Looking for a car and i really like the Mazda RX8. My brother has a first Gen RX7 and has been teaching me how to drive it. im just wondering how reliable the RX8 is. I will be looking at a used 05 06.

i know you have to check the oil which isnt a problem i have been doing that on my ford cars the last 5 years.

is there anything else that i should know that could be an issue.

i keep hearing about people needing to replace the engine. how true is that i dont want to buy a car and have to replace the engine after a year. and why are these unreliable but there are rotary engines from the 80's with 200,000+ miles

 

search button is at the top
theres many threads on this

a lot of rotary engine from the 80s are also rebuilds
lots of rebuilds

and the engine can last 100,000 miles easy it just depends what u do to it how u take care of it and yeah

 

you do 100k miles each year? because there are quite a few people with rx-8's that have reached 80-100k miles.

the original 04 engines may have been notorious for troubles, but after that Mazda learned pretty well... so if you treat your engine right, it'll stay gold

 

Where are you located?

 

The flood of noobs. It's like the Old Testament.

 

You should:
1. Buy an 06 or newer
2. Get all Mazda re-flashes, AP, or RB reflash and make sure OMP is injecting enough oil
3. Install RB screens to protect the oil coolers from road debris
4. Buy an AP so you can monitor temps
5. Redline at least once a day
6. Change oil every 3k
7. Consider buying a higher flowing water pump if you track a lot

Should be reliable

 

Why are you confusing the guy? The car is reliable. If you don't count hitting a pothole, I have not had one bit of trouble with my '06. Consumer Reports rated the '06s (based on '05 experience) as average in reliability and recommended it.

Or like 1994, when AOL connected to the outside world and AOLers infested usenet.

Ken

 

I disagree with #1, all 04/05's are flashed the same as the 06's. You'd have a hard time proving my 04 is not as well off as your 06.

 

Go to any forum on any car and search for trouble and you will find it . My car may blow up tomorrow but it has given me 75,000 trouble free miles. Don't let this forum scare you. A lot of the trouble with these cars was from abuse and stupidity.

 

04 and no problems here.

Just don't buy a lowered car or lower it your self.

The roads are bad where you live.

 

Maybe, but all 04s drove around for at least a year getting too little oil injected by the OMP. Even if they're on the current flashes the damage could be done. Lots of the 04s are fine, but lots aren't so why chance it?

 

I have an 07 and am fine 100%...
...

That doesn't help much, LOL.

 

The RX-8 is not a smart reliable choice. But then again really no sports car is.

 

You're being a bit judgemental about what "smart" is. While car shopping before I bought my 8, I considered a Volvo. Came to my senses in time.

My situation is that I'm in my 60s, mortgage paid off, child grown and established in the world, still happily married, and ready for my second childhood. Buying the RX-8 was the smart choice. Buying a Volvo (reliable but dull) would have been the dumbest move of my life.

Ken

 

My 04 here is fine except for the tran rebuild at 18k miles.....

I recommend premix but for a noob like yourself you better not start getting confused about that......

check oil every other fillup(per mazda)
a redline a day keeps the carbon away.
Coils and plugs are not happy in this motor so when you start gettinga flashing CEL Change them.

oh yeah and SEARCH

 

wow,

this is the most trollish first post for a long while.

and if you are for real.. you get your info from where?

110 k miles. 1 02 sensor. 1 motor.. wish i still had it.. i still have a cracked defroster button.. decided to live with it..


beers

 

^how the hell did u crack ur defroster button?

 

^^^ What he said...

 

You rock brother!!!!!

 

 

more 'guessing', yes i completely agree, the pre OMP flashes cars did lead to some causes of damage. But labeling all 05/04's bad is profound, i'd be curious to see how the 06's/07's and older hold up once they hit the age us 04/05's hit. In my eyes how the owner treated it is way to important than the year it was produced. Did he premix? Did it watch the oil level? Did he have alot of stop and go driving? You have way to many factors at hand to point to the pre-flashes as the leading cause.

Come on Razz1, do you think no one here lowered their car?

 

well thanks for the replies.

i live in nebraska.

i have a 94 Lincoln town car rite now. that will be going to my wife so im looking for something sporty to go cruise around in with my brother in his mazda. im also looking for a daily driver to take my son to daycare every day and then go to work.

i must say after reading some of your responses i feel a lot better about getting a rx8

and you will have to forgive me i am a huge noob with cars but i understand maintenance.



thanks.

 

It's definitely a hands on car, like every sports car.
Get a compression test done before buying it, if it's ok and there's no other damage (chassis, transmission, whatever you would check for in a used car) then go for it! Depending on the mileage you might also want to change the ignition coils and wires, they tend to wear out quickly (quickly... 30.000miles and on, depending on the use so not too quickly )
Changing oils, spark plugs will lead to a long engine life.

I think that that's pretty much it if you're not a tuning nut and don't intend to modify your car.

Hope this helps

 

04 with almost 90k on the clock and no problems here love it