Ok, so here's the deal. I ordered my RX-8 back at the end of march/beginning of april. The dealer looked across the country to try and find one the way I wanted...no luck. Needless to say, he ordered one direct from factory, and now its been built and its made it across the ocean, and is now on its way to the dealer, scheduled for the second week of july deliver. Well, if that hasn't been enough waiting, I'm having the dealer do its minor work to it, and then take it to the Audio shop to get a TON of work done, including some minor body work.

As you may gather, I've had the past few months to extensively plan this install, and it's a ton of stuff. My goal is to make the car NOT stand out, be an everyday driver, and be the badest it can. I don't want anyone to be able to take a glance at the car and be able to tell that its any different from any other RX-8. As for body kits, I like the MS kit, but have other various reasons I won't get into on why I'm not going that route. Also note, I don't need any more performance out of this car than it already has, in no way do I want to do absolutely anything that may void any sort of warranty on the engine. Radio, alarm, etc...that's obviously not an issue. So, given the extensive detailed nature of the parts that I'm putting in, I thought I would share and get some opinions. The best/easiest way to share is to attach the spreadsheet I've been using to detail all the work that needs to be done...so here goes.

Please don't reply with, "I hate it, that's stupid, blah, blah." I want constructive criticism, or praise...haha. If you think I can make something better, or have other ideas...please, I want to hear, that's why I'm posting this.

Thanks

seems like you have a good plan and know what you want

by way don't you want your 8 to stand out

I don't want people to be able to be looking down the street and be like, Oh look that's the 8 with all the stuff. Kinda a mental thing for me. I think of it as, if it looks like any other 8, than its less likely to have something bad happen to it, ie theft, key, etc.

well
I feel the opposite
I love when people stare and point
but I also do get negative attention sometimes from cops and jerks that key cars

Looks cool dude. Only thing is that you forgot to list what OS and software you will be running. Also, given that you are going non-stock audio (it seems) you may want to reconsider stock nav - you can use the carputer to do satnav, install a bitchin' touchscreen in the console, and do away with most of the crap that lots of peopole have been suckered into.

I don't understand the "don't want to stand out" and underbody neon. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against neon, and am on the edge of putting it on mine, but it seems to scream "Look at me"!

I always think modding car is very personal. There is no right or wrong mod category but there is always a wrong mod for each part. Must choose carefully. If you can state your reason for each mod beside "I like it, or someone has it in their lancer"

Neon is good when it is done well.

Are you thinking any engine mod?

Better have the cloth model for your car I guess you have to custom made the leather to your body colour ... better get the good seat like Recaro or Bride in leather!

Nice list - I like it... very F&F2 ;)

Originally posted by devoid
I don't want people to be able to be looking down the street and be like, Oh look that's the 8 with all the stuff. Kinda a mental thing for me. I think of it as, if it looks like any other 8, than its less likely to have something bad happen to it, ie theft, key, etc. Then why the neon?

---jps

To answer the neon question...I guess I must better explain my dislike for attention. It's alright when I'm in the car/driving. But I don't want it parked someone and for you to be able to take one glance and know "that's the one." With neon, its not on when I'm not around. Unless you get WAY down under the car, you don't know its there. That's where the idea that I want it to look stock from plain view, just parked in a parking lot like any other black RX-8. But when its on, inside you'll know the kickin' system, and even outside, you can see the neon, only when I have it on anyway....does this make sense?

Just sitting in the parking lot, it looks like any other. Essentially it will only draw attention when I'm around and turn the neon on. Hope that explains my thinking.

Thanks all for the responses.

kids...all of you must be so starved for attention...

but to each his own i suppose...i got the car so _I_ could enjoy it..not someone else...

street scene is so much different from show scene...i had neon on my SHOW cars..they rarely were on the street...the ONE time i had my 300Z on the street (in it's show setup)I was pulled over for improper lighting...all i was doing was taking it down one of the campus roads at college to re tune it...i think riding around with neon and your stereo loud enough for OTHERS to hear it is plain old silliness...

although i feel this way my wife calls me a hypocrite because i owned a custom install shop and still build systems for people...so go figure but...i rather not have any attention brought to me, my car, or my family..

one day some one will find out THAT'S THE BLACK 8 with all that stuff and you will find it trashed...hopefully not but sadly it's still possible...good luck though in your quest..

thats sounds like a badass setup. so how much is all that going to cost you?

