In smaller countries there is also a smaller supply of used cars which is why desireable cars cost more than in USA or EU. The maintenance and fuel economy scare stories keep most people off RX8s which lowers their price. Where I live I can get two RX8s for the price of an S2000. So even with increased maintenance and fuel costs, RX8 might be one of the best value for money sportscars out there.
Leuff true...I bought one for £700 and even after I’ve built a brand new engine and restored most of the chassis it will still only cost me around £10,000 which is still cheaper than most of the cars it would be competing with when it’s done
An 04 rx8 was my first sports, this video takes me back. It was such a fun car, revving to 9500, the chassis dynamics were, in most cases, really predictable and neutral, and the steering was as if the rack was telepathic.
I've been bouncing back and forth with getting a rx8. But honestly. This review is about to put me over the edge with me going buy a R3. After hearing that sound from the inside its putting a big smile on my face. I think it is funny honestly, because my father and uncles are all mopar muscle guys. They all own 69-73 cars. But i think I'm going to go my own path with getting something like this. Thanks!
Save up, build a quad rotor billet engine with P-porting and all the extra bells and whistles for fuel and ignition etc and then rinse their muscle cars...naturally aspirated 26B 👌👌👌 it’ll kill all muscle cars...and in a 2.6 litre
Even with its drawbacks 1 of the best pure sportscars around the handling is sublime...besides the late gen FC, FD, e30,e36, e46, e92, 986,987,997,996, and GT350 this is 1 of my favs but i grew up in my dads FA....im thinkin i want 1....the prices are great to and if you know what you're doing with porting you can get good power and decent mileage....
i have owned the original 2004 RX-8. phantom blue as this one looks. leap of faith...man...BEST LEAP EVER! so...i am buying a 2009 R3 THIS WEEKEND...MAYBE. my 2004 is a GRAND TOURING. 253-ish hp. rides like a big car. slow from a dead start...but i would TAKE MY RX-8 on a road course any day.
2004 motor had cooling issues. The 2005-2011 reconfigured the intakes and front air dam to help with cooling. Maintainance is the the NORM and "name of the Game" when owning ANY ROTARY. Not good gas mileage 16-st/22-26 hwy. IF YOU NEVER OWNED ONE...READ ALL YOU CAN. But biggest thing is...THE WANKEL ROTARY,by NATURE of Design,uses oil...NOT BURN....specifically....but the operation of the Wankel actually MAKES THE OIL FROTHY....and uses some. So MAKE A POINT to give it a sip nice a week and STAY UP ON THE LEVEL AND CHANGE IT OFTEN. some say MONEY PIT. truly HAS cost a lot...but to drive such an engineering marvel....JUST AMAZING AT HIGH SPEEDS. i am NOT CONDONING high speeds...but this CAR MUST BE REDLINED ON A REGULAR BASIS!!!! And break hard to keep the brakes calm and great stopping numbers. I love my 2004,1st yr of the RX-8. Motor made it 122,000 plus and is now dead. New Motor being blueprinted next week. So i cant wait....lol... I am going to Nashville this saturday to look at and likely take home,a 2009 RX-8 R3 6-speed manual. AVOID ANY AUTOMATIC IN A MAZDA RX-8. The R3 HAS a standard racing undercarriage. Bilstein Shocks. 19" Alloy wheels.... Always run high rated tires. 2011 RX-8 R3 with 6-spd manual is nice. Be prepared to have to spend money....but SO WORTH IT.
Dave Garrison the 2011 manual rx8 was the one I planned on getting depending on what's available when I get the funds. Trying to read up on best usage scenarios and all that good stuff. Just trying to make sure after spending 12 grand on a car I won't have to go back and replace an engine with 30k miles on it that'll cost over 5k extra
I really like the Mazda RX8 S2 R3, I bought a Mazda RX8 2004 GT last year as my first car and planning to sell it soon so I can save up and buy an R3. I hope I can find my ideal RX8, it would be 2011 R3 GT 6SP Velocity Red Mica preferrably stock with low mileage. I live in Bay Area and I think you were cruising at Calaveras Road, it looks familiar to me because I've drove there a couple times before and the scenery was beautiful!
