just wondering if anyone has gone from a 5th gen prelude ('97-'01) to an rx-8. if so, any regrets?

 

Don't worry, there wont be any comparison...... just get the 8

 

I drove the car before many times, did not own it...

Only regret is the hip pocket (oil and fuel consumption) but it is worthwhile.

A better rear wheel drive - hey I used to own 2 Hondas (Civic Type R then Integra Type R).
A better chassis. More balanced car.
A better brakes.
Softer suspesion (oh yes even with perlude).
Smoother and more reponsive engine.
Better looking and attractive car.

I love Honda --- I loved Honda --- but now I am a rotary man

 

I went from a 98 Prelude to the RX8. I kept the Prelude so I still drive it from time to time. The RX8 is more fun to drive, better handling through curves, etc., but I still like the Prelude too.

 

I had a 97 Prelude and got an RX-8 a couple months ago. Basically, the RX-8 does everything the Prelude does except it does them all a bit better. The one exception being fuel economy. The biggest difference is for certain the rwd. I had a Base so I didn't have ATTS and so I could very easily get bad understeer and inside wheelspin trying to power out of a corner. I had aftermarket springs and shocks in my Prelude, so it was pretty responsive and didn't roll much, but it was still not as well balanced. The RX-8 is also much better riding than my modified Prelude. The RX-8 is not a way faster, acceleration-wise, but it is certainly noticeable. The power delivery is somewhat similar except there isn't the big VTEC kick, but they both are revvy and smooth. So I had no difficulty with the "anemic" low end or whatever in the RX-8. I think it has as much or more low end torque than the Prelude had.

I don't think you'll have many regrets if you don't mind getting 8-10 less mpg than you are used to.

 

the mpg won't really be a deciding factor for me. i'm curious though, i have the automatic prelude but i have absolutely no idea how many mpg i'm getting. is there another way to figure this out besides just doing the math? or better yet, can someone just tell me what my mpg is? thanks for the replies!!

 

I usually got 24-28 mpg with the Prelude, depending on how much city and how much highway. Mine was a 5 speed and I think autos maybe get 1 mpg less.

If you are thinking of a 6 speed RX-8, it will be quite a bit faster than the auto Prelude. The auto Rx-8 should be faster as well, but it suffers from the same lower power that the Prelude auto has so it won't be as pronounced.

 

oh i'm defintely going with the 6 speed. like someone else said, the novelty of the sport shift wears off in a month, if that.

 

the at has 38 less hp too. so stay away from that thing. rx8 seems like a logical replacement for a prelude, given the lack of a current generation of prelude.

everything before the rx8 was just a prelude, by the way