Originally posted by devoid
To answer the neon question...I guess I must better explain my dislike for attention. It's alright when I'm in the car/driving. But I don't want it parked someone and for you to be able to take one glance and know "that's the one." With neon, its not on when I'm not around. Unless you get WAY down under the car, you don't know its there. That's where the idea that I want it to look stock from plain view, just parked in a parking lot like any other black RX-8. But when its on, inside you'll know the kickin' system, and even outside, you can see the neon, only when I have it on anyway....does this make sense?... That makes perfect sense. And it can be effective, to a point.

The reason why I was asking is because even though the stereo and neon items aren't in plain sight when parked (so that bad elements looking through a lot won't immediately pick up on it), the neon lights and the loud stereo will grab attention from bad elements (along with the good) when driving down the street. It will tend to leave an impression on some bad elements, and they could be walking through some shopping mall lot on the way to a store one day, see a black RX8 (they aren't that common at this time), and quickly check under the car to confirm that it indeed is the one with the badass stereo they saw before.

Toyota MR2 owners have found this out the hard way. They are pretty rare, and an MR2 coule be pretty easily recognized when it is seen again (even if it hasn't been "pimped out"). Some of them have become targets (either by jealous vandals, or people looking to get some gear). We've had people whose cars have been hit while at dealerships, work, or homes, and sometimes, even MR2 specific items were stolen (obviously to be put on another MR2).

Anyway, my point is just that as long as you have neon lights and a thumper stereo, you will be attracting some bad attention. And when you have a unique car, you are more recognizable than if you had a Camaro, for example.

---jps

love the setup, you are definitely going full out

it sounds like you'll have a total of 3 screens in the car between the two for the alpine and the factory nav? sounds a bit much but I might be wrong

where do you plan on mounting the computer? I noticed you were going for performance over size so I figure the only place you would be able to mount it is in the trunk.

And one more question...How much is it going to cost you to get rid of the orange peel? I want to get that done but would imagine it would cost quite a bit.




One suggestion: get the strakes and the MS spoiler, look amazing on the black rx-8

Originally posted by glxyjones
love the setup, you are definitely going full out

it sounds like you'll have a total of 3 screens in the car between the two for the alpine and the factory nav? sounds a bit much but I might be wrong


Yes, three screens, all with independent function. The nav screen will have a manual switch to control it from being nav, or controlled by the alpine.


where do you plan on mounting the computer? I noticed you were going for performance over size so I figure the only place you would be able to mount it is in the trunk.


Yes, the computer will be mounted in the trunk. It along with the PS2 and DVD changer will all be tighly designed into a box that will sit directly behind the driver's side rear passenger seat. This way, passangers will have access to changing discs while I'm driving. The computer will be hooked into the alpine for display/audio purposes.

To answer an earlier quetion, the computer will be running XP Pro. (XP Media Center needed proprietary video drivers...I tried loading it, and it failed. :-( )

Finally, the computer will have a small glowing keyboard that I will keep in the glove box. The black trackpad will be located set into the center consel typically where the heated seat buttons go.



And one more question...How much is it going to cost you to get rid of the orange peel? I want to get that done but would imagine it would cost quite a bit.


I'll have to let you know on that one....I currently don't have a price. I'm working with the company who is going to be doing it to get a quote together. I should have it by the end of the week.



One suggestion: get the strakes and the MS spoiler, look amazing on the black rx-8

Personal preferrance here. I'm not liking the strakes or the MS spoiler, but I appreciate the suggestions....keep um coming. ;-)

Hey guys, I greatly appreciate the constructive criticism going on here. You're all bringing up valid points about the neon, and I appreciate. It's making me think further about it.

As for when all this is displayed, I do plan on taking this car to shows. I'm not typically a person to go thumping down the road. I like my music, and I like my thump, I don't like to rattle the neighbors windows. Dispite this being a very potentially load system, yes it has that capability and then some, it is an extremely clean system. MB Quart's are no competition loud speakers, though they get load, their design is to play music as cleanly as possible. The amps are there to provide ample power to do just this. (MB Quart pro series speakers have some high demands)

As for the sub...its just that, one sub. It's there to fill in the low end, but thump if I want it. If I was looking for the thump, I'd consider throwing a couple of these in the trunk, but again, I'm looking for getting some of the cleanest sound I can get out of a system.

