Very true point Immi, sorry for the confusion.

To rephrase it to suit your situation and not change the comment, if you want a rotary product in the future, the RX-8 needs to sell very well. If it does not, the rotary will die. Hell, Mazda was barely able to get this project approved by big brother Ford. So if this car fails to reach enough consumers, Ford will never allow another rotary car again, and the one distinction that Mazda has will fade away, leaving a shell of what Mazda was its beloved rotary.

 

Hi WankelWannabe,

Good point. I was looking for a comparison of another Mazda import to compare with the rx-8 and completely forgot that the AutoAlliance plant in Michigan will be producing most (if not all?) of the Mazda6s for US consumption. It's still hard for me to think of the Mazda6 as a domestic.

Hi Immi,

If the US Mazda6 was to be imported from Japan, the price comparisons would be very meaningful since they would take into account markups, tariffs, import taxes, etc.

Since some of the Mazda6s will be produced in the US, the comparison isn't quite as meaningful but it still does correlate with what Mazda has told us at Sevenstock.

Do you really think that starting prices for the rx-8 of say 25,995 and 27995 are unrealistic?

Brian

 

Buger, keep in mind that the 6 is being produced in a union shop, causing the price of labor to actually be higher than if it were produced in the sun belt where union labor is not a requirement. That's why Honda makes cheap cars that are produced in the states like the Civic and such, becuase their plants are in the sun belt and stay away from the pricey union labor.

The RX-8 I'm not sure about, but if you think about labor costs saved by staying in Japan then add import taxes and such, it should be about even if not a *tad* more expensive from Japan.

So your MSRP prices as quoted are probably pretty right on, specially since at SevenStock these were the prices that were mentioned anyhow.

 

I'd guess 26,000-27,000 base because first mazda is not known for incredibly expensive cars. Second, the mazda RX-8 has to compete with the 350Z, the G35 Coupe, WRX, and the new Lancer Evo VIII. Right now, the RX-8 has lower acceleration than these cars, which will lower the price. But we havent seen the finished product. This is all speculation though .

 

From Dan Mazzella's (rotarynews) interview of Tommy Matano (lead designer for Mazda, "father of the miata") after last year's NAIAS:

"Well, one thing we have to keep in mind is $30,000. I think that is a barrier that we don't want to cross. "

Let's hope this is still accurate.