RX8 and Flooding Issue
Discussion
Can someone clear this up for me.
I am seriously considering an RX8 purchase as my only practical car. However, what concerns me is the flooding issue. From my reading I understand that it occurs when turning on the engine and then turning it off soon after.
Is this correct and does it always flood. For example if I drive the car out of the garage onto the drive and then turn it off or if I am shopping at a retail park and drive it from one store to the next store 300 metres away.
Why the hell did Mazda not solve this flooding issue in their design? To me it sounds like the RX8 may be usuable as an everyday car if you constantly have to be concerned with it flooding from driving very short distances.
Thirdly, if it does flood do Mazda unflood it for free even 10 yrs later without any warranty? If not how much does it costs to unflood the car?
It seems these cars are dropping in price significantly due to their fuel consumption and high tax band but in my opinion if you cant use the car properly due to the flooding issue then I expect these to drop even more.
I am seriously considering an RX8 purchase as my only practical car. However, what concerns me is the flooding issue. From my reading I understand that it occurs when turning on the engine and then turning it off soon after.
Is this correct and does it always flood. For example if I drive the car out of the garage onto the drive and then turn it off or if I am shopping at a retail park and drive it from one store to the next store 300 metres away.
Why the hell did Mazda not solve this flooding issue in their design? To me it sounds like the RX8 may be usuable as an everyday car if you constantly have to be concerned with it flooding from driving very short distances.
Thirdly, if it does flood do Mazda unflood it for free even 10 yrs later without any warranty? If not how much does it costs to unflood the car?
It seems these cars are dropping in price significantly due to their fuel consumption and high tax band but in my opinion if you cant use the car properly due to the flooding issue then I expect these to drop even more.
Yes flooding does occur when starting the car and turning it off before letting it warm up,e.g moving garage to drive.
I've done it once in my ownership and the AA sorted it out no problems,it occurs as the rotary engine runs rich at start to warm the cat,something to do with emissions. It is not a problem for me in owning the car,you have to bear it in mind if you are to become an owner,let the revs die down to less than 1200 revs or the temp needle start to shift, if you have to turn it off suddenly rev it to 4000 revs an turn it off, for more info check out the owners club, loads of good advise there www.rx8ownersclub.co.uk/
I've done it once in my ownership and the AA sorted it out no problems,it occurs as the rotary engine runs rich at start to warm the cat,something to do with emissions. It is not a problem for me in owning the car,you have to bear it in mind if you are to become an owner,let the revs die down to less than 1200 revs or the temp needle start to shift, if you have to turn it off suddenly rev it to 4000 revs an turn it off, for more info check out the owners club, loads of good advise there www.rx8ownersclub.co.uk/
Edited by johnnygrunge on Sunday 26th October 14:59
I owned a new RX8 for nearly 2.5 years and never flooded the car. I constantly drove the car on and off the drive, stopped and started it from cold but had no issues at all. Due to the rotarys design excess fuel cannot seep off into a sump through rings like a piston engine so once flooded causes a bigger issue.The fuel pools in the combustion chamber with no run off and causes the flooding. But it is not the huge issue that some people like to blag around. Service upgrades have been introduced to reduce any chance of flooding.
As stated above, if on the occasion you have to stop and start the car from cold, simply blipping the engine to 4K and turning it off at the top of the revs allows the engine to clear any excess fuel without introducing any more.
Its a great car, very cheap, but open to critisism from ignorant people who have never owned one.
As stated above, if on the occasion you have to stop and start the car from cold, simply blipping the engine to 4K and turning it off at the top of the revs allows the engine to clear any excess fuel without introducing any more.
Its a great car, very cheap, but open to critisism from ignorant people who have never owned one.
Not entirely directly related but my rx7 used to do this and the solution was just to install a manual fuel pump cutoff switch.
If it flooded, you just switched off the fuel and spun it over till it started, then switch back on the fuel, and you could also pre-empt it by cutting the fuel supply to stop the engine rather than cutting the ignition.
In my case it was just a symptom of a high mileage (150k miles) engine but the fix would work here equally
If it flooded, you just switched off the fuel and spun it over till it started, then switch back on the fuel, and you could also pre-empt it by cutting the fuel supply to stop the engine rather than cutting the ignition.
In my case it was just a symptom of a high mileage (150k miles) engine but the fix would work here equally
Same with my RX7 - never any problem if I drive it around the block; if it's really cold, and I need to move it from garage to drive, I let it idle for a minute or so. Pulling the fuse to the fuel pump helps if you do flood it, just crank it over a bit, replace the fuse, and start as normal.
Lee_sec said:
the recall did help a lot... theres a very simple way of getting around it by holding the revs at about 7k for 10 secs and turning the engine off and letting it spin out...
if your interested 54 plate mazdaspeed rx8 going up for sale from me...
Eh...stone cold engine 7k?? lol...if your interested 54 plate mazdaspeed rx8 going up for sale from me...
The RX8 self limits the RPM when cold to 6k something anyhow.
And the only time I tried the rev & switch off was the closest I ever came to flooding the thing.
I done quite a few short (1mile or so) trips and even moved mine on the drive a few times without issue and mine was one of the first off the boat.
And the only time I tried the rev & switch off was the closest I ever came to flooding the thing.
I done quite a few short (1mile or so) trips and even moved mine on the drive a few times without issue and mine was one of the first off the boat.
vrod said:
I was told of the flooding issue by a dealer when I bought mine, had it a month but not a single problem starting it. Have done the on off the drive etc. with no problems.
Fantastic car if you don't mind the mpg. Go for it.
Update: Flooded mine. Had not had any problems so I became over confident. Started it cold Friday, moved it 18 inches to wash it off, left it until Monday, really cold day and it would not start. I believe the ECU mod people talk about is standard on the RX8, it was a later fix for the RX7's. If it doesn't start, put throttle to the floor and turn it over for 8 seconds. ECU (mod?) recognises foot to floor as 'I've flooded it' so turns engine with no fuel pump and the 8 seconds should be enough to clear the fuel and start to build up an oil seal. Wait 3 seconds, then start as normal, with no throttle. Mine eventually cleared after numerous attempts and finally started OK.Fantastic car if you don't mind the mpg. Go for it.
Mine was a combination of having a very quick cold start (approx 30 seconds), hence loads of fuel. Left it for days allowing the fuel to wash the oil off the seals and lost compression seal. Its been cold, so fuel doesn't evaporate off before it washes out the seals.
All the recommendations are to run it for several minutes until the temp needle moves before switching it off. Tiny engine so it does warm up quicker. If you have too switch it off, rev it then switch it off to burn the fuel.
Its not just a Mazda thing either, got to work moaning my car wouldn't start and a guy in the office had exactly the same issue with a 2.0 6cyl BMW where a 30 second start caused a lost of compression on the piston rings. The BMW garage had to dry off the plugs, put some oil down the plug holes for a seal and turn it over to get oil pressure back. They told him it happens with the BMW's.
Bottom line - RX8 is a really nice car if you are aware of the flooding issue and actually take notice of it, unlike me. It hasn't put me off the car but I won't be doing it again. Hope this helps.
ks the rev limiter was in from day 1. I had the first in the NW just about, one of the early first 1000 preorders and it had a rev limiter from day 1 for a cold engine.Gassing Station | Japanese Chat | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff