Talk me out of an rx-8 (£3k budget for something fun)
Discussion
Long time reader/lurker, first thread.
I've been driving a very dull E46 318i SE for the past three years (bought with a loan before the market totally died for them) as a new job meant I would be doing plenty of motorway miles and wanted something 'grown up'.
Not far off paying the loan now, and no longer do any distance driving. My "commute" is about 3 miles each way which I use the motorbike for most of the time, in total I cover about 4-6k miles a year now.
I also have a GSXR750 and a pair of 205 GTIs (one mi16 and one standard 1.6 which isn't road worthy atm)
Bored to tears with the 318, and it's leaking oil everywhere. It's probably worth no more than £300 despite never giving me any trouble.
Given a £3k budget, I'm torn what to get next. I'm really fancying a black Mazda RX-8 PZ/ProDrive, not sure I want to buy into 15mpg and £550+ road tax.
Criteria: Fun, 170bhp+, hard top, that's about it. No kids or other commitments means I'm not limited by anything other than budget.
Options considered:
a) RX-8
b) Leon Cupra R
c) Astra VXR
c) Dailying the 205 gti, but that would quickly lose its 'special' feel.
d) Selling the 205 and having around a £5k budget.
Anything I've missed that's worth looking at?
I've been driving a very dull E46 318i SE for the past three years (bought with a loan before the market totally died for them) as a new job meant I would be doing plenty of motorway miles and wanted something 'grown up'.
Not far off paying the loan now, and no longer do any distance driving. My "commute" is about 3 miles each way which I use the motorbike for most of the time, in total I cover about 4-6k miles a year now.
I also have a GSXR750 and a pair of 205 GTIs (one mi16 and one standard 1.6 which isn't road worthy atm)
Bored to tears with the 318, and it's leaking oil everywhere. It's probably worth no more than £300 despite never giving me any trouble.
Given a £3k budget, I'm torn what to get next. I'm really fancying a black Mazda RX-8 PZ/ProDrive, not sure I want to buy into 15mpg and £550+ road tax.
Criteria: Fun, 170bhp+, hard top, that's about it. No kids or other commitments means I'm not limited by anything other than budget.
Options considered:
a) RX-8
b) Leon Cupra R
c) Astra VXR
c) Dailying the 205 gti, but that would quickly lose its 'special' feel.
d) Selling the 205 and having around a £5k budget.
Anything I've missed that's worth looking at?
An RX8 does offer a lot for not much money so I can see why it's tempting.
The sensible choices for about £3k would be a rather lacklustre MX5 or a 6-cylinder BMW. Given that you are bored with your current BM I guess that's not an option for you?
If I was you I'd be looking at:
- MR2 (both second and third gen)
- Alfa Gtv v6
- EP3 Civic Type R
The sensible choices for about £3k would be a rather lacklustre MX5 or a 6-cylinder BMW. Given that you are bored with your current BM I guess that's not an option for you?
If I was you I'd be looking at:
- MR2 (both second and third gen)
- Alfa Gtv v6
- EP3 Civic Type R
Rx8 is reasonably fun, but fuel economy makes it just not worth it. Reliability is not an issue once the engine is rebuilt. I bought one as a toy, mainly as I needed to have space for the kids in the back, and had to immediately rebuild the engine after it expired on my second lap of Bedford 100 miles after buying it.
Now replaced with an Elise, and the difference is night and day - I can't imagine going back (I'm not suggesting this as an option for your budget by the way!).
If you're after rwd, and don't need the rear seats I'd suggest something like an MX5 - they're popular trackday cars for a reason!
Now replaced with an Elise, and the difference is night and day - I can't imagine going back (I'm not suggesting this as an option for your budget by the way!).
If you're after rwd, and don't need the rear seats I'd suggest something like an MX5 - they're popular trackday cars for a reason!