Thanks again for the neon comments...I'm going to be pondering this over...

As for someone asking what the final cost of all this will be....let's just say my total cost, car and system, is quickly approaching the cost of my alternate choice...the Lexus SC430. :-)

You should put some nice wheels and a body kit and then you will stand out.

mmmm Lexus SC430....love that car

but WHY did they even bother making it a 4-seater, those have to be the smallest backseats ever?!?!?! Although I never sat back there, has anyone?

You might want to try linux instead of winxp for a few reasons:

If you use a read-only filesystem, and tweak the startup rc's, you could have linux boot up ALOT faster than xp.

If you wanted to, you could run it on a biscuit pc that could fit in your glovebox.....yeah, you can do this with windows as well, but its not as friendly.

It's also alot more configurable in general and its alot easier to make it work the way you want, wich is important for an embedded system.

Jordan

I already have the PC built as you can see accoding to the excel sheet. The XP setup is set to hybernate. This makes boot and shutdown near immediate. Even with starting this sytem from a full shutdown it takes maybe 5-7 sec. Haven't really ever took a stopwatch to clock it, but its blazingly fast. Let's just say by the time I turn the key and the system starts waking up, and I'm ready to put the car in gear, the system is already up and running.

Though I do plenty of work in linux, XP was just the simpilar choice for all around use. This will allow other users in the vehicle to quickly link up with my system with no need to tweak. Also, it will allow for the majority of people to be familiar with the system, as most are already familiar with XP.

As for size, the computer is pretty much the size of the motherboard. The computer will be mounted in the trunk along with most of the other electronic equipment. The electronics all together truly won't take up much room in the trunk at all, so I'll still have a very large portion of the trunk available.

As for customizing, I don't need anything more then access to my frequently used apps. Since audio and DVD will be the job of the Alpine and iPod, I primarily be using the computer for such things as DivX.

Thx for the input though. Hope I explained my reasoning for my choice!

Well...the car just arrived at the dealership. I'll be inspecting it tonight before it gets shipped off to the audio and body shops. I'll be taking extensive pictures and video, since I'll never see the car stock again. :-( I'll keep updates flowing for how everything is going. This is the largest install anyone of these guys has ever done. I have to praise my dealership though for all the hard work they've done for me and putting up with my fanatical nature for this car. Everything about this is an extremely unique case, and everyone is pulling their weight. Thx all!

this is gonna be cool to watch

yeah I cannot wait to see the progress of this install. Did they give you a time estimate on when everything will be done? Good luck man!!

PS: any news on the price of getting the orange peel removied?

Alright...so here's the latest update. I went to the dealer last night and checked out the car. It's beautiful! I really starting to get impatient now that I can physically see it. Anyway, I grabbed some pics and video, but I'll grab some more tonight, and hopefully have a few to post. Man, the NAV is so damn cool, I look forward to being able to use it.

As for the plan...tonight, I'm going with the salesman to drive it over to the install shop. The install shop will have it for at least 3 weeks. The body shop is planning on keeping it for at least 2 weeks.

So the estimate is that I should finally complete the transaction with the dealership and take ownership at the end of next month (aug). Man, 4 months down, 1 to go. Talk about getting itchy.

As for my updates, I plan on taking a lot of pictures and video (probably everyday) so I'll simply post it on my website. When I have this all arranged, I'll post a link for everyone. I'll probably do some work on the site this weekend so I at least have something up.

[but WHY did they even bother making it a 4-seater, those have to be the smallest backseats ever?!?!?! Although I never sat back there, has anyone?
]
they are some of the biggest back seats for a sports car they can fit 4 grown men comfortably

Not sure I understand what you are trying to say, or if you were answering a quote...but as for the backseats...

Yes, I have sat in the back as well as my parents. I wanted my parents to test drive the car and give me their input before I bought the car. Needless to say, both my parents, including myself had absolutely no complaint about the back seats. There is plenty of room. The only issue is that you may feel enclosed because the windows are a bit foward, but they are actually very comfortable and roomy for myself and my friends. (That may not be the case with everyone, however)

Also, there are lots of reviews of people astonished be the amount of room as well....

