My little brother has one and i love it. It eats a quart of oil every other fill up, which is crazy, but the car handles and rides like a dream. And he hung with a 3lb boost blown CL-S pretty well, so i wouldnt say it is that slow. But it could use more tq down low.

 

In reality, the RX8 isn't much different than a S2000 performance wise.
RX8 (6MT)-232hp 159lbs/ft
S2000 237hp 162lbs/ft
Both are 08 models and they both rev high to make any power, the RX8 weighs roughly 250lbs more.

What I think it comes down to is do you like to rev the crap out of a car to get the power or do you need the instant gratification of low end torque? Personally, I like cars that you have to work a bit to make them quick which is why I'm a Prelude fanboy and a Honda 4 banger fan in general.

Going into a bigger scale, I enjoy driving a base Cayman more than I enjoy a 911 turbo. Any idiot with a right foot can make the turbo go fast, the Cayman makes you pay attention, work the gear box, and think ahead if you want to drive quick. All it takes to make the turbo go fast is roll your right foot into the gas slightly.

 

get a BMW Z4

 

^ ew

 

Even though the 08 model made a decent jump in HP since he's talking about the 04-06 models I would recommend against it. I work at a Mazda dealer and have driven these car countless times and since I'm a manager I've driven them home and around town. Like everyone else said they have worst gas mileage than a SUV, they do burn a lot of oil, and they constantly need air/fuel induction services because they build up so much carbon. Just check out the tail pipes of one and you'll see. Even if you clean it it'll be black in like 20 minutes. Also my service manager had one and modded it with all Mazda Speed products(CAI and Exhaust), Greddy pullies, spark plug wires, and I think 2 chips. He went to the dyno the same day as me and put down 183whp/142tq. The modding products are expensive as hell too, the Speed CAI and exhaust alone was $2000 and that's with getting a discount cuz we work at the dealer.


As far as flooding the engine you cant turn that car on and just shut it off immediately or it will flood. If you hold they key too long while turning it on it could potentially flood as well.

 

Which should not happen on a modern, fuel injected car. WTF...

 

Umm, Ok, It was rated at 238hp from 2004-2006 its 232 in 08. I would attribute this to the new SAE standard J1349 for rating HP (the same one that made a TL go from 270hp to 258hp). Either way 232<238 so how exactly did they get more hp from the 08 engine.

You're one of the dealer employees that give the rest of us a bad name. Learn your product.

 

Sorry, didnt think I was gonna touch a nerve. I was thinking about the 04-06 automatic HP which originally was rated at 207 later to find out it's really only 197 and that's the one that made the decent increase to the 2008's 212HP. Honest mistake, still doesnt change the fact that I wouldn't recommend one. Oh and I'm on the used side and only sell like 1 Rx-8 every 6 months so yeah the product knowledge on that car would be a lil rusty.

 

Don't sweat it, but if you brush up on the cars, you may pop a few more. Believe me, I gotta try to sell V6 Cayennes to people who can get a lot of other SUV's with more equipment for a lot less $$$$. You gotta have everything on hand and pull it out at the right time.

Like I said before, I'm a bit of a rotary fanboy. The concept is ingenious but I still haven't been able to sell myself on one.

 

It's not that we can't sell them, we dont buy them cuz they dont sell. We usually only keep 1 on the lot at a time. I appreciate the advice though.

 

$2000 for exhaust and intake....

For well know brands, intake and full exhaust would be right on par with that.

 

explanation? from what i've read and been told they have perfect weight distribution and are amazing at handling?

 

I wouldn't mind an RX-8, yeah they aren't perfect but what is these days? I like the idea of a light high-reving car! What more can I say? I think these are good looking cars, and after the 787B with the crazy sounding engine I would certainly like a rotary one of these days.

 

I LOVE the RX-7 TT of the mid 90's still gets my attention everytime... the RX-8? meh

 

The engine does sound beautiful especially with some upgrades, that thing sings at 9K Rpm's. However the gains aren't worth the cost. I did see a clip of one on streetfire.net that had a Stage 2 SC and it blew past a Speed 6 like it was standing still but I think that SC is around $9-10K.

