The front cupholders with any drinks in them are in the way when shifting. We need some sort of fold-out holders from the center console or the dash.

The switches for the seat warmers are also awkwardly placed. I've inadvertently turned the drivers seat on while shifting or resting my arm.

I agree with the problem about the location of the trunk release button. You can't see it while sitting and it is hard to locate by hand. Why not a switch on the door or near where the dash light dial is?

Lastly, for those of us without the Nav system, I sure would like a flip-up door covering a compartment in the dash. There is room for one. My 2000 Acura Legend has one of these, and it is very handy for the little things you might want to carry but don't want to junk up your glove compartment. It would also be useful to open it so I an temporarily place my Garmin GPS system in it. Right now, if I try to place it on the curved dash, it slides right off if I accelerate quickly (which is one of the reasons I bought the car!).

 

Yeah, the RX8 seat materials are an odd selection regardless of overall category.

Why do you think Mazda did this? Could it be that the plastic and hard leather might last longer?

I don't know soft leather car seats, but I do know soft leather sofas. The G35 has soft leather like a good leather sofa. Even though leather sofas in my experience can withstand heavy use, why is it that so many used G35's have leather seats that are totally screwed up? Just a coincidence of a careless owner or is there something about the G35 seats?

 

It's a cinch to Windex the inside of the 8's rear window -- if you are a contortionist or own a small, very expensive robot.

 

I am happy with my car but in a perfect world I would:
1) Give the driver and passenger more head room
2) Both front seats would be powered with memory
3) The steering wheel would be telescoping
4) The seats would have more padding (NASA's memory foam?)
5) All cars would have the MP3 option automatically with a CD player
6) The foam blocks in the doors would be glued down so that they don't squeak in cold temps.

 

hmmmm interesting point about the seats? anyone know why they may have picked the materials they have? cost? protective? easy to clean? better?

 

I've experimented over the last couple of days and closely observed myself getting into the car. Turns out the first thing my pants and back hit are the left side plastic pieces on the seat.

I'm convinced that at least the plastic pieces are for durability. I think that's a smart touch.

 

I agree. Not bad overall, but some things (for instatce the ashtray and the area arount it) look like they came out of a Ford.

 

Generally I like the interior, but I have seen better.

It is very comfy and, despite a fragile look, the materials actually seem pretty sturdy. I've had my car 6 months and its holding up very well. I would not call it particularly plush (no full leather, too much carbon-fiber look, etc) but this is not a real issue for me.

The controls are logical and very easy to use. The only exception to this is the trunk release which one doesn't normally use during driving. An adjustable clutch pedal or a telescoping steering wheel would be a great help for shorter people, but no car is ever perfect.

My beef is with the instrument "clutter". I actually like the digital speedo/analog tach but everything else is a waste. I would gladly trade the "edgy" high-tech look for the functional lights/gauges I had in my 93 Miata. Just too many incomprehensible lights, randomly placed, with and without audible alarms. Also, one cannot forget to mention the infamous "idiot" oil pressure gauge.

I wish Mazda would hire a top ergonomic engineer to organize presenting vehicle information to the driver. Then they can let the stylists loose to make it look cool.

 

Oh forgot to mention that the steering wheel is uncomfortable. I have a blister that won't go away thanks to the raised stitching along the thumb notches.

They really need to do something about the steering wheel. At the LA Auto Show, I sat in the Acura TSX and noticed that its steering wheel, although very similar, has more comfortable thumb notches that have more of a horizontal surface with more recessed stitching.

 

Definitely, I Think the same thing, its for durability.

 

loven it, nice ride definitely...seats are like a cockpit..love it

CM

 

I fell in love with this interior from the moment I sat in it. I'm not too picky though, so I would'nt change very much.
I would have liked to have the MP3 option with the 6 disc CD.

 

Pro: Nicely designed, well laid-out interior with a lot of features for the money. Fit and finish of the individual pieces is excellent - far superior to the second or third gen RX7. Alignment, lack of squeaks/rattles and solidity of the pieces is also way better than the previous cars.

Con: Anyone remember when you could sit in a car with leather interior and actually smell the leather? Seems like there's less actual leather in modern car interiors all the time. I've got a classic 2-seater that requires three full hides to re-do the interior. "Leather seating surfaces" - bah! Door panels scuff as previously noted; seat cushion doesn't seem to be holding me very firmly.

 

The ergonomics in the RX8 are at par with BMW, who have always placed ergonomics high on their design priorities, are are reputedly the best in the business. Most of the controls in the 8 are well positioned and easily accessible, apart from the boot opening button which is awkwardly placed.

A few disappointing things though:
- The hard plastic used on the dash above the central console and around the gear-lever area.
- IMO the shiny audio/air-con panel would have looked better in a less reflective finish and less prone to scratches and dirt.
- Cup-holders position too far back.
- Window controls are cheap run-of-the-mill Japanese type.
- Lack of an 'open' and visible storage cavity where you can lay small items like keys, cellphone, pda, wallet, etc.
- My biggest gripe is that the new Mazda 3 shares a lot of its interior components with the RX8, which makes Mazda's flagship model not so exclusive-looking. I guess that Mazda have managed to make the RX8 affordable by cost-cutting this way. So maybe I should not complain.

 

To change/add:

1) Replacement footrest that is at least 2" closer to the firewall for those of us that fit in the car because we want to! (actually, it would be perfectly comfortable -better than RX-7-if I could stretch my lift leg a little more)

2) At least 2 person memory for the drivers seat

3) Coin holder for the coin holder

4) Voice recognition for the navigation system.

My thoughts on some comments I've read:

I don't want anything that would change the vehicles size, weight (total and distribution), and low CG.

With regard to the remote trunk switch if it was located somewhere else the requests might be to move it out of the way because it is accidentally being pushed!

I like the separate tilt/slide switches for the sunroof -my RX-7 TII had a combined switch and it was slightly annoying to first push to tilt, then push again to slide. I also like that it is auto open.

The side of the seat was the first and only part of my RX-7 (cloth) seat to fail after about 8 years so if the ribbed material holds up better I'm good with it.

 

As a Lexus owner and as a person who think's a car's interior is one of the main reasons to buy a car, and a sticklier for fit and finish, ergonomics, etc (interiors are my pet peeve), I can say I love the RX-8 interior and for the price, it's incredible. It shames the 350Z for the same price. For 25-30k, the RX-8 and the Honda Accord and Acura TSX have great interiors.

The interior in my sisters 95 929 has held up great. Hopefully more of the same.