You can't compare a MazdaSpeed 3 to an RX8 - they are completely different types of vehicles. At it's core, a MS3 is still basically a 3 with a kick-*** engine in it. It is not in the same class as an 8. It caters to completely different drivers.

 

Restraint? Hmmm, I'm buying one to try and stay out of trouble. Restraint? Try driving a 400 HP, 11 second Neon as a daily driver, or my other car the S2000. I figure the 8 will keep me from breaking too many laws since it takes so long to get up to speed(compared to my other 2) I know the S2000 isn't much if any quicker than the 8, but it sure feels like it is. I drift U-turns and 90 degree turns every time I drive the S2K(Probably why tires only last 5-6,000 miles).

 

Actually I found the S2000 to feel slower then the 8 - having to rev a piston engine so high to make power...

Maybe you haven't gotten the hang of driving the rotary yet

 

No good way to say this so I'll just be as blunt and serious about it as possible...

WOW...your seriously going to be disappointed then...you should get at least a lude or something waaaay better cause its definitely a better fit for you. And after your done modding it, it will probably handle better too...

Carry on...

 

I've owned a 13B FB, a Turbo II FC, and 13B RE FD, so yeah, I know exactly how a rotary drives. The reason (at least in my mind) that the S2000 "Feels" faster is that it has a much different power delivery. When the S comes up on it's cam(VTEC) it is a noticable jolt. The RX-8 is so smooth and quiet and the powerband is so flat that it makes it feel a bit slower. I know it isn't, it's just perception. The Neon is going away. I'm selling it to fund other projects. As fast as it is, it just isn't me anymore. Everytime I get in it, I just feel 10 years too old to drive it. It's loud, rides like crap, handles like crap and has no creature comforts aside from AC. I wanted to outrun Vettes and Vipers with a FWD 4 Cylinder, so mission accomplised, time to move on. The RX-8 is actually the replacement for the Neon.

No need to dog the Neon, it's a lame duck and has already lost it's place in the garage.

 

The reason I commented on getting used to driving the rotary is because the RX-8 makes more usable power then the S2000. The RX-8 should be the one feeling faster - which brings me back to driving style

When you say that you are buying an RX8 so you can slow down, it sounds like you like the straight up point and shoot speed. Keep in mind that you are going to be hitting those corners a lot faster in your 8 then you could in your neon...

 

Yeah, I see your point. The improved handling performance is actually my main attraction to the RX-8. I realize that I will be able to carry ALOT more speed through the corners. But keep in mind, I own an S2000 and an RX-7 Convertible Turbo II Swap. The neon is a bullet, but my roots have always been in corner carving. I've run multiple club track days at VIR and Summit Point. I've been to Skip Barber. I try to get to the AutoX as much as possible. The bottom line is that I accomplished my goal with the Neon, only to realize that drag racing is kinda boring. It's pretty easy to go fast in a straight line. I want knife edge reflexs on my daily commute. That's why the RX-8 is my horizon.

 

Yep - you sound like an RX8 driver to me. I am sure you can understand the misunderstanding.

 

Thanks, I look forward to owning one. Anyone know anyone that wants a monster neon?

 

Actually I'll buy it off u if its less than 1,500 dollars. Sounds like a fun toy.

 

Yea this car itches for trouble. I get in my truck and get scared because Im not used to the body roll after driving the rx for a few days lol I had to get a custom plate to express the feeling I get when I drive the rx

 

yeah, after driving my 8 for about a month. getting back into my old lebaron (which i now thankfully sold) was pretty scary. i kept to the 2 right lanes on the highway and stayed below 70mph. i shudder to think about the fact i nearly hit 120mph in that car and would regularly drive 85-90mph. that was just plain reckless and stupid. any false move and its all over. i guess i just never knew what handling and staying planted meant.

 

Hey, I drive an Explorer all week and if I'm lucky (read: not busy as hell) I get to take my 8 out on weekends. The Ford handles like a bowl of oatmeal- after days and days of that, just a Sunday joy-ride in the 8 is like a glimpse of heaven! The restraint is not jumping in the thing at midnight on a weeknight instead of going to bed.

God bless Mazda and Felix Wankel. I should build a little shrine in the backyard, with photos and votive candles, luminaria, flowers, Virgin of Guadelupe, the works...

 

They still have a virgin in Guadelupe? I bet she's ugly. Can't find any virgins around here. Not even ugly ones.

 

This is why you should never never loan an 8 to a relative!

Does your sister know how you are driving her precious machine into the ground???

I bet not!


So I assume you have enough money to replace it when you mess it up for her????

 

Are you going to the VaDriven BBQ? I'll let you get a feel for a RX8 if you let me drive the SRT4.

 

Holy old thread, Batman!

 

Of all the nonsense posted by RX-8 owners on this site to try to feel superior to the S2000, this may be the funniest! My 2004 S2000, entirely stock, has a dyno curve that, for both torque and rwhp, is above the curve of my 2004 RX-8, throughout the range. And the S2000 weighs 200 pounds less. This is especially funny, since on that day, about 7 RX-8s dyno'd, and my S2000, and all but one of the RX-8s dyno'd at almost exactly 185rwhp, while my entirely stock S2000 dyno'd at 210rwhp, with more torque, much earlier and throughout the range.

The RX-8 is far superior to the S2000 in many ways, all having to do with utility. It's also a fine performance car. But to say that the RX-8 has more "usable power" (whatever that is) than the S2000?

 

It's also $16 k more than my '8.....

S

 

That must be in Monopoly money. You can get an S2000, new off the lot, for little more than $30,000 if you do a little work. I doubt you can get even a stripped down RX-8, new off the lot, for $14,000.

And, either way, I was merely taking issue with an absurd statement, asserting that the RX-8 has more "usable power" (whatever that is) than the S2000, which statement was made irrespective of price.

 

Good to hear your cleaning the carbon out of your sisters car.

What is a brother for?

 

You should be able to do a hell of a lot better than $30K; more like $28.5 would be good these days. And, if you wait for the '08s, leftover new '07s should be right at $27K late this year.

 

8500? You still have more to go.

 

i meant i take it past 8500 very frequently, all the way to redline periodically, past redline a couple times. Actually it has been nearly a month since I drove her 8, I MISS IT!!!!


The S2000 is a fine car I am sure. Proven Honda finish, and a bullet proof engine. I have never driven one, but I have driven plently of other hondas ( I own a Pilot). Other than the very best engines on the market, Honda is known for a surprising lack of soul in their cars. Their "rubbermaid" factor is surpassed only by Toyota. I am sure the S2000 is better than most, but it's still a Honda. No thanks.

 

My GF used to think I was the best manual car driver in town ( I drove an Accord stick), now she doesn't even wanna get into my car... too aggressive, so she said...