Well, I'll start by saying I LOVE my MX-5... 2008 GT soft top. It's leased and I have 4 months left... and just started looking for a replacement. I FINALLY went to test drive a 2010 RX-8 GT today and walked away thinking: Wow... a more refined MX-5... with a roof. I got to take a nice ride on the highway and was really shocked at how modern the interior looks and how great it cruises on the highway... much quieter than the MX-5 (top up). True, there isn't much "grunt" from the motor, but it loves to wind and can certainly get out of its way... definitely fun! (and practical with the rear doors). My only beef was that I thought $34,000+ was over-priced but then I did some fishing around:

A 2009 (almost identical to the 2010) has a $5000 rebate.... and there is an additional $1000 owner loyalty rebate for current mazda owners.... and I get the S-plan.

So now I'm thinking.... do I do it? 2009 GT with Premium Pkg and NAV, White with black leather.

Anyone else here move from MX-5 to RX-8?

Thanks everyone!!!

 

The 8 is way more practical as a daily driver, and at least as much fun. If a new one is too expensive, you can get an older one with low miles for a lot less. If you're looking for a practicality upgrade without compromising on fun, the 8 is a good choice.

 

Go for it.

Three years ago I had my heart set on a roadster...and the MX-5 looked perfect to me. Test drove it and it was all I expected. But I didn't fit.

So I tried the RX-8. Drove just like the MX-5, only bigger. And I fit. And there's room in the back seat and the trunk. The top does not come down on those nice days, but it's up and solid for all the nasty days.

It's a nice daily driver and highway cruiser. And it wails around corners when you find an inviting one.

Ken

 

Well I went from an 2004 Rx8 to 2007 Mx5, so the reverse route hehe.

Your driving experience so far sounds positive in the Rx8, which is good to hear. I personally don't think the Rx8 that I had was a significanlty better performer "on the street" over an Mx5 (note I am referring to earlier models. I'm told the R3's feel a lot more punchy), others will disagree. I really like both cars on track, but the Rx8 would be my choice, it's a fantastic track car. Also, be prepeared for the fuel consumption which will be a shock coming from a Mx5 I can tell you. However if the fuel consumption doesn't phase you then it's a great choice. You also get the extra practicality with four seats. Resale of the 8 might not be pretty, but then what resale is?

 

The Gen 3.5 MX-5s are very nice - the time-worn question of convertible or hardtop is always the first question in sporty cars. It really comes down to what you want to be in. Keep in mind that someone in Europe ported a Renesis motor into an MX-5...

 

Yes!
And you're welcome

 

FYI - You can probably get a grand or two below invoice even before the 5k rebate. I bought my brand new 2009 Sport a few weeks ago for 19k when the stick was 28k (had a few options on it)

 

DO EET!

Just remember, Read up on the FAQ's about rotary engines and you are good to go

 

I traded my '07 MX-5 for my 40th AE RX-8, because I needed a 3rd seat for a kid-let.

Absolutely no regrets.

 

I've driven all NA Miatas, NB Miatas, and NC Miatas. I'm a former Miata owner myself. Honestly, even my Miata buddies still agree, the RX8 feels like a bigger NC with a bit more power. The longer wheelbase on the RX8 does have better corner stability than some of the earlier Miatas though.

Go get one! You won't regret it!

 

Well, I kept my 1993 Miata because it wasn't worth much of anything to many other people than me, and I still prefer in top-down weather on the "mountain". But the 8 is a much better daily driver and much better on the highway. Go for the 8 if it suits your daily needs better and as long as you go in with your eyes open for 16/22 mpg as the price of gas moves back up to $4+/g.

 

dont think just buy one

 

I traded in my '08 GT MX5 for an '09 RX8 GT. The RX8 is very refined and quiet and the rotary is just amazing.
But I'm really not feeling it, I really miss the top down driving and am thinking about going back to an '09 Miata.

 

Pick up a NA/NB Miata to satisfy your top-down needs, and have the best of both worlds.

