Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
A reporter would like to speak with you about your experience; please reach out to PR@Edmunds.com by 7/22 for details.
A reporter would like to speak with you about your experience; please reach out to PR@Edmunds.com by 7/22 for details.
Options
Mazda RX-8 Problems and Solutions
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
flatso - Did they compare the back seats of these cars? I wonder if that's how they came up with their results. Why don't we throw in all the other roadsters while we're at it (including the Chevrolet SSR)? What are the editors at Motor Trend smoking? I guarantee that you wouldn't be able to find another publication that would agree with Motor Trend. That's if you were able to find one that actually understood why they compared the RX-8/350Z with an S2000 in the first place. My goodness!
I have 4000 miles on my Red 6MT and had the oil changed when I got the oil pan bug fixed at 3500 miles....around the 2800 mile mark I needed to add about 1/2 quart to bring the oil level readings back to dead center on the stick marks.
Comments and Feedback appreciated!
I love this car! No flooding problems, never shut if off if not completely warmed up, tire sensor came on once so I checked tire pressure and sure enough one was about pound low, did notice the whirring sound when first cranked and idling out of gear.
s2000 vs. RX8
both are high-revving (as you stated) and both are RWD, 6-speed, light, well-balanced, similar HP, and fall between $30-$35K (yeah, yeah, i know the RX8 CAN be cheaper, but a few options pushes you up near the S2k price).
So while one is a 2-seat convertible and one is a 4-seat 4-door hardtop, I can see many folks cross-shopping these. We both know of one person over on the main RX8 discussion who bought the S2000 over the RX8 while cross-shopping them, so its certainly not out of the realm of possibility.
I'm not defending motortrend, just pointing out how maybe possibly they might could have thought that these 2 in a comparison is feasible.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
At 7 degrees, on the highway, with salt and dirt and snow being whipped up, I turned on my windshield wipers and windshield fluid. The line was FROZEN. My windshield was badly smeared from the dirt and salt and I could hardly see. I pulled up at the next exit, hoping I could actually see it, and found the line to the wiper fluid which was slushy in some parts and frozen in others. I had been driving for 15 minutes and the car was warm, but not warm enough to unfreeze the wiper fluid lines. The fluid was the original from Mazda so I replaced it with new fluid, hopefully good for less than 7 degrees. Be careful in ultra cold weather with the wipers.
My new snow tires are Pirelli winter snowsport 210, 225/50 17 which of course also need new wheels. Eighteen inch tires from Blizak are not available in the midwest as they have already been sold out. After multiple calls to several Mazda dealers and tire companies, they assure me that replacing the wheels and tires are what's needed to make this car drivable on ice and snow. I certainly haven't enjoyed sliding over Chicago's roads and this is at very slow speeds.
After the first snow here in Denver last Oct I realized I couldn't even make it to the end of my street without swapping out the tires. My A4's Quattro always got me thru the winters w/out a winter set.
I searched out the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22s for my 8. I did NOT want a chunky high profile tire (despite the arguements that a slimmer snow tire is better). I paid dearly for them as Tire Rack, Discount and others were completely out of them in our size (225/45x18). The OEM RE040s just plain froze into hard plastic...worthless.
I'd HIGHLY recommend the LM-22s. Dunlop makes a tire in our size for much less, but I don't think the dry performance of the Bridgestone's can be beat. They feel a tad heavier than their summer counterparts, but little lost in performance and they definitely hold their own in the snow. No worries at all.
TireRack has a great section of owner reviews for all tires...the LM-22s were almost universally praised. I'd have to add mine as well.
and would you quit beating around the bush with your comments!...LOL..you never come out and say what you want!..LOL...you rock!
Are these engines more reliable than diesels?
What kind of coolant in used? the Ethylene Glycol? Can one use the less toxic Prop Gly? What about using 'water wetter' to lower engine temp.
Is there a hybrid rotery-electric in the works at Mazda?
Why does the RX-8 use two roterys? Why not just one big one?
Are there any plans at Mazda to have one roter shut down when not needed? Honda (the Accord to be exact), Chryselr and GM will soon be comming out with cars that go from 6 to 3 cyclinder when all 6 are not needed.
aaaedgarpoe - Mazda does have a concept vehicle which may be produced that runs partly on hydrogen. It won't be as powerful as the current vehicle, but I believe they are working on improved gas mileage.
