The Renesis and 13B pans have the same capacity 7.2 quarts which is a nice increase over the 5 qts of the stock pan. This should help a bit with cooling.

If your design does not include the belly radiator, we can increase the depth and capacity of the pan accordingly. Presently we can supply pans for 13B, Renesis and 20B.

From Paul Lamar: the whole 'oil pan story.'

What is the purpose of replacing the stock oil pan? What additional functionality is lacking in the stock pan? How do these factors play with the Renesis?

There are several reasons. We need a way to mount the engine as there are no specific brackets or fittings on the engine so it can be cantilevered like a Lycoming. One of the motor mounts Mazda uses is under the back of the transmission so that is not available to us. Mazda has changed the motor mount position several times in the past so we need an aircraft design that would fit all engines including the RX8 engine.

We settled on the Schertz beam after several years of trying different designs. (The newsletter will have been in existence for ten years this coming April.) The mount is patterned after the Questair Venture motor mount which is particularly well designed and simple to build. 90% of the load is at the CG of the engine/PSRU/prop combination so that is why the Schertz beam is located where it is. Since the Schertz beam needs space to mount directly under the rear (on the car) end housing the oil pan must be modified in this area to clear the Schertz beam. The aircraft exhaust system gets in the way of the stock Mazda motor mounts as it turns downwards instead of backwards. The Schertz is long enough so it will clear any exhaust system, in the cowl tangential muffler or turbo charger.

Only two large rubber bushings are required to take the 570 ft/lb torque and 1800 pound download from the engine in a hard landing or 6 G turn. We also need a rear motor mount to keep the engine in the proper orientation or down thrust angle and react the minor moments on the engine due to the thrust line being above the main rubber bushings. The new oil pan is also a good place to weld on a rear mount.

Another reason for a new pan is 5 quarts of oil is too little for an aircraft engine developing full power for 5 minutes on take off and climb out. An O-470 230 HP Continental engine has 12 quarts for this reason. More oil delays the onset of oil overheating.

Another reason is the RX8 engine oil pan is too shallow at about 1.5 inches and consequently the RX8 engine suffers from crankcase breathing problems at steady RPM's over about 5000 RPM. A deeper oil pan solves that problem as well.