Elara

Haha, close....we have almost 60 stores, each with between 400- 600 cars on the lot at any given time. It's actually closer to 24,000, I believe.

GotBass

Well Ford sells something like 300,000 mustangs a year. Does that make it 3x better than the 8?

Shoafb

I wouldn't say brainless. They might not want to deal with some of the special things the rx-8 brings to the table like frequent oil checks, bad MPG, no spare tire (standard) can't shut it down till it gets warmed up ( those last 2 alone will freak out most ) Lack of power, when compared to the new GT. Also the new gt pulls .89 on the skidpad so the handling is much improved over the old format. Now looks on the other hand, I like the rx-8 but everyone is entitled to their own opinion.

salituro64

I believe more people opt for the Infinit G35 loaded with all the performance extras than the 350Z.

--Z--

.


I am going to have to disagree with you there.

More Rx8's have been returned by their owners due to hp numbers being overrated and mechanical problems.

Don't get me wrong, the Z's have been coming back for their own problems too, but most of these were due to "user abuse."

dragula53

I am going to have to disagree with you here.

I know that some rx-8s were returned due to the overstated horsepower.

But I have only seen a couple people that actually had mechanical problems.

I say a half dozen (a dozen?) people or so that have flooded their car that I can recall isn't that serious. I've been watching for many months, because I didn't want to buy a lemon when I finally took the plunge.

I'm sure that you could go find a half dozen seized engines on 350zforum.com.

the most common gripe is about mileage. You don't see that at 350zforum, even though the 350z probably gets identical mileage to the rx-8.

RX-Hachi

This is an interesting debate on how many Z’s vs. 8's have been sold by their original owners. So far people are stating what they think, but no real facts, so I've done a little research.

I decided to look at the first year model introduction statistics for North America:

‘03 350Z (which includes part of calendar year ‘02) - 49,981 units
*source: http://www.nissannews.com/corporate/...15113520.shtml

‘04 RX-8 (which includes part of calendar year ‘03) - 36,036 units
*source: http://www.theautochannel.com/F/news...01/291598.html

So for NA as a whole, it seems that the Z has outsold the 8 by about 10:7 for their respective introductory model year.

Now how about owners who have sold their cars? That’s a more difficult situation to obtain good data points. But I looked at Autotrader as one data point and here’s what I found:

Used ‘03 350Z (including ‘02 calendar cars) - 1487 units
Used ‘04 RX-8 (including ‘03 calendar cars) - 739 units

Given that the 350Z did not outsell the RX-8 by 2 to 1, but the number of original owners who have sold their 1st year model cars is about 2 to 1, I’d say this indicates that more RX-8 owners are keeping their cars.

On the other hand, these original Z owners have had their cars for a longer time, so we’ll need to see what the numbers look like in a year from now to get a more accurate picture. Call it a wash if you will.

Elara

numbers don't really lie. On average, the 8's stay on our lots about 4-5 days. the Zs can be there anywhere from 7-14 days. I can probably dig up numbers on that if you want.


The Z has had JUST as many issues as the 8- or did you conveniently forget about that weird tire problem so many had? There was no major recall, but there have been more than a few lawsuits and invocations of the lemon law on it. Most people kept their 8s after the hp thing- after all, it didn't change the performance, unlike the uneven and premature tire wear due to the design flaw on the Z.

And the fact remains, we have quite a few more Zs on our lots than 8s- that's pretty telling. Currently, we have 11 8s TOTAL in the company, and 34 Zs. Basically, this indicates it's harder for us to get them, AND they're selling faster. That in itself ought to tell you something.

--Z--

I guess it depends on where you live. The Mazda dealership here has a dozen RX8's on the lot (same ones that were there 6 months ago) and the sales manager even told me himself that they are very hard to sell, because ppl have heard horror stories about the engines screwing up, (something to do with the rings(?) ...and the fact that they had very little power.

So...yes, it's true there are alot more Z's out on the road than 8's but....
there's probably a reason for that.