As an S2000 guy, the RX-8 is one of those fun cars to drive to have fun revving high and playing around in corners, but it will never be as good as the RX-7. The RX-8 may be more suitable for daily driving, but the high maintenance of rotary engines and the Hummer gas mileage is what turns some people off from this car considering a Mustang GT can get much better gas mileage with more power, but the RX-8 is a car of it's own and it's good the way it is and it irks me when I see people swap LS engines or 2JZ engines in these cars.
Zygrene Yeah I think it's a great idea, just worried it'll affect weight distribution a bit too much. Anyways I'm going to go an see one either wednesday or the weekend so I'll post when I know more :P
So is the only negative with this car really the durability of the engine? I'm not a big fan of swaps, but it seems to me like the RX-8 makes an overwhelming case for an LS. Almost makes me wish my stepmother-in-law still had hers :}
+yitznewton Engine maintenance, the car's overall size, and seating position are the 3 cons for me. LS swap might ruin the car's balance. The stock motor only weighs about 250 lbs whereas an LS1 weighs over 450 lbs according to Google. This RX-8's front end felt extremely light. Lighter than the 3000+ lb curb weight would have you believe.
Don't get you panties in a bunch. I was talking about a factory produced car, I'd hardly call that a swap. I doubt they would call it an RX-8 even, I certainly wouldn't. The rotary is unique, the rotary is cool, the rotary is not the best engine ever.
This is car is sooo desirable holy crap. Looks good, drives great, so much character I just really wish that the rotary engine wasn't inherently an oil and fuel burner. You know what, I wouldn't mind that either if it wasn't for the wear and tear of the apex seals and whatnot. If I had disposable income and time and resources, I would love to have one
+Bushtail Razorback The 245 square setup on this RX8 felt really good. Good balance of grip and steering feel. I never felt the front end push in the corners.
+Art Vandelay tires feel numb and unresponsive as well as don't communicate. lateral traction is great but braking leaves some to be desired. or improved with more aggressive alignment specs but still doesn't like 40 degree road conditions. it's in a mk1 mr2
The sound comes from the doors, and you can get better mpg with a potent booster ($300) you can control the throttle response so you could get faster to 60mph or put it like in eco fuel and may you can get 20mpg, put performance air intake upgrade spark plugs and wires, don't put a turbo you're going to kill the engine like in 30kmiles or less
Evan Zhang. Yeah they better than the seats in the RX-7 anyway I mean I'm sorry I realize u have an RX-7 as ur pro picture but I mean I'm being honest... no wonder u want to change them😂😂
In smaller countries there is also a smaller supply of used cars which is why desireable cars cost more than in USA or EU. The maintenance and fuel economy scare stories keep most people off RX8s which lowers their price. Where I live I can get two RX8s for the price of an S2000. So even with increased maintenance and fuel costs, RX8 might be one of the best value for money sportscars out there.
Leuff true...I bought one for £700 and even after I’ve built a brand new engine and restored most of the chassis it will still only cost me around £10,000 which is still cheaper than most of the cars it would be competing with when it’s done
R3 also comes with a urethane injected front crossmember for added rigidity. Love the R3!
Drove my buddies R3 in NH a while back, love the noise it makes as you climb over 7000 revs
Super jelly
An 04 rx8 was my first sports, this video takes me back. It was such a fun car, revving to 9500, the chassis dynamics were, in most cases, really predictable and neutral, and the steering was as if the rack was telepathic.
Always great stuff! IMO the music during the fast section is distracting. I just wanna hear the car :}
+yitznewton It was a last minute decision to include the music. I'm curious what others think.
yitznewton. Yea great video apart from the music part... we wanna hear the rotary sound dude😉
dahail u are a machine with these uploads. GUYS HE FILMED THIS MORNING
.... yesterday morning (ugh why is it 2AM)
+Mendi Sui go to sleep, you're drunk
+Zygrene SOMEONE COULDN'T HANG YESTERDAY
I've been bouncing back and forth with getting a rx8. But honestly. This review is about to put me over the edge with me going buy a R3. After hearing that sound from the inside its putting a big smile on my face. I think it is funny honestly, because my father and uncles are all mopar muscle guys. They all own 69-73 cars. But i think I'm going to go my own path with getting something like this. Thanks!
