Mine acted like that (flooding?) just once ( about 2500 miles ...now have
6000 on it). Engine had already started normally in the garage and I was
backing out of my driveway. I was half way down to the street (about 30-40
feet) when it stalled...may have been when I was releasing the clutch too
quickly <G>.
Trying to restart produced classic flooding symptoms...occasional firing,
but no continuous running...then after a few seconds of trying, just
spinning...then smell of raw gas.
So, I left it there and took the RX-7 for the day's chores. Tried starting
it at lunch time, but same thing...fired, ran a "stroke" or two, then quit.
Then just spin with occasional firing, then just spin and the smell of raw
gas.
Stopped at the dealer late that afternoon. They said to give their towing
company a call when I got back home and he'd bring it in.
It was late enough in the day, I decided to leave it sit until the next
morning, when, with one last try, it started hard, but started, and spewed
oil smoke (bluish) as it warmed up. Drove it to the dealer where the
computer just said that it had misfired (check engine light had come on
during one of the restart attempts) ...which I'm sure was from the starting
attempts, and was not the initial cause. They could not find nothing else
wrong, and apparently others have not yet reported any similar problems. Bob
(the service manager) knows me well, and would definitely tell me if there
was.
At any rate, it's been starting fine since then...despite the temperature
getting down to below 15 degrees these recent mornings.
Still have heard nothing about the intermittent steering/braking situation.
BTW...the '87 RX-7 is still running great! 145,000 miles! been driving it
to avoid running the 8 around on the salted roads (had a foot of snow here
in the last couple of weeks.)
Harley
Raw fuel is probably accumulating in the bottom of the rotor housings
as it can no longer be swept out the exhaust port in the side exhaust
RX8 engine.
An oil pan heater will solve this problem. Heating the oil in the RX8
will heat the lower rotor housing vaporizing the accumulated raw fuel.
This probably happens when you start it up and move it for only
a few seconds and then shut off the engine. This is mentioned in
the manual as a no no. You are supposed to let it warm
up before you shut it off as I recall.
Paul Lamar
In the mean time if you want to try something buy one of these
four inch thick 1500 watt Pelonis room heaters and place it under the
oil pan. It will not shut off when mounted horizontally under the oil pan.
Should heat the whole engine in about an hour.
Model HB-211 0307
http://www.pelonis.com/
Paul Lamar
I have been thinking about this some more and it is a very very interesting
problem. Unlike a piston engine all the fuel that goes in the side port
rotary stays in the side port rotary or is burned. When you flood a piston
engine the excess fuel leaks down past the piston rings into the oil
sump. No such thing can happened in the RX8 motor. As much as half a pint of
fuel can accumulate in the rotor housing if you keep cranking the engine
without it starting. No way will the engine ever start unless that excess fuel
is removed. Just like a lighted match dropped in a tank of gas the mixture
is far far too rich to ignite. It takes 10 to 14 pounds of air mixed with one
pound of fuel to ignite. 14 pounds of air is one heck of a lot of volume
of air.
I have no idea how Mazda is going to solve this problem but they better do it
quick.
Paul Lamar
The second gens have this problem when they get old. I know if I
started my 86 and shut it down soon after, then try to start again, it
would usually flood. I battled this a couple times. Then read on the
internet on some RX-7 page that this is a common occurance. The solution
is to pull the big fuse in the engine compartment for the fuel
injectors. Crank the engine for about 10 seconds with the gas pedal
floored, it won't start of course but it blows the gas out the exhaust
ports. Replace the fuse and it will usually start. This works well if
the engine is only "mildly" flooded. Maybe with the side exhaust ports
this won't work as well?
--
Perry
That won't work in the RX8. What scares me is one RX8 mechanic I know at
Santa Monica Mazda does not understand the problem. He talked about
squirting oil in the combustion chamber. Any oil squirted in the
RX8 combustion chamber stays in the RX8 combustion chamber. Enough oil and
you might have an hydraulic lock. Hydraulic lock equals broken apex seals
or broken rotor.
To fix it the excess fuel must be pumped out of the
combustion chamber first and foremost using a small hose inserted into
the lower spark plug hole when the front rotor is roughly 30 degrees
ATDC. For the rear rotor it must be about 210 degrees ATDC. This is
so the hose will go down to the bottom of the trochoid.
I am not sure heating the engine to less than 200 degrees F will evaporate
the excess fuel.
Paul Lamar
The AirCraft Rotary Engine NewsLetter. Powered by Linux.
ACRE NL web site. http://home.earthlink.net/~rotaryeng/
Copyright 1998-2003 All world wide rights reserved.