Just a hello to all in this forum, and I am in love with my NEW 2007 RX-8 AT. I had not planned on buying a new car , but after the test drive I was hooked!! I have owned a 1984 Corvette and a 1980 BMW 323i (in germany). The RX-8 is such a blast to drive. So far I have 164 miles on the car and love every mile I drive. Thank You Mazda for the car that has revived my passion for driving again.

Bob Kvederas Jr
Stimpy88a

 

Congrats Stimpy! Would you like a bite of my patented ICE CREAM BAR? Sorry I had too

Check out the AT performance mods section (I know, sounds like an oxymoron) but there is some good info in there.

 

Congrats Stimpy! And nice avitar!

 

Wecome

 

congrats! I have an 05 AT. I'm suprised no one's bashing you yet for getting an AT You should really enjoy this car. I would imagine even more so that the old AT - hopefully your first gear ratio is a little shorter.

 

Welcome -
2005 AT myself. And yes, previous post was correct - you will find a bias from some of the MT owners. We are all brothers and sisters at heart and every 8 driver gets a wave.

Update your profile or post a pic - we all love to see what color and options you gots.

And if you have a question - post it here or SEARCH. Then SEARCH again. New threads for questions that have already been answered don't get answered - they get FLAMED!

Been there, done that...

And check your regional forum - lots of cool local clubs fanned out from the Mothership that are real helpful.

 

The reason I got the AT was due to being an old guy ! (I'm 43! :^) ). I am not into racing and proving my manhood via horsepower. My 2007 RX-8 AT is the base model, and I got the car for $22,700 out the door. Tax not included (6%).

Stimpy88a
Bob Kvederas Jr

 

Enjoy.

 

Bob, you're not an old 8 driver by a longshot. There have been numerous surveys on the age of the 8 drivers.

Check out the SE Forum. There are a lot of opportunities to hang with fellow 8 owners in CFL.

 

by no means is 43 very old on here. were kinda a big mixture

congrats on the new car and just look around on here there is a wealth of great info

 

Me - 40, bad ankles, and sit in traffic alot. AT works for me too.
Damn fun when u do get a chance to wind it up a little bit and handles like a dream. I know exactly where u are coming from.

Having said that, don't baby it. Hit 6000 rpm's at least a couple times a week. These engines need it. Blows out the carbon gunk and lubes the seals.
Maintenance for a rotary

Sorry if you know this stuff - I didn't and had to do a bunch of searching..........

Dano

 

Welcome, and you picked a great car.

 

53 and MT driver here. Just fun huh? Doesn't the 07 have a 6 speed AT? I wouldn't mind trying that. I went to the grocery store 3 times last Saturday, just so I could drive there. YOU WILL ENJOY. YOU WILL ENJOY.

 

Bob,
You don't have to justify your purchase to anyone but yourself (maybe a significant other). Some here might rag on you for driving an AT. I think that that type of hazing is intended for Mama's boys who HAVE to have an AT because they share the car with "Mummy." If YOU choose an AT, then there is nothing wrong with that.

And no, you're not an old guy--in the context of driving an RX8. When I bought my car, a 73 y/o lady bought a Galaxy Grey Sport AT at the same time. She said, she's always wanted a sports car and never could out of practicality. Now that she's got the money, no kids, etc. she was gonna spoil herself and get EXACTLY what SHE wanted. Good for her! Look at it this way, your 30 years a head of her...

Congrats on the car and treat 'er well...

 

Dano,

See, that's what I thought until I read the "break-in" procedure recommended in a thread here....I think, and don't quote me on this, it was by the guys who make the REVI intake.

Anyhoo, according to a rotary specialist company (there's a thread on here somewhere) it said NOT to go over 4K RPMs during the first 2Kmi. Broke my heart, cause I was under the mind set that the "computer" is trying to learn my driving habits and wanted to either, keep it guessing so it'll be ready to jump to 9K at my command or be used to revving high.

Does anyone have a definitive answer to the break-it-in-gently or drive-it-like-you-stole-it question? I guess, either way its too late for me--but not for others, no? If anyone knows, please post?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

 

I've done a few things to my '04 auto and I chose it on purpose, car had only been out a few months and the Mt's were fetching a premium I could not overcome, car is still a blast, and it's not really a normal auto anyway, you can still play with shifting it, just can't redline as high. enjoy your car, they're a little trouble to keep up but you get aLOT of fun in return

 

An AT? Steeempy! You Eeeediot!!! What were you thinking? Just kidding, welcome to the the forum and congrats on the new purchase! What color did you get???

 

welcome on board

 

Brand new, only $22,700? Wow! I paid that much for my 2004 GT with 25,000 miles on it. 6 speed manual added cost, and with the GT version new it was $33,000.

Still, good deal for a new car.

 

www.carsdirect.com

One thing, any of the AT owners notice the transmission doesn't shift fast enough if you use the paddle shifter? If you let say hit the button at 7500RPM, the engine will rock to fuel cut and then drop to teh next gear. Is that normal?

 

Yeah, I've noticed sometimes mine doesn't shift instantly.

 

Phantom,
Excellent point - I did forget to add the high rev's should come after the break in period.

Shifting the AT is not immediate on mine either. I pretty much hit the shift a half sec early - don't have to get off the gas, so just need to learn the timing of when to hit it so fuel shut off doesn't happen. Little different timing than the MT.

Dano

 

yeah just gotta work on that timing!

 

Pics?

 

People talking about the automatic shifting too slow, do you have the four-speed or the six-speed?

I'm trying to remember my impression from my test drive. I don't remember it being slower than the average manumatic in reaction times, but then the average isn't great. Certainly no DSG.

At any rate, I didn't find the 6AT bad at all for someone who must have an automatic. Not only is the power up vs. the 4AT, but there are a larger number of more tightly spaced ratios.