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Coupes & Convertibles Mazda RX-8 Mazda RX-8
3616 messages, Last post on Apr 22, 2009 at 5:06 AM
You are in the Mazda RX-8 Forum. Your Host is claires
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Replying to: bullwinkle fan (Feb 25, 2008 11:50 am) Edmunds.com Maintenance Schedule, Recalls, & TSBs |
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Replying to: mklis (Feb 28, 2008 6:52 am) There was some report about a shim to stop the sqeek that dealers could add but I never asked about it. The breaks sqeek, the seat squeeks, there's a popcorn rattle in the exhaust, the gas millage sucks, the oil burn is 1 qt/1000 miles and there is water in my rear tail light.....but the car is sooooo fun to drive I could careless! I know that the rotary engine plus the design of the RX-8 keeps on giving a pure driving experience that would cost at least twice as much in any other car.
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A lot of performance pads squeak, especially when they are cold. I did get the different pads from mazda for the tsb, and now they only squeak when the weather is cold outside. However, I do think braking peformance has suffered slightly with the less squeaky pads. Do some google searches for brake pad bedding-in procedures. Many people report that after doing that, their brakes don't squeal anymore. Haven't tried it myself yet, but a lot of pad manufacturers do seem to recommend it. I just don't think they recommend it it everyone because it requires you to do hard braking from higher speeds. I'm sure they are worried about liability issues. |
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The RotaryEnthusiasts at EVOLV-Chicago would like to invite you to join a Chicago-area rotary car club. Our site is http://www.freewebs.com/evolvchicago/. We are an informal club of rotary engine car enthusiasts. We have regular meets, etc, so come on out and join us! No specific car, etc is required to join. In fact, we don't even care if you have a car - anybody with an interest in this stuff is welcome to join. We just ask that everyone treat each other with respect. Even if you aren't from the Chicago area, feel free to join us. We'd love to have you at a meet if you are passing through. |
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Replying to: bullwinkle fan (Feb 25, 2008 11:50 am) Duke |
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Replying to: trispec2007 (Feb 28, 2008 4:03 pm)
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Replying to: duke15 (Mar 06, 2008 1:11 pm) |
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Hope you can come out tonight to meet and greet some of your fellow CarSpace members! The Mazda Club Chat is on tonight. The chat room opens at 8:45PM ET Hope to see YOU there! Check out the schedule |
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For anyone having doubts about buying a RX-8, just test drive one, and then go test drive the competitors to it. You'll find that the RX-8 can keep pace with anything in its price class, will out handle cars costing 20k more (yes, I'm speaking Porsche Boxter and Cayman class cars), and more practical and comfortable as a daily driver than just about anything else that can properly be called a 'sports car.' As for the horror stories about engine failures, they're relatively rare as a % of all models sold, are pretty much confined to the first model year of production, and happen most often in scorching hot temperature climates such as Nevada and Arizona with THE AUTOMATIC transmission (which only has one oil cooler, rather than the two that the manual has). So, unless you're looking at an '04 model year automatic transmission model, driven in stop and go traffic in a very hot state, you have very little to worry about (even then, statistically, you have little to worry about). My RX-8 has been rock solid and trouble free for 54,000 wonderful miles. The engine actually gets stronger with age. Just make sure to check the oil at least once a month. You will absolutely love the symphony the motor produces as you wind through all 6 gears - make sure you redline it all the way to 9,500 rpm - the rotary motor LOVES IT and THRIVES ON IT!!! You will also be AMAZED at the handling. Make sure to spring for a model with Electronic Stability Control - the car is so forgiving at the limit that it will make a novice drive look like a pro in every apex. If you do buy one, please, please, please, buy a manual, which has more power than the automatic, and do not brag to loudly about your car or let others drive it, lest the best value sports car on the market today becomes too popular, and ruins the party for those of us planning on buying what another.  By the way, the RX-8 has Porsche like handling and a perfect 50/50 weight distribution because its chief engineer worked for Porsche before his stint at Mazda.
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Replying to: rotary (May 27, 2008 9:40 pm) 1: The rear seats are fine for kids and such. It's a 2+2 sedan, really. They just did the suicide rear door thing and decided to fake it being a coupe. But consider that it's a LOT more friendly in the rear than a 3 series or C class, let alone a Porsche(midgets in the rear, MAYBE?). It's a fine family car as long as you don't need a middle rear seat.(most of families don't) 2: The engine is basically a giant motorcycle engine in how you drive it. So there's no lugging it off the line like a V8. Wind it up, flog it with abandon, and watch the car come alive(the rev limiter will keep it from hurting itself, so feel free to bounce off of it). It has a silly light flywheel as well with the manual transmission, so it revs like a sport bike as well. 3: It's only .1 seconds slower than a Cayman and only 1mph slower in handling tests as well. Nothing else comes close for under $35-40K other than a WRX or a S2000. That you can get one for $25K or so after rebates ... amazing, really. True, a 3 series is nicer and faster, but the second you hit a set of curves, everything that isn't a Porsche or a roadster is far, far behind. 4: The car does burn oil. Remember 2-strokes? They burned oil to run. This is essentially a 3-stroke engine and as such uses a tiny amount of oil to lubricate the inner seals as it runs. So you need to add some oil every month or two as normal upkeep. This is not a defect - it's just a different engine, just like how the old Corvairs has a turbine engine or how a Prius has a hybrid design. The problem came from people driving it like a 4-stroke engine and never adding oil for 5-6 months at a time. Then whining that the car had a defect. Well, low oil tends to ruin any engine quickly... 5: Few people have them. As such, they are real "sleepers". A Cayman or Boxster is a cop magnet and people love to steal them. The RX-8 is none of that. It's all the function and none of the ego or bling. (I think it looks fantastic, but it isn't about appearing to be stupidly wealthy) 6: Also avoid the black leather. It's hot and it makes it feel more cramped inside. The tan leather gives the car a much more open feel(blue and tan is a nice combo as well, IMO, as is white and tan) 7:It gets good gas mileage considering that it's a true sports car like a Porsche or a 350Z or Mustang or... It's no Civic, but then again, no Civic could hope to keep up with it, either. http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/displayPage.action?pageParameter=daytona24&vehic- leCode=RX8 It's no slouch in terms of reliability or speed. ***quote*** The SpeedSource Mazda team beat the runner-up Porsche by over five laps. The win was Mazda's 22nd class win at the race, ending Porsche's lengthy winning streak at the biggest 24-hour race in America. In its wake, the champion SpeedSource number 70 RX-8 left behind over two dozen Porsche 911 GT-3s, a handful of Pontiacs, a pair of Ferrari 430 Challenges, a Corvette and a BMW M6. Although fierce attempts were made, including a total of 55 lead changes among 10 cars in the class, no one managed to pass the RX-8 for the final 185 laps. *** The thing's no joke. And what they ran was nearly a stock engine with manual as the engine can't really be pushed to more HP without a major redesign. Sure, they upgraded other things, added a roll cage and rear wing and so on, but the engine is pretty much what you get in one that you buy.
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