Wantarotory

Hi Guys,

I'm new to the forum and am going to be buying my own Rx-8 ASAP. I have the money (just) but after extensively reading heaps of posts on this site (yes...I have been watching, big brother style) I have a pritty good idea of what to expect. However, I am just wondering if anyone has any advice on what I should ask someone about their 8 prior to sale? any hidden issue for the older 8's that I really should know about before I part with my dough, or, anything i REALLY need to check on the car before I get it. I am quite car savvy so this can/should include technical insight if possible? Thanks and I really appreciate anyone who has anything to offer!!!

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

first off: what year?
Were the recalls done?
Is it on its original engine?
any accidents?

carfax is your friend

Wantarotory

I will be looking at the 04-05 model, as i dont have that much money to play with.
Are engine changes common? I have not heard much about engine changes on the forum?

Bunique

damn....you're in Australia, otherwise I'd say buy mine.....ha

hmm just like with any car I'd say know what you are buying and sometimes if it seems to good to be true, that just might be the case.

Good luck on your purchase.

Wantarotory

Thanks man, Yeah I really wouldn't mind buying yours!!
I guess I'm mainly worried about a car that has not been properly looked after, I come from a long line of car enthusiasts (My daddy and my daddies daddy) and I don't want to get into an 8 that has been with someone who doesn't know how to maintain it to the optimum. I at least know yours would be looked after...(if only the steering wheel was on the right side!)

takahashi

Do you have targets yet? Where abouts do you live?

Change all the oil and look at the plugs and do all the recall... beware of accidents.

Do ask a lot of questions to the owner.

rotarenvy

getting the owner to take you for a drive is a good way to find how the car has been treated.

you may ask them how often they check the oil level and how much it consumes however it varies a lot with km's and rev's. if they say they don't worry and let the dealer check it then it's probably been very low between services.

Razz1

Buy one from a fellow member. Go to a local club meet.
You will find out everything about the RX8.

Revolver

rotarenvy's tip is a good one. If they've looked after it they'll know about checking the oil regularly, etc. Also make sure it has had the recall work done. Also ask if they have had any ignition problems and had non-recall work like the battery, starter motor and plug change done (if it's an '04 or older).

Although obviously the exceptions to this rule are many (and prob on this forum), generally safer to buy from an older owner than a young bloke. More often than not they will have looked after it better and thrashed it less. Yes, I know I'll get flamed by the young guys for that but read my first sentence again.

rotarenvy

I was going to mention the potential issues with early builds however mine is a very early 04 and has never had any of the potential issues. still have the same coils, motor mounts, cat and starter.

Revolver

I've got my original cat but coils, engine mounts, starter, battery, plugs and leads have all required replacement.

Wantarotory

Thanks guys, you have no Idea how much of a help this thread is.

I would never have thought ot get the owner take it for a drive!! in the past I would have always driven the car myself, but not the owner. good one. and Revolver, your right, although I am a young guy myself I understand that we have a bad reputation...and rightfully so...you dont really get many 40+ trying to race you at the lights...unless you really annoy them...so its a good idea to buy from an older person who knows cars!

Cromax

What colour did you want?

On a side note, I've never had any serious problems with my RX8 like those listed above.

The worst thing I've had was an issue with the tyres that came with the car ... which was fixed by the dealer anyway.

Cromax

But I'd like to also add that this forum has proven that old blokes crash their cars just as much if not more than the young blokes, so Dave, your generalisation doesn't really work that well here!

In relation to risk, your age is a factor, however there are MANY other factors that HAVE TO be taken into account as well. Using a personal example, my insurance on my car is cheaper without my old man on it even though I'm well over 20 years his junior.

In my completely honest and informed opinion, I would suggest picking and choosing in terms of demographic (asking questions like where the owner lives, what they do for a living, what other cars do they have/have they had etc. you can add even more to the list if you want) ...

... for example:

If they've ever had a Volvo, Nissan Bluebird, Commodore or Subaru ... WALK THE OTHER WAY!
If they live in Noble Park, St Albans, Hallam or Dandenong, do the same.
If you can feel soft rubber in the rear guards ... it means the previous owner did heavy track work or had a liking for doing burnouts, the latter being the least likely.

All in all, opinions are opinions, but some of us work in the industry and others of us don't.

Wantarotory

At the moment, I don't have the finances to be picky, but if i REALLY don't like the colour, my dad's best buddy works at a spray place. Haha... I like your demographics opinion. Commodores? why commodores? (actually now i think of it....many young commodore drivers are nuts IMO)
(this is a personal opinion that I make in jest moderators, under no circumstances do condone stereotyping bad drivers based on the model of car you own)
I actually own a (very modified) EB falcon. One of the reasons its time to get my dream car.

Really awesome idea to check the rear mud guards though. Again, wouldn't have thought of that. Keep the ideas coming guys…these are really helping!!!

Revolver

Where is the evidence in this forum that old blokes crash their cars 'just as much if not more' than young blokes? That really is an extraordinary statement, whether you work in 'the industry' or not (big deal), especially when insurance stats will usually tell you it is the other way around. Back it up or call it an opinion. Or are you just indulging in a cheap flame shot, for which you have a considerable reputation in this forum.

In any event, I wasn't referring to crash damage. Rather, maintenance and general usage. I accept it is a broad generalisation but so are the opinions that you shouldn't buy a car that has been tracked. Some cars that are tracked are much better looked after than daily drivers owned by Joe or Joanne Punter. Even 'driven only on sundays by little old ladies' cars can be neglected. So it's really just trying to minimise your risk rather than excluding particular demographics entirely.

I quite agree that many factors should be taken into account. I was simply suggesting something which he may wish to consider.

