And noticed immediately that it has FAR more torque/power than my '04... Why would that be? It only had about ~400 miles on it (my '04 has close to 26,000). Is it just age? Different engine flash?

 

When's the last time yours was flashed?

 

Could be that your car has learned your driving habits? Or perhaps your car is a dog? I am thinking if some get far better mileage than others, than some probably perform much better than others as well. But that is a guess.

 

Ah yeah... That's the other thing I realized. The fuel gauge on the '05 dropped like a rock. :D Even though I was driving it hard, it still fell faster than my car... Hmm. Can't believe there was THAT much of a difference, though.

 

^^^Not sure when the last flash was performed... Might have to have the dealer do that while it's in the shop.

 

Clear the ECU and then drive like hell for awhile.

 

Could just be a placebo effect for you also?

 

maybe the cat getting clogged

 

^Cat is a good possibility...

DEFINITELY not a placebo effect. It really is noticeably faster.

How do I clear the ECU?

 

Never having driven an 04 I can not attest, but as for the gas gauge comment I concur, it seems like it drops as fast as the tach climbs!


Ok, that is an exaggeration, but I think that over time and more mileage it will drop slower, maybe there is something in the new flashes that richens the car up for the "break in" period, oh sorry about that, there is no "official" break in period, just a thought I had.

 

Have an '04, but have never driven an '05, so can't say either way. But it's really strange how some get good mpg and others don't, and how some "feel" faster than others.

I'm always amazed at stories I hear about folks thinking the 6 spd MT 8 is slow. I've owned fast cars, FD RX-7, e36 M3 etc., and I'm quite satisfied with the RX-8's power. I have driven fast cars like the e46 M3, e39 M5, E55 AMG, Elise and EVO VIII. And while these cars are certainly faster, my 8 didn't feel too shabby after the test drives. In fact, I just test drove an '02 996 Porsche 911 and came away thinking that the RX-8 holds up pretty well even against the iconic 911.

Maybe I'm lucky and got a really good engine. Or perhaps not all RX-8's are created equal. Go figure.

 

IF you can't remember the last time you got your ecu flashed, then that is probably it. I felt significant increases in power from the M and then N flash.

 

^Cool. I'll definitely have them look at that a.s.a.p.

Thanks for all the input!!

 

when I drove a friends 04 a long time ago (03 build date) it got smoked by an evo.

when I drove my 05 just a few months ago...i was neck and neck with an evo, both my car and the evo was stock.....although it was just me in my car, and the evo had 5 pretty big people in it.

 

4 adults would add 500+ lbs, that's a big disadvantage for any car. I bet the EVO driver was still pissed none the less.

 

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...8&page=1&pp=15
Heres the link to clear the ECU.