New Owner SAFE Question and Answer thread
08-23-2012, 02:14 AM
#676
Its possible that the damage was repaired and thats that, its also possible that more things will go wrong in the future with it. I think the pricing is okay for the 07 consider the lower milage and accident. I dont know to be honest, i dont lurk the rx8 classifieds section.
To throw some numbers at you, my 40th anniversary was 18.5k with 30k miles, clean record, dealer bought. Then the next month another 40th goes for sale 1 state away from me and doesnt sell, winds up selling for 14.5k with much less than half the miles i bought mine with. Deals are to be had in the classified section. Check to see if any fit your budget.
Buy the best you can afford is what im getting at.
To throw some numbers at you, my 40th anniversary was 18.5k with 30k miles, clean record, dealer bought. Then the next month another 40th goes for sale 1 state away from me and doesnt sell, winds up selling for 14.5k with much less than half the miles i bought mine with. Deals are to be had in the classified section. Check to see if any fit your budget.
Buy the best you can afford is what im getting at.
08-23-2012, 01:54 PM
#677
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Thanks for the input. I contacted the guy with the 07 and he said he already sold it... so Im just gonna wait a few days and look around for some other 8s. If I cant find one i like better imma just get the 06 shinka and save up for a paint job.
And final question if I wanted to get the black cherry color would I have to get the paint job done at a mazda dealer or not, and about how much should the cost be?
And final question if I wanted to get the black cherry color would I have to get the paint job done at a mazda dealer or not, and about how much should the cost be?
08-23-2012, 05:18 PM
#678
painting can be very expensive, and it can be very cheap. It all depends on how you want the final result to be.
generally with all things in life, the more you spend, the better quality it is. Maaco paintjobs are cheap, and they also are incredibly shitty.
painting a car completely can easily cost 5-25k. If you know what you want (a black cherry shinka) then just wait till you find one for sale. It will never be cheaper to buy a rx8 and then paint it black cherry over buying a black cherry to begin with.
as far as cost, you will have to do your own research. get quotes from paintshops.
generally with all things in life, the more you spend, the better quality it is. Maaco paintjobs are cheap, and they also are incredibly shitty.
painting a car completely can easily cost 5-25k. If you know what you want (a black cherry shinka) then just wait till you find one for sale. It will never be cheaper to buy a rx8 and then paint it black cherry over buying a black cherry to begin with.
as far as cost, you will have to do your own research. get quotes from paintshops.
08-24-2012, 08:45 AM
#680
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08-25-2012, 10:55 AM
#681
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08-26-2012, 08:22 AM
#682
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My payoff is $12266, I figured I'd be less underwater in the spring...unless you're willing to pay that amount. Where are you located? I'm in the Chicago area.
08-26-2012, 08:33 AM
#683
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Thanks again!
09-04-2012, 01:41 PM
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Newby with question! After reading about the importance of maintaining fresh coils, plugs, plug wires. I was wondering if the high dollar stuff is any better or longer lasting then the affordable stuff i.e. I was looking at the Okada plasma direct coils, magnacor 10mm wires and some good iridium plugs. With a cost of almost a grand. Or just stick with the oem coils wires and some ngk's for $300 or so??????????????
09-04-2012, 01:49 PM
#686
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In my modding thread (2nd link in my sig) I go over ignition options.
For plugs and wires, there is no reason to not go OEM. Anything cheaper isn't going to work very well at all, anything more expensive isn't going to improve life, mileage, or power. OEM plugs are $20 each, $80 total. OEM wires are $60-$80 for the set. OEM coils are about $130-ish for the set of 4 (lots of places carry them, so discounts and sales are found), and are sufficient for at least 15,000 miles, usually lasting to about 30,000 miles. Upgrading to stronger more durable coils has real advantages in lifespan, with faint advantages in power and mileage. There are a few kits out there to adapt other coils. the cheaper kits leave lots up to you and won't be plug and play. BHR's is the only plug and play coil upgrade kit, but it's also the most expensive. It's a bit cheaper than what you would pay if you tried to go entirely solo on it however.
If you are replacing everything at once with OEM, it is easy to get the total parts price to about $230-$240. With some planing and hunting, you can get all 12 pieces for as cheap as $180.
