...as was George's response...ya gotta use [humor] [/humor] next time, that way we'll know to laugh...

 

I never said the R3 was faster in the 1/4, people keep putting words in my mouth. I said the throttle response and the midrange torque feel better. This has nothing to do with 1/4 mile times. I'd say the '09 car is quicker from 30-60 in 2nd gear, but probably the same in the 1/4 mile.

Again, I'll be dynoing it on our Dynojet soon, so we know for sure!

Oh, and the OTS Konis days' are numbered... they didn't call me shock-boy for nothing!

 

I'd have to agree - in a 2nd gear pull from 30-60mph, I'd say an '09 RX-8 would have the advantage over an '04-'08 RX-8.
I'd be interested in seeing what you develop.

 

So will anybody be testing the new Hooiser size in the spring of '09? Harvey? Jim/Carter? Fossum?

 

Yes, but it will be at least late April, early May before the weather is decent enough for a valid test in our part of the world.

Chris H

 

Cool - will you be testing them back-to-back with your current 285's? Shawn and I plan to pick up a set from Tirerack around mid-May for the Finger Lakes NT and DC Pro.

 

Well, if he wants to know if they are actually fast or not he needs to test them against the V710.

 

Ha ha ha. I know Harvey/Rogers are plenty fast on the 285's, I'm trying to a get a reference point as to whether they pick up speed with the 255 (265) A6. It's lighter than the 285, should put more rubber to the ground than a 245 (A6/V710) w/o the spongey sidewall of an over-sized 285/295.

We're starting on V710's, will run the hoosiers for a few months in the summer and make our pick as to what we feel is the faster tire to run at Nats.

 

Yes, the plan would be to back to back them under controlled conditions.

IMHO- adjusting to the surface change at Lincoln will be a much bigger variable than the difference between the 295/285/255 A6 or running the V710. Similar to the first day of Nat'ls this year, the drivers who adapt to the unfamilar surface will have the advantage again this year.

Chris H

 

Cool beans - I'll look forward to your feedback following the test. Btw, which FSB do you run on your car Harvey?

 

We used the Hotchkis 27mm, 3-position on the car for most of last season, including Nat'ls.

Chris H

 

Thanks Harvey. Shawn and I are strongly considering that bar - we used the stock bar last season.

 

FWIW, all three of the Texas Region drivers in the trophies (Hiromoto, Wagner, and Foley) were on the OEM bar.

 

That's cool. My co-driver and I both feel we'd like a *slightly* stiffer bar.

 

No problem. It's always good to experiment.

FWIW, Foley and I tried the Mazdacomp bar on my car in '07. I didn't like it, he wanted to stick with it through Nationals. When he hopped into Jon's car this season they decided to stay with the OEM bar. Hiromoto tried the Whiteline bar in '07, then went back to OEM for '08. It seems to have worked out for them this year.

 

I appreciate the input Iain.

We ran the stock FSB for the majority of this season and tried a few events on the stiffer drilled setting. Slaloms and fast transitions were better on the stiffer setting, but the car picked up a terrible mid-corner to corner-exit push in sweepers. We ultimately found that we were both faster on the stock setting and ran the car that way at Nats.

For '09 we want more adjustability as: 1) we plan on testing the new 255 A6's 2) Nats has switched to a concrete surface

From the calculations I ran on the Hotchkis MX-5 bar, the settings are 13%, 33.7% and 60% stiffer than stock. I'll probably bring the stock FSB with us to Lincoln, so that we'll have four stiffness settings for the FSB to choose from.

 

Jason,

Have you had a chance to dyno the car yet?

Also, can you verify one thing for me - in your owners manual, how many quarts of oil does your car take for an oil change w/ filter? According to mazdausa.com they list 6 quarts for the 09's which is a change from the 3.7 quarts used in the '04-'08 RX-8's.

If this is truly the case, I'm not sure of the reason behind it. Maybe lower oil temps (from increased volume) to improve engine life???

 

New to the forum as I have a 09 Sport. The owners manual states 4.6 qts with a filter change. Only have 1000 miles so will do the first oil change soon.



Tim

 

04-08 held 6 quarts. 3.7 was the standard for an oil change on a level lift. The drainage plug is too high on the pan and doesn't allow all oil to drain when level. To get all 6 quarts out you have to use jack up right side, drain, jack up left side, drain, etc.

If the '09s list more oil for a change they may have adjusted the plug location or the pan itself to allow more oil to drain on a level lift.

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=90879.html

 

Gotcha - thanks.

 

I seem to recall it measuring out over 11"

 

Finally got the car on the dyno - seems there's really NO difference between the '09 and early car on the dyno... curves the same. Our car turned 178.6hp 126.6tq on our low-reading dynojet. Corresponds to probably 183hp on a typical dynojet. With an exhaust I hope to get about 3-5hp, should be good.

Seems the better 'feel' midrange is due to creative mapping of the throttle by wire, where there's not a linear relationship between pedal and throttle body. I'd assume that it's very digressive, with low throttle applications actually corresponding to much more - 30% pedal = 60% throttle body, etc. It's definitely more aggressive in this manner than the early car.

Overall, happy with the output... if I can get upper 180's before all is done, ,that should be good!

Now, for those 17lb Volk 19x8" +43mm wheels! And some shocks! And a custom Tri-Point front sway.

 

Jason, any idea which tours/pros you will be attending in '09?

-Chike

 

At least the Houston Tour, maybe the Blytheville Tour... not sure about an Pro's... much of it depends on if we can pull together a partnership to keep me in the TC for a full season. First event with the car will be a Test/Tune on March 1st here in Fort Worth! Looking forward to it!!!

 

Can you use 18" wheels in BS?