Aside from the oft mentioned comparisons, there are a number of other cars that should be compared with it, other 4 door, 4 seaters that offer good performance.

Take for instance the Audi A4, the Jaguar X-Type to name two.

Both of these cars offer manual trannys as well, but also have 4wd as an added bonus?? Nontheless, as far as performance goes, the Mazda will run circles around them in every category. Both of these cars cost substantially more than the RX tho.

I dont know, am I just crazy to be so crazy about this crazy car?

Gimmie my RX-8 now.

 

Crazy? No. Enthusiastic? YES! But we like that around here.

Some people might cross shop those cars, but not many. Like you mentioned, they are a lot more money. Especially in Canada. Jaguar and Audi puts a significant premium on their cars compared to other imports. For example, here are the "price multipliers" (difference between US and Canadian prices) for their competitors:

Audi A4 3.0: 1.39
Jag X-Type 3.0: 1.39
Mercedes C320 Sport: 1.49 (!)

Compare that to these competitors:

Lexus IS300: 1.28
Lincoln LS V6: 1.21
Acura 3.2 TL Type S: 1.21

That's a lot of scratch! Finally, Mazda's average multiplier is 1.21. (I did a more thorough analysis here: http://www.rx8forum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=458)

Price is only one thing. The Jag and the A4 are much bigger than the RX-8, so if people are looking for that kind of space, they aren't likely to also cross shop the RX-8. The Jag/A4 are also much more about creature comfort, not just options but ride comfort. The latest A4, even with the sport package, is soft. The Jag is also much less stiffly sprung than the 330i Sport and Lexus IS300 Sport.

Lexus IS300 and BMW 325i/330i may be cross-shopped. WRX too, especially in Northern climates where the RX-8 needs to be someone's daily driver; then the WRX's 4WD system is very tempting.