I'm joining the RX8 life style. Caution? Encouragement?
Discussion
As in previous posts on another thread I've commented on, just buy the best condition RX8 you can with the budget you've got.
Like all cars, when they get to a certain age, the age itself becomes much less relevant. As does the mileage. Condition as seen and tested there and then matters far more than it being a 2003 instead of a 2006 for example or it having 40k miles as apposed to 80k miles.
The condition as you see it, along with wads of not of invoices and receipts will vouch for it.
Nothing wrong with earlier cars, but obviously you might prefer the looks of the later car.
I wouldn't worry about the engine, but with eyes wide open understand it might require a rebuild so make sure you would be able to find £2/3k for a rebuild.
Rebuilding comes with benefits, such as a little more power and a warranty. And a clean sheet for your ownership.
I'd make sure it had, or fit the latest coils packs and the latest spec starter. I'd also premix. That's it.
As for the lack of torque, I had the 192, and I never found it lacking. You need to test drive one and make your own mind up. Of course, they don't have the same punch as anything with a turbo, petrol or diesel. But I found mine just fine when dawdling around. They aren't super fast, but they are definitely a sports car.
So many really fast cars available now, but most aren't a sports car. Just a powerful but boring and common eurobox.
I'd have another as hobby car, they are great IMO.
Like all cars, when they get to a certain age, the age itself becomes much less relevant. As does the mileage. Condition as seen and tested there and then matters far more than it being a 2003 instead of a 2006 for example or it having 40k miles as apposed to 80k miles.
The condition as you see it, along with wads of not of invoices and receipts will vouch for it.
Nothing wrong with earlier cars, but obviously you might prefer the looks of the later car.
I wouldn't worry about the engine, but with eyes wide open understand it might require a rebuild so make sure you would be able to find £2/3k for a rebuild.
Rebuilding comes with benefits, such as a little more power and a warranty. And a clean sheet for your ownership.
I'd make sure it had, or fit the latest coils packs and the latest spec starter. I'd also premix. That's it.
As for the lack of torque, I had the 192, and I never found it lacking. You need to test drive one and make your own mind up. Of course, they don't have the same punch as anything with a turbo, petrol or diesel. But I found mine just fine when dawdling around. They aren't super fast, but they are definitely a sports car.
So many really fast cars available now, but most aren't a sports car. Just a powerful but boring and common eurobox.
I'd have another as hobby car, they are great IMO.
Thing is, engine torque is ephemeral
If you have two cars, one at 5000 rpm and one at 8000rpm, they can have different torque figures but be delivering exactly the same force between the tyre contact patch and the road.
The characteristics in the way an engine torque changes in modern turbo cars seems to have fooled people into a perception of how a car should feel. Take that away and give them a high rev engine with the same performance and often they immediately say 'it has no torque' and 'its slow' while failing to drive it properly. Rev it people !.
If you have two cars, one at 5000 rpm and one at 8000rpm, they can have different torque figures but be delivering exactly the same force between the tyre contact patch and the road.
The characteristics in the way an engine torque changes in modern turbo cars seems to have fooled people into a perception of how a car should feel. Take that away and give them a high rev engine with the same performance and often they immediately say 'it has no torque' and 'its slow' while failing to drive it properly. Rev it people !.
Edited by Gary C on Friday 26th February 08:19
^^^ Very true, turbos and how they spool up giving that kick, is a change in rate of acceleration. Like you say very deceiving.
My van, a VW 1.6 turbo diesel, feels pokey enough, turbo comes on and it feels quite fast. Little Hyundai i10 1.2NA in front of me pulling away! I'd swear the van would be faster, but it only feels it.
Look at the VTEC engines, they fly, but have relatively low torque 'crank' output, but the gearbox is a torque multiplier and the VTEC can rev high so compensates and delivers high performance!
My van, a VW 1.6 turbo diesel, feels pokey enough, turbo comes on and it feels quite fast. Little Hyundai i10 1.2NA in front of me pulling away! I'd swear the van would be faster, but it only feels it.
Look at the VTEC engines, they fly, but have relatively low torque 'crank' output, but the gearbox is a torque multiplier and the VTEC can rev high so compensates and delivers high performance!
ZackM said:
Do you mean if it needs an engine rebuild, there will be more bills on top of the rebuild and it will never be good again. Or you just mean an engine rebuild is expensive?
