jaguargod

I've had mine for about 6 weeks, and I have had to take it to service 4 times. No really serious issues, and I love the car, but the necessity of taking it in is wearing on my patience a bit.

Zoomy

Absolutly satisfied. I have a smile-on every time I drive it!

myfuncar

Me also, the dealer said not to worry about it unless it flashes, which it hasn't done. I find that it goes on and stays on when the outside temp is below 35 degrees F. Then when it hits about 50, it goes off.

This car is just the classic high-maintenance beauty queen, and we all love her enough to put up with her. She's just so hot she makes us look good, we get stares, etc., so its all worthwhile. She makes us feel very...manly. (Unless you're a woman driving this car, in which case you can just switch genders on the above, its all the same!

barielle

What is the Mazda Buyback program? I like my car so much I might like to get one more fully equiped. Does anyone know a good dealer to do this with?

Go48

The buyback program only applied to the first shipments of RX-8's that were originally speced at 250HP and due to a last-minute reprogramming of the PCM by Mazda to meet new emissions standards, the HP number dropped to 238. Those who had ordered these cars were given a couple of options, one of which was that Mazda would buy back the car. So, unless you were one of the first to order your RX-8, the buyback doesn't apply.

V_for_velocity

Having bought mine in the depths of winter I've put off voting till now. Spring has sprung, I'm back from a nice long road trip through Montana (1300 miles total) and the engine is broken in. Was it fun? Well, only two cars passed me, so hell yeah! Can't complain about gas mileage either since it ranged from 18.5 to 24.3 mpg (that's U.S. gallons). I did keep the snow tires on though. The Rockies in April -- you just never know. As far as satisfaction goes, it couldn't get much higher.

Revolver

A thorough package but my satisfaction can be summed up as follows:

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...bing...snick...RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR R...bing...snick...RRRRRRRRRRR [repeat until the real world disappears in your rear vision mirror] :D :D :D

barielle

It's an awfully good car. I'ved owned some good cars. I had a '93 RX7-R1 in competition yellow mica. Much faster than the 8 but much more difficult to live with. The 8 requires little special maintenace and I have had 0 problems with it. The R1 had all sorts of small nagging things and Mazda dealers were ill equiped to deal with a such a jump in automotive technology. The average 323 mechanic just could not handle it and that is what Mazda Dealers tried to support it with. Ah, but the 8 has been great, it really is an exceptional car, but it is because of one thing, the rotary engine.

spacekd

I had a long test drive ( 1.5 hours) before making my final decisions on transmission, leather, moon roof, etc. It really helped me finalize what I really wanted, and I am totally satisfied.

carbonRX8

iTrader: (1)

I welcomed my 8 home in may of '04 and now have 12k+ miles on it. I tell everyone that I have never been more satisfied with any purchase...ever.

When fly out of town, I begin missing this car as soon as the pilot hits the throttle for take-off.

I look for reasons to drive...and get upset when the opportunity eludes me.

I almost cried (almost) when my sister called on the way home from vacation and told me that my bike rack (and bikes with pointy gears) fell over, landing on the hood of my safely garaged 8 (AGGHHHH!). I smiled again when I replaced the bust'd hood with a new CF one (not really into rice, but on this car the hood looks good!)

I love the howl of my K&N intake and roar of the RB exhaust. My girlfriend says "It just SOUNDS like you are doing something illegal!" (I most likely was)

This car may not be for you, but it feels like an extention of me.

gil400

Very,very fun to drive fast, excellent balance and drivability, gearbox (not the clutch) is near to perfect and the price is very cool. Just the gas mileage ....disaster!

I drive a 350Z (2004) during two weeks and i find the engine PERFECT, but : the ride is very inconfortable in the long run, interior fit and finish is in the GM class! Very good sport car, but i prefer the RX-8 equilibre.

jorifc

Highly Satisfied. The best vehicle I have ever owned.

2ndGearGurl

IM IN LOVE!!! I am a huge fan of my RX-8. I just moved to a pretty small city from the DC area so the gas mileage isn't much of a problem for me. The ride is to die for and the looks are sweeeet. So basically I have nothing to complain about and I would say I'm Totally Satisfied!