Not sure where you are getting $1k and $300 from, but both options/sources should be avoided. For OEM stuff stick with known companies (either forum vendors or parts stores), and for upgrades stick with forum vendors ONLY. Too many other companies out there with rip offs, half-assed kits, and worthless crap to suck down your money. It's safer and cheaper to stick with forum vendors.
For plugs and wires, there is no reason to not go OEM. Anything cheaper isn't going to work very well at all, anything more expensive isn't going to improve life, mileage, or power. OEM plugs are $20 each, $80 total. OEM wires are $60-$80 for the set. OEM coils are about $130-ish for the set of 4 (lots of places carry them, so discounts and sales are found), and are sufficient for at least 15,000 miles, usually lasting to about 30,000 miles. Upgrading to stronger more durable coils has real advantages in lifespan, with faint advantages in power and mileage. There are a few kits out there to adapt other coils. the cheaper kits leave lots up to you and won't be plug and play. BHR's is the only plug and play coil upgrade kit, but it's also the most expensive. It's a bit cheaper than what you would pay if you tried to go entirely solo on it however.
If you are replacing everything at once with OEM, it is easy to get the total parts price to about $230-$240. With some planing and hunting, you can get all 12 pieces for as cheap as $180.
Not sure where you are getting $1k and $300 from, but both options/sources should be avoided. For OEM stuff stick with known companies (either forum vendors or parts stores), and for upgrades stick with forum vendors ONLY. Too many other companies out there with rip offs, half-assed kits, and worthless crap to suck down your money. It's safer and cheaper to stick with forum vendors.
09-04-2012, 02:04 PM
#688
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Advance Auto online. Free shipping over $75 which you hit easily, and they always have one or more deals going on. Highest I've seen the total from them is $230. Lowest I've seen was $182 total. There is a thread from Sunday (?) where you could stack codes for a day and it was $56 for the 4 plugs.
I really do advocate supporting forum vendors, but ignition is so critical and often price is a big complaint to the newbies and unwary. I'd rather point them to where they can afford to get their 8 healthy.
I really do advocate supporting forum vendors, but ignition is so critical and often price is a big complaint to the newbies and unwary. I'd rather point them to where they can afford to get their 8 healthy.
09-04-2012, 02:10 PM
#690
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Ah, yeah, that would make it harder to hit those prices.
Checking with what the prices are right now, it's $232 base, -15% + a $25 credit toward a future purchase, so effectively $197 out of pocket now, $172 if you mentally apply that future $25 credit.
Checking with what the prices are right now, it's $232 base, -15% + a $25 credit toward a future purchase, so effectively $197 out of pocket now, $172 if you mentally apply that future $25 credit.
09-04-2012, 02:13 PM
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Great info ..Thanks RIWWP. I will stick with the OEM and just do it fequently. I just picked up my 2004 6spd . Im the third owner. Its a re-build hit in rear with 130,000 miles. Looks like it just came off the showroom inside and out. I took it to my Mazda dealer and they gave it a thumbs up on compression and the body repair. I am gonna contact Mazda and find out if it has ever had the engine replaced and go from there. I knew nothing about these cars except a friend of mines dad raced a rotary mazda in the 80's and he swore by them. I picked it up for a song and dance so I couldnt pass it up. Im a gear head so I love the fact these cars are a challenge. They are also rewarding. already dig this little thing it is a blast to drive. And I have had 650 hp muscle cars. Thanks again for all the info you have posted on here. Im trying to absorb it all as fast as I can.
09-04-2012, 02:16 PM
#692
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If it has good compression, then you are good to go for quite a while on the engine (barring overheating or other failure type). But getting the mileage on the current engine is always useful.
09-04-2012, 02:51 PM
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well now Im worried. I just spoke to Mazda and they said there system shows that as the original motor. The only repairs they show are a PCM?? in 06, Engine mount in 08, and new tranny in 09. SO am I driving a ticking time bomb or is this a 1 in a million car. I have already changed and flushed every fluid, doing the coils, plugs, wires this week. Was gonna up grade water pump, radiator and thermostat. But the thing runs like a top I put Red line water wetter in it and it is 4 marks to the left of the middle on the gauge. Anyone know of a reputable rotary engine builder in the Pensacola Fl area??? Maybe Ill just have it rebuilt for a piece of mind!
