Murph

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

The_Bean

They are both great cars. We get in this argument every week.

Make your decision and don't look back either way--you will be happy.

NoPistonsHere

s2000 engine 2.2L Rx8 1.3L
s2000 Weight 2835 Rx8 weight 3053

Well ya, you would hope that the s2000 a true sports car would be faster then a heavy 4 door 4 seater sports sedan. Faster but not by much...LOL
put a 2.0L (20B) rotary in the Rx8 bet you s2000 guys wouldn't talk any *hit then.
Stop doing comparros on a car you don't know *hit about.

Hard 8

Wonderful write-up, Squidward. One minor observation I'd make. You say:

Speaking for myself, I would not hold a car on a hill with the clutch. You do need to let it out carefully and not too fast when you start driving uphill from a stop, but just to sit there and hold it is a bad idea; you're just burning up your clutch.

That minor point aside, I've driven both cars and I have to say that this macho posturing about which car is quicker is completely beside the point. The (approx.) 5.9 second 0-60 times that I have seen for both cars were achieved with abusive, super-high RPM clutch drops. In stock form, neither of these cars is a dragster. The guys above boasting about dragging their S2000s and maybe getting into the 13s ... well ... sounds to me like they bought the wrong cars. They should have got Mach 1 Mustangs for their money.

Dragging an S2000 or RX-8 makes as much sense to me as using a mountain bike in a velodrome. These cars are built for handling, pure and simple. They both have almost zero bottom-end torque and, having driven both, I can attest that their power curves are very similar. Arguing which is quicker is just pissing into the wind. It's like seeing two guys, each about five foot five inches tall, yelling at each other about who's shorter. Almost comical.

As for handling, they're both absolutely phenomenal cars. I haven't read about their comparative lap times, but I would be very surprised to hear if either of them is much faster around the track than the other. I do recall that on Top Gear (see below) the RX-8 posted lap times identical to those of an E46 M3 and a 350Z, so if the S2000 is appreciably quicker around a track I would be shocked. By the same token, I'm sure it's not much slower (if at all), either.

Anyway, I wish the S2000 folks here would just chill out on this puerile posturing. It's not about straight-line acceleration, and if it were, then you guys are living in glass houses and shouldn't be throwing stones. Bitching about an old 6.3 second time, because with the bigger engine it's a few tenths quicker? Please. Talk about nit-picking.

They're both wonderful cars. For me, the question would be, do you want a fine, taut, great handling two-seat convertible? Get the S2000. You want a great handling, ultra smooth sports coupe with four real seats? Get the RX-8. Tough call, huh?

Edit: Here are some Top Gear lap times. The S2000 isn't listed:

• Mercedes-Mclaren SLR - 1.20.9
  
• Ferrari 360 CS - 1.22.3
  
• Porsche 911 GT3 RS - 1.22.3
  
• Lamborghini Murcielago - 1.23.7
  
• Pagani Zonda - 1.23.8
  
• Koenigsegg - 1.23.9
  
• Noble M12 GTO-3 - 1.25.0
  
• Lamborghini Gallardo - 1.25.8
  
• Lotus Exige - 1.26.4
  
• Porsche 911 GT3 - 1.27.2
  
• TVR T350c - 1.27.5
  
• BMW M3 CSL - 1.28.0
  
• MG SV - 1.28.6
  
• Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII - 1.28.9
  
• Alpina Roadster (Z8) - 1.29.0
  
• Subaru Impreza STi - 1.30.1
  
• Aston Martin DB7 GT - 1.30.4
  
• Audi S4 - 1.30.9
  
• Porsche 911 Turbo - 1.31.0
  
• Vauxhall VX220 Turbo - 1.31.3
  
• Honda NSX Type R - 1.31.6
  
• BMW M3 - 1.31.8
  
• Nissan 350Z - 1.31.8
  
• Mazda RX-8 - 1.31.8
  
• Ford Focus RS - 1.32.2
  
• Lotus Esprit V8 - 1.32.5
  
• Audi TT V6 - 1.32.7
  
• Noble M12 - 1.33.1
  
• Mercedes SL55 AMG - 1.33.2
  
• VW Golf R32 - 1.33.2
  
• Volvo S60R - 1.35.0
  
• Ferrari 575 - 1.35.2
  
• Alfa Romeo 147 GTA - 1.35.6
  
• Lotus Elise - 1.35.6
  
• Aston Martin Vanquish - 1.36.2
  
• Renault Clio V6 - 1.36.2
  
• Honda Civic Type R - 1.36.5
  
• Saab 9-5 HOT Aero - 1.37.9
  
• Maserati Coupe - 1.38.0
  
• Bowler Wildcat - 1.39.4
  
• Bentley Arnarge - 1.40.8
  
• Range Rover overfinch - 1.44.0

AQA101

Tried to find it, but didn't manage to. I downloaded it less than a month ago, so it's gotta be around somewhere here.

AQA101

@Hard 8: Very good post.

All this talk about acceleration and top speed is 99% useless in everyday driving situations. Top speed is slightly interesting if you happen to live in Germany, but let me assure people who don't, most of the times you can't drive fast around here.

A car is great if it feels great. The RX-8 does feel great and I guess the S2000 does as well, as does the 350Z. For me the 8 is the perfect vehicle for all given situations, my 80 miles to work and back, the tour to the supermarket or a cruise over the alps to Italy.

The car is fast, no doubt about it and some are faster for sure. But does it really matter if I hit the autobahn with 150 or 160 mph once in a while? I like the S2000 design and can only congratulate those who own one. Nice car, plain and simple. The RX-8 simply fits myself better. And btw, viewed from inside a Porsche Turbo, we're all slow in the end.

trendy26

Could not have been said any better!