I plan on doing just that, but have had too much fun in the RX-8 and on my bike. The Miata itch hasn't been that bad yet. :D

 

I also went the opposite route. I had an '04 RX-8 for 124,000 trouble-free miles. Then, I went to an '09 Miata. I have no regrets at all, especially when I fill the car up. I drive 100 miles a day and have been saving around $12-13/tank in gas since getting the Miata. That is really significant. And there's nothing like the wind in your hair on a beautiful clear fall day.

Now, truthfully, the cars are very very similar when it comes to how they feel when you drive them. The power is close, though the RX-8 has more oomph when you drop it into third at highway speeds. However, the MX-5 has more scootability off the line. I have noticed this when trying to get across one particularly crowded traffic circle I have to negotiate every day.

The handling is nearly identical, though the small-ness of the Miata makes me feel just a bit more comfortable with it in the curves. The RX-8 has a better ride than the Miata.

Practically, it's no contest (unless you're talking MPGs). The 8 has more seats and much more cargo room. But the reliability of the Miata is legendary at this point. Though I had an excellent experience with my 8, I'm not sure you can say that for RX-8s in general.

You also have to remember to check the oil in the RX-8 more frequently than in the MX-5. You have to remember not to shut down cold. Just a few "quirks" that go along with owning a rotary. Not a big deal to me, but maybe to you.

So, since they are soooo close, I think it comes down to this: is the upgrade in seats/storage area worth the increased expense at the gas pump?

 

If you plan taking it out to the track I'd recommend taking a test drive with a helmet. I just barely fit with one in my sport. I know guys who have to put the seat way back to fit. The GT has even less headroom. You might not think about stuff like that coming from a roadster.

 

I am fortunate enough to have both. I'd say the Miata is quite similar to the RX-8, with the exception of gas mileage. Both are lightweight, excellent handling cars. Lots of fun to drive in both cases. The Miata is, of course, the choice for perfect spring/summer/fall days; the RX-8 for others. Of course, you'll never find another engine as smooth as the rotary.

You can't go wrong either way. Good luck with the decision.

 

My dad has an NC and I have an RX-8. Having driven both many times now, my impression is pretty much the same as yours -- the RX-8 is more refined, though given the sporty nature of both cars it would be more accurate to say the RX-8 just sugarcoats the info coming from the roadway whereas the NC slaps you in the face with it.

Handling can be adjusted with aftermarket parts, and the RX-8's extra horsepower is necessary because it weighs more than the NC, so for me the choice between the two would come down to this: will I ever need a back seat, can I afford a hardtop if I get the NC, and how important is gas mileage to me?

If you need a back seat, obviously the RX-8 is the only option. If gas mileage is important, the NC is the only option. If neither is terribly important to you, then the only remaining question is whether you want to spend $28000 on an RX-8 vs. a hardtop NC plus a new set of struts to make the ride smoother.

Personally I almost got the hardtop NC, because a top-of-the-line one costs about as much as a mid-line RX-8, but I've wanted an RX-8 for so long I decided I'd better get the car I really wanted so I wouldn't hate myself when I'm old and grumpy.

 

I also own both and i have not regetted it yet. The 8 is the big brother for the Miata. The Miata is lots of fun for the occasional mountain road (and the track) but the 8 is a car you can live with on a day to day basis.

 

My dad drives 76 miles a day in his NC and hasn't gotten tired of it yet. They're both daily-drivable.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sour...,1.234589&z=10

 

An NA miata and an RX-8 are pretty different in my opinion. I owned a 90 Miata for many years, and just test drove a 2005 RX-8 overnight this last weekend. Where the miata makes you feel like you're doing 1000 mph, the 8 masks speed really well. It isn't that the miata was less capable, it is that fact that is makes it feel like you're really going fast. Another note is that on the interstate, the 8 felt like it was just cruising easy when I bumped it up to 110mph. The miata would feel nervous at that speed. Around town, the extra size of the 8 is noticeable. The steering in the 8 is less direct than any of the roadsters I've driven. Don't get me wrong, it's very nice, just not the quickness of the miata, solstice, s2000's I've driven. The higher speed handling on the Rx-8 is awesome. A corner on my way home that I'm very familiar with, didn't even phase the 8, where I'd really be concentrating in my old mx-5. I also think it is way easier to explore the limits of the miata. The RX-8 was pretty well planted and would take effort to get it out of line.

