dancol

Hi everyone I am thinking of buying an Rx8 in the next 2 weeks and am curious to know what I need to know before buyinig one. I have just been skimming the forum here and am noticing lots of issues with serial numbers and other things and am wondering does that still pertain? I have test driven one and based on that I am really excited but I dont want to make a mistake either. Anyways I apologize if this has already been addressed/asked a million times before, but id like to get the "experts" take.

Thanks for your patience.

dancol

Black 6speed - GT chapparal, chromed wheels (not seeing anyone else talking about them). Thinking about navigation system.

Not sure what price i can expect to get on this.

Also just moving from Texas to New Jersey and am wondering if yall have an opinion on winter performace seeings how it is a rwd.
------Family that are out here are insisting that i look at 4wd and Fwd vehicles

WHealy

You will get poor gas milage.

You will use oil.

Make sure you understand the flooding issue. (can't turn engine off if it's not warmed up)

Driving one makes all these issues small.

Additinatlly - Snow tires make the "8" pratical in the winter with DCS and traction control. Lots of posts on this subject. Don't try to drive in the snow with the stock tires.

StewC625

Hi:

All of the above plus:

1) It's a pure-full-on sports car, which means, among other things, a very stiff ride (although far better than many sports cars), a symphony of mechanical sounds from tranny whine to tire noise (again, in most cases far better than most sports cars)

2) Insurance bites. If you're under 25, be prepared for big $$. I'm married, have three kids and am 42 and it still stung like a bee-otch.

3) People have no idea what it is, and that's a blast.

---------
Things to pay attention to:

- Check out the build date, found on the tire information sticker on the front frame of the left-side "freestyle door" (what would be the driver's door frame on an ordinary car) - you want something later than Feb 2004 (although not a panic if not).

- Ask your dealership of their experience level with Rotary engines. I've found that Mazda seems to be a brand that a lot of dealers have "picked up" in the last several years, and they don't seem to know **** about the Rotary. If you can, get a dealer that's been a Mazda dealer for a long time.

dancol

I have test driven the 8 2x and love it. I guess now i am more concerned about the cold weather aspect. I actually checked my insurance and it was a 4 door coupe and the insurance was no more than what i normally paid.

I am comming from a 4x4 Jeep Wrangler. So maybe my insurance was just high anyways. Not to mention terrible! gas mileage and a stiff bumpy...damn my back hurts ride.

rotten42

I found that the insurance rate for the RX8 was only dollars more than a loaded Mazda 6.

another think you will notice is that when you have free time you will end up justing sitting in your car for no reason other than its YOUR cool car.

Old Rotor

Buy thru Costco or Sams clubs or atleast know how cheep you can get it at a discount place before you go to the dealer near you. You can save 1-2k no problem. Black ones go the cheepest in my area! You are lucky the 8 is such a Great Value!

ezrider55

Go to consumer reports dot com and pay them the 40 bucks to find out the dealers cost with the options you want. I was s plan ( employee price through my employer) and CR's price was dollar for dollar the same as s plan. :D If the car does not have Dunlops have the dealer put them on ( if he wants to sell you a car he will ).Good Luck.

StewC625

My insurance went up $386 per six months over my Acura TL.

SpinninAgain!

If you've never driven in the snow (you're from Texas, right?) then be careful. Go drive around in an empty parking lot when it first snows, just to learn how differently the car behaves in a safe environment. Under no circumstances should you drive on the OEM tires if there's a snowflake (or even freezing rain) in sight. Don't let anyone tell you all-season tires are adequate for NJ winters either. On this car four dedicated snow tires are a must. That said, lots of Canadians and other folks with real winters drive their 8's all year round. Once you've got some experience, driving in the snow can actually be a hoot.

Check the Recalls/TSB's thread that's stickied at the top of the Tech Forum. Each TSB tells you which VIN #s/build dates it's for. Print out the ones applicable to the car you're interested in, show them to the dealer and insist they do them before you'll accept the car.

Don't pay more than a few hundred over invoice at most.

Check out the DIY threads on the Tech Forum. Many of them are fun and one or two are essential to protect your new baby.

One more thing... enjoy!!! This car is like nothing I've ever owned or driven.

zoomed

Several months and 20k miles later, I must say that the RX8 wears well, like the way some shoes just break in well and you wear them until they they fall apart.

Ride, center of gravity, controls, powerband come together to make it a great all around car. I suspect Miatas are like this.

Charles Cope

If you haven't waded through "The Little Things"

https://www.rx8club.com/violations-53/little-things-9437/

you should! It points out many subtle details about why most of us are crazy about this car. Notice the posts started in July 2003, a couple weeks after the first 8 was delivered.

Flooding - I've owned a 7 since '96 - don't start/stop a rotary engine without letting it warm up 5 minutes. It's never happened on my 8 cuz I just don't do that.

Insurance, full coverage, is $425 for six months (I'm an old guy).

The bad things? Mileage average from 10,040 miles of gas receipts is 17.23.