call me stupid.

[Tomtom]

bought a rx8 today from leeds sold as seen drove 8 miles stoped for petrol would not start phoned green flag they used a battery booster started straight up great drove about 6 miles slowed down for roundabout cut out would not restart . oily smell white smoke what needs doing. also if it is the worst can somebody make a list of every thing i need to buy to fix it. thank you

[13Black]

Engine rebuild possibly.

Be very careful spending money on parts until it gets a proper diagnosis.

[Tomtom]

Engine rebuild possibly.

Be very careful spending money on parts until it gets a proper diagnosis.

a friend of mine is a mechanic and is willing to have a go repairing it so need a list of what i will need .

[TheManc]

if its a rebuild let him have a good read as "willing to have a go" ain't what you need as parts for a rebuild are roughly 1K

[acegeezer]

Well if the compression is low a hot start is a definite indicator .. and there is no list of "parts needed" .. the only cure for a low comp engine is a full rebuild about £2.5k. Did you read the Buyers Guide before parting with any cash, so you knew what to look out for? .. app.php/buyers-guide .. if not then I will call you stupid

[Tomtom]

Well if the compression is low a hot start is a definite indicator .. and there is no list of "parts needed" .. the only cure for a low comp engine is a full rebuild about £2.5k. Did you read the Buyers Guide before parting with any cash, so you knew what to look out for? .. app.php/buyers-guide .. if not then I will call you stupid

the guy drove it to the rail station for me to pick up it started up fine thought it was hot so ok checked oil water etc all good so parted with my cash drove it 8 miles to garage it started hot then 2miles to post office for tax car then would not start green flag use booster it fired up this was after waiting 1 hour so cold engine drove down the road about six miles stalled at traffic lights would not restart

[Paul_13]

Might be something simple.... Or full rebuild time.
When you say it won't restart. Is the starter turning?

[Tomtom]

if its a rebuild let him have a good read as "willing to have a go" ain't what you need as parts for a rebuild are roughly 1K

he is a guy i would trust and he is reading up on them and watching you tube.

[V8 Power]

Could just be a duff battery.

[13Black]

To be honest it could be a number of things but unless you give us plenty more information, it will just be somewhat educated shots in the dark.

Your best bet is to get it in the hands of someone who knows what they're looking at and check the simple/likely things first to rule them out.

[New Duke]

13Black is an expert on these cars. Therefore a good rule of thumb to follow is

[goodeggbob]

hi mate,sorry to hear of your problem, but if you mate is a guy you can trust,why didn't you take him with you to inspect the car first? is there any chance of getting your money back?

[Scotty PZ]

Get a compression test done, until that has been carried out everything is a guessing game.

[warpc0il]

Previous owner overfilled the oil?
It could really be as simple as that.
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=36391

Or is might be a grenade, with the pin out...

[Rafael]

Yeah exactly could be simple or rebuild time, Just do your own inspection first before you'll start stripping off engine, check MAF sensor if is not dirty, ESS sensor, buy cheap spark tester and inspect ignition system, and first of all scan for fault codes using OBD2 reader that could tell you what is wrong.

[Paul_13]

Previous owner overfilled the oil?
It could really be as simple as that.
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=36391

Or is might be a grenade, with the pin out...

Valid point. Had it got a catch tank fitted? Is it full by any chance?

[Dr. FrankenRex]

As has been said, you can't really know without having it looked over. My guesses are the below - but they are in no way exhaustive and I wouldn't go spending money on any of them until someone who knows RX8s has had a look over it.

- Battery
- Coils
- Spark Plugs
- Leads
- Oil Overfill
- Old starter motor
- Low compression
- Lost a seal

As said, in no way exhaustive, so please talk to someone first. These aren't even written in priority order.

If it was me, my car and my money I'd get a compression test done first and foremost. If compression is good then start to investigate the other things.

[Tomtom]

Might be something simple.... Or full rebuild time.
When you say it won't restart. Is the starter turning?

Yes starterturning

[Tomtom]

As has been said, you can't really know without having it looked over. My guesses are the below - but they are in no way exhaustive and I wouldn't go spending money on any of them until someone who knows RX8s has had a look over it.

- Battery
- Coils
- Spark Plugs
- Leads
- Oil Overfill
- Old starter motor
- Low compression
- Lost a seal

As said, in no way exhaustive, so please talk to someone first. These aren't even written in priority order.

If it was me, my car and my money I'd get a compression test done first and foremost. If compression is good then start to investigate the other things.

There is a very strong smell of oil . oil overfill is possible?

[Honkytonk]

If you're half decent at being able to look under a bonnet, the easiest things to check and therefore rule out would be the battery (voltmeter), then the oil overfill/misfill possibility (look at the dipstick level and the air filter) then check the OBD2 readout, then clean the MAF, then maybe start pulling sparks/leads/coils etc. out.

[Tomtom]

There is a very strong smell of oil . oil overfill is possible?

Not only "possible" but a strong contender as it matches the symptoms and is among the easiest things to check.

