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RX-8 Discussion General discussion about the RX-8 that doesn't fit in one of the specialty forums.

People are really pushing me to NOT get an RX8 :(

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Old 07-03-2008, 12:54 AM
  #26  
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Motorvated, take a look at mazdamaniac's post count hun. It's not all idle gossip. He is absolutely correct.

Knowledge is the power to make the right decision, and you gain that by reading everything you can on this forum, or any other subject matter. My recommendation is make a list of your concerns, and check each and every division of this forum that deals with them, and read..Then if you still don't get something....post a question...detailing the fact that you have searched and are not quite sure of something, and you''ll be met with a different attitude entirely. The long time members of this board will respect the fact you've attempted to use your brain for what it was intended instead of taking the easy way out as so many before, and I'm sure after you will do. There has not been a question asked about the rx8 that has not been answered in some way shape or form on this board..albeit sometimes the answer is a bit hard to find..but that's just the nature of the beast.

Last edited by rddragoness; 07-03-2008 at 12:56 AM.
Old 07-03-2008, 12:58 AM
  #27  
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one last link!!!!

post count does not mean a thing!!

beers
Old 07-03-2008, 01:01 AM
  #28  
sold the 8... :(
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^hahaha I love that
Old 07-03-2008, 09:36 AM
  #29  
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I would stay away from the 04. Mine died at 30k. All oil changes done on time, kept it topped off. It was an AT though so.... Others had better luck.

You need to have additional money saved for maintenance as well. Pugs and coils need to be done every 30k or so.

I'll get flamed for this but keep in mind if you are looking at a higher mileage car say 60k or more that the engine likely will need some work done after 100k... maybe not but it's something I would budget for.
Old 07-03-2008, 09:41 AM
  #30  
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It's a controversial statement, but from everything I've read, it is my opinion that you should not buy an automatic, and definitely not buy an '04 model.

Those seem to be the most problematic cars, especially if you live in a hot climate and do a lot of stop and go driving.

Prior to 09, Autos only had one oil cooler. Manuals have two oil coolers.

The rotary is a very hot runner.
Old 07-03-2008, 10:59 AM
  #31  
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Alright thanks guys. So I should stick to an 05 manual?
Looking through the classafieds on the site, everything seems
to be an 04....Wonder why
Old 07-03-2008, 11:08 AM
  #32  
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I think the decision making has become really easy these days.

100K / 8 years engine warranty. No more worries about seals going out. Even if you buy a high-miles RX-8, say, 60K miles, you have 40K of engine coverage.

Avoid a 2004 with an original engine. If you see a 2004 that has its engine replaced already and there are plenty of miles on that new engine (At least 5K, I'd say) and it feels strong, then you can confidently go for that 2004.

Make sure the last engine replacement occurred after August 2006, when the emissions recall was performed and the oil metering was fixed.

EDIT: I know three people who bought used 2004s, two have had engines replaced, and they are both running strong with no problems, and one has the original engine, also running strong.

Stick to a manual fo sho.

Last edited by Astral; 07-03-2008 at 12:17 PM.
Old 07-03-2008, 11:19 AM
  #33  
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I have an 04 AT and nearing 30K miles, and havent' had a problem yet. Knock on wood.
Old 07-03-2008, 11:34 AM
  #34  
on his 3rd rx8
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my old 8 had 80k miles on it, it was an 04 and no problems with it....i drove the sh*t outta it, and it actually felt fast than my new 8......old 8 totalled..
Old 07-03-2008, 11:55 AM
  #35  
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First, only ask people who have experience with the car. Hot air is free for a reason. Would you go to a mechanic to ask about your heart condition? People tell me "about" my car and never had a single experience with the RX-8, or really knew anyone with a rotary.

Second, this is a car for an car enthusiast, if you don't work on the car or take pride in maintaining this jewel of engineering, don't do it. This car has a unfortunate bad rap that has no basis in reality. There are many many cars out there that are far far worst than the RX-8 when it comes to reliability, but you don't hear about them from everyone. For instance, EVERY single Nissan V-6 has an inherent design flaw causing the car to stall and fry the CPU between 70-90K miles, an expensive proposition. You never heard about that, now did you?

Third, for most people, different=bad and different=RX-8.

Originally Posted by motorvated
I like the look of the car, I like driving them..the interior is great. ITs just a well priced, sporty car. BUT Everybody I have talked out (outside of this site) has told me that they are unreliable, they are expensive to repair and the seals go on the rotary engines and they have to be rebuilt. Whats the story here? Ive been doing nothing but research on this car for a week or so now...But im started to question, is this a good daily driver for me? Ive even heard of people having horrible transmission problems.

I'll deffinatley keep up on ALL maintenance, and take great care of the car. I do like to really drive my cars though. I cruise around town, but everyonce in a while I like to red line it and have a little fun. Can this car handle that, and handle what I want to throw at it? You can see why im confused. Being 19, its hard to pick a car and lay down anywhere from 12-18K in cash for something. Please steer me in the right direction. Thank you very much.
Old 07-03-2008, 12:08 PM
  #36  
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ok dude let me tell you.. i wanted this car when i was 15.. i turned 16 and i went test driving.. this was my dream car!

my mother passed away that summer and i gave away my10K i had saved up for funeral expenses..

Next summer i was 17 years old and i have saved up some money..enough for a down payment..

it was betweeen
-EVO 8 WHITE
-MAZDA RX8'
-350z
-s2k
-acura RSX

I went to mitsubishi first because the evo is a bad *** car! could test drive.. couldnt sit in it.. they treated it as if it where a lambo gallardo.

I went to mazda and test drove... the same car i have the wwp..
ALL OF my friends said dont buy it! its slow and has no TQ
engine will go pooof at 30K miles like the rx7's
maintenance will be more expensive
NO ROOM! but these are the same people that said get the 350z hahahaha figures huh?

almost swayed away but i was like man Why do i need other people to make my decision.. So i grew a pair and didnt look back since..

I LOVE MY CAR maintenance is a little higher but thats just cuz of the spark plugs
Old 07-03-2008, 12:12 PM
  #37  
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Oh and BTW as far as driving it.. I peeled out right out of the dealership!!!!!!!

THAST WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT!

46K miles later still going strong! i have a MT
Old 07-03-2008, 12:13 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by motorvated
... Im not picky on color at all...
Good choice. The RX-8 looks good in every color they've offered.

You're 19, you need to watch your money, and you've decided you want a sports car. Excellent - you're correctly thinking like a 19 year old, not like an 80 year old in a retirement village.

There's a certain amount of risk in your decision. Added risk of an RX-8 vs something else is down in the mud. IMHO, the only negative day-to-day item with the 8 is remembering to not turn it off cold. Tales about seals blowing are fully countered by the 60K drivetrain and 100K internal engine parts warrantees.

Find a good one, and have fun with it!

Ken
Old 07-03-2008, 12:17 PM
  #39  
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04 RX8 MT... ORIGINAL MOTOR!!! and im at 30k. pulls strong, although time to replace the coils is quickly approaching
Old 07-03-2008, 12:41 PM
  #40  
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Since you're 19, you also have to think about insurance. I'm 18 and I pay around $1800 a year.
Old 07-03-2008, 12:54 PM
  #41  
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My thought is he asked piston heads and they told him what they hear from clueless people.
Old 07-03-2008, 12:56 PM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by motorvated
I like the look of the car, I like driving them..the interior is great. ITs just a well priced, sporty car. BUT Everybody I have talked out (outside of this site) has told me that they are unreliable, they are expensive to repair and the seals go on the rotary engines and they have to be rebuilt. Whats the story here? Ive been doing nothing but research on this car for a week or so now...But im started to question, is this a good daily driver for me? Ive even heard of people having horrible transmission problems.

