I will soon be getting my 8 in a few weeks. I have been a previous owner of an RSX (RIP) I am aware about issues of the renesis engine's bad gas mileage, weak apex seal, notchy tranny, oil consumption etc i think i can live with it should it may arise. I am here to learn and share my knowledge if there is any, about the car and the engine with regards to aftermarket performance modifications. I have been thinking of going FI but as long as the PCM bugs are there, I think i will hold off to my FI plans. or even backing out from an 8 and get an evo instead.... so confused right now.. :D

 

Don't take it like that, some people make things seem worse than they actually are on here. The oil is not much of a problem and you only have to check every once and a while. As for the trans, I have the 6 Speed and have no problem with it. Its very smooth in fact. Don't know about the apex seals, I thought that was a problem on the RX7's. I think its still too early to say anything about the 8's apex seals. But ask most of the people on here, we haven't had hardly any problems with our RX8's! As for the Evo, Yes it's a fast A$$ car but in my eyes its a now car. Which mean everyone wants one now because its so fast. The RX8 is here now and later, its unique! The EVO does not offer anything but power. If I wanted that I would take a old AWD car and put mad mods in it. Then I could be just like the EVO. When ever I pass one, I'm thinking to myself WHY IS IT SO UGLY!!! All power and nothing else! But the decision is up to you, test drive both and see what you see yourself in after a couple of years. A EVO or an 8.

 

I already test drove the 8 and i was satisfied. I am very used to my close ratio 6speed in my rsx that i think the gears in the 8 are tall and not as slick shifting. I agree that the evo looks ugly and in a few years the evo9.. evo10...evo1000000000000000000 it still will if they keep on basing it from a riced out lancer pos but its faaaast. Also isn't the new rx7 about to come out? any updates from mazda guys?

 

1) Bad gas mileage: It's relative and totally related to how hard and often you press the gas pedal. I consistently get 17 mpg - same as I got with my Acura TL. This car is much quicker than that one. Not an issue for me.

2) Weak apex seal: This hasn't been an issue since the mid 1970's cars. Where's that coming from. It's horse hockey!

3) Notchy-tranny: Notchy compared to a numb, cable-operated transmission in a front wheel drive econobox? Then, yes, notchy. It's a shift lever that pokes DIRECTLY into the transmission. You won't find this on anything but a rear drive car or an all-wheel with a mid-ships mounted transmission. All the subarus use remote-mounted shifters operated by either cables or rods - numb as hell. I think the better word is "highly precise" shifter. I can shift plenty fast with mine and it's very precise - no questions what gear you're in as opposed to most other cars.

4) Oil consumption: It's designed in. It typically uses a quart every 3000 miles. Check the oil occasionally. It's not like it's burning oil out the tailpipe and puffing blue smoke like an old Subaru.

It could be that you're not the right person to own this car. The rest of what you say is all mythology that had to have come from a WRX board.

 

Don't judge. I'm not trying to put down the RX8 or something, I'm just trying to say what people say were their actual experiences. Some people upgrade to a two piece apex seal for better sealing. and Acura RSX board not WRX. I'm just used to my tranny thats all. I respect all imports no matter what make. now on new domestics... its a totally different story. :D Pls read carefully the posts and read between the lines thanks

 

Sorry I was a little grumpy there. Need more coffee

But, if you are used to an RSX's tranny, you will notice the notchy-ness. Actually, if you've ever driven an Acura NSX, the RX-8's transmission feels VERY similar to the Acura NSX's transmission - which is very precise, very short throw. Almost like a toggle switch sticking into the transmission.

I'm a 18-year veteran of the Acura brand. My RX-8 is the first departure from the Acura brand for me since I traded my '85 RX-7 in way back when for an '87 Integra GS.

If you're using the RX-8 for competition, or fit an FI system to it, then I would guess you'd need to beef up the engine internals, but that's common to any engine. You fit a turbo or a blower to an Acura engine, and you also need to beef things up inside unless you like little bitty pieces of precision crafted performance dropping out of the bottom of the car!

