RE: Shed of the Week | Mazda RX-8

[delta0]

waftycranker said:

They aren't slow. Even if they have only got sub 200bhp in the 231 as people suggest. Mine felt a bit quicker than a mates EP3 Type R and they aren't slow.

I don't think certain colours and the standard wheels do them any favours, especially in photos. Mine was Galaxy Grey and had special edition, or at least optional 'Radius' alloys and it looked damn sexy on my drive.

Agree about the plastic engine cover. The engine actually starts right near the back of the cover. And why in this day of 'eco' cars do manufacturers insist on pointless plastic covers? Somebody should start a petition. Not me though. I'm busy.

I can just squeeze under 6s with my R3 but that does have shorter gear ratios as standard.

[davidc1]

Chap down my road has one. An AA van is usually parked next to it....

[david mcc]

I bought one of these a few years ago from a mate, low mileage, full history etc. Was absolutely great to drive, handling was spot on and they are stunning to look at but....


Within a years I had replaced multiple coil packs, went through a fortune in fuel (20mpg at best) and then came the dreaded hot start issues.

Would I buy another one..... Not a chance. Engine is just too soft

[waftycranker]

Weekendrebuild said:

waftycranker said:

They aren't slow. Even if they have only got sub 200bhp in the 231 as people suggest. Mine felt a bit quicker than a mates EP3 Type R and they aren't slow.

I don't think certain colours and the standard wheels do them any favours, especially in photos. Mine was Galaxy Grey and had special edition, or at least optional 'Radius' alloys and it looked damn sexy on my drive.

Agree about the plastic engine cover. The engine actually starts right near the back of the cover. And why in this day of 'eco' cars do manufacturers insist on pointless plastic covers? Somebody should start a petition. Not me though. I'm busy.

That’s your opinion an I respect that but you can’t deny it went very wayward when you look how well the rx7 has aged !

Absolutely agree about the RX7!

But that is a car 2 or 3 levels above the RX8.

A black RX7 has always got a place in my dream 3 car garage. Motorsport heritage and probably the best ever backside a car has ever had. Also from the days when a seriously tuned car made 400bhp and it meant something.

[dougflump]

Simply one of the most rewarding cars I've ever driven.

[MarJay]

Buy it.

Remove engine.

Get it rebuilt at a rotary specialist such as Rotechnics. Get porting done while you're at it.

Put it back.

Drive for 100k miles.

???

Profit.

[Quirrel]

Once the engine blows swap it with something else:

Chevrolet LS Motor Toyota UZ Motors Toyota JZ Motors Nissan SR Motors 13B-REW Motors

[Ilovejapcrap]

Does the rx7 have the same problems

[MadDog1962]

Nah. Too risky. Even at beer money like this.

On the other hand it could be fun weekend shed for 2 years.

I think rather get a cheap Focus ST170. Easier and considerably cheaper to look after (or just keep running).

[lsgraham_uk]

Did anyone answer the renisys question? Its rotary genesis. As in the rebirth of rotary engine.

[Hub]

Early RX-8s have been shed money for years. I think Mazda sold loads of them to people who weren't aware of or quickly tired of their shortcomings so they depreciated like nothing else!

[Jester86]

Still have a huge want for an RX8 - PZ or R3 guise for me.

If I can squeeze it past the wife it would be a third car. Soon they will become quite a rare sight as more and more get scrapped or broken for parts.

[Leon R]

Ilovejapcrap said:

Does the rx7 have the same problems

Yes it does and if anything it has more issues with that complicated vipers nest twin turbo set up, they did have a better oil injection system that wasn't carried accross onto the Rx8 until the R3.

The 7 has the advantage of being old, pretty and from the 90's which means it gets that big slice of nostalgia to help people let this slide.

I think something else that helps the 7 is that these days it is reassuringly expensive so anyone that buys one goes into the ownership experience fully researched up on how to care for them and with their eyes open as to potential issues.

