Mazda RX8 Tuning queerie

[AA355]

HI,
I have just bought my wife a Mazda RX8 192 BHP Model. Is it just a case of a remap to get it to the higher output of 231 as I think the engines are the same? Also does anyone know of a tuner around the Derby area? Many thanks for your assistance in this.

[bluebear]

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

[RobCrezz]

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

I dont think so.. I think they just suffer from people not maintaining them correctly. Coil packs go wrong, people continue to drive, apex seals die.

[wolves_wanderer]

AA355 said:

HI,
I have just bought my wife a Mazda RX8 192 BHP Model. Is it just a case of a remap to get it to the higher output of 231 as I think the engines are the same? Also does anyone know of a tuner around the Derby area? Many thanks for your assistance in this.

The engines are different, sorry. The 231 has an extra 2 ports which open at high revs (hence the 9k redline instead of 7.5k)

ETA http://www.pettitracing.co.uk/pettit_racing_mazda_... These are the only people I would trust to remap an RX8, they claim up to 15% and a couple of people who have had it on the forums seemed pretty happy. I can't vouch for it myself and if you don't already have a high-flow cat it is a pretty expensive way of not getting much more power.

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

You'll fit in well here.

Edited by wolves_wanderer on Tuesday 22 November 11:53

[IainT]

wolves_wanderer said:

AA355 said:

HI,
I have just bought my wife a Mazda RX8 192 BHP Model. Is it just a case of a remap to get it to the higher output of 231 as I think the engines are the same? Also does anyone know of a tuner around the Derby area? Many thanks for your assistance in this.

The engines are different, sorry. The 231 has an extra 2 ports which open at high revs (hence the 9k redline instead of 7.5k)

Yup, there are a fair few differences that make it more than a simple ECU upgrade or remap.

wolves_wanderer said:

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

You'll fit in well here.

That's not quite fair - most posters here have a clue.

[cheesesliceking]

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

Wow you've only been here 5 months and yet you have already managed to appear just like 99% of PH e.g. an insufferable tt.

[mboyle4]

It's hilarious how people comment on the RX8 who have never owned them and have no idea about the car or the renesis engine. People who have heard rumours etc often slate the engines, the oils usage etc etc. Mazda sold almost 130,000 rx8's and almost 30,000 in this country alone. They were a mass produced sports car/coupe that had a few unique quirks/traits and they often got into the hands of people who did not understand the uniqueness of them. Yes the engine uses oil but no were near the amount people make out. Around 3/4 litres every 10k which costs about £25, big deal! Providing you get into a routine of annual servicing, checking the oil level regularly and not shutting the engine down when cold then you will not go far wrong with these cars. Plugs, leads and coils should be changed every 30k/3 years as the ignition system needs to be in good order on them. The vast majority of the rx8's out there will be on their original engine and still going strong. Yes compression problems in the engine can occur which is usualy (not always) down to poor maintanance and any car that is neglected can have problems! As for getting more peformance unless you have a few grand to spare on turbocharging or supercharging then I would leave it alone. There is very little to be gained out of them without going down the forced induction route. Enjoy the car, the fantastic balnced feel, awesome handling/grip, screaming rotary engine not to mention value for money.

[AA355]

Thank you all vry much for your replies, I have learnt something today and on that basis I will leave the engine alone and spend the money on new coils, plugs, service and in summer some sticky tyres!

Hopefully it will be a bit of fun for me at wekends and a daily ride for my wife.

[bluebear]

cheesesliceking said:

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

Wow you've only been here 5 months and yet you have already managed to appear just like 99% of PH e.g. an insufferable tt.

sinse being a member of PH i have never seen so many "my engine is fked" threads centered round one particular engine. a simple check on the internet will back up they are notorious for failing. Yes its probably down to owners mistreating them or not following simple guidelines. But they are costly when they go wrong and do seem fail more than conventional engines

[japgt]

to the op, have a chat with graham from enginemapper, based in deeside north wales, specialises in subaru and mazda rx8 mapping, very knowledgable and pleasant fella, i had my scoob done by him on the rollers at silverstone autosport where he is based, they also know a thing or to about mazdas!!!!