PS - glad to see you stopped over here the-jewish-rx8...hope you liked the system design!

really? I saw the picture for the lexus and they just look incredibly small...I've never sat in one so I don't know, but edmunds.com said they were pretty small...thanks for the reply though

-Greg

oh....damn....though I searched, I didn't search hard enough for the quote about the back seats. Ok...so to truly answer the real question...

The SC430 does have some rather small seats...I have also sat in the back of them. The worst about them is they are very vertical, not exactly the most comfortable position in my opinion, but they're functional. I myself could get back there, and only some of my friends. It's definitely a car you would have to go out of your way to move forward a bit to make the rear passenger comfortable, but definitely manageable. Not truly ideal for a long trip. I think the purpose is more suited to storing your luggage while the top is down, though surprisingly there is ample room in the trunk even with the top down.

Sorry for the confusion, I went with my best guess and assumed the question was about the 8. I should have went with my gut, wondering why an 8 owner would be asking such a question...but now I know....sorry about that glxyjones...hope I've now truly answered your question.

PS - its always technically cheaper on insurance to have a 4 seater as opposed to a 2 seater...ie the camaro or firebird. Though not always practical.

sorry i thought he ment the 8 too i was trying to answer a quote i just dont know how devoid i love the stuff ur doing to ur car you will have send pics. i decided to take ur adivce and work on the interior. lets face it girls wont be impressed by preformace they will be impress by looks. i also agree on ur decision to make it stand out. its my personal opinion that when someone trys to hard to make their car look realy hot it back fires and make it look kind of dumb. the only exterior work i plan on getting his rims and a tint.

also i am thrilled to ahve come home and found that while i was away (beach house party im still in highschool :) ) my sister had her friend install red neons in it. im hoping for rims for my birthday but i have not found ones sutible for my red rx8 if u have any sigestions on rims i would apperciate it

devoid any pictures or update on your car ....how about an address for the website

alright....I'll put an update up tonight....I'll do my best to scrounge up a site tonight and then post the address...

wuz up....how is it going....have you gotten the car back....any updates

ok...finally...much anticipated...the website: devoid.mine.nu/pictures (http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures)

The main pages are thumbnails, while the main pictures were shrunk down to 800x600, for full screen viewing purposes.
Please understand, this was something that had to be thrown together quickly. I have been extremely busy lately and no time to make a site, so this is what I could manage.

As for the car, I just today put the first scotch-guard coat on the carpet and seats (I brought the seats and carpet home from the install shop)

The install shop is partway through the alarm, and mostway through the AV. They've installed most of the Alpine electronics as you can tell by the pictures. They've done a huge amount of wiring. I'm still waiting for parts I ordered like 3 weeks ago from CanZoomer, as well as Corksport. I also need about another week to get the rest of the computer wiring.

Things are going smoothly so far and looking good.
Sorry to keep this short, but I'll try to make another update tonight.

dude good luck with everything. man that looks scary...having the care all in parts....congrats u are going to have a nice set up.

just keep an eye out...the pictures are being updated daily. As for today, they got the wiring ran for the inter-battery cabling. This means the 2-gauge wires that will connect the front battery to the rear battery. This is some thick stuff! I installed the 3rd brake light mod sat, but didn't have anyone around to push the brake so I could snap a pic, so I got some pics today. All-in-all, things are coming along nicely. Now, if only I could get the rest of my parts in...Ahem, CanZoomer...cough, cough...Corksport....hack, wheez, cough, computer junk....Ahem. Sorry about that...didn't want to mention any names or anything. ;-) Oh well, things should be in soon and we'll keep moving right along.

that looks really crazy

can't wait to see final product on this

Sorry about no updates lately. They really haven't been able to do anything the past 2 days. Hopefully I'll have some pics tonight if they've done some more work. Other good news is I got my brake lines and exhaust from CorkSport, and I got the clear corners, lighted shift knob, and grounding kit from CanZoomer. So last but not least, I'll have pics friday when I install that stuff! I'll keep updates coming...

i like the rx8 light by the trunk how much do they cost

i like the rx8 light by the trunk how much do they cost

To answer that question...its only a few bucks, but for more information, do a search on something having to do with "third brake light mod" or something to that effect. You'll find out who created it, and you can pm him and he'll give you a price and info. It's very cheap, very simple, and very cool!