After a rebuild the car should theoretically be a safer purchase, but you can never be too sure. In fact, what some people do here is buy a broken RX-8 and rebuild the engine for peace of mind. It sounds like RX-8s are quite a lot more expensive where you are though, so this might not be an option.Edited by ZackM on Thursday 25th February 19:31
Regarding the lack of torque, it's not really an issue in most situations. They're not really slow cars as such, they just rev so smoothly that they never seem to shove you back in your seat. To be honest, I found the novelty of revving to 9k rpm kept me interested easily enough
I'm tempted to get back into an rx8 having owned a few previously.
My only issue is that I imported a Subaru Legacy Gt Twinscroll last year. It should be my ideal car, brisk, room for the dog and child, bilstein suspension so decent handling. But for some reason I'm just not too attached to it.
We have a normal hatchback for family duties, I reckon I could get away with the practicality the rx8 has to offer, just need to persuade the wife it's a good plan
My only issue is that I imported a Subaru Legacy Gt Twinscroll last year. It should be my ideal car, brisk, room for the dog and child, bilstein suspension so decent handling. But for some reason I'm just not too attached to it.
We have a normal hatchback for family duties, I reckon I could get away with the practicality the rx8 has to offer, just need to persuade the wife it's a good plan
Neith said:
After a rebuild the car should theoretically be a safer purchase, but you can never be too sure. In fact, what some people do here is buy a broken RX-8 and rebuild the engine for peace of mind. It sounds like RX-8s are quite a lot more expensive where you are though, so this might not be an option.
I'm still not quite sure if you are saying a rebuild solves the problem or not. You seem to have said both in your reply above. But in case I would find a RX8 with a blown engine, as long as it looks in good condition in and out and no or little rust, could I buy it sight unseen? Since the main issue is off the table, which is the engine, as it will be getting a new one. Or is there any other major issue I have to pay attention to, even when the engine is out of the equation?
I ask because despite having very little chances of finding one with a blown engine locally, I could find one far away and just buy it sight unseen and have it shipped. I would be able to judge the condition of interior and body based on good photos. But that is about it.
This could open my possibilities.
I owned a 2007 231ps for about two years although it wasn't my only car.
Either way, when the oil is changed it should be done twice! The two oil coolers hold quite a lot of oil themselves so you should drain the oil, refill it, run the engine back up to temperature, drain it again, then change the oil filter and refill it again. I think it's recommended every 3,000 miles.
A car with 100k+ on its original engine means it's been looked after and treated well.
There is a recommended way of starting and shutting down these engines.
Catalytic converters get very hot and can eventually break apart inside, restricting exhaust flow and causing excessive heat and premature wear to the engine.
A tell tale sign of this having happened is melted carpet next to the right hand front seat.
It's wise to run them with a de-cat pipe, if possible, to protect it. It makes them sound a bit rapier too! Just don't stand behind it with the engine running or your eyes will sting!
Electrics inside the steering rack can fail which can makes the steering a bit heavier turning one way than the other.
I found that a set of uprated brake pads really gave the brakes more sharpness and made it much more enjoyable to drive.
As already said, they are cheap to buy but not cheap to run.
But they are quirky, interesting, and good fun to drive, especially down a winding B-road.
Gary C said:
fill the engine with proper synthetic oil to protect the main bearings
There is conflicting information online about this, some specialists advise a good quality mineral oil.Either way, when the oil is changed it should be done twice! The two oil coolers hold quite a lot of oil themselves so you should drain the oil, refill it, run the engine back up to temperature, drain it again, then change the oil filter and refill it again. I think it's recommended every 3,000 miles.
A car with 100k+ on its original engine means it's been looked after and treated well.
There is a recommended way of starting and shutting down these engines.
Catalytic converters get very hot and can eventually break apart inside, restricting exhaust flow and causing excessive heat and premature wear to the engine.
A tell tale sign of this having happened is melted carpet next to the right hand front seat.
It's wise to run them with a de-cat pipe, if possible, to protect it. It makes them sound a bit rapier too! Just don't stand behind it with the engine running or your eyes will sting!
Electrics inside the steering rack can fail which can makes the steering a bit heavier turning one way than the other.
I found that a set of uprated brake pads really gave the brakes more sharpness and made it much more enjoyable to drive.
As already said, they are cheap to buy but not cheap to run.
But they are quirky, interesting, and good fun to drive, especially down a winding B-road.
Martin350 said:
I owned a 2007 231ps for about two years although it wasn't my only car.
