helloOo guys...
me just moved to Seattle since late Dec. of 04...
sad to say my baby 8 didn't come up with me...
but going back home next week... and got few options...
either i drive it back up... or Ship it...

my 8 has about 8,500 miles and has always been babied...
even when i'm away.. my parents start the car and let it run every other day...
but i'll still get it a total check up when i go back...

my question is... should i drive the 8 from Dallas, TX to Seattle, WA???
is it realible for such a long distance?? about 2,300 miles...
whats the longest that anyone of u have gone?

shipping is just a bit tooo expensive for me...
but if in the end its better for the 8... i'll still do it...
just wanna check wut all u guys think...
any suggestions would greatly help!!!
thankx guys!!!

 

Drive it and enjoy the ride. Make sure to check the oil every other fill up and you should be fine. The most mine has been at one time is 1000 miles round trip. I would not have wanted to drive any other car we own. I just love my 8.

Keep us posted on your decision!

 

the car doesn't need to be babied nor started every other day. just enjoy the drive. it's a nice time of the year anyway.

 

Don't be a b*tch. Just drive it. It'll be fun :D

 

Definitely just drive it. This isn't a 200k Ferrari. In your case, it's a no brainer to drive the car to your new location. Why go hrough all the hassle of shipping, with the worry that it arrives safely. Enjoy your drive.

 

thankx guys~~

i guess i'lll just drive it...
since it'll be lotta fun and saves $$$$

are there anythings that i need to watch out for rotary goes long distance??
i know that oil will be an issue... so i'm gonna go ahead and bring some with me...
any other things?

 

Watch out for rubber-neckers, ricers, and cops :D It's a rotary thing.

 

Drive it! I drive long distances all the time!! Not quite as far as this trip.. but I don't see any problems!

 

consider buying a bra for the car. you'd be surprised how much debris flies into the car on a long trip like that. don't let the open road hurt your baby's paint!

 

Let's break this down financially:

2300 miles/21 mpg = 109.52 gallons

109.52 * $2.60
= $284.75
+ $300.00 for 3 days food/lodging/oil change/ misc.
= $584.75 total (+non-monetary cost of spending 3 days driving)

or

At least $1200 for transporting it

Other than putting miles on it, I wouldn't see the problem with driving it. But this should be a one time thing and your 8 has had a 3 month vacation. Drive, it but definately get a bug screen/bra. Those bugs are a pain in the ***. Let us know what happens.

 

thankx guys for all da help and info!!

i'll let u guys know~~

 

OMG, taking this thing on a trip is what i am sooooo looking forward to!! (except gas mileage, blah blah blah).

I will just eat more ramen noodles and save my cash fo' gas. or do what my dad does and just keep gas on its own separate credit card :D

 

You might wanna give some thought to that, to protect your paint. A friend of mine bought a car in Cali and drove it back cross country to NJ, that thing was dirty as hell when he got back here. More bug guts than you've ever seen on a car.

The car itself will be fine, it's practically new. Just watch your oil and make sure you don't get in one of those 150 miles before the next gas station deals

 

Drive it!! It's just a car, damn it - what could possibly go wrong by driving it? You're actually doing far more harm by having your parents start it every other day and letting it idle for a while.

The distance is not a factor at all. What you will want to do is avoid any mountain passes or higher elevations where you might encounter snow. You've likely still got the stock SUMMER tires on it, and if you encounter snow or slush, the car will become undriveable. This is because the SUMMER tires have zero grip in those conditions. Many of us drive all winter in those conditions because we've installed WINTER tires, and the car does very well, but the stock SUMMER tires in any sort of slippery conditions are treacherous. If you do encounter snow at any point on your trip, turn around and get out of it no matter if you have to backtrack. Stay overnight somewhere or wait for the storm to pass and the roads to clear (completely clear, no ice or snow at all), just do not try to drive it at all if the conditions get slippery.

Regards,
Gordon

 

ramen noodles.... mmmmmm... i can live off of that :p

 

Drive.

As a sidebar, I would guess that starting the car every other day, and not going anywhere is worse than just letting it sit. Maybe take for a drive to warm up every 7-10 days, but that's all I would do if mine were sitting.

 

I drove mine to Fla. and back and it was a great trip. Check the oil, keep the speed down ( mine wanted to do 88 mph ) and watch out for bad weather like Gordon said. Enjoy your trip.

 

Interestates suck for cars. I just got back from Detroit today. encounterd a 3in dia. 4 foot branch flying back at me, salt being machined guned at my front, and a semi's tire shedding all over the road right in front of me. All in 500 mile round trip. Hell not I didn't take the 8, took the compny POS toyata xb box.

 

Drive. It'll probably be good for the engine...blow all the crud out that starting and letting it idle has built up. I'd consider having the oil changed before you left...might as well start on a fresh change and have all the other "pre-trip" things done too.
Personally, I like to have a fresh coat of good wax (not the drive through car wash stuff!) on the car before I leave and throw a gallon of winter grade windshield washer in the back with the spare oil (had a bad experience one winter on the Penn Turnpike...couldn't see and the windshield washer fluid (non winter) had frozen solid).
I don't like the bra for bug protection...If it gets a little loose, it can start flapping and abraid the paint in no time at all. Thats why I use the fresh wax and wash it at my destination (drive through usually). Wax doesn't help much with rocks hitting the paint though

 

what's wrong with you? 2300 miles.. that's nothing. I drove 1800 miles over a weekend once (in the RX-8) and it never occured to me that there could be a reliability problem.

I'd say any model car less than 15 years old which has been maitained properly will drive 2000 miles. It's nothing special or challenging at all.

A few months ago I pushed it a bit.

I bought a 1973 Mercedes Benz in Southern California and drove it 500 miles back.
Problem was it had been sitting several years unregistered and not been driven.
I checked oil, gas and belts after 50, 100 and 200 miles and it was fine.
No problem. That 30+ year old tank with 65 hp brought me home safely.

And you worry about the RX-8 going 2300 miles? shaking my head

 

What Gordon said!!

Drive it :D

Top the oil off ... put a quart of oil in a zip lock bag in the trunk ... check it along the way.

You can experiment with various drving styles ....

Don't push too hard ... ie. if you get tired stop and rest ... no sense putting yourself or you 8 in harms way.

Enjoy the Drive!

Reno

 

so... i guess its not good to drive the 8 at high speed for a long period of time?

 

No, that's incorrect. High speed for long periods of time is not an issue with the 8

Can't find the old thread where several 8s were run for 24+ hrs at max speed despite rain .... I believe they averaged 125-134mph. If I find it I'll add it later.

 

Don't do it for more than 3 hours straight. You'd be out of gas and then you'd have to walk to a gas station :D

 

Why would you guess that? The RX-8, and the Renesis engine, are NOT fragile and do NOT need to be babied. Keep oil in it, and you could run it flat out all day. If fact, Mazda did exactly that - please read this story from October last year, where Mazda took two stock RX-8s to Italy to run for 24 hours straight flat out, and set 40 international speed records.

Drive it as hard and as long as you like - it can take it with no ill effects, and actually that would be far better treatment than idling it every other day as your parents are doing now. THAT is hard on an engine!

Regards,
Gordon