[JTN358AT]

I've had mine for 8 years and generally it has been a good car. I paid 6.3k for it, less than 4 years old and 17000 on the clock. It has been reliable, things have gone wrong, but not the stuff people talk about on here. The power steering failed (£500), oil cooler pipes have failed twice and Mazda dealers have bodged recall work twice. The coils packs have needed replacing twice (£300) and oil has been replaced at least every 3k (£15 + £3 filter). I have constantly track dayed the car and it has stood up to it well. Lack of depreciation, low purchase costs, being easy to self maintain and avoiding risking a valuable car on track have meant I have justified the fuel and tax bills.

Last year, I had a specialist fit PZ suspension (£500) and it handles, and rides superb. But time is catching up with my 13 year car and the oil cooler pipes have gone again (£400) and the sump has rotted out (£200). Standard bills with an old car to be honest but it could become a money pit.

So, the RX8 advertised may well be a good buy as a second car, to use on trackdays. Just expect £500 bills to be a regular thing and don't rely on it as daily transport. Once the engine conks out prior to 100k (it will) don't bother with a rebuild as so many are badly done and don't last the course. Still, a potentially good shed.

[sugerbear]

Wait until they are £750 then buy two.

You then get reliable motoring - drive one of them while the other is in the garage being fixed.

[wjb]

As I said above somewhere, my PZ didn't cause me any trouble and never let me down.

But I just searched the reg.

[okenemem]

GTEYE said:

Some cars are cheap for a reason. This is one. Run it until it breaks, then throw it away. Or just avoid.

hahaha

[rudolphwolven]

Satisfaction survey from the USA RX-8 Forum speaks for itself............very positive....

What is your overall level of satisfaction with the RX8?***

Highly Satisfied...................2,880 71.95%
Somewhat Satisfied.............. 709 17.71%
Neutral....................................157 3.92%
Somewhat Dissatisfied...........130 3.25%
Highly Dissatisfied..................127 3.17%
Voters: 4003. You have already voted on this poll

[biggbn]

I would really like one of these, drove one once and it felt like it had been designed around me. Beautiful driving position and balance. But. I can't afford to potentially throw away a couple of grand on a toy. I am gonna wait a bit then go for an r3 model as these seem to be a bit better in reliability, if sympathetically owned? The fuel would cripple me but as a weekend toy it wouldn't matter

[samoht]

Leon R said:

Ilovejapcrap said:

Does the rx7 have the same problems

Yes it does and if anything it has more issues with that complicated vipers nest twin turbo set up, they did have a better oil injection system that wasn't carried accross onto the Rx8 until the R3.

The 7 has the advantage of being old, pretty and from the 90's which means it gets that big slice of nostalgia to help people let this slide.

I think something else that helps the 7 is that these days it is reassuringly expensive so anyone that buys one goes into the ownership experience fully researched up on how to care for them and with their eyes open as to potential issues.

Generally agree, but I'd say the RX-7 has different problems, not better or worse but different issues.

There's quite a detailed rundown here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDezPjuQvmE&t=... on the issues specific to the RX-8's Renesis (I wouldn't agree on the language but these Aussies generally know their rotaries). As well as the RX-7's 13B-REW having better oiling, it also has more expensive spark plugs / coil packs that actually work, more robust housings that are more likely to be re-buildable, a better starter motor, and generally doesn't suffer the cold-start flooding problem. Plus I don't think RX-7's rust as much. Generally the RX-7 is well built, although it's lightweighted it's built like the low-volume halo car it was, engineered at the peak of the bubble when Japan was on the brink of overtaking the US to become world's number one economy. The RX-8 was very successfully designed to a price, and as a result sold far far better than the FD3S (126 examples sold new in the UK).

However, the RX-7 is old and turbocharged, so there's a single point of failure - if your wastegate sticks or something and you overboost, bang goes the engine. The sequential twin turbos have a lot of ways they can fail - won't kill the engine but can eat up a lot of time tracing the cause. Coolant system can be a weak (leaky) point (can kill the engine). They need better rad and intercooler for trackdays.

So yeah, both have their issues. I think the worst thing is how hard it is to find a decent specialist who actually has the skills and parts to fix them properly / quickly. Maybe one day I'll move to Japan and live next door to RE-Amemiya in Chiba.