Its important to quote the whole text.Gary C said:
fill the engine with proper synthetic oil to protect the main bearings
There is conflicting information online about this, some specialists advise a good quality mineral oil..You MUST fit a sohn adapter before you can change the lubricating oil for synthetic.
If you dont have an adapter, then the engine oil must be burnable as that is where the injector gets it from.
Martin350 said:
Interesting.
I'm surprised I've not heard of that before!
Its basically a little tank that connects to the metering pump as a source of oil to be injected into the combustion chamber rather than using the sump oil.I'm surprised I've not heard of that before!
This means that you can ditch the dexelia oil from the sump and use something of higher quality, while using a better ash free oil to be injected into the engine to be burnt.
It comes, I believe, from aero implementations of the wankel engine.
I didn't fit one to mine, but I would have done if I had kept it longer and would fit one straight away if I got one now.
https://www.drivenbymadness.eu/post/mazda-rx8-sohn...
ZackM said:
I'm still not quite sure if you are saying a rebuild solves the problem or not. You seem to have said both in your reply above.
I'm saying that by getting a rebuild it should solve low compression-related problems, provided it's done to a good standard. If you're worried about the quality of a rebuild, it might be best to buy a broken RX-8 and get the engine rebuilt by a reputable specialist, so that you know its history.I agree with the poster who mentioned the catalytic converters too, mine destroyed its catalytic converter pretty quickly. In mine, it was because one of the ignition leads had started to perish so it didn't grip onto the spark plug well enough. Because of this it wasn't igniting enough fuel and ended up dumping it into the exhaust system, which wrecked the catalytic converter
Edited by Neith on Tuesday 2nd March 23:17
I believe it even states in the owner's handbook that after a long run you shouldn't park on dry grass because of the heat in the cat.
I discovered this on mine the first time I wound the right hand front seat right back whilst vacuuming the carpet.
There was an invoice in the paperwork for a new cat a year or so before I bought the car...
De-cat, and swap it over at MOT time, it takes an hour or so change it over.
I discovered this on mine the first time I wound the right hand front seat right back whilst vacuuming the carpet.
There was an invoice in the paperwork for a new cat a year or so before I bought the car...
De-cat, and swap it over at MOT time, it takes an hour or so change it over.
Martin350 said:
A car with 100k+ on its original engine means it's been looked after and treated well.
That's an interesting way of looking at it and quite the contrast to the other opinions. Can we all discuss this? In a way, it makes sense. If it had not been well cared for it would have gone bad by now right?
Wadeski said:
See comments on the previous page about rust....you want to buy one problem to fix, not two...
In case the car has some rust, what is acceptable and what should I run away from?Of course it will depend on the depth of the rust. But are there any spots which if rusty I should just walk away? I guess some rust on fenders and the like it easily repairable. But are there an Achilles heel for rust with the RX8? For example in Alfa 159s, if the subframe around the engine has any rust, you should run as fast as possible away. Because those disintegrate because of the rust. They are notorious and infamous for that.
Well, that's the way I see it.
Mechanical sympathy combined with good maintenance will always make for a longer lasting engine rather than an abused/mistreated/neglected one, of course.
It's knowing that this has been done from new that is tricky to prove.
It's a bit of a gamble in most cases, I think.
Mechanical sympathy combined with good maintenance will always make for a longer lasting engine rather than an abused/mistreated/neglected one, of course.
It's knowing that this has been done from new that is tricky to prove.
It's a bit of a gamble in most cases, I think.
The good news is, it seems an unicorn has appeared.
I found a RX8 which on paper is the perfect car. Right color, top spec with nice interior and is even the very rare here stronger engine. It seems I could get it cheap enough to accommodate an engine rebuild too.
The bad news is, it apparently has some rust. But it is described as not bad. It also has a lot of miles. 135K
I feel like one of these won't show up any soon. So should I consider buying this? If so, any particular things i should pay attention to, apart form the already tips given here?
I found a RX8 which on paper is the perfect car. Right color, top spec with nice interior and is even the very rare here stronger engine. It seems I could get it cheap enough to accommodate an engine rebuild too.
The bad news is, it apparently has some rust. But it is described as not bad. It also has a lot of miles. 135K
I feel like one of these won't show up any soon. So should I consider buying this? If so, any particular things i should pay attention to, apart form the already tips given here?
Gassing Station | Japanese Chat | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff