Umm....where to start:

1. READ YOUR MANUAL. The whole letting it get to operating temperture thing...thats in the manual. Are you aware you also have to check the oil regularly because the rotary engine uses oil to lubricate the apex seals (again, in the manual)? Your Mazda dealer should update your car with the latest "flash" (software) that helps to fix the flooding thing and they may replace your spark plugs as well.

2. Tire Pressure Light: Are you filling the tires when they are cold? If you are filling the tires up right after you parked the car (i.e. at a gas station), then you still will get the light because you are measuring pressure based on hot tire tires and hence hot air. This is for all cars, not just our. Are you filling them up to the correct amount of air pressure? Also, when its cold out, the light may come on initially, but after you drive around and warm the tires up, it should go away.

3. Brake Pads -- There is a technical service bulletin out about this ..your mazda dealer will replace the front pads for free with ones that aren't so abrasive.

4. Moisture in the tailight -- I believe this a known problem...look on the forum some more, but I have never had this issue and I live in the humid weather of Atlanta. Now I am in the snowy north (Boston) for work...still..not an issue for me.

5. Accelerates Weird - This is a rotary engine, it makes power linearly..the more your rev it, the better the power. If you are used to a V6 or V8 of a mustang, then this will be different for you and if thats what you like or expect, then you need to change your outlook. Did you test drive this before you bought it?

6. Snow Tires - buy a new mustang anywhere in the country where it doesnt snow and you will probably get high performance (summer) tires and you will still need new tires. In snowy places, you may get all season tires...still not good for RWD sports cars. The mustang has even more torque and should handle even worse in the snow than the 8 will.

7. You don't have time for a "finicky" car? -- I hate to say it, but trade this car in. This car can be borderline classiifed as an exotic since its the only production car now with a rotary and hence requires a little more attention. Not to be sexist, but I think guys are better owners of this type of car than women because we BABY our cars more often than not. Most women just like to turn the key and drive.

8. Window Open noise - never heard this one. It could just be that this car has more road noise than you are used to.

The new mustangs are nice and powerful. The 8 is all about handling, more than raw power. My friend has a new mustang convertible and it hauls ***. It handles better than any other previous mustang, but it still doesnt come close to the nimbleness of my 8. You also bought an auto tranny, which has less HP than the 6 speed. I am sure more people will add comments to this thread, but yeh, this is a special car and requires special treatment. I see that as a good thing, others wont, but I love everything about my car except not being able to drive it much while I am up in Boston...thank god for free rentals for work. Oh...safety wise..you wont see many sportscars with our safety ratings. Between all the air bags, the great 50/50 weight distribution, and the Dynamic Stability Control, this is one of the safetest cars out there. The 8 made Car and Drivers 10 best list AGAIN...thats three years in a row. The new mustang did make it this year as well. Unless your old mustang was the new mustang design, this 8 would run circles around your old car in everything but raw acceleration (if you had a Mustang GT or Cobra).

 

Mazda salesmen never do the job of telling you about all this stuff otherwise people wouldn't buy them. I think a lot of the women drivers who didnt know about these issues when they got the car and didnt read their manuals aren't going to have this car too long down the road. I do think Mazda is partially at fault for not making these things known because in the long run, when they dont last long because people didnt know, its just going to reflect poorly on Mazda because people will say they car is crap and poorly built. Don feel too bad, even a reviewer at Car and Driver said that Mazda should have said something about the oil consumption because its not written in the manual, when it in fact is. Only a few us read the manual front to back. This forum is where I have gotten all my answers. I have shut down the car before it has warmed up, but I also rev the engine to 7000rpm and turn it off when it hits 7000rpm so that it burns off the excess fuel as it revs down. As for snow handling, tires do make a big difference, but the weight distribution of our car helps as its perfectly balanced.

 

Your dealer should have also done all the latest recalls, specifically the gas tank/thermal blanket recall. With this recall, you will also get the new Flash which helps to eliminate the flooding problem or at least reduce your odds. When did you get this car and how many miles do you have on it now? The general rule for checking the oil level is every other tank..I check mine about every 600-800 miles (I use Trip B odometer to keep track). People make a big deal out of checking the oil, but its habit they teach in drivers ed for normal cars anyways. Also, the oil is like $2 a bottle..its not expensive at all. I keep 3 in my car and usually add one bottle every 1000 miles or so. Its not rocket science.