But, "weak" apex seal - implying that it will wear out easily is an issue that hasn't existed in YEARS.

Ok, I'll go get my second cuppa joe now.

Good luck with your decision. The RX-8 is SO much more car than the "sum of it's parts" - and that's something you'll only experience with ownership.

Read the thread "the little things" for proof.

 

I wish i could have driven an NSX. Ok blacksheep (LOL). I could get a 1991 NSX for the same price but I think for a daily driver... its easier to live with 2+2small door 4 seater. The Acura RSX stock internals + FI (cybernationmotorsports)= 300 whp (90% reliability) pretty impressive for me. I don't keep my cars stock I modify them and I do 99% of the installations . I am excited to work on my new canvass. Thanks for clarifying some things and Put the cup down!!! Later...

 

I know this is your opinion, but in mine you are wrong. Previously, the best milage I could get was 10-11 mpg. 3 weeks ago, I took the car in to correct an intermittant flashing CEL problem. Plugs were replaced and ECU was flashed. Next tank of gas, the milage went up to 14.4 ( 207 mi./14.3 gal). This was with not allowing the car to accellerate over 4K rpm. My wife was in the car for 90 of those miles and she doesn't tolerate any real accelleration.
I hope the first sentence isn't too strong and I do respect your thoughts. But just because you and others can obtain a reasonable gas milage, dosn't change the fact that there may be a few of us that does have a problem. If you flood your engine and I don't, does that mean there isn't a problem?

 

What part of "it's relative" and "it's not an issue for ME" do you not understand? Let me rephrase that for you.

Not an issue for me. I get 17 mpg like clockwork.

Question 1: How much time do you spend stuck in traffic a day? Driving in heavy traffic KILLS your mpg. Every minute you spend idling, you are getting ZERO mpg. Doesn't take much of that to bring your average way down.

Question 2: Have you tried a controlled mileage test? Here's one you can easily do and enjoy: On a Saturday or Sunday when there's little traffic, tank your car completely up (I see you live in the Chicago area as well) and go drive 100 miles with the car - I did a "mileage loop" that mixed steady-state highway cruising with mixed speed driving by taking I-90 out to Rockford and up north towards Beloit, then taking 2 lanes all the way back (I took a two-lane east near the IL/WIS line - Rt 120 I think - that leads to Harvard, then took Rt 14 back to Buffalo Grove). Do this with no wide-open throttle acceleration, and don't exceed 80 mph on the highway. You should get about 19 mpg with Chicago's ethanol blend gas (which delivers lower mileage than non-ethanol blended gas - lower energy content (BTU's per gallon).

My guess is that your issues probably lie with your travel situation and driving habits than with the car.

My best MPG was obtained on non-Chicago gas, steady-state crusing on the highway at 78 mph on a cool fall day - 25.5 MPG over 240 miles driving from eastern Iowa to here.

My worst MPG tankfull was under 10 for a tank - got stuck in traffic driving to and from the loop one day - took 90 minutes down and nearly 2 1/2 hours back. All that idling killed it.

I won't count autocross and track days ...

By the way I'm not saying you're not driving the car right, but where you drive and the situations you drive in will totally kill your mileage. I have tankful's where I get under 13 because I never got the car out on the expressway at all - just tooling around the Buffalo Grove area taking my kids here and there - short trips also kill mileage. But I average across all my tanks about 17 mpg.

Stew

 

I don't want to hijack this guys thread. But I drove the car to my mothers in Michigan. Its a 250 mi. trip. This was before the recent repair. I got 13 mpg. I haven't tried a highway trip since it was repaired. Next time I go, I expect to get 17 mpg highway. I allways leave here at 5 am on Saturday mornings so traffic through Gary isn't a problem.

