I stooped by the local Mazda dealer to see if they have the new RX-8 on showroom floor.

Yes indeed, they had one!

It was a black RX-8 with Red/black leather, Grand Touring Pack, and NAV. MSRP was $33,000. NO Markups.

It had 41 miles on it.

Short review notes:
1) interior quality is worthy for Infinity/Acura badge
2) Odometer cluster gauges are real nice, better than the TSX
3) Nav is nice too, no Voice control or touch screen :thumbsdn: but it does have Canada Maps (soopa take note!). I do not know if you can control it while on the move. It has some more features than the CLS' NAV.
4) There is no memory seats, nor easy access to the rear like in the CLS. It has one on passenger side though :thumbsdn:
5) The trunk is tiny( Not a problem on toy car) , it has an access panel from the rear seats.
6) you have to pay extra for the 6 indash CD, it is not even part of the Grand touring package. :thumbsdn:
7) The 18 wheels/tires are nice, but I did not see Brembo logo. I read the breaking power of the RX8 is the best in the industry.
8) There is like 2 dozen accessories to chose from.


We could not turn on the ignition, but I was promised a test drive on August 8.

Finally, if it had only extra 53 HP it would be a TOP winner!

Nashua

 

yeah serious man, i priced one out of curiousity and it came to 35k with all the good stuff. from what i hear its not just a hot car, its also very fun to drive. if i were in the market for a fun car i'd take this, maybe even over the 350Z.

 

i'd love the car as long as the engine issues aren't like the old RX7s

 

RX-8 would be my pick of sports cars. It is awesome, can't wait to drive it.

 

Oh did I say the shifter knob and the short throws are AMAZING. however, I could not engage the 6th speed on the show room floor.

Nashua.

 

Im trying to sell my CL-S.. tonigth someone test drove it and loved it... but my next car.. im drooling over is the S2000... trust me guys this car is sweet... my friend just got one last week and knows the owner of Westminster Honda in So Cal. . he got it for 33 straight out the door... The new japanese test car video just came out.. I'll look for it.. it was the S2000, G35 coupe, rx-8, miata, wrx... and yes the S2000 won. I saw the video.. RX-8 did very poorly.. in japan right now.. there not saying much of the rx-8 b/c rx-7 they prefer ... plus they said the s2000 was so far ahead.. it wasnt in the race no more.. and the miata was so far behind.. it wasnt in the race either ... in order who won.. S2000, Wrx, g35 coupe(surprised everyone), rx-8, and the miata... test drive a s2000 it'll win u... plus the new S2200 coming out.. they said minor changes.. in front and back.. Hp increase as in Torque but the rpm will drop.. so everyones sticking with the s2000 its selliing fast.. owner at honda dealer told me (hes a s2000 owner to) that people from japan are buying the s2000's from here.. since japan stoped making them . and no one can get them any more in japan... s2000 > rx-8

 

rx-8 is very nice and more practical than teh S2000. It has more toys too!

 

don't forget though that repairs are going to be a bitch. Finding a mechanic who's good with rotary engines is rare. I know rotary performace in Dallas, TX is one of the best in the south but all throughout the state they're the only ones.

Rare labor = EXPENSIVE labor.

 

it won't be bad as your repairs will be done through the dealer.


Also, there are a good amount of rotary experts if you live in big parts of the country.

 

I think it comes with 48 months, 50kmiles warrenty, same as the CLS! That is nice too.

 

as far as engine work, i think some of you guys are making a mountain out of a mole hill.

as nashua just said, the thing comes with a 50k warranty, so right there, no worries what-so-ever for at least 50k or 4 years. then, lets think about this, the old RX-7 was a sweet ride, but YES it had its engine problems, its a unique engine, but mazda has undoubtedly learned from mistakes on the last rotary motor. im sure they totally re-engineered things and really painstakingly build a great engine that we now see in the RX-8. its definately in mazda's best intrest to build a solid motor as any failures will result in lots of warranty work which they must pay for, or worse yet, a recall which could cost millions and millions. i will be interested to see the long term reliability of this new RX-8 rotary motor, but i DEFINATELY wouldnt let that motor sway my desision to buy one over a car like an S2K or something. the warranty will take care of EVERYTHING!! worst case senerio, get an extended warranty for the hell of it, then you can rest easy at night.

 

I think the styling is beautiful, I just have a thing about 4 door sports cars though

 

It is 4 doors.. RX-8 has front coupe (long) doors. It is real a winner for Mazda!.

The sad story, base price is $26k however options are $10,000 more

Now let see... 6-CD in dash is $500 more, and a cassette player is $200 for $700 I can buy a nice Home theather sound system!

MP3 player is more $$$.... too!

Damn it those accessories are insanely expensive!

 

My neighbor just bought a 03 S2000 for 30K out th door in Pittsburg california, so 33K is too much !
Shop around......

BTW: you can have that car, loud, rough riding and not pratical (S2000 that is )