RX-8 reviewed in the paper.
08-20-2005 | 01:23 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
From: Vancouver
RX-8 reviewed in the paper.
Did anybody see this review in today's Vancouver Province ?
I'm sure it was in all Can-West owned papers across the country.
RX-8 Special Edition a rare find
New retuned suspension a big improvement
Derek McNaughton
CanWest News Service
August 19, 2005
OTTAWA -- Mazda calls it Cherry Black, but it is neither cherry red nor black.
This hue is, however, the sparkling, signature colour on a special edition of the venerable RX-8 sports coupe -- a car that has become the darling of the automotive press and led to more than 3,000 sales in Canada since it was introduced in mid-2003.
And Cherry Black is truly the most beautiful skin ever seen on a car.
Closer to ripe plum, the colour is the first and most striking difference between the regular RX-8, which starts at $36,895, and this special $40,995 take on the rotary-engine coupe.
Semi-gloss bezels around the headlamps and tail lamps, as well as dark-silver-gloss, five-spoke aluminum wheels on 225/45/18 series tires, also hint that someone fiddled with the RX-8's already tightly tuned DNA.
A peek inside reveals a two-tone interior with handsome tan leather seats and door trim contrasting with the black instrument panel and other surfaces, another colour combination not available in the standard car.
The stereo has been improved, too, to a 300-watt system. There remains the RX-8's excellent electroluminescent instrument panel, dominated by a tachometer that counts to 10,000 r.p.m. and redlines at 9,000.
It is not until the Special Edition got rolling, however, that we noticed its differences are more than skin deep.
In former RX-8s, the ride always felt a pinch on the hard side, in part because the tires and suspension are set up for serious performance, not quite for comfortable everyday driving.
The GT version of the RX-8 has all the road-holding ability any driver would want.
But its chassis seems to lack the ability to marry handling prowess with the kind of elegant smoothness or sophistication found in a BMW, Mercedes or Infiniti.
Not so with the Special Edition. The difference is felt instantly. There is a rich suppleness in this ride that comes from the uniquely tuned suspension system, upgraded from the standard car.
The revised system offers a foam-urethane-filled front-suspension cross-member and specially tuned dampers. Body rigidity is also improved by reinforcing the top-front portion of the A-pillars and improving the stability of the rear-damper mounting points.
This RX-8 Special Edition can easily become a comfortable daily driver, even more so because the two rear seats, accessed through the rear half-doors, are functional and comfortable for children.
The Special Edition comes with either a six-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission, with Formula One-style steering wheel-mounted paddles for manual gear shifting in the automatic.
Manual transmission-equipped models are fitted with the same 238-h.p. Renesis rotary engine found in the regular RX-8, while the automatics are powered by a 198-h.p. rotary.
While consuming more gasoline and oil than we'd like, the 1.3-litre twin-rotary engine is impressively strong. It rivals many V6 engines in its class and delivers an exhaust note that sounds more like a Ducati.
The engine does not, however, provide instantaneous throttle response. Mash the pedal and there's a slight delay before the thunder hits. I found myself constantly tapping the throttle to raise the r.p.m. before releasing the clutch.
What's more, the 159 ft.-lb. of torque, while ample for this 1,384-kilogram car, seems to be focused in a narrow band around the 6,000-r.p.m. range. This is not to say the RX-8 is sluggish -- it's quick in every gear -- but the slingshot sensation does require significant r.p.m.
Making up for this is the short-throw, ultra-precise shifter, capped with an aluminum **** in the shape of the engine's rotor. The shifter clicks through the gears like an exotic import, rather than the product of a company owned by Ford.
(We're not sure why, but the shifter **** on our tester tended to feel quite hot when the car was idled after driving it for any distance, and the car did have a faint smell of gear oil.)
Clutch take-up through the aluminum pedal is quick and precise, and the power-adjustable seats allow for better seat positioning than the manually adjusting ones. The car also seems to be easier to get in and out of, perhaps owing to the ability to raise the seat height.
Like the GT model, the Special Edition includes xenon headlamps, fog lamps, an anti-theft system and dynamic stability control to keep the guardrails from taking a bite.
Dual-stage front air bags, dual front side air bags, and front and rear side-curtain bags are installed in case of a serious accident. A sunroof is not available.
No other significant body changes have been made to the Special Edition, so the big fenders in front and rear, the aggressive rake of the headlights, the rotary motif and the low ground clearance still draw plenty of stares and smiles from the public.
While 2,150 Special Editions were planned for production for North America, a fire at one of Mazda's plants in Hiroshima last winter limited RX-8 production.
About 90 have made it to Canada, so seeing one, let alone buying one, will remain rare -- just like its colour, in a spectrum somewhere between red and black.
A couple of things really bug me about this review .. first of all, isn't it a Shinka ?
And why does he compare the engine sound to a Ducati ??
Oh yeah - a booming V-Twin .. sounds just like a rotary.
The thunder ??
Pathetic.
I'm sure it was in all Can-West owned papers across the country.
RX-8 Special Edition a rare find
New retuned suspension a big improvement
Derek McNaughton
CanWest News Service
August 19, 2005
OTTAWA -- Mazda calls it Cherry Black, but it is neither cherry red nor black.
This hue is, however, the sparkling, signature colour on a special edition of the venerable RX-8 sports coupe -- a car that has become the darling of the automotive press and led to more than 3,000 sales in Canada since it was introduced in mid-2003.
And Cherry Black is truly the most beautiful skin ever seen on a car.
Closer to ripe plum, the colour is the first and most striking difference between the regular RX-8, which starts at $36,895, and this special $40,995 take on the rotary-engine coupe.
Semi-gloss bezels around the headlamps and tail lamps, as well as dark-silver-gloss, five-spoke aluminum wheels on 225/45/18 series tires, also hint that someone fiddled with the RX-8's already tightly tuned DNA.
A peek inside reveals a two-tone interior with handsome tan leather seats and door trim contrasting with the black instrument panel and other surfaces, another colour combination not available in the standard car.
The stereo has been improved, too, to a 300-watt system. There remains the RX-8's excellent electroluminescent instrument panel, dominated by a tachometer that counts to 10,000 r.p.m. and redlines at 9,000.
It is not until the Special Edition got rolling, however, that we noticed its differences are more than skin deep.
In former RX-8s, the ride always felt a pinch on the hard side, in part because the tires and suspension are set up for serious performance, not quite for comfortable everyday driving.
The GT version of the RX-8 has all the road-holding ability any driver would want.
But its chassis seems to lack the ability to marry handling prowess with the kind of elegant smoothness or sophistication found in a BMW, Mercedes or Infiniti.
Not so with the Special Edition. The difference is felt instantly. There is a rich suppleness in this ride that comes from the uniquely tuned suspension system, upgraded from the standard car.
The revised system offers a foam-urethane-filled front-suspension cross-member and specially tuned dampers. Body rigidity is also improved by reinforcing the top-front portion of the A-pillars and improving the stability of the rear-damper mounting points.
This RX-8 Special Edition can easily become a comfortable daily driver, even more so because the two rear seats, accessed through the rear half-doors, are functional and comfortable for children.
The Special Edition comes with either a six-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission, with Formula One-style steering wheel-mounted paddles for manual gear shifting in the automatic.
Manual transmission-equipped models are fitted with the same 238-h.p. Renesis rotary engine found in the regular RX-8, while the automatics are powered by a 198-h.p. rotary.
While consuming more gasoline and oil than we'd like, the 1.3-litre twin-rotary engine is impressively strong. It rivals many V6 engines in its class and delivers an exhaust note that sounds more like a Ducati.
The engine does not, however, provide instantaneous throttle response. Mash the pedal and there's a slight delay before the thunder hits. I found myself constantly tapping the throttle to raise the r.p.m. before releasing the clutch.
What's more, the 159 ft.-lb. of torque, while ample for this 1,384-kilogram car, seems to be focused in a narrow band around the 6,000-r.p.m. range. This is not to say the RX-8 is sluggish -- it's quick in every gear -- but the slingshot sensation does require significant r.p.m.
Making up for this is the short-throw, ultra-precise shifter, capped with an aluminum **** in the shape of the engine's rotor. The shifter clicks through the gears like an exotic import, rather than the product of a company owned by Ford.
(We're not sure why, but the shifter **** on our tester tended to feel quite hot when the car was idled after driving it for any distance, and the car did have a faint smell of gear oil.)
Clutch take-up through the aluminum pedal is quick and precise, and the power-adjustable seats allow for better seat positioning than the manually adjusting ones. The car also seems to be easier to get in and out of, perhaps owing to the ability to raise the seat height.
Like the GT model, the Special Edition includes xenon headlamps, fog lamps, an anti-theft system and dynamic stability control to keep the guardrails from taking a bite.
Dual-stage front air bags, dual front side air bags, and front and rear side-curtain bags are installed in case of a serious accident. A sunroof is not available.
No other significant body changes have been made to the Special Edition, so the big fenders in front and rear, the aggressive rake of the headlights, the rotary motif and the low ground clearance still draw plenty of stares and smiles from the public.
While 2,150 Special Editions were planned for production for North America, a fire at one of Mazda's plants in Hiroshima last winter limited RX-8 production.
About 90 have made it to Canada, so seeing one, let alone buying one, will remain rare -- just like its colour, in a spectrum somewhere between red and black.
A couple of things really bug me about this review .. first of all, isn't it a Shinka ?
And why does he compare the engine sound to a Ducati ??
Oh yeah - a booming V-Twin .. sounds just like a rotary.
The thunder ??
Pathetic.
08-20-2005 | 03:02 AM
#2
I am Goober Wafflelips
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 398
Likes: 0
From: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
in the states its called a shinka. in Canada its called the 'special edition'
i posted a couple of links to some reviews earlier in the week here:
https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-media-news-11/couple-quick-ones-69415/
the second link in that thread is this story
i got the privilege of seeing one of the 90 a couple of months ago at the mazda dealer in hull. nice looking, but of course, touching it caused the saleman to come out and ask what i was interested in....
i posted a couple of links to some reviews earlier in the week here:
https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-media-news-11/couple-quick-ones-69415/
the second link in that thread is this story
i got the privilege of seeing one of the 90 a couple of months ago at the mazda dealer in hull. nice looking, but of course, touching it caused the saleman to come out and ask what i was interested in....
08-20-2005 | 11:15 AM
#3
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
From: Vancouver
Damn .. a repost .. sorry. 
I didn't know about the "no Shinkas in Canada" though.
This part still bugs me :
I didn't know about the "no Shinkas in Canada" though.
This part still bugs me :
While consuming more gasoline and oil than we'd like, the 1.3-litre twin-rotary engine is impressively strong. It rivals many V6 engines in its class and delivers an exhaust note that sounds more like a Ducati.
The engine does not, however, provide instantaneous throttle response. Mash the pedal and there's a slight delay before the thunder hits. I found myself constantly tapping the throttle to raise the r.p.m. before releasing the clutch.
The engine does not, however, provide instantaneous throttle response. Mash the pedal and there's a slight delay before the thunder hits. I found myself constantly tapping the throttle to raise the r.p.m. before releasing the clutch.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Tsurugi
New Member Forum
0
09-07-2015 09:27 PM