Trademark

With some help from doc today i ended up getting conventional Valvoline 5w30... I think doc said most of you guys are using Mobile1 5w30, but i couldn't find any mobile1 that was conventional.... Suggestions? Is valvoline ok?

RK

iTrader: (1)

Interesting...

Well Jon and I use Royal Purple 5w30. I have no clue what anyone else uses though I believe Steve uses an experimental Racing Beat oil. In the end it probably isn't that important as long as you have something 5w30 or thicker (10w30/10w40/5w40). Royal Purple tends to be a preferred synthetic brand because they've always been good to rotary engines but most of the major brands are gonna be kosher.

You should be fine with Valvoline. I still haven't read if you got your 8 new, used, or off the back of a wrecker. Or what color it is. That's important you know. Most people are still trying to figure out what color mine is...

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

like Ryan said, we use RP 5w30 and I believe Steve does too.

Trademark

used 04 with 43k miles. Black paint and all black interior. Grand touring

RK

iTrader: (1)

Nice.

Mine is an 04 with 40k on it so we're not too far off though I bought mine with 19k on it in April '06. Means yours was probably a Summer driver which means it was probably treated pretty good. Unfortunately it also means your base warranty is expired.

You might want to consider changing on the tranny/diff fluid too unless your sure the other owner has changed it recently. Tranny is a weak point with this car and most people change it between 30k and 50k.

I copycatted Jon with regards to fluids (his are in his sig, mine linked off my sig) so whenever you are shopping it's a pretty safe bet those ones are preferred around here.

Mirka

Hey guys i think im going to be buying an rx8 either this weekend or next weekend. The only problem is it is a manual and i have only driven one once. Would anyone in the North Royalton area be willing to give me a few tips when i do get it?

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

Welcome Mirka,
You won't be disappointed.... and the manual is much more fun to drive.

The first vehicle I drove that was a manual was my RX8.
I drove a friend's civic in a high school parking lot to learn manual, then the next day I bought my RX8.
Will take some time and hills will scare you at first until you learn how to maneuver the pedals.
I'm in Akron, but would be willing to help you learn how to drive it.

DeViLbOi

iTrader: (1)

Welcome to the club Mirka. You looking new or used?

Mirka

im only 20 so used. i found a steal of a deal on one though. 2004 with a little less than 70000 for only 9995, has the nav system black and brown interior, appearance package, basically fully loaded. Im gonna go take it to a garage to get checked out for sure before i buy it.

i trust them because my friend bought his jetta from there a while ago and its perfect but from what i understand these cars might be a little more prone to problems if you dont take good care of it so it never hurts to be safe.

do you know if there are any memebers in the parma/north royalton area around here?

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

Do they know much about rotary engines?
Even really good mechanics I know are lost looking under my hood.

We do have a couple around that area. They tend to come online in the morning.
I work 3rd shift hours (6pm to 6am) so I'm usually here at night.

First thing to verify is what repairs/recalls/TSBs were performed and what PCM flash its using.
Any Mazda dealer should be able to pull that information using the VIN.

We are a pretty tight group here locally, so distance isn't a problem for us to help another 8 out.
And since we know the car, we can test drive it and give it a once-over for you and tell you if its good.
The offer is there if you want.

Mirka

well i was planning to go to a mazda dealership in the area and trying to ask them how much they know about the rx8 before i drop it off. i just havent figured out which one yet. know of any good ones withing like 20 to 30 minutes of me?

my plan is to go with my friend and check it out tomorrow then bounce over to the credit union then if all goes as plans get it checked out by monday

i can drive a manual. i was able to on my first try and only stalled once. lets just say its not a very pretty sight. i lied to this one dealer and said that i knew how to drive it but i hadnt for like 3 years and he didnt seem to care

Mirka

but yeah i would love that if you guys would help me come look at it. the dealership is actually in brunswick over by 303 and pearl if you guys know where that is, am i allowed to post links to car listings like autotrader or is that against site rules?

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

You're going to have the stealership inspect your car?
Oh boy... I wonder what that'll cost you.
Well... if that's what you want bud, your money.