C&D did a shootout with the RX8, G35C and a Cobra. I think it was the July issue? RX8 won that shootout, too.
poe...if anything, I would think that Mazda would want to go to a rotary with 3 rotors (as opposed a single very large rotor....it would have to be one huge rotor to get the same power).
First time I saw this rumor, but the Motor Trend article hinted that a Mazdaspeed version of the RX8 could come out in a couple of years with a supercharger.
What I would think they should include in a comparo would be a Z4, S2000, 350Z roadster and MR. I can't remember seeing such a comparo in any car rag of recent memory, though.
Hope not, but after giving it some thought I feel it may have been a good idea. May not be as good as microsoft maps, but could have been helpful.
Also, I did have the flooding problem and it does bother me. The dealer did take care of it promptly, but they really don't have a fix for it, and I don't expect they will soon. Maybe the hotter plugs, if needed.
Also idles rough. I bought the demo unit, which I drove, and it had 700 miles on it when I bought it.
Love the looks and handling of the car. Love the backseat room, without the car appearing to have a backseat. Well designed, fast enough for me, and just have to keep up the rpm's. I had a BMW Z3 M coupe prior to this and it was somewhat faster, but rode much rougher with much less room. I really do prefer the Mazda. (I don't like the stress of possible flooding though) If fuel economy was important when purchased you will be upset, but it was made to be driven and it's worth that. It handles so nice.
It's not my everyday car so not many miles (2416 as of today)and I don't expect to drive more than 5000 per year, which would be stretching it. Would like to take a trip to mountains of North Carolina, or New York state to have some fun. I live in flat Michigan area near Toledo, Ohio and not much challenge here, and the Michigan roads not good for high speed driving.
If there is a club, or RX-8 group near here I would like to know.
I post one Question about oil consumption, a week goes by and I get 0 responses, yet you guys yank each others chains daily about this Motor Trend comparison.
How about some usable info in here!!!
In any case, until that does happen, maybe this little bit of info will be somewhat helpful to you:
swiftnet Nov 24, 2003 7:34pm
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
flat - also in the meantime, keep your eye on the oil. you should check it once a week.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
...she looks like brand new....can't tell if I ever had a dent!.......sweet deal to me......and they had great magazines to read too (McLaren F1 booklet, Car & Driver, Motor Trend, and the DuPont Registry!)..
Liven up your evening and join your fellow enthusiasts every Tuesday from 6-7pm PT/9-10pm ET for our Mazda Mania Chat!
This coming week's chat on Feb 10 is also going to include a set of trivia questions about the 2004 Mazda models, gleaned from the pages of Edmunds.com! So study up and join us on Tuesday evening!!
/direct/view/.ef1b553
PF Flyer
Host
Pickups & News & Views Message Boards
Can someone explain a bit further what the issues are with driving with rpm's below 4K. What damage could be done?
Let the engine rev. freely. Use it hard (open the throttle to accellerate) at least once a week at high RPM (5000 and up).
Unlike a piston engine for which high RPM is death, the rotary works better at high RPM. There -is- slightly increased wear on the apex seals due to more rotations per mile, but only from this. Apex seal wear isn't the usual cause of end of life in a rotary engine, until at least 200,000 mi. Piston engines have greatly increased wear at high RPMs due to the nature of motion of the internal parts (stopping, starting, valve floating, etc.). The rotary actually works better at higher RPMs - the seals seal better, the oil is forced to flow faster due to the motion. Remember, the rotors are only turning 1/3 as fast as the output shaft (eccentric shaft). The side exhaust ports in the renesis need to be kept clean, and higher RPM high load operation at least once a week will go a long way to doing this.
And it's so much fun "keeping it cleaned out". ;-)
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
My guess is that Mazda will issue a TSB for a new dipstick with some sort of gromlet around the top if they get enough of this type of complaint. It's really something that they should have noticed during development.
I'm not certain about your "jerkiness" when shifting. Is the shifter not going into gear smoothly? Or, are you experiencing some sort of driveline backlash?
I know it took me a couple of days to get used to the clutch take up on my RX8 and did experience a bit of driveline backlash. But once I got used to the clutch, things have been smooth sailing.