As long as you're comfortable with the maintenance, I'd say go for it! It's a great handling and sounding car.
Save up, build a quad rotor billet engine with P-porting and all the extra bells and whistles for fuel and ignition etc and then rinse their muscle cars...naturally aspirated 26B 👌👌👌 it’ll kill all muscle cars...and in a 2.6 litre
Even with its drawbacks 1 of the best pure sportscars around the handling is sublime...besides the late gen FC, FD, e30,e36, e46, e92, 986,987,997,996, and GT350 this is 1 of my favs but i grew up in my dads FA....im thinkin i want 1....the prices are great to and if you know what you're doing with porting you can get good power and decent mileage....
Can the owner elaborate on what the extra maintenance he does?
How does this guy have California plates and no cat. Can someone please explain!?
The seat is adjustable for height
i have owned the original 2004 RX-8. phantom blue as this one looks.
leap of faith...man...BEST LEAP EVER!
so...i am buying a 2009 R3 THIS WEEKEND...MAYBE.
my 2004 is a GRAND TOURING. 253-ish hp.
rides like a big car.
slow from a dead start...but i would TAKE MY RX-8 on a road course any day.
Dave Garrison how was the maintenance? Also any issues with flooding? Any special care? Been really looking into buying a 2011 ond
2004 motor had cooling issues. The 2005-2011 reconfigured the intakes and front air dam to help with cooling.
Maintainance is the the NORM and "name of the Game" when owning ANY ROTARY.
Not good gas mileage
16-st/22-26 hwy.
IF YOU NEVER OWNED ONE...READ ALL YOU CAN.
But biggest thing is...THE WANKEL ROTARY,by NATURE of Design,uses oil...NOT BURN....specifically....but the operation of the Wankel actually MAKES THE OIL FROTHY....and uses some.
So MAKE A POINT to give it a sip nice a week and STAY UP ON THE LEVEL AND CHANGE IT OFTEN.
some say MONEY PIT.
truly HAS cost a lot...but to drive such an engineering marvel....JUST AMAZING AT HIGH SPEEDS. i am NOT CONDONING high speeds...but this CAR MUST BE REDLINED ON A REGULAR BASIS!!!!
And break hard to keep the brakes calm and great stopping numbers.
I love my 2004,1st yr of the RX-8. Motor made it 122,000 plus and is now dead. New Motor being blueprinted next week. So i cant wait....lol... I am going to Nashville this saturday to look at and likely take home,a 2009 RX-8 R3 6-speed manual.
AVOID ANY AUTOMATIC IN A MAZDA RX-8.
The R3 HAS a standard racing undercarriage. Bilstein Shocks. 19" Alloy wheels.... Always run high rated tires.
2011 RX-8 R3 with 6-spd manual is nice.
Be prepared to have to spend money....but SO WORTH IT.
Dave Garrison the 2011 manual rx8 was the one I planned on getting depending on what's available when I get the funds. Trying to read up on best usage scenarios and all that good stuff. Just trying to make sure after spending 12 grand on a car I won't have to go back and replace an engine with 30k miles on it that'll cost over 5k extra
I really like the Mazda RX8 S2 R3, I bought a Mazda RX8 2004 GT last year as my first car and planning to sell it soon so I can save up and buy an R3. I hope I can find my ideal RX8, it would be 2011 R3 GT 6SP Velocity Red Mica preferrably stock with low mileage. I live in Bay Area and I think you were cruising at Calaveras Road, it looks familiar to me because I've drove there a couple times before and the scenery was beautiful!
why? whats so wrong with 04?
As an S2000 guy, the RX-8 is one of those fun cars to drive to have fun revving high and playing around in corners, but it will never be as good as the RX-7. The RX-8 may be more suitable for daily driving, but the high maintenance of rotary engines and the Hummer gas mileage is what turns some people off from this car considering a Mustang GT can get much better gas mileage with more power, but the RX-8 is a car of it's own and it's good the way it is and it irks me when I see people swap LS engines or 2JZ engines in these cars.
