Posting this for my buddy, he had originally posted to the forums on Edmunds...

I'm considering the purchase of a 2005 RX-8 for my spouse. I am concerned that her driving routine is not favourable to the RX-8. She'll mainly be using it for short trips within the city. Part of her daily driving routine is to take the kids to/from school on days where walking to school is hampered by the weather, such as cold temperatures, rain etc. It's literally a 5 minute drive to the school where she turns off the engine, waits 5-10 minutes, then restarts the engine and 5 minutes to home. Aside from poor mileage, will this driving routine make the RX-8 more susceptible to the flooding problem (or any other issues related to the rotary engine) or has the newer ECU flash rectified this issue once and for all?

Btw, I will give the 8 a spirited run from time to time

Thanks all!

 

In 5 min the 8 would have been well warmed up but like he said the fuel economy is going to take a hit. Will her driving style make flooding worse...maybe, but I'll leave that to one of the in-house rotary experts to answer.

I think it's workable and as long as she realizes the "quirks" of the rotary engine, it should be OK. I just would hate to tell someone not to buy a car because of a "possible" issue it can have. But...again, wait for a better answer.

 

I don't know.....but I can't picture my wife driving this car in a snowstorm with my kid in it.

If I still lived up North, my wife would be in some all wheel drive tank-like SUV if she had to transport my daughter (well maybe that's a "bit" of over-kill.)

 

It would be a summer car, she already has an SUV for the winter.

 

This car is really made with driving enthusiests in mind rather than mom's driving their kids to school. I think she'd be better off with something else for her purposes. The car performs best on longer drives when its warmed up. Too many short drives will likely foul the plugs up quickly and she could possibly flood it. This car is made for fun driving more than convenience driving. She should get something like a mini cooper, that seems better suited for the situation.

 

After 5 minutes the car should be warmed up so shutting it down would be fine. As for gas milage if you are only driving 5 minutes and little trips around town who cares about the gas milage? I get about 250 miles per tank and that is enough for alot of around town trips. The car does like it when you get out and stretch its legs from time to time (hitting redline)

 

Yes...I too testify that the 8 loves to play, hitting 9K at least a twice a week keeps the rotary doctor away... :D

 

I have heard that the latest PCM flash alleviates the flooding problem. You can start it up and immediately shut down and there won't be a problem. I have never had a flooding problem before or after I got the N flash.

 

IMO, driving an AWD SUV in the snowy winter is only going to give you a bigger car to pull out of the ditch. Not that I would recommend the 8 for winter driving, but if I needed a vehicle for winter driving, I'd lean toward an AWD car, like, say, the MS6...

--Massive

 

I've got a 2004 with the M-flash. My commute to work is 15 minutes. Four hours later, at lunchtime, I drive no more than 5 minutes to get something to eat, then no more than 5 minutes to the park for a smoke, then no more than 5 minutes back to the office. The 8 is normally up to temperature by the time I shut it down each leg of the trip.
No flooding, and I'm averaging 17 mpg in this type of city driving. In my case, I'd have to say my own fears of flooding were overblown.

 

It definitely does not sound like the right car for her.

 

You say you're considering it for your spouse. What does SHE think? If she loves the car (and it has a lot more charms than foibles) maybe it's a good idea. If not . . .

 

I live down the road from work. I MAY be driving for 5 minutes if I hit both lights. I typically get about 16 MPG unless I take longer trips somewhere. On the weekends I drive it.. but during the week not.. in the afternoon sometimes i'll redline 1st just to keep the plugs clean.

In in moderate to hot temps the car warms up quickly.. below 50 degrees you may need to let it warm up in the driveway first. BUT moving it just a mile or so should be enough to keep from flooding.

 

Driving this car for short distances over and over again is not good for the car. Especially when it’s cold outside.

Now with that being said, you can prob get away with doing it, it’s just not a good thing for the engine and your engine longevity might suffer. People have stated over and over that this car, when treated properly, can outlive a typical cylinder engine. That just happens to be one way to shorten the engine life. I would suggest another car for the women in question, because there will most likely be other times when she won’t think twice about driving the car down the street and turning it off, or backing it up a few feet and turning it off, ect.

 

I have an '05 and have had no flooding problems, even with just moving the car in the driveway (tested this in the dealer lot the day before I bought it). Five minutes is enough to warm up the car, even on the coldest mornings (at least down to 10).

As mentioned previously, you will take a hit on the mileage. I drive 3 miles to work, but usually drive 15 miles (each way) with some highway four days a week to the gym and home after work. I average 16-17 mpg. On tanks with mostly highway driving (a weekend trip), I get 19-20.

Even with the price of gas what it is, I feel that having this car is worth it. You and your wife will need to decide this as well.

 

Well I live in the North and transport my kids in the RX8 all the time. With winter tires on it works great. Never got suck - never had troubles starting it in -30 weather.

If you have the DSC the car is good on ice and it brakes well. If you want to have fun, turn the DSC off.


funny thing is after every new snow fall there is always a story about how a guy in a truck or SUV rolled there car. I think the "tank-like" feel of those vehicles gives people a false sense of security.

 

Yeah, but you're Canadian....you have snow all 12 months of the year and the temperature seldom gets above freezing! :D

The only reason I'd stick my family in a bigger car is not due to the fact that the Rx-8 can't do well in the snow. It's more so the other idiots driving like morons in the snow. I don't know how many times I've seen jackasses' rear-end someone from behind on 93 south in Boston when I used to drive home in the snow.

I'd just feel more comfortable having them in a bigger vehicle if I lived in a 4-season climate. (As it is now, the Odyssey serves that purpose, and I only have 2 1/2 seasons here!)

 

With proper tires, the RX-8 does fine in the snow; we have Blizzaks on a spare set of wheels for the winter (my wife _really_ needs to get to work regardless of weather), and they are awesome.

Personally, I don't think that I would spend upwards of $30,000 for a car to drive the kids to school in six months a year. It's a fun car, and, if she is aware of the preference not to turn it off when not fully up to temperature, even five minutes should be ok.

But that's not what this car really is all about. For this type of duty, I'd get a somewhat larger, reciprocating-engine car for that sort of hum-drum driving; heck, for similar money, you can get an Accord Hybrid, which should get more than twice the mileage, on cheaper fuel, and will have more power, and probably fewer problems.

 

Get her a volvo, throw some soccer ***** in the back and call it a day.

 

it may not be florida, but it did get to 71.6f yesterday......and I don't have to worry about a big bag of wind and rain sweeping my car and house away a couple times a year :D

 

agreed

 

Get the 8, get a remote starter for it. And you won't have any problems. Just make sure she starts that thing up and let it run, and then on the weekends you can take it out and play with it a little bit hard to keep everything running smoothly. That, or the volvo.

 

when u guys say flooding what do u mean? also when u say let it run u mean start the car up go brush ur teeth/take a crap then drive the car right? and if u start it up its good to shut the car off 5 minutes afterwards?

 

You know, when I read that I wondered ... what if you try to take a crap and nothing happens ... then you can't use the car.

Flooding seems to be an issue that plagued the RX-8 before the M Flash (a revision to the software that drives the RX-8's brain, please do a search for details). If you let the car warm up, you won't flood it. A search will give you tons of information on flooding.