I honestly liked Cascade Mazde in Cuyahoga Falls (State Rd).
One local here had a bad run-in with them, but they were always cool with me.
When I drove the car for the first time, I even told the guy I only drove a manual once in my life.
He said, "Oh well, if it stalls, start it back up and keep driving!"

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

Post away!
I know where 303 and Pearl is.
What time are you planning on doing this?

Mirka

lol i really have no idea where im gonna end up going, i just want to make sure that im not getting sold a car thats gonna end up screwing me in 3 months. if you guys could help though that would be great. anything i should be looking for though when i go check it out tomorrow?

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

I'm not working tomorrow (Friday) so I can observe the car with you guys if you want.

Like I said above, verify what repairs/recalls/TSBs were performed and what PCM flash its using.
Other than that... so much can be reviewed that I don't think you'll know what I'm talking about even if I told you (no offense).
This engine is just so unique that you really need a basic understanding to know what to look for.

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

Well I have to do some preventative maintenance on our reflow ovens and won't be back at my desk until 5am.
Let me know what you decided/want to do.

Mirka

i think im gonna go up there sometime between 9-10 tomorrow. ill pm you my phone number

docgatorx8er

iTrader: (10)

Mirka,

Welcome.

I'd suggest going up to Westside (Now called Montrose) Mazda up on Brookpark. Several of the people here have had good experiences there. STAY AWAY from Bedford Mazda. I think Machiavelli uses that place on 303, he seems happy there.

I'm around this weekend and live in Broadview Hts. if you'd like to hook up. But Jon is the car guru here and knows a hundred times what I do about cars. If he's volunteering to help you, I'd take him up on it!

The usual warning here for new guys is to post most of your questions here on the Cleveland part of the forum. Or use SEARCH before posting a question in the big forum. They can be a little harsh out there. There's a ton of information here. Start on the FAQs page.

Don't worry about learning to drive a manual. You'll march it a few times. Try and stay away from hills until you learn to start on a hill. When i bought mine, I found a side street with very little traffic that had a big hill. I went to the bottom of the hill and just kept practicing starting up the hill until I was more comfortable. Jon's right, driving a manual is far more fun. It puts you in tune with the car and makes you part of the driving experience.

Go find a big empty church parking lot on Saturday and practice starups. After first gear, there's nothing to it.

Then, have fun!

docgatorx8er

iTrader: (10)

PS Mirka

We have an email list of the regulars on the Cleveland forum here. If you'd like to be added, PM me your name email screen name and phone numbers.

docgatorx8er

iTrader: (10)

Here's the link on the forum to the oil discussion. There's a lot of different opinions.

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-tech-garage-22/cumulative-synthetic-oil-discussion-52856/

You might also read the oil premix thread

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-tech-garage-22/gas-oil-premix-thread-99636/

Jon316G

iTrader: (1)

Well... Mirka and I were supposed to meet-up at 9:00.
Since I can't get a hold of him, I'm beginning to think he meant Saturday at 9:00.
Difficult to know for sure when someone says, "tomorrow" while talking at 2am.
Hell... my Thursday is everyone's Friday (gotta love 3rd shift).

Vyndictive

iTrader: (28)

Trademark - you and I have almost the same ride... I have a "Brilliant Black" '04 GT w/o navi, but I have red and black leather. And a ton of racing beat crap super glued to my car

Mirka - If you meant Saturday, I wouldn't mind going to look at the car with you also. If there is one thing I learned, its that another good deal will come along and you don't have to jump on the first thing out there.

Early RX8s, (04s and 05s) do have more problems than other years. At 70k miles, you want to make sure that the rotary was well taken care of or you're right on the edge of Engine failure. Which isn't terrible because of the core engine warranty, but it could be a pain if you plan on modding, etc.

My thoughts anyway - though you would be the first person with flip up nav. Which I personally thinks like a dog turd emerging out of the dash... but that's just my opinion; its is cool from the gadget factor though.


Youngins' emerging out of the woodwork. Next meet at Chuckie Cheese?
(just kidding guys, I'm 25, so not that far off)

docgatorx8er

iTrader: (10)

Yeah, well I'm TWICE your age.

-Dad

Vyndictive

iTrader: (28)

And you have twice as many 8s... So, deal with it.