Oh, and as for the tire cupping problem, yes, that did suck.
But in the end...it's alot easier to repair/replace a tire than an engine.
The dealership replaced all the feathered tires for free, so it didn't cost anything.

therm8

Well the few failed engines the 8 has had were also replaced under warranty. As I imagine so would any failed engines in the Z. People can get scared away from the rotary engine I guess, but all it takes is a little research, and you'll find that the naturally aspirated rotary can and will last as long as any piston engine, given proper care. Their loss, I say.

Gord96BRG

You're just a fountain of misinformation, aren't you? Once again, you're flat out wrong. There were only a handful of engines early on that had coolant leak problems, maybe 60 out of 100,000, and Mazda chose to replace them rather than repair - even though they could have been dealer repaired easily. Hardly a common problem, is it? Oh, and there are NO rings in a rotary engine.

As for your so-called "fact that they had very little power" - perhaps you better review those Top Gear video reviews linked around here of the 350Z and the RX-8. Note that on their test track, the RX-8 turned the exact same lap time as the 350Z. So, if the RX-8 has very little power, where does that leave the 350Z that isn't any faster?

Please go troll elsewhere. Alternatively, at least know what the hell you're talking about before coming back, because right now you're just showing yourself to be an idiot.

Regards,
Gordon

Aoshi Shinomori

All I have to say is...

--Z--

OMG. and you're a mod here? What a crying shame.
Gordo, it sounds like you've got some serious self-esteem issues there, buddy.

Do you call everyone that is misinformed about a specific vehicle an idiot?
Not very nice. But I guess your attitude is indicative of someone who paid too much for an underpowered car.

mod edit: edited for childish insults -Elara

Have a nice day.

Razpewton

Considering the rhetorical history of this guy's posts amd his pro-350Z dialogue, I'm baffled why none of the MODs haven't picked up on his true agenda in the first place.

"The Mazda dealership here has a dozen RX8's on the lot (same ones that were there 6 months ago) and the sales manager even told me himself that they are very hard to sell, because ppl have heard horror stories about the engines screwing up, (something to do with the rings(?) ...and the fact that they had very little power."

....referring to his license plate.
"8 N RX8"

"More Rx8's have been returned by their owners due to hp numbers being overrated and mechanical problems."

"I posted a couple times on this forum awhile back for the heck of it, and found everyone here to be, well...pretty lame."

"shift_zoom8.......kill yourself."

"Hey Gordo...first of all, I am not here to troll. Okay..maybe a little."

....referring to a post on remote controlled model cars
"Hmmm...may give your real RX8 a run for its $$$"


1) I'm surprised the MODS allowed this guy to disrupt the forum this long.

2) I AM surprised Gord would allow himself to be sucked into an obvious ploy, and engage in the very same activity other members are chastised about.

3) I wonder how long an RX-8 owner would last on the 350Z board after posting such crap?

MI_FamilyMan

Sounds to me like all the things he was accusing Gord of being was actually a description of himself. Good that he is gone, but unfortunate that he could just leave with that kind of disrespect. Unbelievably immature.

Razpewton

He isn't gone, just not signed on. Yeah, the "old lady/*****" reference was a bit high-schoolish... I haven't used that in weeks. :D

Elara

One more out of you and you are banned for good. Resorting to insults just because you can't bring up any hard facts to support your arguments is pretty childish.

Raz, he's been warned several times before. But because he was the "opposing" argument, we tried to give him a fair chance.

Shocka

well in Long ISland NY 350Zs out number rx8s by like 10 to 1! I think i see a 350z more then I see Civics and WRXs now

salituro64

I'll second that, driving around NY & CT I have seen two maybe three RX8s north of Manhattan. As for 350Z/G35s, I see them so much they aren't anything special anymore. I'm glad I decided on the RX8, I thought about the 350Z, but only for about two weeks.

crossbow

The one thing I can't understand about the Z and G35...is why there are so many damn FI kits out for those things...yet they've got obscenely weak bottom ends. The rods in those 3.5's are basically toothpicks for all needs and purposes. Freaking forums are litered with "I just got my twin turbo greedy installed! w00t!!!" followed by a post the next week "Rod #5 ejected from block! What happen????".

Rotarian_SC

It was last year when I was on Long Island for one day. In that day I saw 67 Porsches, 30 something Zs, and 0 RX8s.