Oh and it does handle like a beast, I dont know who would say it doesnt. It's kinda like the Miata, not much umphh but in the twisties it performs well. Every car has it's pro's and cons but for the cost of this car, fuel economy, and cost to maintain I just dont think it's worth it.

 

dude, we cleared this up on the last page. He doesn't have a clue about the car.

 

I'm not trying to pick on the S2000 or the RX-8 but if it's "sweet spot" in the power band about 9-10 grand RPMs what's the point?
it will be like a chainsaw where you gotta rev the pee out of it to make power. yeah it's fun to occassionally rev up your engine but just after awhile i'd think it would get kind of old.

 

man i have seen some used 04's-05's for around $15-17k with low mileage around here....I still want to test drive one, but most likely wont pick one up now with everyone's opinions...thanks for the input guys...always good stuff...the thing i have against a 350 or an s2000 (both cars i would LOVE to own) is that i need a car with a backseat (even if its tiny)....I need to be able to have another person and my dog and my shit...i am seriously considering a 6 speed TL (already test drove one) but i really dont want the "family" style car and i also want a RWD...I also want a unique stock car that everyone one and there grandma doesn't own..TL's a EVERYWHERE here...

 

911 coupe
It's RWD and has a practically useless back seat.

 

AP2 S2000's rev to 8k and change before fuel cut, and are very streetable below that. I miss the hell out of mine and would never have sold it, if I didn't need to so that I could buy a home, and there is nothing that can replace that car for me, save for an Elise.

I never gets old...its really fun when a car is coming on the cam when others have to shut it down for an upshift, for example, the 6 in the Z4 is finished at 6500 rpm...just when its starts to get fun with an S.

The "sweet spot" for an S2k is between 6k and change and redline, when the cam comes on. It all depends on the driver, if that kind of thing doesn't get old for you, then its perfect. For me, it never got old.

Its not how high you have to rev RX8's that have given them a poor reputation, its their reliability and fuel economy that have.

 

I just traded my 2004 blue rx8 for a 07 tl type s last week and i miss my RX8 bad. I had to trade my car in because i'm expecting a baby so i needed the trunk and rear seat room =( The RX8 did have its share of problems like flooding if you dont heat up the car for a few minutes before turning it off... but i loved her...

 

Good call! The 3.0 is fast and gets decent MPG.

 

RX-8s are very highly fuel-efficient!

 

Personally, I'm not a fan of the RX8.

Theres this guy who drives one around my work and its all "fast & furious"-afied... black and yellow paint job, a spoiler that completely blocks his rear view and a cheap looking body kit.

OT but... can a TL beat a RX8?

 

even if rotarys are teh fail, the rx-7 is one of the sexiest/meanest cars ever

 

Depends on the type of track and the driver.

On a tight or medium track, the RX-8 would likely be faster, but the 3G TL's torque advantage should come into play on a fast track.

In a drag race, the RX-8 will lose on the eighth-mile but it's a driver's race in a quarter mile, based on car mag numbers, for a few runs. IIRC, it's really difficult to get the RX-8 to launch well, and requires abusing the driveline while above 5K RPM. I think C-Net did some track testing and didn't want to try to get the RX-8 below 15 seconds because of the abuse necessary.

 

^ Hmmm... Ok. Since I'm modded a bit, I will take that as a yes against a stock RX8

 

There's someone at my school with a virgin wheel gap RX-8 sitting on Enkei RP-F1s..... looks AWESOME.

 

No on the RX8. A friend here has one. He was told that you really don't want to mod it, and just want to ride around with that look. Then it's an Ok car.

For the money, get a Legacy GT..... They can be modded, and are fun / practical.

nooooo bias whatsoever....none.

 

supra swap is sick

 

Much to the sentiment on this forum with regard to the RX8, I am seeing several used models selling for between $10-12k with moderate to higher miles.

If I were in the market for a sporty,weekend coupe with some style and a little utility then, I may chance something like the 8. Then again, my best friend's ownership experience with his 8 has been downright traumatizing so, that could be enough to dissuade such thoughts.

 

^ I agree.

I would not want to depend on one, but if it were a weekend/track car, it would be a good car to have. If they hit 5-8k, I'd seriously consider one for the weekends. They are great on short tracks, very balanced, but run out of steam on track with longer straights. I'd like to see what a gutted 8 could do...