I'm probably picking up a 2005 type E RX8 here in Japan next week as my daily driver. Black w/ Blk/Red interior fully loaded with the S type suspension, brakes and wheels. It was a custom order from a guy who drove it 600 miles and found out he couldn't pay for it... :0 So I'm getting a deal.

Anyway, the reason for my post is to see if there are any failures I need to worry about with the Transmission (already read all the engine issues)?

I.e... do the have a tendency to go bad? How well does the flappy paddle shifting work? Does it have firm quick shift or slow sloppy shifting response? Has anyone found the limits of HP it can take? And anything else that might be interesting...

Thanks...

 

the 3-4 shift can be sloppy at times, downshifting is firm and can be really smooth if you rev match. I have 48K miles and no issues. The transmision hardware is pretty much the same as the FD's transmission (from what i've read), so it's reasonably stout.

 

Excellent.. I plan on beating it some and doing a few mods, but for the most part it'll be my day car as I can take my agression out on my20B N/A FC.. I just don't want to spend a bunch of cash on a car that's going to be breaking and pissing me off when I'm on my way to work etc...

 

I have an 04' AT.
My only complaint over the MT is its lack of "Off the Line" power...
Say for instance I'm stopped at an intersection and there's cross traffic I'm trying to pass through.
With a MT you can get your RPM's up and "launch" across traffic where-as with the AT
I have to wait until there is a big gap in traffic before crossing the intersection.
I've tried holding the brake down and flooring the gas pedal in hopes of a "power launch" but,
the RPM's max out at 2500 RPM (not very much help).
It doesn't have much power out of the hole and it can't get out of its own way...

Besides the less powerful engine, the AT also has a heavier drive shaft and smaller brakes compared to the MT...
I don't know what Mazda's "brilliant" thinking was for this.!?!

 

you get the same size brakes and 18" wheels that the MT's have if you get the AT with the grand touring package

 

Picked up the car today... This one has the GT package with the hard top since I'm in Japan. Also has the climate control, little lights on the bottom of the outside mirrors, ETC, ABS, Big brakes, sports suspension, 18" wheels etc... Over all it seems quicker than I actually expected it to be. It's also a lot quieter than I expected and has a bunch of the little Mazda options like the $300 floor mats etc. Black with Blk/Red interior. The reason I went for the Auto is that I couldn't pass up the deal and it's going to be my daily driver anyway. One of the girls at Mazda ordered the car and drove it 900km's in a month and then realized she couldn't afford it. I picked it up for $22,750 in absolutely immaculate condition.

 

congrats

 

Be sure to hit the rev limiter at least once a day to keep the carbon build to a minimum :D

 

That shouldn't be a problem since I'm used to driving my T76 20B FD for the last few years and now my 20B N/A FC. :D

 

VERY NICE! :D