Mazda RX8

[LittleWolf]

They already did a comparo with the Nissan Z350 & RX-8. The verdict was while the Rx-8 was decent, Z350 was the real deal as far as sporty aspirations go. Interior etc was better in Rx-8 compared to the chintzy Z350.

 

[dawheat]

Review 1

Review 2

Review 3

Review 4- half way down the page

 

Howard, where was it mentioned in this thread that we are talking about diesel engines ?

 

[Sundog]

Originally posted by: Howard
Roger... is this picture wrong?

Text

As Roger and Eli pointed out this pic is of a diesel engine. Notice no conventional spark plug in the chamber.

Hmmm...I see no preheat chamber, must be an older style.

 

[apoppin]

Hot off the RX8 fanboiz "wire":

C&D: RX-8 beats G35c and Mustang SVT Cobra
Car And Driver
Posted: Mar 02, 2003

Qucik note: the press is officially in love with the new Rotary Powered
RX-8! In the first of what is to be many comparo's, the RX-8 beats the G35
Coupe, and Mustang SVT Cobra in the April 2003 issue of Car and Driver. They
say "from the driver's seat, the new RX-8 is the best RX ever."

And I am getting LOTS of local interest in my cars . . . did I price them too cheap? :Q

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: Sundog

Originally posted by: Howard
Roger... is this picture wrong?

Text

As Roger and Eli pointed out this pic is of a diesel engine. Notice no conventional spark plug in the chamber.

Hmmm...I see no preheat chamber, must be an older style.

Argh

I'd better stay out of this thread if I value my pride.

 

[slikmunks]

Originally posted by: KevinH
Slikmunks - Yeah you seem to know your rotaries my man. I used to own an 87 Rx-7. I LOVED the engine on that car. Unlike the old skool MR-2 I owned, when the engine decided to go, it didn't let me know (you know, the typical, shakes and shudders and vibrations that a normal engine makes). It just flat out died one day. It was the absolute oddest thing. To this day, I REALLY wanna know if it was me or if that's the nature of rotaries. That said, I would absolutely kill for a 93 and up Rx-7 as the prices in So cal are VERY reasonable for a rare 255 HP car that is fast as fvck. However, my mechanic buddy of mine who has had his hand rebuilding some Rx-7's (from early 80's and up) has said that he has seen quite a few 85-90K mile rx-7's needing to be rebuilt. What do YOU think?

kev

as for how your engine went out, it could have been due to a variety of reasons... the first thing that everyone will tell you when your engine "dies" on you is to get a compression test and see what happens... you might have blown it, you might have some carbon build-up that locked the seals, etc, etc, etc... lots of stuff... hopefully, you didn't bring it to a mazda dealership to have them take a look at it... most mazda dealers don't know jack 'bout rx's, or rotaries for that matter...

as for the 93+ rx7's (also known as 3rd gens, or FD's), make sure you find one in good condition.... a lot of the ones out there are being sold because they have oil leaks or coolant leaks (meaning rebuild soon), or the have low compression (rebuild soon), or there are things that need to be done that normally need to be done for a 10 year old car. See if you can get one that is stock, seeing as the owner *probably* did not race the car *that much*... basically when looking at them, 1st things 1st, get a compression test, check for rust, and oil/coolant leaks or colored smoke from the exhaust, ummm.... what else can i think of when looking for an rx in particular... um.... i believe that the FDs had problems with their 5th gear synchro, might want to check that while driving ummm... yeah... what i would do, is try to find one with a blown motor, talk the seller down a bit, and rebuild the engine and turbos, that way, right from the get-go, you know exactly what you're getting. It's the longer route, but in the long run, it'll prob'ly end up the better route...

Originally posted by: KevinH
While I'm asking questions, where do you go to find good info? I am dead serious about considering another RX-7 (like I said '93 and up), but NOT if I have to go through the trouble of rebuilding another engine. In So Cal, I've seen ads for clean title 75K RX-7's go for roughly 15ish...give or take a few. Although that price isn't back breaking, that's going to be my primary driver and I can't afford to sink 15 g's into a ride that "might" need to be rebuilt in a year or so....

In essence................HALP MEH !!!!