I'll deffinatley keep up on ALL maintenance, and take great care of the car. I do like to really drive my cars though. I cruise around town, but everyonce in a while I like to red line it and have a little fun. Can this car handle that, and handle what I want to throw at it? You can see why im confused. Being 19, its hard to pick a car and lay down anywhere from 12-18K in cash for something. Please steer me in the right direction. Thank you very much.
You need to make some new friends that actually know about cars.

Ask them what do they know about Rotary engine and "why" is it unreliable ?

Im 99.999999% sure that the final answer would be "I-I-I dont know, but I heard my friend said ... blah blah blah"

In the end, Yep, they dont know **** about Rotary engines nor Cars in general. All they know is "oh shitz 350z is da h0t shitz y0". Im sure I can smoke their *** even when they have their 350z.

Many times on the road ppl wanted to race me, but at the end when Im approaching the corner at 75mph without slowing down, they backed out right away. Of course I just went pass it without any effort. This is how good this car is.

If your friends still talking ****, tell them to go down to a real race track b4 they talk.

One more thing, u're 19, so does "chick factor" an important thing to you? Im sure u can get more chicks than your friend's 350z/Civic.

Money might be an issue for you, since owning a car is a "long term thing" and u will only lose money, its the same for ever car.

Your friends can only give you "opinion", but opinion is opinion, listen to them or not, its all up to you. Just remember, YOU are buying a car, not your friends.

Last edited by nycgps; 07-03-2008 at 01:01 PM.
Old 07-03-2008, 02:08 PM
  #43  
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Originally Posted by police34
... piston heads ...
Most important thing about owning a rotary:

When looking at lesser cars, you have to learn to get a repulsed look on your face, and say "Bleah! That thing has pistons!"

Pretty easy to learn, as it turns out.

Ken
Old 07-03-2008, 04:28 PM
  #44  
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The opinion I offered about the 04 auto being the most susceptible to failure doesn't mean they all are.

I have no idea what % of any model year cars have had compression issues, because neither Mazda or anyone else has released a statistical sample.

I just formed that opinion based on what has been written here, because it's all I have to go on.

It wouldn't surprise me if 4% of '04 owners have had a compression problem, or if 8% have. There's no way to know the actual %. It's not as if every 04 or a majority of them have had issues.
Old 07-03-2008, 05:54 PM
  #45  
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Dear motorvated,

We are all going to jump off a cliff later, care to join us?

Sincerely,
Everybody you have talked to outside of this site.
Old 07-03-2008, 06:13 PM
  #46  
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have you checked out the dealer

the 8 is worth having and loving in spite of its imperfections. but the dealer can make a big difference. in Oklahoma City i can go to one of two dealers. they are an hour away from each other on the interstate. i have not found a mech who can work on the 8 that is not a dealer. the dealer i have close is very difficult to deal with and the service people know little about the 8. they really drag their feet in doing service work. and they will try to get out of it and say it was your fault for mistreating the car. after the warranty is out where do i take it but to them and they are bandits
Old 07-03-2008, 06:51 PM
  #47  
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hmm.. your "friends" tell you not to get it. A bunch of strangers on a board devoted to the RX8 tell you to get it.

what to do, what to do.


Wait, I know! Grow a brain and set of ***** and make up your own mind. Asking complete strangers if you should buy a car is about as usefull as a second anus. 100 people might recommend 100 different cars.. FFS some people like the crossfire!
Old 07-03-2008, 07:27 PM
  #48  
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there's a fine line b/t excuses and reasons. Scion tC for you.
Old 07-03-2008, 07:37 PM
  #49  
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at least this guy is doing some research and finding out the truth unlike this assclown here......

https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-discussion-3/arrgh-upset-just-notified-my-04-rx8-needs-new-motor-%4022kmiles-149914/
Old 07-04-2008, 12:03 AM
  #50  
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Originally Posted by Slick8
For instance, EVERY single Nissan V-6 has an inherent design flaw causing the car to stall and fry the CPU between 70-90K miles, an expensive proposition. You never heard about that, now did you?
Are you serious?

Tell me more. I have never heard about this. In their VQ series? They use that V6 in everything from SUVs to the Maxima to Infinitis.


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