Zooms3

What would be the pro's and con's of a 2011 RX8 6spd,automatic verses a 2008 RX8 40th edition w/6 spd manual? Both vehicles are in exceptional condition w/low miles. Any input would be most appreciated. Thank You

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

2011 AT would be more reliable in general, more time left under warranty. (All benefits of the year)

2008 is more powerful, should be faster, more engaging (all benefits of the MT)

Brettus

iTrader: (2)

ATs don't belong in sports cars .... nuf said .

REtali8

iTrader: (2)

Seeing the low post count, going to guess your just starting to learn the 8. Here are the Pro/Con discussion as I see it.

2011
Pro - Warranty like RIWWP stated. Some additional features (rain sensing wipers, auto on headlights) Additional oil into engine to help with cooling/lubrication. AT if your not good with manual transmission.

Con - You will have a lower redline and hp than a MT. 2011 is a second series vehicle, not all mods are designed for S2 and need to take that into account when purchasing anything for it. You will also have a slight delay on shifts if using paddle shifters or triptronic. Forced Induction and Engine Tuning just starting to become available and anything for earlier model (like Cobb AP) will not work with 2011.

2008
Pro - More HP and more mods available. MT gives you more of a feel for what the car is doing and better control when you need to accelerate.

Con - Older vehicle will probably want to get an engine compression test and really test the transmission to see if you may need transmission rebuilt or new clutch in near future.

Either way, think about what you want the car for and what you want it to do for you. Enjoy.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

The 8 doesn't have, and never did have, a "Tiptronic" transmission. "Tiptronic" is specific to Porsche's manually operated automatic transmission, and the 8 never got a Porsche transmission. Every single person that uses it in reference to a non-Porsche transmission is using the name inappropriately. Yeah, it bugs me a bit, but it also tends to mislead new owners into thinking the automatic transmission is something special. It isn't. The 8's AT is just a normal automatic slushbox with an option to make a polite request to change gears, which the ECU may decide to grant, may ignore, and may procrastinate on, and it can still shift for you even in manual mode, even if you didn't want it to.


Edit: I guess Audi, Aston Martin, Peugeot, and Volkswagen also used that as a branded name. Still doesn't apply here.

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

The engine design was changed slightly after 2008. It added an additional oil injector to lubricate a dry spot on the apex seal. This makes the 09+ engines a bit more reliable.
There is a hp difference between the AT and the MT models. It's 211 vs 231. In the real early AT models it was about additional 25 hp less.

While most of us prefer the MT, there's nothing wrong with a AT RX8.

REtali8

iTrader: (2)

RIWWP - My mistake then. The couple of dealerships I had test driven the Automatic 8, all referred to it as "Triptronic". One even made a comment that he remembers how to say it along the lines of "...for sporty driving on long trips"

Anyways, no wasn't trying to imply the transmission is from Porsche, Audi, Aston Martin etc. And I understand what you mean by the polite request. As I recall it essentially is doing a sensor check (speed, traction, angle of wheels, etc.) to determine if it thinks it is safe to perform said "polite request". Would be interesting if it were possible to build the transmission to simply do as commanded.

monchie

The AT is slower than the MT. Now, for the real deal...whoever has the highest compression numbers is the winner...lol