KEV

for good info (well, at least the info i got) go to rx7 forums

as for 75k rx7's... especially from what i hear about 3rd gens... you're looking at a rebuild within the next 40k mi... unless the previous owner babied the car and took great care of the car... those turbos wear down on them rotares

Originally posted by: Roger

This depends entirely on how the car was cared for, if the previous owner beat the hell out of it and never changed the oil, yes you will find Rotary engines needing a rebuild as you have stated, but if the previous owner took care of the vehicle, didn't run it into the ground and performed the required maintenance at the specified intervals, then Rotary's can and will go past 200,000 miles with no problem.

Alot of people tend to forget that all Rotary's inject small quantities of oil into the intake tract, this lubes the Apex and side seals which is critical in the longevity of the engine, this oil is drawn from the sump, if the required oil change intervals are not followed, this oil will not only cause sludge build up in the oil passages and sump, but can also cause the oil injector pump to fail, this causes rapid engine wear and failure.

this seems to be the case with most n/a rotaries, but for turbo'd rotaries, forum consensus seems to be that very few last past 125k mi... i mean, there are always the exceptions, but this seems to be the general train of thought.

and with the oil thing, right on

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis
Are Mazda rotaries available as crate engines?

I don't think so.. but there are places that sell otherwise brand new engines. Check ebay.. there are a few on there.

brand new? or newly rebuilt? or *new* from japan? i haven't seen any... but then again, i haven't been looking in a long time... but the j-spec ones... they're not new... they're pulled from used rx7's that are in the junkyard, but with working engines... not exactly the best place to get an engine for your car, but a good place to start a rebuild...

Originally posted by: apoppin

Originally posted by: slikmunks
apoppin, u a socal7s member? www.socal7s.org? or is the so-cal rotary club diff...? never heard of so cal rotary club

Damn I was sleeply last night . . . I put out a little "mis"info.

I have been driving the Mazda Cosmo since 1976 . . . I learned to rebuild the 13B almost in my sleep (which evidently was more accurate than some of my posts). . . .

Anyway, I am a(n inactive) member of the SoCalRXClub aka socal7 . . .glad to meet another member also on AT.

As to the RX-8 being likened to a "miata" is only in a "comparison" to the RX-7 . . . the RX-8 is the "handler" in the "grand-touring" tradition (fortunately with much more "go" than the Miata and 4-door ver is available). The RX-7 is no "slouch" in "handling" either but is much more of a (Japanese) "muscle car".

i know they do, but that's a 3 rotor COSMO, with peripheral ports. if you read carefully, i was takling about a 3 rotor renesis, with side ports... i know of the 3 rotor cosmo... 20bt, that's what i'd like to put in my rx... in about 4 or 5 years, if there's no 3 rotor renesis to put in....

I completely overlooked "renesis".

Yes - 4-rotor, 12 chamber . . . 600 HP is "basic" just like the 2 rotor can get well over 300HP if you aren't too concerned with engine "longevity" (as in racing).

I wish mazda would slam the rotary in the protege to make a real kick@ass sleeper econo sedan

There are plenty of "projects" that do just this . . . the 12A or 13b engine is so small and light it often has more "room" than the 4-banger it replaces,

As for metering the oil being "no big deal" . . . it used to be a major problem with Rotarys through the 1980s - the oil has to be changed (religiously) every 3K miles or you are injecting dirty oil . . . and lazy owners that wouldn't check the oil levels - the oil would drop and would frequently "blow the engine" giving rise to the FUD that rotary engines needed rebuilding every 30K miles . . . Actually, the earliest Mazda Rotarys - the RX2 - suffered from weak Apex seals that deteriorated by about 30K miles . . . by the time the RX3 was out the seals were greatly improved (to lasting well over 100K miles) - but the damage was done to Mazda's reputation . . . . That is why Mazda introduced the RX-5 (the Cosmo) in 1976 with the then unheard of 5 years and 50K mile bumper-to-bumper warranty (thats when we got one). Emission controls were a MESS with 3 sets of POINTS . . . however, the "satisfaction" from "blowing away" a much more expensive Porche was "priceless" . . . and the Cosmos were RARE - only about 2000 were imported in the USA, model years 1976-1978.

