I drove my wife's Honda Civic the other day and on a tight turn had all four wheels sliding sideways. Sweet reminder that I wasn't driving my 8. Anyone else had this happen to them?

Sigh-I love my car :D

Yea, I get in my big power stroke pick up and feel ike I am going to tip over :)

I drive a 92 sentra as my snow car... quite a social drop....

Driving the 7 series BMW home from dinner the other night coming down the off ramp. A little too fast and got heavy on the breaks real quick when I realized it was not responding like my 8. Nothing sticks to the ground like it. Get me back in my car...

My snow car used to be a PT Cruiser turbo five speed. That was until Gordan helped me out with snow tires for the "8". But the 5 speed has Reverse in the upper left. Last time I drive it, I popped it in Reverse looking for first. And let's just say with the clutch grabbing at a different spot and certianly not a short shifter, it rarely gets driven any more. But I hear ya!

Traveling for my job, I regularly get to drive rental cars of various makes & models.

The latest was a Toyota Camry last week - unimpressive handling & performance.

I drive my civic on short trips and tedious journeys. Feels like the car got slower.

I drive a 1998 Honda CR-V for winter and really messy weather... It's like day and night difference in the way the steering reacts. But then again, you can't compare the two.

Driving our elderly 325i makes me feel like I'm shifting with a baseball bat. The car also throws you around a lot more than the 8.

Drove my 91 RX-7 convertible the other day for the first time in a couple of months, and that thing feels like a sloppy, loose, noisy piece of junk compared to the 8. Everything rattled, the engine was not as smooth, the brakes felt mushy, and the clutch had a garden tractor feel to it compared to the 8.

I used to think that the RX-7 handled great and felt like it really stuck to the road, but not now. I got back in the 8 and everything felt so much more tight and precise.

The 7 did much better in the snow though!! I think it is the tires though...........

I have one of the biggest differences of anyone yet...how about a Chevy S-10 pickup! Talk about different handling dynamics. Like riding on an elephant compared to a cheetah!

Originally posted by lourx8
I drove my wife's Honda Civic the other day and on a tight turn had all four wheels sliding sideways. Sweet reminder that I wasn't driving my 8. Anyone else had this happen to them?

Sigh-I love my car :D

I still drive my Civic Si and it still turns like no other, even better than my 8. Maybe it's because I'm still overprotective of the 8 and don't turn like a madman, but the Civic with all the mods handles pretty tight.. of course the speed blows.

Yeah, it's a real shock to drive almost any other car after the RX-8. The day after I got my '8 I had to travel on business. I picked up a Ford Focus at the airport and it felt like I was driving a big squashy ball. It rolled and pitched all over the road. It was frightening. When I got home, I got my wife's Miata sideways at the end of my driveway! I had no idea I was driving the '8 THAT fast up my drive! Next I drove a Subaru Forester and nearly overshot the road junction. Man you have to stand on those brakes to get it to stop! Now when I get back in my '8 I have to remind myself to be gentle on the brakes otherwise I stand it on its nose.

Went for a drive up to Port Townsend, WA this weekend. On the way back I got stuck behind slow moving traffic. I mean 55mph in a 50mph zone? That's just TOO SLOW! So, when I got an opportunity I thought I'd nibble away on each car in front of me by overtaking one at a time. So I dropped it down a few gears and before I knew it I was past all the cars and I was hitting my second change up alarm. It was so sweet to be able to dispatch those cars so easily. Of course I had to resuscitate my wife. I think she thought we were going to take off or explode or something equally dramatic. Wooohahahaha! ;)

I drove my sisters corolla and a rental kia when I had my oil pan replaced on my 8 and I was hating it big time

I drive an MX-6 for my daily commute. I can't knock it for its handling. The 8 is probably better, but I haven't gotten used to its limits like I know my 6. In my 6, I always! loose whoever is behind me on the highway ramps - by a mile. The 8 is the same way, I just do it much more carefully, whereas I just throw my 6 into it. I just need more time still with my 8.