As for the rest of what's going on. Things have slowed down a bit on the car. Right now they are working on creating the new face plate. They did an amazing job as of the present moment with fitting the screen and drive into the new face, but its going to take some time and patience till its complete.

We do have a problem though, and I need some help. Right now, we've realized that the entire upper display (the red display where radio, time, and temp control settings are displayed) are all run through the factory radio. I'm asking all those with electrical manuals pertaining to this info if you could PLEASE, pm me or post some info up pertaining to this. Essentially, we need to know the bare minimum components we need to put back into the car in order to have the display working correctly. Specifically what circuit boards, etc. I'm hoping this is in one of the electrical manuals.

PS - pics of clear lens mod posted on my site. (latest date)

I especially like what you've done with the oil cooler covers, and the grille. :) How did you go about this?? And what materials did you use??
Good luck finishing your car... ;)

Thanks.

umm...I really couldn't tell you. I think it's just a product of the pictures that the grill and oil coolers don't look like they are there. At least so far as I know...it may be the case that the shop did some work on it and didn't tell me, but I highly doubt it. The body shop is going to mold some plastic grills to match the front grill for the oil coolers and the radiator, however. That's not for a couple weeks though. So I guess the answer for right now, so far as I know is, nothing has been done to the grills, yet...its just a product of the lighting when taking the pictures.

i am so excited to see the final!!!!

Seeing as it looks like I still have some interest....I thought I would update you guys to let you know what's up. The Audio install shop has fallen far behind, much to my and the installer's dissappointment! It's not his fault, however, but rather those running the scheduling end of their business biting off more than they can chew. They're trying to spread themselves between about 4 big installs, on top of the daily work of radios and such. Unfortunetely, they don't see the fault in their scheduling. Even my sister sees the fault in their scheduling, and compared it to American Chopper. You should only work on one "theme" vehicle at a time, b/c it involves everyone in the shop...oh well....that's my rant.

Anyway, I've uploaded more pics, as always to my server. I recently installed the CanZoomer/MS grounding kit. Though it was blue, we shrowded it in black wrap, so it looks great in the engine bay, really factory style. I was also able to install the lighted shift knob...man, I can't even tell you how classy that thing looks! I have yet to grab some pics of it though...

The biggest change in the design, as of late, is that I'm now doing ICELED's. Man are those things expensive, expecially compared to neon...but I'm a believer in "you get what you pay for!" So I'm really excited. Under my main directory for my pictures, you'll see led_exterior and led_interior JPGs...the highest numbered versions are the final design. We decided to stick with blue LED's for all the electronics (ie the amps, the computer, and PS2).

Well, as always, keep checking for more pics: http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures

Thought I'd let you guys know that they've ripped down the roof liner and taken apart the doors. Things are going well. Hopefully this week the trunk will get finished. They've worked on the fiberglass for the sub encloser, and are near complete! As always, check out the pics...the last date: 20040818 - RX-8 @ http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures

NOW THIS IS AN RX-8 TRUNK...oh yeah, it's getting there folks...hopefully by the weekend the trunk will be complete. Check it out...
http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures/20040819%20-%20RX-8/

NOW THIS IS AN RX-8 TRUNK...oh yeah, it's getting there folks...hopefully by the weekend the trunk will be complete. Check it out...
http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures/20040819%20-%20RX-8/

u are my hero. i am so excited to see this when it's done.

p.s. what was your last car/audio set-up?

Hahaha...that's a good one....my last car (or present car for that matter) is a plymouth acclaim. The good part about it was that it is such a common car, especially for when I was in college, no one thought twice about it. Thus, having a decent system in there was no big deal or worry. Anyway, I just had a kenwood excelon CD reciever, Sub amp (the old style with the powered automatic open/close cover), Infinity Kappa Perfect 10.1, 2 x Sony 5.25" 2-way rear speakers, 2x Sony 5.25" 3-way speakers front, and a 20GB Neo Jukebox (for MP3's, www.ssiamerica.com for those interested).