 

You are clueless Cas, go drive an Evo and then tell me it doesn't offer anything but power. For a true driving enthusiast it doesn't get much better than the Evo for under 50k. Call it ugly all you want, the steering on the Evo is something that even supercars can look up to.

 

To the original poster, if the 8 doesn't make you happy in stock form and you're thinking of getting FI then I'd just go with the Evo from the get go. Both cars have their share of issues, but once you get into aftermarket FI you're opening up a whole other bag of potential problems.

 

I'll test drive an evo this week.

 

Most of your negatives you expressed are not applicalbe to the Rx8. You must be referring to the early rotory engine of the 70's. As far as I know there is no FI system for this car. There is a tubo available through Greddy performance. If you want to mod this car good luck. It's too new. Not alot of mods available yet. In my opinion the car is perfect just the way it is.

 

That's awful. How fast are you driving? I recently went to Detroit and back in a day and got 20 going out (on Chicago gas), tanked halfway between Battle Creek and Detroit (and put in non-alcoholic gas), and got 24 on the return trip. 78 mph set cruise, and afternoon traffic on the way back.

Sorry, I was a bit of a ***** this AM - didn't mean to attack.

 

Ike:

I agree that an EVO is fast, but there's just no getting around the fact that it is a GOD AWFUL UGLY, winged up econobox. When was the last time ...

... anyone but a ricer commented to the driver of an Evo "Wow, what a beautiful car."

... any TV show, casino, etc., gave away an EVO as a grand prize? The thing has all the sex appeal of a concrete block

... anyone commented on anything but the straight-line speed of it?

... the valet parking or carwash attendants fought over the chance to serve you and your EVO? (Like at the carwash today and at the restaurant last night for me)

Don't get me wrong, it is amazingly fast, as is the WRX - and I test drove both prior to buying my -8, but there's no getting around that they are both based on baseline econoboxes and have all the refinement of the aforementioned concrete block.

Enjoying the RX-8 is about far more than straightline speed. Anyone that buys one of these to drag race (unless you're bracket racing, of course) isn't buying the right car.

The buyer of an RX-8 cares about:

... a level of balance and refinement that is rarely seen in cars worth 2x and more the price.

... a perfectly-matched engine and chassis

... fantastic styling that turns heads everywhere you go

... a completely unique powerplant that delivers a power curve and driving experience to be found nowhere else.

Buy an EVO or WRX if you want to street race. Buy an RX-8 if you want a true sports car.

 

jdm,

First...good luck with what ever you decide.

I researched SO many cars before I got my 8...it's scary really. I even posted my spreadsheet (not perfect)...lol. I worried about what I heard about the 8 but this is what I have seen since I got my 8:

Oil consumption: Not an issue at all...I've added almost nothing since I got it.

Fuel economy: Is based on driver mainly, some problem 8 are out there, but I've gotten so far (19.75, 19.34, 18.98, 18.94mpg) with 90% city, 5% highway, and 5% fun driving

I have 1,099 miles on my 8 and I've enjoyed the heck out of the car.

The EVO is fast as heck but not very impressive in regards to looks. There are other cars out there that are good cars but I think that the RX8 is overall the best sports car for that price. (The new Mustang is really the better bang for the buck, heck the Neon SRT-4 is also...but as an overall sports car...it's the best)

 

thanks rx8wannahave, i really love to drive and i do drive a lot and often drive hard, so the mileage kinda scares me a bit. i don't want to fill up every 3 days or something but i'm 60% leaning towards the 8 but i haven't test driven the evo yet (if the dealer lets me). The decision might boil down to lower insurance rate, lower price OTD, lower cost of ownership. Mustang, Neon... mmm i'll be nice.... not my cup of tea

 

Your true sportscar will get it's *** handed to it on a racetrack by an Evo, not just in a straight line. Complain about the looks, that's fine, the refinement, the luxury, the quality of the plastics, the big wing, whatever... But to imply the Evo is just fast in a straight line making it out to be some drag car and that only ricers like it is assanine.

