RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Best bet for winter tires, for COST and PERFORMANCE reasons, is to go with a skinny, but tall, 17" tire

You want as narrow as reasonable (cut down into the snow), but as much sidewall as possible (winter is rougher, add some flex to absorb the potholes and such), and as tall as possible (lower 'slope' of snow for the tire to roll up if it sits in a divot)

So something like a 215/50/17 is great.

17" winter tires are also significantly cheaper than 18" winters.

For rims, you can get them anywhere. But one of the best options I've found is look on other Mazda forums for 17" OEM sets that people are selling. Usually quite cheap, and the Mazda6's, Mazda5s, Speed3s, Speed6s, CX-7, and I think the CX-9 all use 17s. Possibly the Tribute as well. Same lug pattern and spacing.

jharpst

ok thanks. my wheel size is 18 inches, 9 inch width. p225 or something like that. what does the offset of rims have to be if i'm looking to buy them to fit my tires?

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

The wheel people might be able to give you an exact answer.

However it's one reason I recommend OEM Mazda rims from another of their models, as they fit and clear the brakes just fine.

I grabbed Mazda6 rims.

speedeemonkey

I'm going to look at a 06 manual GT with ~26k miles tomorrow. With that few miles is a compression test still recommended?

Also should I plan on replacing the plugs / wires / coils as soon as I get it?

Thanks!

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Yes to plugs, coils, wires. You will need them anyway within 4k miles.


Compression test....possibly not. But I'd still get it done anyway, since it shows the compression at the time of purchase.

maxchao

iTrader: (2)

I have always been wondering...does a compression test tells everything you need to know about a rotary engine when looking at a used rx-8? It is actually nice in some way since for piston engine there isn't really a good way to know about the used engine. I think.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

"everything"? No, not really. But it's the best snapshot you can get.

phil2245

Greetings all - I am looking at possibly buying a slightly used RX-8. I swore to my wife that my next car would be used, and I have it narrowed down to 2. My last 3 cars have been an '03 Mini Cooper S, an '05 Pontiac GTO, and now an '08 Mini Cooper S again. So I think I am finally done with the Mini's. I have been reading thru this forum the last few weeks, and decided I should definitely look at 2009 or newer RX8's. I did test-drive an '09 R3 at the local dealer, and loved it - except for the seats. They are great seats, as long as your backside fits into them; sadly, mine seems to spill over a bit.

I understand about the oil consumption, and the need to get the revs up every so often. It looks like most of the electrical problems have finally been solved with the '09 changes (coils/ignition system) and the clutch and flooding and steering rack issues were primarily with the first few years. The Mini is a direct injection engine, so I am also waaaay more familiar with carbon buildup and seafoam than I was just a few years ago. Is there anything else I need to watch out for?

I am a couple of weeks away from a purchase - right now I have my eyes on a 2009 Grand Touring with Nav with about 15k miles at a Mazda dealer for $24k. It is a CPO car, so will come with a full warranty. Is that a decent price?

Thanks in advance Phil

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

I would say you can do better on the price.

Just a correction though, the "electrical problems" you mention were never "electrical problems", just our ignition takes a heavy heavy beating. The S2 are just as prone to ignition failure as the S1, though it has the same solution: Monitor and replace as frequently as needed, or upgrade to BHR ignition.

Mazurfer

Yeah.....overall I think you got a decent handle on the car Phil.
Bad coils = misfires = fuel dumped in CAT = CAT failure and other issues.
Don't drive around with misfires! People drive for months with check engine light on, then they are surprised when stuff stops working!

Here's some other links for new or perspective owners if you care to read more.

I always link this thread and three others when people ask these questions.


Congratulations, you got an 8:
https://www.rx8club.com/new-member-forum-197/congratulations-you-got-8-a-202548/

New Owner FAQ’s:
https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.ph...&highlight=FAQ

FAQ’s:
https://www.rx8club.com/new-member-forum-197/rx-8-faq-please-read-before-posting-959/

maxchao

iTrader: (2)

So is there a "snapshot" for regualr piston engine? I am wondering if I can consider compression test as a benefit.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Knowing the status of the engine's most important metric is never a bad thing. I would always call it a benefit.

For example, do you have maintenance records of the car from the prior owner? If not, then getting a compression test that shows a perfectly healthy engine can assist you in a potential warranty claim later showing "I don't have records from the prior owner, but look, the engine was perfect when I bought it, so the maintenance of those miles is a non-issue."