[story_time]
A few years ago a member bought a car from a non-Mazda dealer, sold as a "trade-in without warranty"*.
He'd arranged for a friend with a low-loader to collect, as it wasn't taxed or MOT'd.
However, the engine died in a cloud of smoke while being driven across the forecourt, to which the friend responded with "I told you they were sh*t".

Anyway, he got the car home and discovered that the engine oil was full.
Full all the way up the neck of the oil filler.

He sucked-out the excess oil and cleaned the intake hose, and the MAF, and the engine started, using jump leads "just in case".

Left the engine running for a while and then saw steam coming from the engine bay.
Switched off and left it over night.

Next morning he discovered that the coolant header tank had also be filled, to the brim, despite the MAX mark being only half-way-up.
He sucked-out the excess coolant from the tank, only to find that it smelt much more like screenwash than coolant.

The screenwash tank was empty , as was the fuel tank. He'd noticed that the gauge didn't move and had assumed it was broken.

Those things all sorted, the car started and he took it for an MOT to discover what else might need doing.
It was his mate who was the MOT tester and was most surprised when the car drove in.

The car passed, with a single advisory. The tester had noticed that the shiny cheap tyres were sitting a bit strangely on the rims and he wasn't sure if the pressures might have been a bit high, so he checked with is car tyre gauge, which went straight off the scale. His light-commercial gauge also went off the scale - so the pressures were over 80psi

Seems that someone had "Filled the oil, and the screenwash, and the tyres", probably at the dealer as it couldn't have been drive in like that

Anyway, after a slight embarrassment on the way home, as he didn't know about the resonator chamber on the side of the intake, that had also filled with oil, that car went on to provide many happy years of fun for the very lucky owner.

He eventually sold it to another member, who I believe is still running around in it, no harm done, and I don't know if he was ever told about that episode in its history.

[/story_time]

* There was a lot of debate around if any car can be sold by a dealer, to a member of the public, without any warranty, and the conclusion was that they can't, unless it's being sold for scrap. Otherwise there's always some "warranty".

[Nickp47]

They can be sold without a warranty, it’s consumer rights that can’t be withdrawn/ignored/dodged.

[Tomtom]

There is a very strong smell of oil . oil overfill is possible?

Not only "possible" but a strong contender as it matches the symptoms and is among the easiest things to check.

[story_time]
A few years ago a member bought a car from a non-Mazda dealer, sold as a "trade-in without warranty"*.
He'd arranged for a friend with a low-loader to collect, as it wasn't taxed or MOT'd.
However, the engine died in a cloud of smoke while being driven across the forecourt, to which the friend responded with "I told you they were sh*t".

Anyway, he got the car home and discovered that the engine oil was full.
Full all the way up the neck of the oil filler.

He sucked-out the excess oil and cleaned the intake hose, and the MAF, and the engine started, using jump leads "just in case".

Left the engine running for a while and then saw steam coming from the engine bay.
Switched off and left it over night.

Next morning he discovered that the coolant header tank had also be filled, to the brim, despite the MAX mark being only half-way-up.
He sucked-out the excess coolant from the tank, only to find that it smelt much more like screenwash than coolant.

The screenwash tank was empty , as was the fuel tank. He'd noticed that the gauge didn't move and had assumed it was broken.

Those things all sorted, the car started and he took it for an MOT to discover what else might need doing.
It was his mate who was the MOT tester and was most surprised when the car drove in.

The car passed, with a single advisory. The tester had noticed that the shiny cheap tyres were sitting a bit strangely on the rims and he wasn't sure if the pressures might have been a bit high, so he checked with is car tyre gauge, which went straight off the scale. His light-commercial gauge also went off the scale - so the pressures were over 80psi

Seems that someone had "Filled the oil, and the screenwash, and the tyres", probably at the dealer as it couldn't have been drive in like that

Anyway, after a slight embarrassment on the way home, as he didn't know about the resonator chamber on the side of the intake, that had also filled with oil, that car went on to provide many happy years of fun for the very lucky owner.

He eventually sold it to another member, who I believe is still running around in it, no harm done, and I don't know if he was ever told about that episode in its history.

[/story_time]

* There was a lot of debate around if any car can be sold by a dealer, to a member of the public, without any warranty, and the conclusion was that they can't, unless it's being sold for scrap. Otherwise there's always some "warranty".

Excellent mate .

[Tomtom]

hi mate,sorry to hear of your problem, but if you mate is a guy you can trust,why didn't you take him with you to inspect the car first? is there any chance of getting your money back?

Well I am 65 and not rich could not afford to take any one with me train fares very high I live in north Durham car was in west Yorkshire. John the mechanic is a busy man enough said I think.

[Tomtom]

If you're half decent at being able to look under a bonnet, the easiest things to check and therefore rule out would be the battery (voltmeter), then the oil overfill/misfill possibility (look at the dipstick level and the air filter) then check the OBD2 readout, then clean the MAF, then maybe start pulling sparks/leads/coils etc. out.

Thank you well I am disabled not good on my feet so doing little jobs no longer a possibility mechanic coming tomorrow to have a look will go from there.