[AA355]

Thanks JapGT for the advice. Hmmm I wonder if I can put in the 231 engine into a 192 car? Would everything match up do you think? (just a thought as it sounds like the engine is going to go bang soon anyway as people keep telling me, so it may be a cheeper option finding a replacemnet engine rather than fixing it)

[IainT]

AA355 said:

Thank you all vry much for your replies, I have learnt something today and on that basis I will leave the engine alone and spend the money on new coils, plugs, service and in summer some sticky tyres!

Hopefully it will be a bit of fun for me at wekends and a daily ride for my wife.

Also - check out mazdaratoaryclub.com - lots of RX8 owners in various states of modification and a fair few who do track days, etc.

[wolves_wanderer]

AA355 said:

Thanks JapGT for the advice. Hmmm I wonder if I can put in the 231 engine into a 192 car? Would everything match up do you think? (just a thought as it sounds like the engine is going to go bang soon anyway as people keep telling me, so it may be a cheeper option finding a replacemnet engine rather than fixing it)

I don't know how easy the engine swap would be but don't forget that the gearbox is different as well (the 231 has a 6 speed box). If you were that keen then changing the whole car would be cheaper I suspect. On the owners club site a couple have swapped the 231 gearbox into a 192, apparently the acceleration is better because of the shorter ratios and I imagine it's a lot cheaper than changing the engine.

[IainT]

AA355 said:

Thanks JapGT for the advice. Hmmm I wonder if I can put in the 231 engine into a 192 car? Would everything match up do you think? (just a thought as it sounds like the engine is going to go bang soon anyway as people keep telling me, so it may be a cheeper option finding a replacemnet engine rather than fixing it)

ECU and loom are likely to have differences - the loom might just be an interchangeable piece though so you wouldn't need a whole one!

A transplanted 2nd hand HP engine would be a lot cheaper than a new crated one - IIRC they're about 4k new from Mazda but people over on MRC would have that info. There are a few turbo and SC conversions but they're fairly rare and pretty pricey.

Sadly it's not a simple job to whack an RX-7 engine and ECU in there!

[Marf]

bluebear said:

cheesesliceking said:

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

Wow you've only been here 5 months and yet you have already managed to appear just like 99% of PH e.g. an insufferable tt.

sinse being a member of PH i have never seen so many "my engine is fked" threads centered round one particular engine. a simple check on the internet will back up they are notorious for failing. Yes its probably down to owners mistreating them or not following simple guidelines. But they are costly when they go wrong and do seem fail more than conventional engines

Well which is it?


Make your mind up and come back with an informed opinion, or don't post at all.

[bluebear]

Marf said:

bluebear said:

cheesesliceking said:

bluebear said:

hat of for buying one of these. i would not touch it though. It seems if so much as look at it the wrong way the engine detonates. good luck fella

Wow you've only been here 5 months and yet you have already managed to appear just like 99% of PH e.g. an insufferable tt.

sinse being a member of PH i have never seen so many "my engine is fked" threads centered round one particular engine. a simple check on the internet will back up they are notorious for failing. Yes its probably down to owners mistreating them or not following simple guidelines. But they are costly when they go wrong and do seem fail more than conventional engines

Well which is it?


Make your mind up and come back with an informed opinion, or don't post at all.

ok then its due to Mazda (who i'm a big fan off,having owned many of in the past and currently) making a engine that while on paper looks good but in reality is not very good on fuel,oil or reliability. happy now ! TIT !

[Marf]

Oh, a third reason now! TIT!

[wolves_wanderer]

I love RX8 threads. Every time I promise myself I won't get involved but every time I can't help responding to the recycled bar-stool wisdom that gets vomited all over the thread.

[bluebear]

im bored with the RX8 gang. your cars have stupid engines.

[Marf]

Off you pop then!