That's where the similarity stops though. My MX-6 is 10 years old, has 188k miles on her & is in need of some TLC in the engine compartment, namely the oxygen sensors, especially, so it's power is not too good. It keeps up with the crowd fine & then some, but...

I was tagging along with a 3rd gen RX-7 (beautifull!!) one day in my 6. She didn't mind too much, but I could sense she really couldn't care less either. I'm like waving & stuff, thumbs up, & doing some maneuvering, but she was unimpressed basically, did a maneuver on her own & took an exit as I was hung-out in the passing lane. Shuh...

Now if I would have been in my 8, the tables would have turned! Who would have been doing the waving then? Well, she was a girl, and I do love 3rd gen RX-7's. Maybe she would have given me a wave back though... :)

Drove a 2003 Grand Marquis while my 8 was getting a new wheel, big and white, hated it. It would burn the tires pretty easily though. Also when I had my oil changed the guy who sold me my 8 wanted me to check out the Mazdaspeed protege, it was fun, sort of, a lot of torque but only 177 hp, then my girlfriend's Suburban, it scares me now, too high, too heavy, and brakes awfully.

Maybe, but you can run over 3 RX-8's without breaking a fingernail. :)

Yeah, driving around in my Mazda6 has become very mundane. The car handles nicely for being a 4 door sedan. The 4 cylinder has enough juice to keep up with traffic and then some. But you know, whenever you get stuck behind a line of cars that you know you can pass..... it just gets fustrating. But the biggest thing I miss is the respect. You lose total respect on the road from other people because you're just another guy in a family sedan. That's what really depresses me.

But.... Once I get into my FD!!! :D

Nothing is like the FD. People get out of your way even though you're km's back. People stop and wave at you when they see you coming. And the sound! It's just to die for!
Knowing I can just squeeze the throttle a little and get by anything I want.... No need to use half the throttle length. 1/4 of it is enough....
And yes, I do get the occasional sign from fellow RX-8's that want to "run". But as good as the RX-8 is, it can't match the power of my FD... :D

Us FD guys have to keep you RX-8 guys in place.... LOL!!! :D

Later,

You'll get no flames from me! I was at my mazda dealership, checking out the newest shipment of 8's, when a nicely modded yellow FD came rumbling out of the maint. shop. My jaw just dropped & the rest of me just went limp. When he hit the street, he hit the gas (I think he saw me lookin' :) ). Wow!!!

The reason I got my 8 was because I fell in love with the FD back in '95, I liked the FC and I remember the FB growning up, I'm 31. The FD was always so unobtainable, and the last few years no new ones in the United States. I totally forgot about it with new cars being released and at the time not enough funds. Well all those years of busting A$$ and here I am able to afford a sports car, looking.....looking, and hey there will be a new Z coming out, I'm thinking I'll pay off my current car and then buy a Z. (2 years ago), so a friend of mine has a OB/GYN girlfriend and she buys a Z, and so I'm not so sure, then my best friend (a '95 Supra owner) says, hey I think they are coming out with another RX-7 or it might be called the RX-8, I said "Whaaaaaat", so I'm looking on the web, see some of the concepts, forget about it for another 6 months, and think, hmmm, wonder what's up on the RX situation, saw the close to final model, fell in love, and the rest is history. I still tested the G35 Coupe, the Z, the Celica GT, the Audi TT and tried to fit in the S2000 (6'4"), anyway I couldn't have found a better choice for myself, the styling is above and beyond. Nice interior, hate American interior. If anyone says anything about the HP I just tell them if I wanted a pure power car minus handling I would have gotten a Cobra or an EVO. I too really love this car.

Got a chance (finally) to drive an S2000 belonging to a friend last week. Surprisingly it felt a little loose on rough roads (many rattles and at 12,000 mi.) and the acceleration did not meet my expectations, however, I must admit the handling is absolutely dangerous to the uninitiated, more responsive than my lowered and modded Cooper S I recently sold. Overall, I was disappointed, it's even more cramped inside than my Corvette. The 8's ride feels so "refined" in comparison in my opinion.