I’ve had 3 RX8s over the years, the worst on fuel was a 192 that manages a whopping 9.5mpg (hand calc) on a mway run ... and in traffic and around town dropped to just over 6mpg
My best was one of the 231s which managed a little over 17mpg on a run
Personally I love them and do consider getting another but be aware that a rebuild will be likely as there very delicate and need the right fuel and additives (2stroke oil etc...) to ensure smooth running
Go in with your eyes open, buy on condition, don’t buy an import - all U.K. cars had full leather which is an easy give away for grey imports, have a fund for a rebuild ... enjoy
My best was one of the 231s which managed a little over 17mpg on a run
Personally I love them and do consider getting another but be aware that a rebuild will be likely as there very delicate and need the right fuel and additives (2stroke oil etc...) to ensure smooth running
Go in with your eyes open, buy on condition, don’t buy an import - all U.K. cars had full leather which is an easy give away for grey imports, have a fund for a rebuild ... enjoy
Go in with your eyes open as long as you make sure you keep on top of traits you'll be fine & driving a very good car.
The PZ models should be in your price range & are worth seeking out:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Or the anniversary model.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
The PZ models should be in your price range & are worth seeking out:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Or the anniversary model.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Get an RX8, I have had RX8s for a while and currently have an R3.
The ideal scenario is find a PZ or Anniversary with low compression for circa £1k and have a rebuild done by one of the rated specialists for circa £2000 but these models are fairly rare so this could take a while.
A normal 231ps model is still a great car and £2k can buy a very nice example.
Oh and UK cars were available with cloth, but most have the heated leather.
The ideal scenario is find a PZ or Anniversary with low compression for circa £1k and have a rebuild done by one of the rated specialists for circa £2000 but these models are fairly rare so this could take a while.
A normal 231ps model is still a great car and £2k can buy a very nice example.
Oh and UK cars were available with cloth, but most have the heated leather.
I owned a 231BHP RX8 for 6 years; fuel consumption was generally 20- 25 mpg. I think some of the tales of less than 15 mpg are either on track or cars with defects (or driving like a lunatic on the road I suppose!!)
It's a car you need to try- the rotary engine is a marmite thing. It feels special, but not in a way that everyone likes.
Budget- you could get two for £3000! Although perhaps not two PZ/ProDrive versions.
Full sized people fit in the back seats as well- it's not like most 2+2 cars-might be handy occasionally even if not a major concern.
) It's a car you need to try- the rotary engine is a marmite thing. It feels special, but not in a way that everyone likes.
Budget- you could get two for £3000! Although perhaps not two PZ/ProDrive versions.
Full sized people fit in the back seats as well- it's not like most 2+2 cars-might be handy occasionally even if not a major concern.
Fuel consumption is everything.
Great cars, handle well, sound awesome and are proper drivers cars. Its a box to tick, no doubt about that. But that fuel consumption. I had one as a second car/track car and it was brilliant at that, on track they handle so well out of the box. Then my wife changed jobs, no longer had a company car and took my daily as hers, leaving me with the RX8. Day to day it was expensive, so it had to go and was replaced with a BMW E82 125i. On paper the same performance as the RX8, but twice (at least) the mpg and loads more torque.However one of those would be out of your budget, so I'll stop digressing.
Prior to the RX8, I had a Type R EP3 as my track car and of the two that's the one I want again. For your budget you are choosing between potential lemon's which ever way you go (I paid the same amount for both the EP3 and RX8). So the EP3 with its better after market support and frankly more reliable engine wins it for me. Plus its cheap enough to run as a daily if you keep out of VTEC (Yo!).
But if you have to scratch that itch.....
Great cars, handle well, sound awesome and are proper drivers cars. Its a box to tick, no doubt about that. But that fuel consumption. I had one as a second car/track car and it was brilliant at that, on track they handle so well out of the box. Then my wife changed jobs, no longer had a company car and took my daily as hers, leaving me with the RX8. Day to day it was expensive, so it had to go and was replaced with a BMW E82 125i. On paper the same performance as the RX8, but twice (at least) the mpg and loads more torque.However one of those would be out of your budget, so I'll stop digressing.
Prior to the RX8, I had a Type R EP3 as my track car and of the two that's the one I want again. For your budget you are choosing between potential lemon's which ever way you go (I paid the same amount for both the EP3 and RX8). So the EP3 with its better after market support and frankly more reliable engine wins it for me. Plus its cheap enough to run as a daily if you keep out of VTEC (Yo!).