09-04-2012, 02:56 PM
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What were the compression scores?
Seriously, that is the really big ticket. If you still have fantastic scores at 130,000 miles, then you have a very good chance of hitting 200k+ with it and having one of the rare few to get there. (Elf's is past 250k on the original engine). If the compression scores were marginal, then you might only have another 20-50k in it? My first engine lasted about 40,000 miles from when it was tested in the mid 7s after a cat failure that I still believe damaged it.
Rebuilding a working engine without failing compression yet is generally going to be cheaper than rebuilding a failed one, simply because you should be able to re-use more parts. That being said, rebuilding a good engine is largely a waste of money in the first place
A better option, if you have the money and are worried about this engine, is to get a backup engine built. Drive the current one till it's dead and you can swap in the new one with relatively little down time. Or just invest the same money and always have it on hand for a replacement engine when the time comes. Financially this is smarter (appreciating asset vs depreciating one), though usually can mean longer down-time while you wait for the engine to be built and arrive.
Seriously, that is the really big ticket. If you still have fantastic scores at 130,000 miles, then you have a very good chance of hitting 200k+ with it and having one of the rare few to get there. (Elf's is past 250k on the original engine). If the compression scores were marginal, then you might only have another 20-50k in it? My first engine lasted about 40,000 miles from when it was tested in the mid 7s after a cat failure that I still believe damaged it.
Rebuilding a working engine without failing compression yet is generally going to be cheaper than rebuilding a failed one, simply because you should be able to re-use more parts. That being said, rebuilding a good engine is largely a waste of money in the first place
A better option, if you have the money and are worried about this engine, is to get a backup engine built. Drive the current one till it's dead and you can swap in the new one with relatively little down time. Or just invest the same money and always have it on hand for a replacement engine when the time comes. Financially this is smarter (appreciating asset vs depreciating one), though usually can mean longer down-time while you wait for the engine to be built and arrive.
09-04-2012, 03:19 PM
#696
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Assuming that is normalized to 250rpm, then yes, your scores are pretty good. Engine technically fails at 5.9 / 590. New engines are usually in the 800s, with a very rare few in the 900s. The one rotor face at 740 is a bit odd that it's that much different from the rest, but still in spec. Might have a weaker side seal right there.
(compression is measured in kpa, psi, or bar typically, and which you get varies from dealer to dealer, but any pressure metric works)
So, if you can avoid any of other other sudden death type failures noted in post 9 in this thread, then you should be able to top 200k with that engine 
Stay tuned for an experiment I will be doing in a few weeks regarding how effective carbon cleaning is. It's the one silent killer that you currently can't do much about.
(compression is measured in kpa, psi, or bar typically, and which you get varies from dealer to dealer, but any pressure metric works)
So, if you can avoid any of other other sudden death type failures noted in post 9 in this thread, then you should be able to top 200k with that engine
Stay tuned for an experiment I will be doing in a few weeks regarding how effective carbon cleaning is. It's the one silent killer that you currently can't do much about.
09-04-2012, 03:19 PM
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It alo looks like the CAT has been changed it looks brand new. Not sure if thats good or bad. I want it out,I know that. If I put in a mid pipe? do it have to some how by pass the o2 sensors or what happens with that???
09-04-2012, 03:23 PM
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And Thanks again for all your info/knowledge. Im a little OCD and this car has me hooked. My girl friend aint gonna be happy. I will do whatever it takes to keep her running smooth. Looks like its gonna be a fun adventure.
09-04-2012, 03:25 PM
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If you remove the cat and put in a midpipe, you should be able to screw the O2 sensor from your cat into your midpipe. You will probably (but not always) get a CEL for low cat efficiency. If you wish, you can mask the CEL from even popping up (AccessPORT). The rear O2 sensor does have an impact on fine-tuning the fuel trims during extended cruising, but it only makes a minor impact on mileage. If this isn't a big deal for you, I'd recommend getting a dead O2 sensor or a properly sized "plug" to thread into the midpipe. The heat these pipes see usually ends up getting the sensor seized, so transferring the sensor back and forth between the pipes as needed can be a real pain.