RX-8 Owners Club UK

Hi all,

Have been reading the forum for a while without signing up til today. Lots of great info from everyone about things to look out for when buying etc.

Recently picked up my car, very nice 04 231ps with lots of receipts and history. Love the car, had a few issues initially due to the previous owner not using it much, but that had sorted itself out and was reliable all weekend taking me to and from Brands Hatch to do some tv presenting for the BRSCC. That was until I left last night and coming on to the M25 the engine decided to dump all its oil without any warning.

Leak appears to be on the drivers side although I can’t quite pin point it. Any ideas what might be the issue - is it likely to be something simple like a seal?

I know both Essex Rotary and Rotary Revs are recommended people on here, but both are bit far from me to move the car to. Does anyone have any recommendations around the Hertfordshire area?

Thanks and much appreciated guys.

Lloyd

Hello and welcome. I recommend Luke Murdoch of Murdoch Rotary Specialist, he is mobile so will be able to come out to you and diagnose/fix the fault.
He is best contacted via his FB business page.

Thanks Nick - I’ll drop Luke a message.

Very likely the oil lines to the coolers have corroded if not having been replaced already. See if you can identify and let Luke know as I am sure he could pick some up before venturing over to Hertfordshire so perhaps saving a second possible visit.

Dumping all the oil without warning is likely to be the oil cooler pipes failing . It's usually the passenger side that goes, but can be the driver's side. The only other likely culprit is that the sump is rusty and now has a hole in it. There are not many external oil seals on a rotary, and when they go they tend to slowly weep, rather than dumping the oil.

You are in the centre of a triangle of specialists, so each of them will be about an hour away:
- Essex Rotary (Dartford)
- Ryan Rotary Performance (Rugby)
- Hayward Rotary (Newbury)

Ryan has a great rep, but I'm not sure if they will do oil pipes. Essex might be your best bet. I'm sure Hayward would also do them.

Luke is a great bloke, and can definitely do your pipes. He does travel but, as said, it would help him if you had a diagnosis first.

Guys - thank you muchly for all your help.

Have contacted Luke and will have a look at the pipes tonight when I get home. In it doesn't like its going to be a major issue which is pleasing as I was worried it could be an expensive fix or even a rebuild.

Problems aside, I absolutely love driving the car, I've had some interesting cars over the years but this is definitely one of the most fun. If I can get the engine sorted I will be putting a full membership application

As said, the most likely cause is a broken oil cooler pipe.

However, if you can't see an obvious break then look at the cooler matrix.

The coolers don't have any impact protection and can get hit by stones, resulting in anything from a tiny weep to a full gusher.

Sent from my SM-G800F using Tapatalk

Hi and lloyd2002. Glad to hear the advice on the forum helped you when you were buying the car and that you've been enjoying it since you bought it. The oil dump sounds unfortunate and something none of us would want to happen, but hopefully Luke will get it all sorted. I'm sure if Luke wasn't available if you had given any of the specialists a call they would have been able to recommend a recovery service to get the car to them on a flatbed.

Thanks all.

Cool itself appears to be ok, but the spray pattern of the oil under the bonnet, around the engine bay and out through the wheel and the side of the car definitely suggests the pipe/connector, although there doesn’t appear to be oil left for it drip

Hi Lloyd & to the RX-8OC

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Update

Thanks for all the messages and was able to get Luke out to look over the car and replace the pipes.

Bad news, is that the sudden loss of oil has damaged the engine.

Given that I've not had the car a month and barely done 500 miles in it, should i:-
1) have an engine rebuild, although recognise the cost is huge
2) find a car that's breaking but has a good engine and do an engine swap
3) get a different RX8
4) forget the whole RX8 saga and put it down as one of life's lessons

Don't really want to do 4 if possible, but getting a but of pressure off the boss indoors about why I have a car that I can't use!!!

Thoughts please.

Ignoring option 4, which is frankly ridiculous , I guess it comes down to the body condition of the current car. If it is free of rust and paint is in good condition then keep it going with either a replacement engine or rebuild.

How much damage are you talking about? did you carry on driving the RX8 when the incident happened - amazed that much damage has been caused - that is if you pulled over straightaway... I might be wrong in saying that just curious.

Sorry to hear that your engine is damaged, did Luke say what the damage may be, e.g. a stationary bearing?

An engine rebuild isn't "huge", it's actually waaay cheaper than a rebuild of most comparable piston engines.
It is high in relation to the book value of the car but that's because the risk potential of needing a rebuild is reflected in the price for cars that haven't been recently rebuilt and therefore covered by engine warranty.

See this list of rotary specialists, many of whom offer rebuild services, with or without upgrades
https://www.rx8ownersclub.co.uk/forum/v ... 25&t=36531

Luke said basically the bearing has welded itself to the shaft. I pulled over as soon as it was safe, I was driving up the slip road onto the M25 at the time, but have been very unlucky - Luke's words not mine - that it's caused the damage it has.

Car otherwise is it pretty good condition. Sills are good, suspension mounts and joints have been changed. Little bit of rust on the rear boot lid, but not around the 3rd brake light. Paint is a little scuffed, but generally ok. Just can't drive it at the moment!!!!

Sounds to me like it's 100% worth rebuilding the engine. You'll get a good warranty from most of the reputable builders (2-3 years with some), which should put your mind at rest about being unlucky twice.

UPDATE:- picked the up from Murdoch's Rotary Specialists last night. Lots of work done included engine change, new clutch and new master cylinder.

1) Very happy with the service from Luke, top man
2) Many thanks to everyone on here for comments and advice

I've submitted my membership application, so I guess I can say I'm officially an RX-8 Owner

I think he's just completed 2) Ian

Well done for saving another one Lloyd.

Hi Lloyd, and welcome! Here's hoping you have better luck with your car moving forward!

I grew up in Hemel... nights out in 'wally world' and driving lessons on the magic roundabout.. some memories just never leave you!! lol.

Cheers - it#'s certainly sounding and driving a lot better than it did before.

I've only been in Hemel about 18 months, although thankfully there used to be a magic roundabout like the one in Hemel close to where I grew up in Essex so wasn't too fazed by it. Wally World - now that sounds like a whole different level of fun!!

Sadler's Farm roundabout used to be far more fun than the HH magic roundabout, but it's all changed now.