But if you have to scratch that itch.....
Thanks for all the replies.
Yes I have read many horror stories about people who have done everything possible to get a good rx-8 and then had the engine go within weeks, similarly I've also bought bikes where the headgasket has gone within weeks. The way I see it, sh*t happens.
If I did go down that route, and the engine happened to go, I'd be removing the engine myself and taking it to a builder which saves a significant chunk of the labour cost. I'd also only consider buying one with an engine warranty (I have seen two PZs with a two year warranty in the short while I've been watching the market).
As for MPG, 20-25MPG is a totally different ball game to 15 mpg, but my 3 mile commute is mostly in crawling traffic so it would almost certainly be closer to 15MPG. My current 318 manages around 24-26mpg in crawling traffic, I wouldn't mind paying more for something that would actually be enjoyable to drive on the weekends.
Z3 / MX5 don't do anything for me. Alfa GTV is wonderfully unique, something to consider. EP3 I'm sure would be a fun car but doesn't quite scratch the itch (I find them a bit plain, same with MX5s).
If you approach it with the mindset that you are essentially throwing £2k away and the petrol station becomes a second home, I'm really not sure anything will scratch the itch in the same way the rx8 would. Of course within 3 months I'll hate the fuel consumption and £50 PM road tax and no doubt sell it at a loss
Yes I have read many horror stories about people who have done everything possible to get a good rx-8 and then had the engine go within weeks, similarly I've also bought bikes where the headgasket has gone within weeks. The way I see it, sh*t happens.
If I did go down that route, and the engine happened to go, I'd be removing the engine myself and taking it to a builder which saves a significant chunk of the labour cost. I'd also only consider buying one with an engine warranty (I have seen two PZs with a two year warranty in the short while I've been watching the market).
As for MPG, 20-25MPG is a totally different ball game to 15 mpg, but my 3 mile commute is mostly in crawling traffic so it would almost certainly be closer to 15MPG. My current 318 manages around 24-26mpg in crawling traffic, I wouldn't mind paying more for something that would actually be enjoyable to drive on the weekends.
Z3 / MX5 don't do anything for me. Alfa GTV is wonderfully unique, something to consider. EP3 I'm sure would be a fun car but doesn't quite scratch the itch (I find them a bit plain, same with MX5s).
If you approach it with the mindset that you are essentially throwing £2k away and the petrol station becomes a second home, I'm really not sure anything will scratch the itch in the same way the rx8 would. Of course within 3 months I'll hate the fuel consumption and £50 PM road tax and no doubt sell it at a loss
MorganP104 said:
Without wanting to sound like a stuck record, the Alfa GTV 3.0 is worth it for the engine note alone. Utterly glorious, and hugely addictive.
Here, have a gratuitous picture of a Busso V6, just because.
+ 1 Here, have a gratuitous picture of a Busso V6, just because.
Owned one when it was brand new, alfa red / tan leather - wonderful noise and fantastically enjoyable to drive.
I've got a PZ as my sensible car. As I struggle to have anything standard it fairly quickly developed into being a half bridge ported 10K RPM powered RX8 with D585 coils, decat, Exedy clutch, suitably mapped ECU, K&N panel filter etc. etc. I also did a mild brake upgrade with drilled and grooved discs and Mintex slightly sport pads. I left all the Prodrive spec dampers and springs as quite frankly they are brilliant.
I've only actually done about 1900 miles in it and have used it once in 6 weeks so I should probably sell it but it's such a fun bit of kit I'm happy to have it for as and when I need to move 2+ people or do a big shop. The fuel economy is just one of the things you need to accept in return for enjoying a rotary and personally I think it's worth it.
Oh and the stereo is awesome too!
I've only actually done about 1900 miles in it and have used it once in 6 weeks so I should probably sell it but it's such a fun bit of kit I'm happy to have it for as and when I need to move 2+ people or do a big shop. The fuel economy is just one of the things you need to accept in return for enjoying a rotary and personally I think it's worth it.
Oh and the stereo is awesome too!
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