Treat your car right (check the oil every other fill-up, change the oil every 5K miles, follow the maintenance procedures in the owners manual)...things you should do with any vehicle, and you'll be rewarded with a unique sports car that can easily go 150K+ miles with no major issues. The RENESIS is a different type of engine...not worse than its piston counterparts, just different. You've got to be aware of that to enjoy your car.
Oh yeah....one last thing....drive it like you stole it. The RENESIS wants/loves to be revved.
Every car I've ever owned that has had chrome exhausts will show "black residuals" from the exhaust. You don't notice it when the tailpipes are "non-chrome" because it doesn't show. Best thing to do is to wax the chrome tailpipes. That won't get rid of the exhaust, but will make them easier to clean.
Rattles need to be addressed by your dealer.
Don't know about your MPG being of a concern. When the winter months hit, around my area they change the fuel formulations. I was getting about 15 MPG in December and January. All of a sudden I'm getting 19 MPG in mixed driving. Nothing else has changed. This past summer, I was getting right about what the MSRP said I should get...that is 18 MPG city and 24 MPG highway and about 19 MPG mixed (exactly what I'm back to now).
Glad the hear you've got a "brand spanking new" RENESIS.
You are correct in the fact that, even though the oil companies are making money hand over fist right now, the quality of their fuel is going down, particularly with the major brands. I've had better luck with the cheapest fuel I can find (usually COSTCO) than I've had with the most expensive (usually SHELL). I've also been subject to some pretty bad SHELL gas, too (even though I paid as much as 30 cents a gallon more for it).
For many years, I've never found a correlation between the cost of fuel and its quality (or lack thereof).
Tks.
Rock
The 'black stuff' accumulating at the tail pipe is normal carbon deposit due to rich operating conditions upon start-up. When the engine runs rich (too much fuel, too little oxygen), the excess fuel is exhausted in the form of unburned hydrocarbons visible as soot at the tailpipe. The water that you noticed is also normal too. Water is a by-product of hydrocarbon combustion, and typically the exhaust is so hot that the water is exhausted as water vapor, but when the engine hasn't warmed up completely the exhaust temperatures are cool enough to allow the water to condense back into the liquid state before it leaves the tail pipe.
I would assume that you drive only short distances, and this is why you are seeing the lower end of the car's normal gas mileage. Rotary engines, though having high power to weight ratios, are not very thermodynamically efficient and tend to get worse gas mileage than their reciprocating engine counterparts. Don't sweat it, these are just the operating costs of owning a high-performance rotary engine!
boostjunkie....I agree with everything you're saying. However, I've noted that not all cars of the same brand/model/year give off the same "rotten egg" smell. That's something I never could understand. The only other variable is the quality of fuel, as pathstar noted. Even starting off cold, I haven't had the "rotten egg" smell come from my RX8. And I use the cheapest (premium) gas I can find.
What's puzzled me the past 500 miles or so, is the increase in MPG with my RX8. When brand new (less than 2K miles) is was getting dismal mileage (15-16 MPG). Once I passed the 2K milage mark, MPG creeped up. Once the winter months hit, my MPG dropped back down. I attributed the drop to gas stations moving to winter formulations. While it's still winter, the past 500 miles, or so (~7K miles), my MPG has gone back up to 19 MPG in mixed driving. Nothing has changed. I'm still using COSTCO gas. Driving patterns are, more or less, about the same, but MPG got a ~20% boost for no apparent reason. I can break 21 MPG if I stay on the interstate and hit 24 MPG-25 MPG with all highway driving.
Up to now, most countries have had their own program (well, if you consider Europe to be a country ;-). The Austalians had at least two - some early cars had the Japaneze program, the rest an Australian version. The US and Canada have the same one done by Mazda North American Operations.
Timing is right given that my last service visit was the end of January.
Has Mazda NA stepped up to the plate with something I can now go back to the dealer(s) for? I keep watching current TSBs but haven't seen anything on that yet.
Usually I wouldn't recommend these types of changes if there are no problems, but this fixes so much it should be a no brainer! It takes about 15 minutes to load (off the Ford/Mazda network - it isn't kept at dealerships - for security I suppose).
According to my dealer, which I spoke to after seeing pathstar's note about the "L" reflash, did indeed do the reflash during my last oil change.
MPG has increased about 20%, plus with the fuel remaps, I'm noticing better power in the 5K+ RPM range (which I had no complaints to begin with).