My current car was setup in the same manner I design all my cars...they look stock for the most part...there is nothing screaming at you, hey, I've got a hell of a system in me. Like all those Chrome wheels and accents, or air bags, or spinners, etc. ;)

I hope to do every RX-8 owner proud with this install, and I'm so freakin' pumped, I can hardly wait to finally be driving it...

PS - After many a talk with Michelle from CanZoomer, it would appear that I've purchased EVERY applicable item possible from them...mirror under lights, lighted shift knob, rear fog, MS grounding kit, start button, Stage 1, stage 2, programming cable, CanScan upgrade, clear corners, mid pipe, HF cat and that's all I can think of...Michelle will let me know if I missed something ;) The only part I did want that they couldn't really get was the car cover....
Does anyone know where to get a good price on the car cover? I've seen them for $194 or so...

Anyway, I hope everyone likes the look of things on the car! It should be off to the body shop next week!

Devoid,

I continue to be incredibly pumped about your car! Just curious where you live as I wouldn't mind seeing it in person when it is done. Are you in CA?

No...I'm in ohio...and believe me, you're not the only one pumped to see it when its done! ;) Right now, it looks like it has been delayed till mid sept. The audio shop severely underestimated the time they could put into it. I have no doubt they could have met the schedule if they were only working on one "theme" car at a time...but that's another rant for another time. Anyway, they know my goal is quality, not speed...

On a side note, I got the ICELEDs mon...and man, though they are expensive as hell, they are worth the money. They are simply incredible. Nothing in the US compares to these things. They are brighter than neons, blend just as well, and unlike US LED tubes, the colors blend perfectly providing 2 million colors rather than 7...and the kicker, they blend so well, from an inch away from any surface, the LEDs blend together so you don't see each individual LED in a reflection, unlike US LEDs.

Abbid - I don't wanna know the cost...seriously....I don't wanna know... :( I just keep myself excited by the end result, cause I know its gonna kick butt!

What a dream project. I have been following this, but have not commented in your thread, but really cool design I must say. :cool:

Makes my PIE connector look like a kids bandaid :p

I'm in Ohio about every 4 months on business, would love to hook up in the future to see this project first hand.

Here's an FAQ I'm working on for the car...make any comments, corrections, or additions!

Frequently asked questions and answers

About the Car:

Q: Why did you choose an RX-8?
A: Because it is a fantastic car. It has a great design and amazing performance, and had a terrific potential for this project. By itself it is a terrific Grand Touring vehicle, but now I’ve created the Ultimate Grand Touring car!

Q: Does the car run?
A: Yes. Stock it has a 50-50 weight ratio (front to back) and 238hp. While we’ve obviously lost the 50-50 weight ratio, we’ve added approximately 40hp for a total of 278hp. This is also real-time computer adjustable to allow you to change from better performance to better economy or anything in between.

Q: Is it fast?
A: Yes. This is not a drag car made for doing ¼ mile runs, but get it on the track and it will run with the best. It has been timed on a track and scored exactly the same as a Nissan 350Z and a BMW M3.

Q: What kind of engine does that have, a fourbanger, 6, V8, jet engine?
A: None of the above! The RX-8 utilizes Mazda’s latest Rotary Engine designated the RENESIS engine. While your doctor may prescribe RX-8 for the thrill seeker in you, the RX really stands for Rotary eXperimental. The 8 in RX-8 stands for the 8th generation production RX car created by Mazda. Unlike piston engines, rotary engines have very few moving parts - the rotors and the crankshaft. In the case of the RX-8's RENESIS engine, this means 2 rotors and a crankshaft (3 moving parts!). When well taken care of, rotary engines are very reliable. They do not take kindly to abuse such as low oil or overheating, however, and many of the stories you hear about unreliable rotaries were from ones that were abused or from early 3rd generation turbo-charged RX-7s that had heat problems.

Q: How big is the engine?
A: 1300cc or 1.3L. The engine is approximately the same height as the transmission, and its small size provides for the overall design of the car as a functional 4 seat sports car.

Q: How many pistons & cylinders does it have?
A: 0 and 0. The engine uses a rotor. This rotor is shaped like a triangle that rotates in a continuous direction within an oval housing. This continuous movement, unlike a piston engine moving up and down, provides for smooth revving and high RPM redline.