BTW, I am selling both of my 1976 Mazda Cosmos . . . I had a major accident so I can no longer work on them and they are deteriorating . . . do you think SOCAL7 would be a good place to start (I don't want to go eBay and prefer dealing with a "local" buyer)?

why inactive member?? hehehe, i'm one to be talking... i'm a new, and somewhat inactive member... hehehe...

i'm stil religiously changing my oil every 3k miles... (2.5k actually)

as for the cosmos... we kinda get jacked here in the us, don't we... the cosmos in japan had 3rotor 20b's!!! (iirc, of course)

as for selling to socal7s... it wouldn't hurt to try! i'm sure someone would like a project they can work on

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: slikmunks

Originally posted by: KevinH
Slikmunks - Yeah you seem to know your rotaries my man. I used to own an 87 Rx-7. I LOVED the engine on that car. Unlike the old skool MR-2 I owned, when the engine decided to go, it didn't let me know (you know, the typical, shakes and shudders and vibrations that a normal engine makes). It just flat out died one day. It was the absolute oddest thing. To this day, I REALLY wanna know if it was me or if that's the nature of rotaries. That said, I would absolutely kill for a 93 and up Rx-7 as the prices in So cal are VERY reasonable for a rare 255 HP car that is fast as fvck. However, my mechanic buddy of mine who has had his hand rebuilding some Rx-7's (from early 80's and up) has said that he has seen quite a few 85-90K mile rx-7's needing to be rebuilt. What do YOU think?

kev

as for how your engine went out, it could have been due to a variety of reasons... the first thing that everyone will tell you when your engine "dies" on you is to get a compression test and see what happens... you might have blown it, you might have some carbon build-up that locked the seals, etc, etc, etc... lots of stuff... hopefully, you didn't bring it to a mazda dealership to have them take a look at it... most mazda dealers don't know jack 'bout rx's, or rotaries for that matter...

as for the 93+ rx7's (also known as 3rd gens, or FD's), make sure you find one in good condition.... a lot of the ones out there are being sold because they have oil leaks or coolant leaks (meaning rebuild soon), or the have low compression (rebuild soon), or there are things that need to be done that normally need to be done for a 10 year old car. See if you can get one that is stock, seeing as the owner *probably* did not race the car *that much*... basically when looking at them, 1st things 1st, get a compression test, check for rust, and oil/coolant leaks or colored smoke from the exhaust, ummm.... what else can i think of when looking for an rx in particular... um.... i believe that the FDs had problems with their 5th gear synchro, might want to check that while driving ummm... yeah... what i would do, is try to find one with a blown motor, talk the seller down a bit, and rebuild the engine and turbos, that way, right from the get-go, you know exactly what you're getting. It's the longer route, but in the long run, it'll prob'ly end up the better route...

Originally posted by: KevinH
While I'm asking questions, where do you go to find good info? I am dead serious about considering another RX-7 (like I said '93 and up), but NOT if I have to go through the trouble of rebuilding another engine. In So Cal, I've seen ads for clean title 75K RX-7's go for roughly 15ish...give or take a few. Although that price isn't back breaking, that's going to be my primary driver and I can't afford to sink 15 g's into a ride that "might" need to be rebuilt in a year or so....

In essence................HALP MEH !!!!




KEV

for good info (well, at least the info i got) go to rx7 forums

as for 75k rx7's... especially from what i hear about 3rd gens... you're looking at a rebuild within the next 40k mi... unless the previous owner babied the car and took great care of the car... those turbos wear down on them rotares

Originally posted by: Roger

This depends entirely on how the car was cared for, if the previous owner beat the hell out of it and never changed the oil, yes you will find Rotary engines needing a rebuild as you have stated, but if the previous owner took care of the vehicle, didn't run it into the ground and performed the required maintenance at the specified intervals, then Rotary's can and will go past 200,000 miles with no problem.

Alot of people tend to forget that all Rotary's inject small quantities of oil into the intake tract, this lubes the Apex and side seals which is critical in the longevity of the engine, this oil is drawn from the sump, if the required oil change intervals are not followed, this oil will not only cause sludge build up in the oil passages and sump, but can also cause the oil injector pump to fail, this causes rapid engine wear and failure.

this seems to be the case with most n/a rotaries, but for turbo'd rotaries, forum consensus seems to be that very few last past 125k mi... i mean, there are always the exceptions, but this seems to be the general train of thought.

and with the oil thing, right on

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis
Are Mazda rotaries available as crate engines?

I don't think so.. but there are places that sell otherwise brand new engines. Check ebay.. there are a few on there.

brand new? or newly rebuilt? or *new* from japan? i haven't seen any... but then again, i haven't been looking in a long time... but the j-spec ones... they're not new... they're pulled from used rx7's that are in the junkyard, but with working engines... not exactly the best place to get an engine for your car, but a good place to start a rebuild...

