New Daily Driver

[onewhippedpuppy]

Pics are close ups from the PO, it's dark here and the car is covered in bugs anyway. It's a 2005 RX8, 22k on it, 6 speed, sport package, 6 CD, HID lights, also has Konis installed. It also included a second set of OEM wheels with new snows, a front bra, and a muffler delete pipe that they used for autocross. Bought it from the original owners, nice people who had karts for their two boys and a very nicely built Mazdaspeed Protege for autocross use.

I had driven one of these several years ago and didn't like it, in retrospect I think I just drove a lemon. I decided recently that I need something that can haul my three kids when necessary, manual gearbox, rear wheel drive, ok MPG, and Japanese for reliability. The RX8 is one of a very few cars that fit my criteria, and it's a blast to drive. Very nice balance, excellent steering and brakes, good ride quality when the Konis aren't set to full stiff (like they are now), and the rotary loves to rev. I'm very happy with my purchase.

[stevess]

looks nice. congrats. i was looking for a dd and researched the rx alittle. haven't made a move yet.
enjoy
Steve

[recycled sixtie]

Congrats on a great purchase. It looks in fine shape. It was a car I considered before buying my Boxster but chose the latter. I would think that it is a ton of fun to drive. I used to own a Miata. Mazda does make fun cars to drive. Cheers.

[herr_oberst]

Now, that looks like fun. Does it have the huge Bose boomtube in the back seat?

[mikester]

I've been considering one of these myself.

[ZOO]

That's a great colour!

Such a finely balanced car.

[Oh Haha]

Cool!! I've never driven one but I understand they are a hoot.

[Rot 911]

I will be curious to see how long you keep it. We had an RX8 with the touring package and kept it about a year. Was an ok car, but having to keep the rpm's up gets old and the gas mileage sucked.

[HHI944]

Vehicular induced attention deficit disorder.........you are patient 0

[Rick V]

When you start it up press and hold the trac control button. You will see the trac off light come on, keep holding the button until you see the second yellow light in the dash come on. (about 8 seconds)Have fun.
Also if you replace the overly compliant bushings in the rear control arms with a stiffer bushing the car becomes very very crisp and responsive to corner out throttle. I am a senior Mazda tech and have been top school on that car. very very fun.

[bivenator]

A lot of complaining at one time about the gas milage actual vs. estimated. I guess the high revs probably contritbute to that. You are like the PPOT car tester with all your different choices.

[Rick V]

Driving the RX at low RPM's will cause low mileage. They need to be driven no lower than 3,500.prm. If you drive the car the way it was designed to be driven they do fairly well.

[mikester]

I hear that when they are driven at proper speeds that they can't be picked up by police radar. It's something the Mazda engineers designed into the shape.

[VincentVega]

Cool cars. Keep after the engine oil, they usually use more than most.

Much better handling than I expected. Enjoy.

[redstrosekNic]

Cool car! Looks like a great DD. What kind of real world fuel mileage do those get when driven properly?

[Baz]

Congrats and "Zoom Zoom!"

[JoeyD]

Cool car. Lots of luck with it. Drive it in good health!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Thanks all. To answer a few of the questions I don't believe it has the Bose system, I would have considered another Boxster but I need the ability to haul three kids, and because they're a two stroke motor with an oil injector you should be concerned if you're NOT using oil.

Frankly I didn't buy it with the intention of selling, but you wouldn't make much money betting against me selling a car. Thus far I really like it, the rotary is a responsive and ultra smooth motor that makes it fun to blast through the gears. Great gearbox, steering, and brakes, it really is a proper sports car.

Rick, where is the best source for those bushings? It sounds like something worth considering. I've been doing a lot of reading on the RX8, any other tips that might not be common internet knowledge? As a Mazda tech, what are your thoughts regarding oil weight and synthetic vs dino oil?

[Tobra]

I would expect that to be a hoot at the track.

[Rick V]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

As a Mazda tech, what are your thoughts regarding oil weight and synthetic vs dino oil?

I should mention I left Mazda about 3 years ago but I am still in the loop. Mazda has changed their ideas about oil in these cars, DO NOT USE SYNTHETIC. It is causing apex seals to fail. Mazda has bumped up the warranty on the engines because of originally recommending synthetic. I am not sure if it stayed with the original owners but knowing Mazda they will cover you. They are a good company. So far as the bushings go I haven't done any looking into the aftermarket world since I don't own one but I have installed a few sets of bushings and it does make all the difference in the world.