Hotsauce

Yeah, I travel a lot and I have to park my Rx8 at the airport. I park it at the most remote location in the parking deck or next to a new vehicle. During my trips I always thinking about the drive home from the airport in my Rx8. I always find the longest route back home.

lax205

Dam streight we need to see what everyone thinks im steve and My RX-8 from the day i bought it was treated like a baby, The Wiinig blue catches eyes like no other mine especially my paint is like no other " wash every day wax every 2 weeks religiousley and a quality wax job" i love this car all its features the HOT look it has smooth interior great high rpm power and how much the bitches love it. its great to race cars that cant keep up with me through the turns and the mustangs that are scared to hit 140 mph with me( lol maybe my cousin he has an 01 cobra its hot we pimp it). With all this i wouldent vote that i am completley satisfied and whi i voted somewhat, heres our history. The day it was picked up the check engine light went on and the car was real bumpy a quick return to the dealer fixed this problem only temporarily. in the following days teh cars quality of ride deteriorated bably bucking and began to occur. On return to the dealer they found that the cat was bad ( Clog with carbon) ok i lost my car or 5 days problem was fixed. 3 weeks later i wake up only to find that my car wont start after being towed to the dealer they tell me that it needs new plugs battery and starter ok WTF i do everything they say. Ok well after that a 7 day loss of my vehicle my car is back in 8 running condition. I still love it but i do question myself on the reliabily of this rotary engine. Hell yeah we all know its an amazing engine. everyone else dont no what there missing with a rotary its AWESOME, but its the little things that bother me does this care have the sac to go the long run. All this im satisfied there just those questions hard idialing the squeky breaks hard starts IS THIS CAR READY FOR THE LONG RUN

WestCoastFun

I have now had my 8 for a little over three months, and am on it’s first real road trip. My daughter and I have driven through BC, stopped over night in Jasper, on to Edmonton to see Maurice and have him install and tune his Canzoomer (works great). From here we will go through the mountains again to Banff, and from there we will see.
I love this car. It handles amazingly well, passes with all the speed you need, and was not the least bit tiring to drive all day. I am always surprised how easily it drives at 100+ mile per hour speeds.
If all you are looking for is straight line performance than there are better choices out there. If you are after a car that you can really have some fun in the curves with, then the value of this car is unbeatable!

Rotator

First Year - Car - Happy , Dealers - Unhappy .
1st Anniversary - Car Returns to Dealer with nothing more than a MIL on - Broken ever since - 50 days and counting - Unhappy
Happy :p ? When the car works - yes.
Highs :D ? Suspension, Buttery Smooth Engine, Steering, Brakes.
Lows ? Small trunk opening, power to match chassis, dealer support.
Would I buy another? Jury is still out on that one.

Sponge60

Very happy so far, but we've only put 1100 miles on it. Gas mileage seems to have improved slightly with more miles.

Richard Paul

iTrader: (5)

As most of you know I'm in the buisness of making aftermarket parts. I make a better shifter for the 8 and it is well accepted. Next was to be the Supercharger for which I bought the car. So today with 730 mi on my new car it went on the dyno. It makes a paltry 156 hp????????????
I can feel it when I drive it that about 6200 RPM it starts to loose power.
I intend to take it to the dealer tomorrow and can't wait to hear the arguments. I'll be OK and get around it, my question is how about other people who get cars like this and don't dyno it and never know they were cheated.

Like the sweet girl above who loves her car but may never be aware that she has gotten a lot less then she paid for. If there can be this kind of performance delta between cars where do the owners go? Maybe they should insist the dealer deliver the car with a current dyno on that paticular car, not an advertised car.

I'll be letting you know, you might have to follow it on my axial flow supercharger thread though. Or I might start a new thread someplace.

griffj10

I love the car. I just hope It doesn't get me locked up.

rled

What can I say that hasn't already been said about a great car! I have had zero bad experiences with this car. 2004 touring sunlight silver 6 speed. I have 11,000 mi. on it now and the car runs better with every mile. I drive 50 mileas a day to work and am averaging 21 mpg. When it was new it got 4 or 5 mpg less. I seem to be late all the time because every time I stop somewhere ,people want to know about the car.!! no worries....

vred_SE3P

After 3 weeks I am all smiles. This RX-8 has exceeded my expectations for a sports car. It is not slow. The RX-8 feels balenced. Means it was never intended to be perfect like my G35. The RX-8 is a pleasing sports car to own and a blast to drive.

Dragonrider

I am having more fun with this car that any other car I have ever owned. :D

NMShinka

Well, I've had mine 4 weeks now. Put 400 miles on it the first week and only 250 since. It's an exhilarating car. I'm hopeful the gas mileage will improve; haven't really taken it out on a long road trip yet. Only other item I wish it had is seat position memory; since the wife will also be using it. She has a new Mustang GT Convertible, but definitely prefers the Shinka.

Chasvhill

I'm now at 9400 miles on my '04. I'm still thrilled with it. I must be one of the lucky ones - no flooding, no CELs, no fried displays - everything just fine. (Of course, now that I've written this down I've probably hexed myself). My around town gas mileage has improved from about 16 to about 18 mpg. I attribute this partly to engine getting broken in and partly because I've finally quit driving it like a go-kart.