Well I'm buying one with a blown engine and putting something like a 1uz/3uz or 2jz in it. Does that still irk you?
+BarbecuedPossum NA V8 in an RX-8 chassis sounds fun as hell, do it
Zygrene Yeah I think it's a great idea, just worried it'll affect weight distribution a bit too much. Anyways I'm going to go an see one either wednesday or the weekend so I'll post when I know more :P
Great vid. Watched the whole thing which is a rarity haha!
So is the only negative with this car really the durability of the engine? I'm not a big fan of swaps, but it seems to me like the RX-8 makes an overwhelming case for an LS. Almost makes me wish my stepmother-in-law still had hers :}
+yitznewton Engine maintenance, the car's overall size, and seating position are the 3 cons for me. LS swap might ruin the car's balance. The stock motor only weighs about 250 lbs whereas an LS1 weighs over 450 lbs according to Google. This RX-8's front end felt extremely light. Lighter than the 3000+ lb curb weight would have you believe.
+yitznewton People are Kswapping them now,seems the most practical swap
very light motor,good mileage and power
***** That seems a lot more reasonable. I would love to try a K swapped RX8.
+Zygrene or how bout boosted F22C, that would be a blast!
yitznewton ~320hp supercharged would be fun
i love this car
that's my DREAM CAR :>
This makes me miss my r3. :(
Great car. Owner seemed nice. It'll always make me sad they never tried putting the MS3's 2.3 turbo under the hood.
That would be interesting. Reliability aside, I do enjoy revving the rotary out to 9000rpm.
Fair enough, it is fun revving an engine out.
swap.... out... the rotary? :(
Don't get you panties in a bunch. I was talking about a factory produced car, I'd hardly call that a swap. I doubt they would call it an RX-8 even, I certainly wouldn't. The rotary is unique, the rotary is cool, the rotary is not the best engine ever.
says you my friend, says you
This is car is sooo desirable holy crap. Looks good, drives great, so much character
I just really wish that the rotary engine wasn't inherently an oil and fuel burner. You know what, I wouldn't mind that either if it wasn't for the wear and tear of the apex seals and whatnot. If I had disposable income and time and resources, I would love to have one
what did you think of the rs3 tire on the rx8? I'm still messing with mine to try to get them to behave how i want
+Bushtail Razorback The 245 square setup on this RX8 felt really good. Good balance of grip and steering feel. I never felt the front end push in the corners.
+Zygrene , yeah you heard my issues with them, lol. but it is good to hear how they are in different layouts and applications
+Bushtail Razorback what problem did you have? and with what chassis?
thanks
+Art Vandelay tires feel numb and unresponsive as well as don't communicate. lateral traction is great but braking leaves some to be desired. or improved with more aggressive alignment specs but still doesn't like 40 degree road conditions. it's in a mk1 mr2
18k front 14k back is soft. Damn my Fd have ohlins dfv 12k on all corners and I thought that was a high spring rate. Dude is 12k on an Fd soft?
It's 8k front 4k rear
Visibility not as good as a brz? What are you smoking
The sound comes from the doors, and you can get better mpg with a potent booster ($300) you can control the throttle response so you could get faster to 60mph or put it like in eco fuel and may you can get 20mpg, put performance air intake upgrade spark plugs and wires, don't put a turbo you're going to kill the engine like in 30kmiles or less
give me those seats
Evan Zhang. Yeah they better than the seats in the RX-7 anyway I mean I'm sorry I realize u have an RX-7 as ur pro picture but I mean I'm being honest... no wonder u want to change them😂😂
The standard rx8 seat looks much better.
@@Ozem_Israel agree
More rx8 videos
nice heel and toe!
he looks like Takanori Gomi lol
+hh155 Holy crap, you're right. Fireball Kid!
i know that r3...
How come Asians never have facial hair?😞
Aston Martin is better
10yo detected