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Well. It's done. I now have my first rotary.

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Old 08-19-2020, 08:26 PM
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Well. It's done. I now have my first rotary.

Bit of a shaky start. Went to drive when I got to my friend's house and just got clicking thanks to the 10 year old battery that decided it was done. I ran out and bought a battery, installed and it fired right up. 7,103 miles. Still smells new.

Original Dunlops are rock hard and flat spotted. Hopefully getting new shoes Friday.






Last edited by ScottJ175; 08-19-2020 at 08:30 PM. Reason: messed up the title
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Old 08-19-2020, 08:28 PM
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congrats. if ya havent done so read the new owners thread
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Old 08-19-2020, 08:39 PM
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Originally Posted by 200.mph
congrats. if ya havent done so read the new owners thread
Probably need to do so again. It's been about two years of thought and research leading up to this.
Old 08-19-2020, 10:01 PM
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A quick walkaround video in the rain that caught me on the way home
Old 08-20-2020, 09:02 AM
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Looks like a very clean and nice example of S2 RX-8. Very low mileage, too!

Enjoy!
Old 08-20-2020, 10:18 AM
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Very nice buy! I gotta get a series 2 one day...
Old 08-20-2020, 01:08 PM
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Congrats and very nice find, it's practically brand new!
Old 08-20-2020, 02:29 PM
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Changed the oil. Prior owner had just taken it to Express Oil and I didn't trust it to be done right. Glad I did. Obviously a Series 1 Express oil branded filter on it. Now it has the proper OEM filter and Castrol 10W-30 conventional.

Saw some evidence of battery leakage while underneath so pulled the battery and box. Found a mess to clean up.

Old 08-20-2020, 04:29 PM
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If you haven't already, check the air box. I recently picked up a low miles 8 as well, which clearly sat for a while, and had half a tree worth of leaves in there.
Old 08-21-2020, 07:20 AM
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Welcome aboard! Beautiful car and you can't beat that mileage! I just picked up an 04 with under 13k miles and I thought that was low! I'd be curious to know how you like it compared to the Miata?
Old 08-21-2020, 07:32 AM
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Originally Posted by Ant_1026
Welcome aboard! Beautiful car and you can't beat that mileage! I just picked up an 04 with under 13k miles and I thought that was low! I'd be curious to know how you like it compared to the Miata?
Haven't actually driven it that much yet (maybe 100 miles or so) but honestly it does feel to me like a four place hard top Miata. I am having to get used to the lack of low end torque. Makes me look like a stickshift newbie sometimes.
Old 08-21-2020, 10:07 AM
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Originally Posted by ScottJ175
Haven't actually driven it that much yet (maybe 100 miles or so) but honestly it does feel to me like a four place hard top Miata. I am having to get used to the lack of low end torque. Makes me look like a stickshift newbie sometimes.
This car loves to rev. I generally cruise at or near 3k RPM. Under that you have no power.
Old 08-21-2020, 10:16 AM
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Main issue is remembering I can't lazy shift. Letting the revs drop too much on the 1-2 and 2-3 shifts while accelerating quickly is killing smoothness.
Old 08-21-2020, 10:16 AM
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Congrats, I bought my first RX8 last week too, I have a 1993 and 1985 RX7.
Old 08-21-2020, 02:25 PM
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I only received part of the battery hold down with the car so stopped by my local dealer to get replacement pieces.
I love the art on their walls.



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Old 08-21-2020, 05:31 PM
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New shoes. DMV stuff done. Missing battery hold down pieces purchased and installed.

Now to enjoy for a bit.


Old 08-21-2020, 09:05 PM
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Very nice find. I’m glad a dedicated owner has joined the community. Welcome!
Old 08-22-2020, 01:53 PM
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Originally Posted by ScottJ175
I only received part of the battery hold down with the car so stopped by my local dealer to get replacement pieces.
I love the art on their walls.


A dealership that celebrates the rotary heritage instead of skyactiv **** is worthy of zoom zoom respect!
Old 08-23-2020, 11:00 AM
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Originally Posted by ScottJ175
I only received part of the battery hold down with the car so stopped by my local dealer to get replacement pieces.
I love the art on their walls.


That is awesome. Thank you for posting that. Somebody there appreciates Mazda heritage and accomplishments. Skyactiv is one of those accomplishments. The art and the dealership would not exist without that line of engines, as conventional as they may be.
Old 08-23-2020, 12:40 PM
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Originally Posted by delhi
A dealership that celebrates the rotary heritage instead of skyactiv **** is worthy of zoom zoom respect!
Nothing wrong with Skyactiv series, and Skyactiv covers not only the engine, but the transmission and chassis as well. As Kevin said, it's just a different kind of innovation and some of their cars are still very nice.

If a theoretical rotary makes a comeback, it's probably gonna be called Skyactiv-R. As it stands now, rotaries would just hold Mazda back, unfortunately, with the emission standards and all.

I think there are a few dealers around that have rotary-related decorations. I also recall picking up a CX-5 brochure a while back with a photo of the Cosmo, so Mazda isn't forgetting about all of it.

Last edited by UnknownJinX; 08-23-2020 at 12:42 PM.
Old 08-25-2020, 02:46 PM
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Something else cool about this deal is I got the original window sticker. Notice it has the spare tire kit?




Last edited by ScottJ175; 08-25-2020 at 04:33 PM.
Old 08-25-2020, 04:39 PM
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Not that I'd use it but the tire goop is long expired.

Old 08-25-2020, 05:39 PM
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I didn't even open the box with the goop in it. Seeing that I bought my car in 2003, mine is even more expired
Old 08-26-2020, 12:00 AM
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Originally Posted by ScottJ175
Not that I'd use it but the tire goop is long expired.


Sorry the spare tire takes up so much room that you don’t think it’s practical bro. Here’s some goop on us, your old buddies here at Mazda Fine Automobiles!
Old 08-26-2020, 09:09 AM
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Originally Posted by CaymanRotary
Sorry the spare tire takes up so much room that you don’t think it’s practical bro. Here’s some goop on us, your old buddies here at Mazda Fine Automobiles!
To be fair, most modern cars do this due to fuel economy since these goop kits are lighter than a donut, and on RWD sports cars with a staggered setup or an AWD car, there is a good chance the donut is useless as you may overwork the LSD if the donut has a different diameter than the other wheel(s).

If you don't go too far out of a city, I think a tow might be the best option if you get a flat.


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