Right now i'm driving an 04 rx8 with 38k miles. For the most part it has been a great car. Every once in a while it will accelerate funny (its an auto) and has died on me a couple of times. I love the car, but I keep hearing very unsatisfied rx8 owners, and I don't hear of many 8's with higher mileage, and the ones there are seem to have had many problems. I don't have the money to do much upkeep and repairs. Is it time to start looking for a new ride, or will the 8 be reliable for a while? thanks for your help!

 

This forum represents the minority with problems for the most part.
From an engine standpoint, be sure that you've had the 4206F engine recall preformed; the software changes will help extend the longevity of your engine. During this recall they will also run tests to see if you're eligible for a new (remanufactured) engine. The recall and related repairs are free under the powertrain warranty. Either way, post-recall, reliability seems to be good, and even the number of people reporting reman engine failures seems to be down lately.

I've also seen fewer issues problems with the automatic transmission than the manual on here, so you should be ok there as well unless the transmission is seeing extreme abuse. Just be sure to have the AT fluid changed from time to time.

Also, there are a number of people on here with more than 100k miles. Examples: Expo1 has a MT with 100k+ , RotaryResurrection has a AT with ~115k. The engine does have an higher rate of failure than other vehicles, but if your's is acting up, take it in to Mazda before the powertrain is up. The engine concerns are why Mazda extended it to 5yr/60k.
Once your warranty is up (or now, depending on if you want to risk it), there are also a number of controversial methods for helping to extend engine life on here; premix, heavier oil, etc. I won't go into that though as I don't have much experience myself.

 

Check your air filter.

Clean the MAF sensor.

 

04 Auto ... if its still under warranty, have it check at dealership. Make sure all recalls are done.

There are a lot of people reach 100K mark already, if thats consider as *high mileage* to you.

 

an 04 AT, if u dont abuse it, will last u a long time, and u dont have to worry about as much tranny issues

 

Depends on how much you owe on the car and what you are looking for.

Sports car don't hold resale value very well in general and are generally finicky to upkeep.

 

There are plenty of posts with people over 100k.