Hey guys, I'm not sure this is the correct forum, but if I'm posting in the wrong spot just move the thread where he needs to go.

At any rate, (as some of you in the IRC channel know), I'm shopping for an RX-8 right now in the Dallas area.

I've found what I consider a decent deal ('04 RX8 Sport, 31k miles for about $8k), I've visited the car a couple times, the body's in great shape and so is the interior. But, on my test drive I detected a real strong burnt-oil odor from the car.

I know that the rotary engine uses a little bit of oil, so I expected to get a whiff of a burnt oil from the exhaust. But this was a REALLY strong odor. I even test drove 3 more RX8s today to see if it was a normal thing, but none of the cats were as malodorous.

At any rate, I assume that there's some sort of oil leak under the hood. It was a dark and rainy day, so I didn't get a good look at it.


Now I'm trying to do some research and math in my head to figure out whether this car is worth getting excited about. The price and mileage is considerably better than anything else I've found so far.

What are the most common kinds of oil leaks found on the RX-8? What would be the worst case scenario?

Thanks!

 

Often the Metering oil pump leaks on to the exhaust manifold......that makes for a good burned smell....front seal, oil pan sensor can leak also...if they didn't tighten the oil filter properly..or clean up after a filter change....The oil cooler lines have been corroding in areas that use a lot of salt on the roads....

Really could be all kinda of things...tranny fluid...

Engine and CAT still covered under warranty....give it a good look around

 

The bad: If you are leaking oil and all that...then there are probably some problems. Just because the engine "burns oil" doesn't mean it should smell like oil. It's a different process than a busted piston engine leaking/burning oil.

The good: 8K is a STEAL and you are still covered by engine warranty, if that's the issue. If the engine is leaking oil, then it will be replaced under warranty. If something else is wrong, you are probably out of luck, b/c the main warranty is up by now (5 years after manufacture date)

It's hard to be confident about these things over the internet and the answer to what exactly might be wrong, if anything, could be the difference between getting a great deal on a great car vs. getting a $8,000 nightmare. Because the potential buying price is cheap, I'd say it's worth it to have a (mazda) technician look over the car and give you a report about things, and GET ALL SERVICE HISTORY DOCUMENTATION! If you post the report and service history up here the ppl on the site can definitely tell you if anything is major or you should be worried about.

 

Sure that it was an oil leak, and not that you were smelling an overfilled tranny? If the tranny gets overfilled, the smell can leak into the cabin.

But then you would have a gear oil smell not a engine oil smell.

 

Its easy to tell between engine oil smell or tranny oil smell.

at least I can tell

Rx-8 is a car that you should have someone that KNOWS the car to buy it with you. take that into consideration.

 

Thanks everyone for the input, it's very helpful.

I'm 99.9% positive that its motor oil burning. I've burned so many different liquids vehicles in my cars over the years, I've gotten pretty familiar with which liquid smells like what.


I'm basically trying to decide if the $8k price is low enough to offset the cost of repairs to fix the things I found wrong with it. Anyways, that part of the discussion might be a bit off-topic.

Would everyone agree the most costly oil-leak to repair would be the rear main seal? That seems to be what my google searches seem say.

 

it could be just some messed up oil change job, some dumbass didnt clean the oil filter area after the change, then u might get the smell.

 

This is what I was going to say. Most dealers who change the oil don't take the time to clean the engine off after an oil change, which on this car can make a mess of the engine. If there is lots of oil around where the oil filter is, odds are it is just from changing the oil because of the filter point down.

 

yep, bad oil change by dealer or bad CAT

 

Thanks everyone for your help. I was going to have a dealership look this car over for me, but I wound up finding another car in my budget. A bit more expensive, but with fewer obvious problems.

I appreciate all the info and assistance!

 

Sure. He's selling it for 8K and that burning smell is just because he JUST changed the oil today and overfilled it a bit

If it's too good to be true...

 

I'll take it for 5 K

then Im going to part it.

I probably make more

 

I don't know what the forum policy is, but I can post the AutoTrader ad if you're serious about the car. The dealer has been really cool to work with and I almost feel a little bad for not buying his car.

If it's in good taste, I can share the link. Otherwise I can send it to you in PM