I also don't understand how Subaru falls into your somewhat arbitrary category of prior cars to be avoided. I know several owners of various Subies (not just WRX's) who take exceptional care with them.

Actually, I don't know why I'm bothering to respond...

Wantarotory

Its fine revolver. Sorry for sprouting this debate, but can we get back on topic? I am just trying to figure out problems that could have happened that i could take into account when buying this amazing car, people can have opinions, but civility is encouraged.

I am a young buck myself. chances are I have stuffed around in my car a little as well. however i do understand/accept the fact/stigma showing that younger drivers ARE more stupid wioth their cars. However i cant agree there is evedence suggesting that its also got to do with the car you buy, there are so many other factors to take into account as Comax has shown (age, sex, location, financial status blah blah blah

Revolver

For sure. Sorry to take your thread O/T. I shouldn't have taken such an obvious bait...

Good luck with the hunt...

Wantarotory

Its all good Revolver...all you Sydney-siders are just too precious

DrGonzo

What's your budget? I am considering selling mine, but haven't quite made up my mind yet. It would be very hard to let it go because I love it so much but a growing family and recent redundancy says otherwise. It's an 04 build (05 rego) in Strato Blue (rare colour as far as I am aware).

skc

Make sure the previous owner knows how to drive a rotary...not revving hard enough can lead to early engine failure.

skc

ASH8

Actually as a dealer Service manager said to me, it is the "younger" guys who do more favors for a rotary engine as they are not afraid to "thrash" or rev the engine (provided it is hot), I would avoid the older driver who has nannied their RX-8 as it is more than likely it's engine has a higher carbon deposit build up which in turn can lead to poor compressions and early engine wear.
Carbon-ed up areas on the rotors around corner, apex seals and side seals can be abrasive/restrictive.

An engine that has been red-lined regularly also tends to have been better lubricated by the MOP (Metering Oil Pump), rather than an owner who"gently" uses the accelerator to achieve higher miles per gallon fuel economy.

So, a younger owner does not necessarily mean a bad RX-8.

I would be looking for "abused" body work, look under the car for any damage like rocks, sticks or scrapes, look at the suspension rubbers to see if the car has been "bottomed" out, sometimes an indication that the car has been flying high.
If you decide to purchase, see it you can get the car on a hoist for an inspection.

Check the condition/colour of the oil, that can often tell if the car has had oil changes, check the service book for dates and mileage of services.

Take a small magnet with you to check the external body areas for any fiberglass repair/accident work, remember the rear doors and bonnet are made from aluminum so a magnet won't stick. Bumpers are plastic.

You can also physically check the cars brake rotors with your finger for bad ridges or grooves which can mean the brakes have taken a beating and you could be in for new rotors and pads...a lot depends on mileage here.
Look at the tyres, are they all the same brand?

Check out inside the rear boot and under the boot lid for marks, this can be an indication of a lot of heavy or large carrying of objects with little or no thought for the car.

What does the exhaust sound like any leaks/rattles.

Check out the interior, the seats, trims and carpet, look under any mats if you can.

ASH8

Just another point too, Mazda Japan have done such a good job setting up this car in achieving a superb balance between ride quality and performance.

So on your own admission that you are a young buck don't get too carried away with any RX-8 that has been heavily modded or changed because the "so called " after market go fast bits are a waste of time and only suck you dry financially.

You won't get any improvement in Horse Power by changing your exhaust for example, yes you can buy a nice looking chrome cat back, but just be aware some can achieve the opposite to what they claim and some just up the noise factor.

As I said Mazda have done a thorough job in most areas with the RX-8.

Revolver

I'd agree series II (especially the GT) is a significant improvement but you can definitely improve on series I, particularly for track use. Sways alone make a big difference.

But I agree you get to a point of diminishing returns pretty quickly and mostly it's playing for it's own sake...

Wantarotory

DrGonzo- I would love to buy your car, unfortunately, I would probably insult you with what I'm looking at paying for this car. I would dearly love to buy it off you, if you want to meet up so i can at least have a chat to you about it I'm situated in the Parahn area. Also, due to the market conditions at the moment, I can afford to bide my time and wait until a few come on the market that people can no longer afford/don't want to afford it. Also, i think i want one that is stock sorry. I want to do all the fun stuff to it myself!!

I had a drive of a 2004 model the other week, i noticed it was a little twitchy when the revs were up high, is this normal as the tacho would actually not smoothly move up when my foot was down, but actually jump up and then go down a little, not sure why because I wasn’t thrashing the thing. However, it may have been the engine was a little cool, but it did put me off it a little. Any ideas what could have caused it tho?. Fantastic handling(as you all know). The exhaust looked fine, no holes or anything, but it was a little dirty, and the paint was a little chipped around the back end where the owner said "a shopping trolley decided to mount the car because it loved it so much"

I had also heard about the problems with the radiator getting stone chips (from this site) and checked that. But apart from a little bit of normal driving damage, it was fine. Didn’t get a chance to check the suspension though. What mainly put me off the car was the owner (who really annoyed me by thinking I knew nothing about cars...mainly because I'm young!) was asking a bit too much (price) and was a little bit of a jerk.

ASH8, I would looooove to afford a series two, but I just don't have the spare $50,000+ so i cant, at the moment i will go with revolvers suggestion and get sway bars etc.

As for the younger driver debate. Maybe there is no conclusive evidence on either side, as there are too many variables to come into it for real conclusive evidence. I like to judge drivers individually. not based on their age…I have laughed at drivers trying to parallel park young and old.

To throw my two cents worth in though, my old driving instructor, who was at the Dookie driver training area told us all that drivers tend to drive "based on their professions". For example, Footballers would be aggressive:- really trying their hardest to get in front of everyone, hard and fast, ducking and weaving. Musicians would be more relaxed:- slower and steadier...what does everyone think about that theory?