Blown engine - RotaryNews.com

subject:	2004 With Blown Engine
author:	zoomzoomed
date:	September 16, 2010 - 1:13pm

I have an 04, which I bought new. It has only 57K miles on it, and the engine just blew. I understand that the rotary engine is a unique device, but come on. Yeah, I checked the oil constantly, but it sounds like that doesn't really matter in terms of the liklihood of blowing a seal. When you buy a car, you might read the manual, but you don't expect to do extensive research on how to repair it before it's even broken in - this is not a custom hot rod, it's a production car bought off a lot that also sells 3s, 6s and at the time MPVs - so all these comments about how you need to educate your stupid self by reading extensive online blogs on rotaries are ridiculous (you read something different on every site anyway- red line it, don't red line it; use 5W30, use 5W20). This car was marketed to Joe Public, not gearheads, and nobody at the dealership said anything about all of this insane protocol. Mazda messed up with this, and I am surprised that there aren't class actions on it.

When I moved to a cold climate, I drove the car sparingly in the cold. I drove it every few days, but I was not confident enough to drive it too much. It isn't the most winter friendly car - the glumping oil condensation made checking the oil impossible (yes, I ran it to get it hot, but it was still clumped in the dipstick), and checking the RX's oil is of the highest priority; the battery repeatedly died when it was under 20 degrees outside and I parked it anywhere besides the garage; and no matter what anyone says, I never found this car to be good in snow, regardless of what tires you put on it - it's at most adequate. I kept it in a heated garage between drives.

My RX8 was flat-bedded three times for flooding before info on how to fix the flooding became widely available. All three times involved very different circumstances. It got it one more time when, no matter what I did, it wouldn't start. In 57,000 miles?

The tailights have been full of water for three years (Mazda knows about this too!), the front visor fell off after 200 miles (not covered by warranty), the climate control knob broke off and other interior pieces just popped off over time. Is my RX really just quirky, or is it a big piece of crap?

I've defended this car to detractors for over six years. But now I'm not so sure it really should be defended.

I've asked Mazda for help. I have 3 Mazdas now, and I would have considered another. However, I was told that I would need to prove every oil change in order to get help. Who keeps these receipts for six years? If the product was defective when it was sold, why not just fix it. Mazda knew it was going to break at some point no matter what.

I found a replacement motor, but I really don't understand how that will impact the resale value or how much it will cost to put it in the car yet. I might be better off to scrap it. It will be the shiniest car in the junkyard. I'm pretty bummed, and don't really know what to do with it. It's been at a shop for a week waiting for me to decide.

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subject:	BLOWN ENGINE
author:	rotary16X
date:	April 10, 2010 - 4:42pm

chuck it up to experience...it sounds to me like you have a lot to learn about rotary engines...this is all part of the game...you will get wiser with time and experiences like this one...thats the good part!

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