And yes, compression tests on piston engines are also valuable, just they are far less likely to lose compression over time.

maxchao

iTrader: (2)

ok. Well at least we don't need to do timing belt. :P

susang

ok. I went with my hubby to look for a car for him. And it was me who fell in love with the car he looked at. We test drove the 2008 rx8 anniversary mazda...and I was hooked. It has 40,000 miles. From a dealership. CarFax says it was purchased 2/2008 as 'corporate fleet' until it was recently sold at auction . It is in excellent condition in and out & under the hood. We have both researched the mazda rx8 on Consumer Rpts Cars and on Edmunds (and on a few other car sites) they all say the safety is vg but the reliablility is about a 2 out of a range of 5. (though what we've read lumps 2004-2008 together). I love what I read about yur 'what to read if you are buying or thinking of buying one'. (though, honestly I didn't understand half of what I read). I am the type to get in a car and go....but I would baby the car to warm it up, bring it to the mechanic religiously for oil between regular oil changes (and love it enough to pay the extra $$ for maintence and gas prices). So, what am I asking? We took it for a 2 hour test drive and it sounded, handled and looked great. We had a car savy friend look at it & he loved it. Next i will take it to our mechanic and get his feedback. We are 'older' folks and though we don't have to watch our pennies, we don't want (me) to buy this without knowing the good, bad and the ugly. The dealer had extremely little knowledge of the Mazda. Only that it didn't come with a spare tire and you have to buy a 'fill up the flat' container. SHOULD I take it to my local mechanic who I really trust....and who has worked on cars from his dad's mechanic shop for over 50 yrs? Should I take it to a Mazda repair shop for their advice on the condition? Sorry I went on so long without and thank you for your post for us who just 'fell in love' with a car.

Mazurfer

Susan, use the "enter" key when ending sentences, much easier to read.

I assume it's an automatic since it was a fleet car?

It is a unique car, so in terms of protection before buying, I would say that you might want to get a compression check done.
Problem is........that this test(while easy) needs to be done correctly and at a certain RPM(@250rpm)..or at least know what RPM it was done at. Altitude also makes a bit of a difference, but we can cover that later of need be..............unless you are in the mountains?

Don't know that your mechanic would be able to do it without you giving him specifics.........and........him having the right tester.

Guess I would say that you should have your mechanic check it out from top to bottom, then
tell the dealer that you want a compression check done by a certified Mazda shop and make sure that they give you the printout of the results. Make really sure you can get a record of oil change records on the car if nothing else. Since it was a fleet vehicle, I would think they are available.

The compression printout should specific what RPM it was done at, and should have three readings per rotor.
So you should have three reading for front rotor and three for rear rotor.


I'm also going to guess that since 40k miles that it probably still has original coils in it. If hubby is mechanically inclined, I would change the coils out after purchase(should you decide to buy it). Would be great if you could get the dealer to do it, but if not and hubby can do it. Buy the coils from a vendor on this site(very much cheaper than dealer) and have hubby do it. It's not that hard and will save 100's of dollars.

speedeemonkey

I am now the proud owner of a 2008 40th anniversary edition RX8 with only 11k miles on it. I absolutely love the car!

My question is since it only has about 2 weeks left of the basic warranty. Is there anything I should make sure to get done at the dealer before this runs out? Any specific TSBs or things to check?

I'll need to take it in for the TPMS recall but wanted to see if you guys had any other tips.

Also the dealer I got it from knew nothing about the rotary engine and I'm assuming they probably flooded it at some point since they replaced the battery. Should I be concerned about the cat?

Thanks for all the info!

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Don't worry too much about the cat. If they didn't flood it, then no harm, no foul. If they did flood it, it does shorten the cat life, but the cat is covered under a federally required 80,000 mile warranty.

It's only worth worrying about if you are close to or over that mileage.

The 2008s didn't have many TSBs that I recall, nothing major at least. Just look through the list and see if any of them need to be addressed.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Most of the common questions are answered on the first page, start reading there.

The questions about mods are probably better found elsewhere on the forum. With those mods, that car probably was on here before, and you should be able to locate it.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Updated first post with another search method, and updated a few of the other references farther down the page.

jharpst

i've got an 05 automatic rx8. what options are there for me to play my ipod in my car? i'm having a hard time finding anything besides using the lighter

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Try: X-Link

fuztupnz

iTrader: (4)

I use the Axxess link with pretty good success as well. http://www.axxessinterface.com/

Skywalker

You might want to check out this thread:
https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-interior-audio-electronics-24/your-ipod-mp3-player-integration-solution-here-77790/

I ended up buying the Dice i-Mazda adapter from Crutchfield.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_531IMAZ...er.html?tp=120

I looked at several others, but they were limited by the firmware on my older radio. I like this one as it gives me the same functionality as the others, but isn't subject to the firmware limitations.

Blacknightz

This is by far the greatest and complete guide, with percise attention to detail and explaination...

A marvelous work indeed RIWWP !!!

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Thanks.

I'll reign in my precision refrain from pointing out the misspelling of 'precise' and 'explanation'.




Oops.