Dear Guys,


First of all I wish to say that I loved my car. I have a 2004 Mazda RX-8 6-speed. I worked hard for it...5 years until I finally got it for $8,000 on a street deal.

I got a loan from my bank and now owe still $4,000. Everything was good until last year. I've definitely been to hell and back with this freaking car.

Last July the car died and since I'm a single mom of 2 kids didn't have the money to buy a new engine 'till this tax season. Thinking that after 8 months of not driving my baby and finally having the money to put it back on the road made me really excited. I just replaced the engine which was a pain in the neck since I had it done with a mechanic. Everything was wrong with starting this car. 1st the battery died so we jumped started it (or at least tried) but it didn't start.

Then we checked the spark plugs and one was broken so we take it back and crank the car with jumping cables since the battery was dead after trying to crank it for 2 or more times. Then it was a huge amount of oil and smoke being burned but after a while it calmed down and it was running fine for 2 days. Then out of the blue my car was smelling like burned plastic, it was shaking like crazy, the check engine light was blinking and it was loosing rpm's.

I stop in AutoZone and have it tested for the check engine light that was blinking and it had 6 misfires. One said "too lean to bank 1", another one said something about the catalyst converter, etc. I get home to my brother mechanic who has an RX-7 (which are better than this junk) and it turns out that the engine harness burned.

I buy a new one and the car is shaking uncontrollably like before when the other harness burned. Now once again my car smelled like burned plastic.

They tell me is the computer since we jumped started the car so much but the place that is selling me the computer only has a computer for a 2005 Rx-8. Could it be the computer? Are the 2004 & 2005 computers compatible?

I call the dealer and they ask for both cars VIN numbers. How the **** am I going to have a VIN number from a used parts place? I just need to know if they're compatible. Can someone help? What is wrong with this car? I really just want to sell it but I still owe $4,000 on it plus invested $2,300 on a new engine. What or how can I fix it to get rid of it?

 

at how many miles did you replace the engine?

where did you find this "new engine" did you have your engine rebuilt?

did you ever replace your coils plugs and wires?

what is the condition of your cat?

who did the engine install? a regular mechanic? or mazda?

also, a blinking CEL is ALWAYS a misfire.



now that those are out of the way, i do remember a few rx8s catching on fire after having the engine replaced due to something being re-used or not being tightened down correctly.

someone with more experience is bound to come in here and tell you what is up. telling us more information will help.

 

Ah first off, I split your post a little, it is very hard to read when not paragraphed or spaced out.

Sorry to hear of your problems, however, this 'car' is no more junk than any other which has not been maintained correctly...your brother should know that ALL Rotaries require a certain attitude by it's owners...

I take it you are the second owner, or 3rd.?

As Eric said has the Ignition Coils ever been replaced?, has the Spark Plugs ever been replaced, they are not the same as RX-7 BTW...I am talking brand new replacement parts.

A blinking CEL is always a Engine Misfire, I bet one or two Coils are bad, all 4 need replacement with new.

And the CAT, engine was probably flooded...CAT could also be kaput.

What is the Battery really like, will it "hold" a charge or does it go flat fast, check Alternator?

A 'burnt' wiring harness concerns me, always means a short and should have blown a fuse BEFORE it burns, who knows what wire cutting and changes have been added and or subtracted by 'other owners'', like amps, speakers, radar?

Your car has not actually been on fire has it, under hood??, usually this is related to high pressure Fuel Line Hoses between Fuel Runners not inter-connected correctly when engine is replaced, I don't think this is your issue.

Was the Coil wiring re-connected correctly and or the Spark Plug Leads (Wires) in correct sequence, Leading and Trailing?

Anyway, ECU (Computer) there is a way to tell, if you can not get VIN's then there is a part number label on the actual ECU, it will say something like..N3Z3-C (as example) provided the main 4 alpha/numeric numbers are the same then the ECU is the same.

Sorry, but apart from actual VIN # there is no other way of checking ECU's.

I am not convinced that the ECU is the issue, I still believe you should have your Ignition Coils, Wires and Plugs replaced first, then Battery/Starter, possibly CAT...

But I really cant answer the 'burnt' smell over the internet...

Perhaps someone else has an idea..

Good luck..

 

Ok, I'm not being a smart-a** here, this is just to ask in all seriousness, did you check exhaust to see if you might have a plastic bag hung up on it & melting?