Originally posted by: apoppin

Originally posted by: slikmunks
apoppin, u a socal7s member? www.socal7s.org? or is the so-cal rotary club diff...? never heard of so cal rotary club

Damn I was sleeply last night . . . I put out a little "mis"info.

I have been driving the Mazda Cosmo since 1976 . . . I learned to rebuild the 13B almost in my sleep (which evidently was more accurate than some of my posts). . . .

Anyway, I am a(n inactive) member of the SoCalRXClub aka socal7 . . .glad to meet another member also on AT.

As to the RX-8 being likened to a "miata" is only in a "comparison" to the RX-7 . . . the RX-8 is the "handler" in the "grand-touring" tradition (fortunately with much more "go" than the Miata and 4-door ver is available). The RX-7 is no "slouch" in "handling" either but is much more of a (Japanese) "muscle car".

i know they do, but that's a 3 rotor COSMO, with peripheral ports. if you read carefully, i was takling about a 3 rotor renesis, with side ports... i know of the 3 rotor cosmo... 20bt, that's what i'd like to put in my rx... in about 4 or 5 years, if there's no 3 rotor renesis to put in....

I completely overlooked "renesis".

Yes - 4-rotor, 12 chamber . . . 600 HP is "basic" just like the 2 rotor can get well over 300HP if you aren't too concerned with engine "longevity" (as in racing).

I wish mazda would slam the rotary in the protege to make a real kick@ass sleeper econo sedan

There are plenty of "projects" that do just this . . . the 12A or 13b engine is so small and light it often has more "room" than the 4-banger it replaces,

As for metering the oil being "no big deal" . . . it used to be a major problem with Rotarys through the 1980s - the oil has to be changed (religiously) every 3K miles or you are injecting dirty oil . . . and lazy owners that wouldn't check the oil levels - the oil would drop and would frequently "blow the engine" giving rise to the FUD that rotary engines needed rebuilding every 30K miles . . . Actually, the earliest Mazda Rotarys - the RX2 - suffered from weak Apex seals that deteriorated by about 30K miles . . . by the time the RX3 was out the seals were greatly improved (to lasting well over 100K miles) - but the damage was done to Mazda's reputation . . . . That is why Mazda introduced the RX-5 (the Cosmo) in 1976 with the then unheard of 5 years and 50K mile bumper-to-bumper warranty (thats when we got one). Emission controls were a MESS with 3 sets of POINTS . . . however, the "satisfaction" from "blowing away" a much more expensive Porche was "priceless" . . . and the Cosmos were RARE - only about 2000 were imported in the USA, model years 1976-1978.

BTW, I am selling both of my 1976 Mazda Cosmos . . . I had a major accident so I can no longer work on them and they are deteriorating . . . do you think SOCAL7 would be a good place to start (I don't want to go eBay and prefer dealing with a "local" buyer)?

why inactive member?? hehehe, i'm one to be talking... i'm a new, and somewhat inactive member... hehehe...

i'm stil religiously changing my oil every 3k miles... (2.5k actually)

as for the cosmos... we kinda get jacked here in the us, don't we... the cosmos in japan had 3rotor 20b's!!! (iirc, of course)

as for selling to socal7s... it wouldn't hurt to try! i'm sure someone would like a project they can work on

Mind Boggling! Within 5 minutes of posting to the socal7 club I got a reply . . . and then a few more. I spent a few hours putting a free web page up on Yahoo and this morning got a "committment" (as much of a committment as you can get on the 'net) to buy both cars.

Here's both of my cars (gotta follow the links from the "home page"

 

[slikmunks]

cosmo's are dope! and they're old-school, not too expensive, a great rotary project car... if i had the know how, the time, and the money, i would've bought one of them off of you beofre you posted on socal7s... and yeah, the socal7s are quick as heck when you're talking aboutsomething they're interested in

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: slikmunks
cosmo's are dope! and they're old-school, not too expensive, a great rotary project car... if i had the know how, the time, and the money, i would've bought one of them off of you beofre you posted on socal7s... and yeah, the socal7s are quick as heck when you're talking aboutsomething they're interested in

Well, I had problems with out-of-state buyers before . . . I like to keep it simple . . . someone who really WANTS one will look at the pics, ask the right questions, agree "in principal" to the deal, inspect the car (bring the carrier and the cash) and drive away with it.




I hope.