OK, so I don't have two sitting in the garage but I have owned two different 8's in the past 3 Months and it is interesting comparing the two. Why have I owned two? I did the repurchase on the first one, turned right around and bought me another one. (ain't I a stinker?)

My first 8 was a sunlight silver 6speed GT. Paid $32,800 with tax and everything in August. Drove it for about 6k miles. Of course had the oil light problem and the tire pressure monitor light was always coming on even though pressure seemed fine in all tires. Reverse was sometimes crunchy like I just wasn't getting it in gear properly and the air conditioner was really weak as far as how cold it got. Otherwise the car ran great and had no problems.

My new 8 is also a sunlight silver 6speed GT but has Navigation, Red/Black Interior, Rotary Accents, and Spoiler. Also paid $32,800 on October 17th. Granted I got a good price for buying "two" cars from the same dealer. The car has 600 miles on it now and has shown no problems. Reverse is never crunchy, Radio seems to have more *****, yet to see any warning lights but it's early in the game for that, and the air conditioner is VERY cold. (hey, it's still 90 degrees or more here in Texas) The cars handle and feel the same but I feel more comfortable in this new one since everything seems perfect.

Perhaps Mazda made some improvements in those few short weeks or maybe I just got a better pick of the liter, or maybe I'm just so darn happy with all the extras I got for the same price as the first one. :D

 

One thing I forgot to add. The new Rx-8 is getting better mileage than the first. I haven't calculated the MPG exactly but I know on a tank of gas running it all the way to the warning light I am getting about 25 more miles on the new one. On the new one I'm getting around 250 miles on a tank. I usually shift around 5k on first and 2nd gear...and I live at around 1300 feet above sea level

 

Wow thanks rx8ntexas. These are definitely some good data. Can you maybe post the Build dates of your cars so other owners here can do some comparison with yours. It would be nice if we can conclude that most problems were resolved after the first batch. Thanks.

 

rx8ntexas,

To answer your question, yes, you are a stinker.

-Mr. Wigggles

 

Ya man... why you need 2 RX 8...

We should run a poll here...

[1] 2 RX8
[2] BMW 740il
[3] BMW M3 + used toyota corolla
[4] Hummer H2 + 10000 cash
[5] Lexus SC 430
[6] Mercedes-Benz C32 AMG +10000 cash
[7] Audi S4 + Hyundai work car

However, thanks for the update that Mazda is correcting their problems under the table. Why wait till 2005 models to improve current problems? Fixing the problem now is much cheaper than letting RX8 owners bring it to the dealer to fix. :D

PS. Any other cars in your garage? :D

 

I have an '88 Rx-7 Turbo II and a 2001 Ford Eddie Bauer Expedition.

 

Build date on my first one was 07/03 and was purchased in August. The new one says 08/03 and was purchased in October. I'm getting this info from the sticker on the inside of the drivers door. I've seen some posts where they know the exact day of the build but both of mine only say month and year.

 

thats odd
I bet some of it is psychological

 

I think it is certainly possible that Mazda has corrected some of the early faults. Remember the car had been on sale for a few months in Japan before it was on sale in the US, and the early Japanese cars presumably had many of the same problems.

It would probably take them a few months to incorporate changes based on the initial feedback from the Japanese market. Maybe the changes took effect just too late for the first US cars.

 

CANT WAIT!! My 2'nd rx8 gets here at the end of this month. It was build on the 28th of october. lets hope that some changes were made, as expected.

 

One advantage to us brits waiting a bit lobger for the cars, at least they might have ironed out a few niggles....

 

I just went out and looked: My red sports package is 8/03, and the a/c is very cold (but cycles a lot) and the reverse is just fine; no problems. Not sure about mileage yet, maybe about 18.5?

 

Nice post from a somewhat unique perspective (people mused on turning in their 8's and buying another for cheaper, but I don't think many actually did it). Even if it is psychological or unfounded in any way, it makes me feel better as being on the map for next summer for possible purchase.

Although man, the idea of a low-ish mileage 98 S14 and no car payment for once is very tempting

 

Posted for my Dad... cause his account is still hosed... (Twin 8s!)
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We are a two RX-8 family. One black, one blue, both 6MT, both fast, fun, glorious.

Mine (black one) did have the oil light problem at 2475 miles. Pan changed and problem has not returned. It is really interesting to compare notes. My wife gets about 19.5 to 21MPG. I am getting about 21 also. We are in FL so driving at sea level.

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Back to normal broadcast....

 

VERY NICE!! Two 8's in the family...that is so cool...my wife would really like one but for now she's stuck with the Expedition to haul the kids around in....although she does enjoy driving the RX-7 Turbo II every now and then....I'll post a picture of the two cousins soon...I'm going to zaino both rotary beasts in a week or two

 

I bought my first 8 on 12 August, a black/black GT 6sp with nav. I drove it 7000 miles, the dealer did the oil pan change and the computer update to fix the check engine light. I used 87 octane and always averaged 21-22 mpg. The car ran great..no problems. I paid MSRP for it.

I did the buy back on 24 October and on the same day bought my second 8, black/black-red GT 6sp nav and also got the app pkg, rotary accent pkg, rear spoiler and the 6 disc cd. I just got back from driving it on a round-trip from Seattle to Phoenix and back, 3500 miles all together. So all in I have logged 10,000+ seat miles in 8's over 90 days or so.

The first 8 ran better and got better mileage as the miles went by. The second 8 runs better, is more powerful and gets slightly better mileage right off the lot. I noticed that there is no port campaign sticker under the hood of the new 8, so the ECU chip must have been fixed at the factory. I also had the dealer chck the VIN and he can see that the oil pan and check engine light updates were factory done.

The car was a blast to drive on a long trip, comfortable, fast and goes 320 miles or so on a tank of gas. I also bought it for $3000.00 off MSRP, so the new 8 cost less than the first 8, but it has a higher level of equipment.

 

Glad to hear I wasn't the only "stinker" to do this. There was nothing cooler than pulling up to the lot the day I did the switch and just move my stuff from the "old" 8 to the new one. The owner of the dealership asked me to keep the transaction quiet so when a sales guy asked me what I was doing I told him, "well this one has gotten pretty dirty so I'm trading it in for this clean one" :D He thought I was kidding till I drove away in the new one!

 

You're definatly not the only one. I pulled the same kind of same day switch. However, I took the opportunity to drop some of the features on my original car inorder to go even lower on the price. I got my original 8 on July 18th (6-sp, Blue, Touring, Cloth, Apperance, Accents, Spare Tire, and Wind Deflector). At that early date there were not that many arround to choose from, so my exact options set and deal making position were somewhat compromised. My switch occured last weekend on November 1st and instead I opted for a 6-sp, Blue, Sport. The net result of the better deal and reduced number of options was a price reduction of $5000 (a much better deal than $500 and free scheduled service).

The most interesting part is my similar experience of getting to drive two RX-8's back to back. Unfortunatly, I seem to have gone the opposite direction on the reverse crunchyness issue. My first car never had any problem in reverse. On this new one I find that quite often when I put the selector in reverse, often when I go to engage the cluch I get a bad sound (enough that I put the cluch back in) and have to try again. I don't "feel" anything different doing the acctual shifting, just the failure when starting to go. Is this at all related to your problem with your first car? I'm debating taking the car in, but I haven't experimented with it enough yet to decide if it's a major problem or just me doing something wierd.

On the other hand, although it is remotely possible that this is some kind of psycological / coincidental effect. This car seems to be noticably more powerfull than my old one. I was NOT expecting to feel any difference so this caught me by supprise. The handling, braking, etc. all feel the same. Keep in mind that I'm still in the new break in, so I haven't gone full throtle / top third of the revs. But this new car seems to have less hesitation, and more pep. Any one else out there experiencing this? or the opposite? There are not enough miles on the new one for me to check milage, but I have detailed records of milage on my old car so I'll post an update if there is a significant difference.

David Holmer

 

rx8ntexas, is that you in your Avatar?

 

Odin, I for sure feel a power increase with my second 8. It felt stronger off the lot and more powerful with 4000 miles on the clock than my first 8 did.

 

Haha...no not me...i'm a guy....the car in the pic was my FIRST Rx-8 before I did the buy back and bought the new one....the new one is also silver...i'm telling ya, the ladies love the 8!!!!

 

i'm not having any problems with my 8. I was one of the first ones to pick it up in canada.

I don't think they could really change anything major about the car without notice to other Rx8 owners. This would agian cause a big stink....

 

I turned in my first RX-8 (#00883) on 11-07-2003 and I pick up my second RX-8 (#20547) today.
The garage looks so empty...

Vince

 

LOL!!! Ok. All I was going to say if you said yes, was... Woah! :D

 

noooo... don't say that. If your a guy then i'm gay cuz I been totally lusting after you since I saw that pic. so then who's the babe with the car?