I only have one complaint with the RX-8, and I have a feeling it is because of my driving habits. On corner exit, I feel a distinct lack of steering. I'm not sure if it is the extra power that I'm not used to, but it doesn't feel like the car finishes the corner well. The RX-8 doesn't understeer at all on corner entry, just when I'm powering through tight sweeping 70mph (or less) bends, it has a hard time maintaining the line at the exit, without a steering change. My miata wasn't like that, but it had 1/2 the power, so it would have much less rearward weight transfer.

 

Keep in mind an NA is very different from an NC, which is what the OP has. BTW, I always thought the power steering on the oldest NAs had too much assist. Had a manual rack put in mine. I love the electric assist steering on the 8.

 

Care to explain how it's easier to explore the limits of a car that acts twitchy in conditions where another car doesn't?

You lost me here. Are you sliding the back end out to accomplish steering without turning the wheel? If so, then pretty much everything else comes second to the sliding-friction characteristics of your tires.

All I know is there's a concrete divider in the middle of the road at the exit to my office park, and I have to turn left to go get lunch every day, and at no point while flooring the gas around that corner (again, with the concrete barrier to avoid) do I feel like the car isn't going exactly where I'm telling it to go.

 

If I'm being unclear, it's because I'm still trying to figure out the differences myself. I only have about 120 miles on the RX-8, and probably only 10-15 of those miles were on curvy roads. I think it is a high speed stability issue, though as I think back, I had DSC on in the RX-8 when I was going around that higher speed corner that I was referring to. I'm sure that had an effect. Also, that corner has some nasty bumps, that are good at upsetting a car. I think that affected the miata moreso than the 8. As for exploring the limits in the car, I think I'm just not familiar enough with the handling dynamics of the 8, but I do feel it was easier to just hop in my miata and push it to 10/10ths. I feel like I'll need to build up to that in the rx-8.

I understand your point about the tires, but I tried all season tires (once and never again) on my miata, but never experienced the lack of corner finishing that I'm referring to on the 8.

I race bikes, so I've done quite a bit of reading and practicing my skillset there. One of the big things that helped me out from reading those books was reducing the number of steering inputs, to help settle the suspension. I try to practice this on every vehicle I drive. So, for a given corner, I try to predict the approximate steering angle I'm going to need to finish the bend, then fine tune with the throttle. So, my process of cornering is steer into the corner, let the suspension settle, then apply throttle to stabilize the car. In the RX-8, when following this mindset, on very hilly tighter bends, I'm exactly where I expect to be at the apex, but ever so slightly wide at the exit. This is probably at 7-8 10ths pace, with DSC off. I have a few ideas for ways to remedy this problem. The first point is to get the car deeper into the corner, in order to get the steering anlge sharper mid corner. I'll attribute some of that to holding back to appease my (rather sheepish about going fast around corners) fiance who was in the passenger seat. I think if I were pushing the car harder, I'd be a little more aggressive on corner entry to get the car rotated earlier. Another point that I thought about last night while reading Gordon's posts here on the forum is to look into a more performance oriented alignment.

I love the car, I just need to learn how to drive it properly.

 

I didn't put in the manual rack, but I did remove the powersteering belt from my NA. Yeah, I've not yet driven an NC. I guess I should. I've driven my NA, a NB, and an S2000. I would guess that all of those had quicker steering ratios than the RX-8. Either that, or I can just feel the difference in the wheelbase. I don't think one is necessarily better, just different. I guess I forgot that the 8 has an electric assist.