They're both great cars and the Evo certainly isn't for everyone, but it's a remarkable car none the less.

 

^^agreed:D the evo is a beast on the track....streight line...off road where every. it just wan't my cup of tea so i got an 8. it's still a great car for what it is made for..just liek the rx-8:D

 

I think it's been said here before that some of the early production cars just have terrible gas mileage. Not sure if Mazda ever pinpointed the problem, but that may explain Al's fuel consumption woes.

 

Sorry Ike, the EVO is an over-amped Lancer. If I'm going to spend that kind of coin on a car, I expect it to look good, not look like some freaking refugee from the JC Whitney parts catalog. Yes, it's fast. It's also ugllier than Janet Reno.

Regarding balance and handling? I found it very hard to drive fast - hair trigger throttle on boost, dead off boost, understeers like hell, no ability to throttle steer it. About the only thing I liked about the handling was the steering and the brakes - gobs of brakes and very precise STEERING - good turn in, etc. but isn't good handling is about far more than steering?

So, would I be faster on a race track in an EVO? Probably, after a bunch of laps to get used to the peakiness. It's so unbalanced. But, do you drive every day on a race track? I don't. Last time I checked, I probably drive 200 miles a year on race tracks but 10,000 miles everywhere else. I'm not buying a car for 200 miles a year. The ride is impossibly harsh and nasty, that "quick and precise" steeering becomes "darty and annoying" steering at speed on the expressway, and it gives an entirely new definition to the concept of tramlining in the truck ruts on the highway.

I want a car I can live with. Not one that I can brag about it's stopwatch times. And certainly not one that I'd be embarassed driving such a nasty looking car around while my kidneys ache from the ride jolts.

Drive a Porsche. Or a BMW. Or for that matter an -8. Performance AND refinement can exist in the same car. Just doesn't in an EVO or a WRX. And I don't like unrefined cars. I want performance but I also want a great experience all the time. Not just at the track.

 

HA! That's the funniest sh*t I've heard all day

 

The EVO is raw, its engine is rough, it has severe turbo lag, its power curve is all over the place, and it suffers from a harsh ride. It's heavier and, given that it's based on an econobox platform, will never attain the 8's balance. However, the EVO also provides tremendous performance for the dollar and it will destroy the 8 at *any* track (as well as most other <$50k cars). Like the 8, it has tight steering, excellent handling, and impressive brakes. It's not as nimble nor is it quite as resistant to understeer as the 8, but it doesn't plow through corners as much as most AWD/FWD cars either.

You ought to give the EVO the credit it deserves. It outperforms the 8 in most measurable areas and dismissing it for anything but straight-line speed is a mistake.

 

Read my post. I'm sure it rocks at a race track but I sure as hell ain't spending 30-large on some ugly-*** car that going to beat the **** out me every time I take my kid to soccer practice. As I said, I drive maybe 200 miles a year on race tracks. I drive the other 9800 miles a year on public roads, where I want to relax and enjoy the car, not be beaten silly by it.

You said it yourself - the EVO is raw, it's engine is rough it has severe turbo lag , it's power curve is all over the place and it suffers from a harsh ride.

Does that sound like a car you want to live with?

Contrast to the 8:

- Smooth, solid power curve that's broad from 3000 RPM to 9300 RPM like a turbine
- Surprisingly terrific ride over all but the worst pavement - especially for such a great handler
-- Very capable at the track when you want to run it , and big gains in handling can be had with very minor handling mods (shorter springs, mazda speed sway and strut bars, urethane bushings)
-- Tight but predictable steering that isn't darty or a handful to drive
-- A "Tyra Banks" (hot, sexy, curvy) when the EVO is Janet F'ing Reno

'nuff said.

Hey, I give both the EVO and WRX their props - they are damn fast, ugly ***, unrefined harsh cars.