Q: How high does it rev?
A: The RX-8 has a redline at 9000RPM and can be pushed slightly beyond. You need to be warned by the buzzer that you are approaching redline because the engine runs so smooth!

Q: How many doors does it have and do the rear seats fit adults?
A: It is considered a 4-door and it does fit 4 adults comfortably. The doors are suicide-style, with the front doors overlapping slightly on top of the rear doors. The rear doors will open only after the front doors are open. While the RX-8 has no B-pillars to impede ingress and egress from the rear seats.

About the electronics:

Q: How long did the installation take?
A: Approximately 2 months.

Q: How much did this system cost to build?
A: I don't know and don't want to know. (If I ever figure out how much it really cost, I’d probably commit myself.)

Q: How much would you charge to build one just like it?
A: One million dollars plus tips. (Non-negotiable)

Q: Why didn't you use W7 subwoofers?
A: The 10W6v2 was better suited for this system due to the power being used, its smaller box volume requirements and shallower physical depth. Besides, it sounds simply phenomenal.

Q: Are there any storage capacitors or extra batteries in the system?
A: Yes. There are two primary batteries in the system connected together. One battery is the original car battery for powering all the regular vehicle electronics and engine, the second battery powers all the installed electronics.

Q: What does it hit?
A: I’m not sure, every time I get up to 88mph I end up in some other time!

Q: No, smart guy, we mean how much SPL does it hit?
A: I really have no idea, but it gets load enough to hurt your ears.

Q: Is the car all-original?
A: No, it originally came with a first generation Nintendo.

Q: There are no door handles, how do you open the doors?
A: Because the car loves me, it opens the doors for me!

Alright guys...I've got the latest and greatest up...this time I've added video as well, so check it out, I hope you guys like! ;)

http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures/Videos/

OK...my thread was falling a little to far back in the list, so I thought I should push it back up front! :D (LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT ME) Naw...Just kidding.

Anyway, as of yesterday, the doors were shaved and look awesome. Check out the pictures here: http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures/20040913%20-%20RX-8/

As for the status of things...the body shop is to be finished at the end of Sept. The Audio Shop says they'll have it done by mid-Oct. So in-other-words, I'll have it by Christmas. :rolleyes: Sigh......such is life. :o

I hope you have some sort of aux AC unit in there. This car runs really hot with a poor AC showing as it is. All those electronic devices and screens and amps and... You better go to Costco and get some Right Guard. The trunk gets particularly toasty. Don't buy any icecream at the grocery store.

haha...got the icecream covered...believe it or not. I will actually have a power cooler/warmer in the trunk. It can hold up to 9 12oz cans of pop. And since its powered, it will do quite nicely, in either scenerio. It fits as if it was custom made, right in the place where the tire inflation kit is located! I figured this would work better than the right guard option... :D

Is that <Gasp!> rust in the doors in the Aug 30th pictures??

^^^ Genuinely hard to determine. It certainly looks like rust...and is rusted metal of some sort. Believe me, I was not happy to have seen this on a 3 month old car that had 5 miles on it. Because it wiped off, for the most part, we believe it is rust/stain from the welds. This is the nature of welds. So yeah, be somewhat forewarned all you other owners, the insides of your doors will no doubt look much worse than that. BC this is something we've caught up front, we will make it a non-issue by coating the welds with a rustproofing oil. This will be done to all doors as well as fender and wheel wells.

^^^ Genuinely hard to determine. It certainly looks like rust...and is rusted metal of some sort. Believe me, I was not happy to have seen this on a 3 month old car that had 5 miles on it. Because it wiped off, for the most part, we believe it is rust/stain from the welds. This is the nature of welds. So yeah, be somewhat forewarned all you other owners, the insides of your doors will no doubt look much worse than that. BC this is something we've caught up front, we will make it a non-issue by coating the welds with a rustproofing oil. This will be done to all doors as well as fender and wheel wells.


I've noticed rust stains on the inside of my wheels (the rims, not the wells). The brake rotors rust in minutes...I mean that literally, minutes. The rust washes down the rotors and drips onto the wheels....

Wax on the wheels helps, but its still a pain..you really need to take them off to do it (wax) well.

