okay I've posted this before, and some people say low compresion but thats not it, I get 120psi on the front rotor and 117psi on the rear, but why do I have to start my car over like 7 to 10 times after its been sitting in 50 degree less weather for more than 8-10 hours, it catches the dies, and so on and so on, untill the block reaches a certian temp then I hve to keep slaming the throttle off an on for it to catch , when it does, it back fires like crazy almost everytime I hit the gas, untill it warms up, is this problem becuase of the thermowax, if so how do I fix this? anyone else have this problem, please input...

 

Mine has been turning over kinda slow lately... but I'm going to blame that on the cold weather.

 

You might try adjusting the screw on the linkage that rests on the thermowax. All it does is hold the throttle open though. You should be able to simulate that using the pedal. You should also check out all the temperature sensors (two water temp, one air temp).

Todd

 

I have a similar problem in that in sub 50 degree weather, it's harder to start and idles and runs very rough for about 15 to 20 minutes after which time it runs fine. The Check Engine light also flashes on when I rev the engine until it gets warm. I have checked the ECU codes and haven't gotten anything and have resoldered the idiot light cluster as well to no avail.

 

That sure sounds like a bad temp. sensor to me. BUT...I've never had those exact symptoms. FWIW my '89 TII idles a little low/rough for the first few minutes after a hot start......no starting problems and it goes away after the first minute or so. Also....reving the engine a few times clears it right up. No problems when cold though.

Todd

 

Mine does the same thing, Its stored for the winter but i start it once a week, But when ever i start it its like booooww booooowww then starts up and i have to play with the trotle to keep it on. Does urs turns over slowly to?

 

are you running thiner oil now? I droped down to 10w30 for the winter. if you're still running 20W50 changing would help. Mine's died a couple times in the last month on cold starts which is kinda weird... but started right up the 2nd time.

you still have the thermowaxs in for a 1500 idle? or is it removed?

 

I'm still running the thicker oil. It's been so damn cold and nasty outside for so long I haven't had a chance to change it to 10W30. That thought had crossed my mind though. I only run mine about once a week also unless we get day in the 50's or so. It's odd though. We drove it tonight to the gym, let it warm up in the driveway for 10 minutes, drove to the gym with that Check Engine light bitchin' every time I put my foot in it and when we come out to go home, I crank it up, purrs like a kitten and that stupid light never blinks once as I drive it home. Bizarre...

BTW everything is still stock.

 

Seems like one of the temp. sensors is saying "warm" all the time. Scott, my '89 has done the same thing as yours a couple of time this winter (died right after starting). It does this when I start with the car in neutral then put it in gear, then out of gear....it shuts the engine off right away. If I start with the car in gear to skip the AW....no problem.

Todd

 

I also am still running 20W50 but I'm in texas, I'm not sure about the thermowax at all, where is it? and in order for me to get it started I have to have a leg spazm to keep the rpms from falling, but the winter here in texas doesn't last too long at all, today it was 76 F degrees out and she started up right away, when its cold I hold the rpms at about 3k-4k for about 30-45 secs and it idles at 1500 for a bit then once she warms up it goes down to a steady 800, with a -16 vac..

 

Yep, mine was turning over slow because of the weather. It warmed up to normal temps today and it cranks over like a healthy rotary should. I think I may need a new battery and spark plugs though.

 

76 in the winter, holy ****, that is hot for me up here in washington. mine runs like crap when its cold, it starts the first time thought, sometimes the second. it idels a little rough for the fist 5-10 min than its good. i dont know, its probably a sensor, are you flooding it?

 

nope note flooding, ive pulled the EGI fuse and still the same situation.........

 

just wanted to revive this thread as i am having the same exact problems. And at the exact same temperatures. If it is 55 or above it starts fine but if it is anything less than that i either have to crank it and wait or push start it and its getting old very quickly. i Changed the water sensor behind the alternator but it didnt help at all. Which others should i change?

 

I have the same problem. But here's some added info that maybe might help narrow down the problem.

Mine used to be a bitch to start at all temperatures. I had aftermarket fuel injectors from RC, and they sent me the right spec volume, but wrong impedence. Anyway, it was a challenge to start and it would white smoke the whole neighbrohood up when it finally did start.

So I replaced the primary fuel injectors with the mazda oem ones. I did this in the summer. Its started up all the time with little or no trouble.

But now that its winter in CO, I get a little of the same thing. Though not as hard to start as it was with the after market fuel injectors, it's still a bit of a pain.

I suspect it does have something to do with the opening of the throttle plates at certain temps. And also, though not sure, I have an automatic transmission throttle body which is slightly different from the manuals
as it has different/more diaphrams associated with the intake throttle plates.

I've really never been able to fix this problem. And it is annoying as all hell.

 

well i just swapped over the trailing and leading coils from my parts car because they were in much better shape and it seemed to pull a little harder and be a little more responsive...so ive got to wait until it is cold to see weher or not it helped my cold start. but i dont think it did at all

 

I alos have the EXACT same problem.. mine is a fresh rebuild though so its probably a different thing with my car but still if anybody found a resolution to theis problem I'm sure it would help a lot of people.

 

swapping over the known good coils didnt make any difference. I ve got a question...what is sufficient cold cranking amps to get an RX-7 started in the cold. I have a "Neverstart" battery with 535 CCA. Is that enough?

BTW I have about 70,000 on a reman, so i dont think it is compression. I dont have a compression tester but i did pull out the plugs and the EGI fuse and cranked it. It had 3 loud even pulses from both rotors. I did the geyser test and passed it also so my coolant seals are good.

 

I just want to keep this post alive so people in colder temp areas can keep each other updated on anything they find to fix the problem..


I found out my battery was getting worn out and I'm swapping a new one in tomorrow... what amout of CCA's will help the engine turn better?

 

nothing i have done has helped yet. and ive change over many of the sensors...its pissing me off though...anyone?

 

Everyone here Needs to check their thermosensor conncetions...I bet dollars to donuts that is the problem in 90% of your cases....the thermosensor relays a message to teh ECU telling it how much fuel to dump from the injectors ....the car dies because it's either getting too much or not enough i cant remember, check the connections then let me know....

 

Where are the thermosensor relays located?

 

i think he is referring to the green sensor right below the altenator and the one on the bottom driverside of the radiator? ive changed the one that is right under the altenator with one that came off a car that started everytime in cold weather and nothing changed. i also changed the intake air temp sensor and it didnt help either...ive never messed with the one on the radiator though

 

Ok if the coolant sensor was broke, then the guage wouldn't work, correct? I tested my intake temp sensor and it seems to be ok. How do I test the relay?

 

i have no idea about any relays i have just tested the sensors themselves. the gauge signal is fed from the sensor on the bottom of the radiator, the one underneath the altenator on the filler neck is what the ecu reads the signal from to know how much fuel to dump in the motor to get it to start .