner in Brunei who encountered flooding problem.

i'd like to ask u a few q's since u're one of the experts in the forum.

i think my 8 got flooded last 3 weeks. the engine does crank and hard to fire up a month be4 that. and i've changed the cat-pipe with custom pipe.

sure i admit that i'm a careful owner. warming the engine at least 5min be4 drive & shut down at least 5 mins. i always check the dipstick once per day.

i thought that my driving habit (aggressive) may lead me to the problem. i always floor the gas till 220km/h for at most 45mins/day.

the mechanics here claiming that the apex seals have broken. sure i dont believe coz there's nothing to do with detonation & knocking. they also claim the engine had lost compression.

i manage to start the car by the help of deflooding procedure in the forum. but then the engine cannot maintain in idle (rpm drops below 1K then engine die).

can u figure out what the real problem was??
reset ECU do any difference?? what should i do for the next step??

thanx in advance. i really appreciate 4 ur help.

 

RG's 2nd reply

rotarygod is Offline:
Heavy Metal Moderator Join Date: May 2003
Location: Houston
Posts: 3,378

Re: engine flooding & lost compression

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If the cat is dead you will definitely have to replace it. I would use a straight pipe instead of a cat until you figure out what is going on. You might have fuel issues such as an injector getting stuck open or closed. First things first, get the exhaust fixed.


Quote:
Originally Posted by RX8 Brunei
hi again RG.

the car manage to start. i've run the car for around 20mins but still the same ... idling problem. the exh pipe got redhot, o2 sensor connector melted, dead cat conveter. what should i do then? really need ur help .

 

**** man, make sure you don't make it any worse. You start experiencing problems after you change the midpipe right? From everything you mentioned, I think it might simply be a fcuked ECU.

 

I was able to get a rotary engine with a busted apex seal to crank start; it was very hard to start, ran poorly/rough, and would not idle. Had to keep my foot on the throttle at stops or the engine would die.

 

Yup!! u got it damn right man, hehehe. That's why i've to purchase Hymee's sCANalyser to figure out what's the problem.

 

meaning that u've faced the problem that i have right now? Plz describe in detail mate. i'd like to hear it from u, maybe it might help me.