So what do you guys think? Does the car look good in matte black?
http://devoid.mine.nu/pictures/20040922%20-%20RX-8/

Well, as you can see, progress is being made. The handles are gone, its completely debadged, and as you can see from the pics, its been wetsanded to remove the orange peel. I saw it this morning, buffed back to shine, and man, its B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L. It has such clean lines without the handles and badging. They are probably going to work on the grilles today. (they brought in some material this morning.) Man, I cannot express how absolutely professional this guys are. They are awesome perfectionists.

What's left:
Grilles
Brake calipers, lines, etc.
Rust issue inside doors

Just letting everyone know that I finally finished the redesign of the picture gallery on my website. I hope you like it. I'll be working on the Feedback next...then the cars section. Take a look and let me know what you think by responding here!

Oh and I picked up the car from the body shop yesterday. It looks AMAZING. It is so smooth and shiny. The doors look out-of-this-world. The debadging looks great. Everything is awesome. The calipers, the new grilles, everything! Take a look in the photo gallery, under yesterday's date.

devoid.mine.nu

Awesome update on the website! Man I wish I had the time and $$ to do what you are doing... No more orange peal - fantastic. What are you coating your car with? Clear bra or something similar?

^^^^ Nothing....I can't do anything for at least a month to allow the paint to dry. So that pretty much means, I'm gonna allow it to sit all winter. Than in the spring, I'll do a wax job. The guy who did all the fab work went through a rundown of care and maintenance with me, and recommended Macguires products.

The site is down...

Hmm....I'm not having a problem.......ineresting....

devoid.mine.nu

Just to let you guys know...the lights are partly installed. After 2 and 1/2 months on order...I'm still waiting for some of the lighting parts. But you can take a look at some of the lights. Also, though the license plate, side markers, and parking lights all look blue, they are really ultraviolet (ie blacklight) They really do look awesome.

For those looking: http://devoid.mine.nu
Click on the latest photo album under the photos section, or the rx-8 pictures section.

I wanted to let everyone know that DevoidWeb is back up and running. (For those of you that noticed!) Anyway, in its absense we have completed the work on the exterior of the car. We have added the ICELEDs to just the outside and I now have pictures up on the site. These things look incredible and are definetaly worth a look. Even without the functionality that they have, they are amazingly bright and you can't get by the idea of a nearly limitless color selection.

Take a look http://devoid.mine.nu

ok...I have some better pics up on the site...
for the truly lazy:
http://devoid.mine.nu/CarAlbum.asp?AID=201&CT=RX
and
http://devoid.mine.nu/CarAlbum.asp?AID=202&CT=RX

otherwise just navigate the site...leave me some feedback, etc.
http://devoid.mine.nu

wow I really like the dash mod and the touchpad controller.

Did you give any thought to using a touchscreen rather than having the mousepad, or is it both?

Have you sat in the car to see if the touchpad was too far back or not?

Are you going to lose functionality of the red LCD?

If not, that's a really awesome way to go about putting a carputer in. Can't wait to see the finished product.

Lights aren't exactly my thing but they look to be better then anything I've seen on the road, especially with the grilled shadow.

-Greg ::wishing he had enough money to pull of that carputer mod::

as for the touchscreen vs. touchpad.
The touchscreens (the center counsel and the 2 rear passenger flip downs) are all Alpine, and thus are touch compatible/controllable for the entire Alpine system. There is no way to integrate them with conroll over the computer, though they will display the computer. Thus for control, we opted for something that could look semi like it belonged, and I chose a black touchpad (FYI, it was near impossible to find)
As for the location, it is fine. It's just as comfortable as using the NAV controls, resting my arm on the armrest. The buttons were also moved off the touchpad and to an ergonmic positioning. The keyboard is tucked under the passenger seat.

As for the red LCD - yes that is still functional. We were forced to keep a minimal portion of the factory radio to do this. The display is only worthwhile for the time, temp, and temp controls. No radio information will be displayed upon it.

Hope that answers your questions.

Devoid your site is down...or not accessible to many....check into it I'm dying to see more pics! :)

It's been up....I did notice a problem this afternoon with a lag in DNS updating though. It changed IPs this afternoon so while the DNS servers were updated...many people's computers were still automatically going to the old IP...thus getting someone's apache web server. Sorry 'bout that guys...not my fault. Enjoy the pics though!

Its working :) !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!