Thank you. I applaud your effort.

Question.

Would it help to get some sort of petition signed by users of the forum stating our frustration with the lack of official info and abundance of misinfo. I know personally, if the MPG, HP, Dyno, issues aren't resolved, or at least explained by October 1st, I would have a hard time keeping this car. I just hope Mazda knows how many people are frustrated by all of this.

Is there an easy way to do an electronic petition?

I'm not talking fire and brimstone wording, just something letting them know how many customers are concerned and how many buybacks could be hitting them if they don't find a way to put our mind at ease with some facts and detailed explanations.

Anyways, just a thought.

 

Oh yeah! This is good! The word "grateful" just isn't sufficient to describe how we would feel to know this is going on.

The above quote is there so I can request, uh, will you please try to find out what plans there may be in regards to the "fix", assuming that there is something that they can put their finger on?

Also, is there really a lost fuel efficiency in their opinion and how might it tie-in with the lost power?

Like you don't already have a full plate. I think those questions are fundamentally tied to your quest though.

 

Finally, someone with the means is stepping up to end all this flood of fanboys vs. trolls post on this board with the hard truth. I'm not an owner but I'm sitting on the fence on this one and you have my gratitude.

 

Except I publish no magazine. I hope you get the information, + or -.
My wife thinks I'm nuts to think about giving the car back. I've waited 4 years for it and drove her nuts before it came out just being on the forum. I've got almost 4K on mine; at around 1100 miles at the Gap in NC/TN it seemed to have plenty of power - it almost literally jumps in 2nd gear in the 6K-9K range. I hope I can try get some 1/4 mile times in or at least decent 0-60 times when I get my car back with 4 good tires again (hopefully tomorrow, Weds).
One question: where does one get the RX tuner magazine?

Comments on original thread: I've had exactly those thoughts today. There are technical folks at Mazda who know what's going on. Those of us who bought the car sight-unseen [preordered] deserve to be privy to this data. If ECU mods were part of the 'port campaign' we should be told. Mazda service depts *should* be able to download data from the OBD system and tell us if performance parameters are out of line.

while I write this I'm looking through the clubwrx forum at used cars for sale... and considering getting my 5th 1st gen RX-7, or finding a nice 3rd gen... or whether to hang on to the RX-8 to see if the ECU turns out to be the culprit. I'm thankful for a month to think about it and lose sleep over it... and I look forward to and TIA for the research and future report(s)!

 

We will do what we can to address the gas mileage issue, but appears to be a 'non-issue'. From what I see, the people who are reporting bad mileage are under 2000 miles. And we think that there IS a switch at 2000 that puts things more in-line with what they should be.

About where you can get RX Tuner magazine, read this:

RX Tuner announcement

I vow to do everything I can to put this issue to rest. And I'm confident that once we gather ALL the info, you'll feel much better about your purchase.

Please just keep the speculation and negativity to a minimum until you see the results. It's our goal to have everything together before the 30 day buy-back period is over.

 

thanks boosted,im ready to start reading the postive things about are new cars. after playing a little with a guy in a boxter s today theres no way i want to give this car back.:D

 

Ditto what everyone said. I'll hold my decision in abeyance till you're able to report back to us. Also, we should agree if Mazda won't play ball with you that'll weigh heavily in our decisions to return the car. If they're not forthcoming with you, that just tells me there's more bad news that we don't yet know about and the car is a liability. And thank you so much for tackling this head on.

 

Can someone in the US find MAZDAS owners list for the rx8 as u can appreciatte the forum members and owners only make up a small pecentage , so if you can get to the other owners you will have a better chance of getting mazda to tell us the truth .

UNITED RX8 OWNERS HAVE BETTER NEGOTIATIONS , THAN MERE IN DIVIDUALS .
UNITED WE STAND DIVIDED WE FALL .

 

I'm interested in compiling a list of people who are willing to go on record, in a formal written statement to Mazda USA, complaining about the following issues with the RX-8 that have been delivered.

1) Lack of power as advertised. 247 hp listed on the sticker is not the case. Even the revised number of 238 hp is still beyond the current power levels observed by owners. Current observed power levels are much closer to 196 hp for the 6MT engine.

2) Gas Mileage far below the advertised numbers. Even under ideal driving conditions, many owners are experiencing engine mileage from as low as 13 mpg up to 21 mpg, with the majority of people regularly observing mileage numbers from 16 to 17 mpg.


This is not to say that I am unhappy with my RX-8, I just wish that these issues could be addressed in a way which will be satisfactory to the majority of the oweners.

Anyone who is interested in participating should privately email me to overload@sylfex.com including their real name, rx-8 puchase date, VIN number, and mailing address.

I will compile the list and submit it to as high up the chain in Mazda USA as I can get.

Regards,

OverLOAD

 

Thank you Ryan. Would it be beneficial to have a list of owner names/VINS who you can claim to be representing during your negotiations with Mazda - there must be over a hundred on this site alone. I would happily PM you my details, as would others I am sure.

 

I want to thank everyone who has committed to finding out the final truth about both the horsepower and mileage questions that have come up. For me, 247 or 238 is not the issue. The issue is that the false information has undermined my confidence in the car and left me with the expectation that there may be other shortcomings uncovered.

I think it is very important that the power of this user group is harnessed to encourage Mazda to respond with answers and assurances. While the buy back or compensation offer is a tentative first step a better one is for Mazda to commit to providing a correction of the problem that will be available to current owners at no charge. That would be a huge PR plus for Mazda!

