Hi everyone, names Roger and im new, just have a few questions...

living in NE, does everyone have a winter beater? or is the RX-8 a decent car to have all year roung...obviously wont compare to the current subaru i own, but is it drivable?

also, any kind of meets going on around here, id love to come check out the cars and see if i really like it and want to switch over

Haha sometimes I wish I had a suby. I drove my car last winter. I live in Fargo, ND. It wasn't that bad as long as the roads were cleaned. As far as on ice, it sucked, but i also needed new tires. Still it sucked. If there was fresh snow or ice on the road I drove my moms durango. This winter I am looking for a beater. Especially since I'v got some money put into it...... Last winter I hit black ice on interstate at 75 mph. Thought i was gonna die. Seriously, trying to hang on was prolly more nerve wrecking then hitting the ditch. I just shifted into nuetral when i got a chance and let it coast until I came to a stop. Suprisingly I kept it on the road. I had to drive only about 20mph for about 7 more miles into town. If I drove faster the back end would twitch out..... Also on my first experience with my RX8 on ice last year, I managed to park on a median in town. I down shifted into second at about 20 at the car went completely sideways. Luckily the back tires stayed on the road and I was able to back out. No damage was done.

Don't get me wrong I love my car. The 8's are alot of fun and even knowing what I know about them now about how they handle in the winter, I would still buy one. Just want to be honest with you. Maybe others have had better luck though.

As far as the cold, my car always started. I drove my car to go snowboarding and even after being in the cold for hours it had no problem starting. And after the car warmed up it had no problem perfoming like it was 60-70 degrees out.

where in the NE are you?

something tells me the OP is in nebraska and not the northeast since he/she said they are in NE.

Worcester Massachusetts, honestly doesnt get much snow, more sleet/freezing rain

but we usually get about 2-3 good storms that clear out the next day

i'm in CT and just throw my blizzaks on when it gets cold and am good through the winter. do the same, be careful as you should with any car, and you will be good to go. it won't be the same as an AWD but no one can expect it to.

Worcester Massachusetts, honestly doesnt get much snow, more sleet/freezing rain

but we usually get about 2-3 good storms that clear out the next day

I live in Norwood, MA and well I'll say this. The car handled like a champ and was very damn predicable. I have the base model A/T which means I have no traction or stability control and I took my baby out durring some of the worst storms. Remember the storm we had last March? Well I took her out and yeah she handled very well. I had no spin outs ever last winter unless I myself enduced them to mess around, and if anything I'd like to think I handled my car way better than half the other drivers out there. The lack of torque we have in our engines plus decent set of snow or A/S tires I think are the best benifits our car has.

Trust me when I say you'll feel the difference with the RWD but the car with its weight is very predicable and you wont feel like the car or weather is driving you.

There are currently no meets planned atleast not at the moment, but if your lucky maybe one of us who live around you could meet up with ya and let ya check out the car. If ya lived a bit closer I'd offer myself up for this.

i live in worcester and i drive through the winter.
a good set of winter tires and you'll be fine, just use common sense.

amuseme you with the Worcester subie crew ??? if you are hit me up

I've driven my car in about 4-6 inches of snow to school and back (about 20 miles each way) carefully with very few problems. It's not a subaru in the snow, but if you drive it carefully, it is possible. This was done with Cooper Zeons 2XS, I'm gunna find out how it does with Toyo Proxies 4 (each brand was stock size) unless I sell her before it snows, and that's also assuming I don't just use my new DD.

Get snow tires and you really shouldn't have a problem.

Studded snow tires on a RX-8 probable makes it just as good as a subaru with performance all seasons.

I have a Base 2005 6MT = LSD but no TCS.

I use Dunlop WinterSport M3 in the winter. There are much more hard core ice and snow tires that you can buy, but they were good enough for me, and I have to stop on a hill at the end of my street. The car behaves very well once moving, but will not get going as easily as the AWD you are used to. Be patient and you'll do fine.