 

I hate to say this, but I have said it before, and I'll say it again:

Honestly, a single parent of two kids should be buying a reliable car, not a sports car.

If you were making a ton of money, and this was just a second or third car, it wouldn't be an issue, but if this is your primary car, and you buy it used, you should have done a ton of research on the car before you paid a single cent for it.

Also, you should have taken you tax return money, paid off your car, then saved up your car payment each month to be able to pay for the engine replacement out of pocket.
You now have a bad car, with a replacement motor, that you still can't drive, and you still have to make a payment on every month.

Now, unfortunately, you have a very typical 2004 with a lot of miles, and in bad shape, that needs more money invested into it than you can honestly afford. Just the fact that you needed to wait from July until recently to get enough money to buy a replacement engine, while still paying down your loan on a car you couldn't even drive says all we need to know.

I really think you should get a different car.
I'm sorry, but that's my opinion of your circumstances as you set them before us.

Trade it in for something else, like a Maxima, or a Mazda 6.

BC.

 

my best advice:

give it away, ie let someone else take over payments so you won't owe anything on the car and can look for something else.

it may be something very minor but it's going to be hell for us to help you diagnose it without being there in person. i doubt the computer is the issue but likely the installation, wires were pinched or laid out incorrectly during the install which caused the problems.

 

+1 to BC and Karack.

 

Moved to Troubleshooting.

Looks like she is near St. Petersburg FL.

black_butterfly,

Unfortunately this is going to end up being a case of throwing money at it, or having someone troubleshoot it on their own time. It sounds like many basic items were missed the first time around, and they are wasting money this time as they destroy what you just paid for.

You need another car anyway, since this isn't going to be cheap, easy, or fast to fix. If you are dead set on keeping the car, then focus on paying it off first, then return to fixing it. You very well may spend more than the $4,000 you owe on fixing it, and if you decide to give up, at least it has salvage value that you can put in your pocket. It's going to be very hard to get rid of if you do it in the reverse order. Karack's suggestion is about the only way you will be able to.

 

well if she still has it in a year i might be able to help her... lol (if she does live in st. pete)

the harness likely is repairable but only by a qualified mechanic, then proper installation is the next hurdle.

 

Listen XXXXX, when I bought my car I had no kids and 2jobs to support myself. I had money to splurge but unfortunately I wasn't ready for other things in life like having kids by myself. I used the only $2,300 I had to buy the engine cuz im still paying the car and paying that amount on it would only cut the loan in half.

When I posted this blog I wanted people that has gone thru the same thing on a rx8 to tell me what they did to fix it. If u aint got the same problems in the car shut the fxxx up. I asked for options on the car not what the XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX.


PLZ:Don't talk in that language here, next time I will ban you, while the comments are somewhat inappropriate, he was offering his view which is allowed here... ASH8, (most of us understand your pain.)

 

And that message is for blade cutter not the other guys

 

helping you get this sorted out will require you to answer all the questions everyone asked. info is very important. please calm down and we will try to help you. theres tons on info and alot of good members here that can help. so again please take a breath and try to answer the questions asked

 

For Eric & the other guys:

I did change everything except the coils. Spark plugs, everything was changed. The engine is from Mazda

 

the coils should be replaced with the plugs and wires. a flashing cel is a missfire almost always caused by ignition issues.

 

And from not resetting the sensor profiles. But this is a lost cause.

 

All I can off is for you to check out the thread for the local guys in your area. They will be able to help.

For example in the West Coast forum, we have plenty of members willing to help in Calif, Az Washington.

Very hard to do analysis on the internet.

We have good members in Georgia and a good shop in Fl known as Pettit.

Good Luck.

 

Well here is part of your answer/issue, get the Coils change even wires too if you can.

Contact Paul @ Mazmart (here), I am sure he can do you a good price and get them shipped to you, surely your brother (if close) can install the coils/wires for you...very easy.

I am still worried about your CAT.

Do this and I think you could see a huge improvement.

You want 4 (four) of these coils....link below, good luck.

http://www.partswebsite.com/mazmart/...3H118100B.html

 

Well guys thanks to those who helped and also those who didnt. Car got fixed and it's running like a baby. Turns out 2 coils were bad and it was running on 1 rotor. Good to go. Thanks for the help.