I hope that the information gathered is positive. I think the car is a good value and fun to drive but would strongly consider the buy back without satisfactory information being provided by Mazda. I'm currently reexamining Audi A4's and Mercedes C Class not because they are superior but because I have confidence in the manufacturer.

I am anxiously awaitng the outcome!

 

I'll keep an eye out for Japanese car website, magazines, and try to pull some info when I can. I can understand maybe 40% of what I read. I am not sure if JDM info ill be relevent, but it's worth a shot. There has been a lot of production RX-8 tests done in Japan with real numbers and figures. If anyone knows a Japanese RX-8 forum, please let me know. (East Moon san?)

Here is the website if any of you are fluent in Japanese.
http://www.artex.co.jp/Pages/Car/RX-8/magazine/

Also, do contact the Mazda Japan engineers. I had engine issues with my last Millenia S that no one seems to know how to fix. Finally they set up a conference call between the dealership, Mazda USA and Mazda Japan engineers and got the issue resolved in an afternoon. They designed and engineered the car afterall.

Good luck guys.

 

Thanks so much, BOOSTD! This will be immensely helpful for all of us.

I emailed Mazda yesterday telling them that I appreciate their $500/free maintenance "good faith" offer, but that I was still disturbed by the loss of horsepower, and that I'd rather have a fix to the problem than be paid off. I encouraged them to try to find a fix and to keep us updated on what they're doing to remedy the situation.

I'm sure many of you have also done this. Maybe if we all email them and say something similar, it will do more to show them how we feel and encourage them to be forthcoming with us. I don't think we can tell them enough.

 

Thank you!!!

These are the facts that I have been waiting for.

Please post ASAP.

Thanks

Danny

Owner of a 2004 GS RX8.

 

I too want to thank you for doing this BOOSTD. Hopefully this can bring some clarity for RX-8 owners and pre-orders.

 

For Mock-Up Purposes Only!



B

 

SWEET :D

Let's get the subscription info out ASAP!

 

how and when can I get that mag

 

I called MNAO yesterday and asked the equivalent of these questions. The pleasant woman didn't have an answer, but was going into a meeting with the bosses later.

Today she called me back and relayed their answer, that is, Mazda is not going to release any more information, no test, how they did it, no dynos, no nothing. She said Mazda has offered all owners the generous package and that was the end of the situation, as far as they were concerned . {paraphrasing}

Also she was understanding on a personal level, but she said she was only offering the company's response. Just thought you might want to know.

 

That was the same "take it or leave it" response that I received from MNAO. Unfortunately it is no longer in Mazda's best interest to be forth coming with new information about this situation. At this point they are going to plead the 5th and try not to incriminate themselves. Thus the burden of proof (lower Hp and pursuing cover-up) is now on us. Anyways this has already been said a hundred times.

I'm shutting up now and enjoying my car for what it is.

 

I guess no updates on how to get the magazine or where to go to subscribe??? I would love to get a hold of that copy....

 

You'll get your chance soon! We're still in prototype stage, preparing the first prototype issue for Sevenstock in September.

 

Just got the letter! Haven't decided, depends on what I read. I'm particularly bothered by Mazda's refusal to provide more info. This makes me feel like returning the car just to spite them!

What are my car options? While we complain about 238 I haven't found another car at this price point that offers more than 220.
I just read a comparison of the TSX, MB Kompressor and the Saab 9/3 all of which appear to have less power. The Saab has the most power and is still the slowest! I paid a bit over 31K and now with the rebate it would be 30K. These cars range from 29 - 33K so what's the point?

Now all of this assumes that the actual HP remains at 237 and isn't 200 or something after it's tested again. Since Mazda refuses to provide their actual test reults I'll probably base my decision on what I see here in the next month or so.

Please make your findings public as soon as you have them.

 

The burden is on Mazda, not us.

All we need is enough people to band together to get some formal information from Mazda.

Mazda has not been upfront with us. I have still not recieved my letter, however I will be making the call to the return phone number, not with the intent to get the car returned, but to get someone on the other end who is willing to listen to all the collective new RX-8 owners.

It's Mazdas lack of openness that's got us all so pissed off about this whole thing. If they had promised us 300 horses, and actually delivered 247, we'd still be all pissed off. Mazda needs to wise up, and treat it's customers with respect. The customers are what makes the business survive!

 

Please don't flame me, because I'd like to know all the answers just like anyone else. But let me play devil's advocate for Mazda for a moment.

Suppose they do release an averaged dyno chart for some number of cars that they have tested. This causes a flurry of obsessive owners to dyno their own cars and compare their chart to the official one. Then Mazda gets andgry calls from forum member IHaveWetDreamsAboutRX8s and hundreds of others like him, complaining that "My dyno results show 3hp less than the Mazda chart at 4150RPM - wassup with that?"

The 'horse situation' would always be out there, alive and kicking, and would never be beaten to death, as it eventually should be (apologies to PETA).

Personally, I think it would be stupid for Mazda to realease dyno charts to a bunch of crazy rotorheads like us. What they should do is let us know all of the secret peculiarities of the car, such as alternate ECU mappings, throttle restrictions during break-in, dyno do's and don'ts, etc. Maybe even comment on some of the members' posted dyno results. I think that would make a lot of us satisfied.