Ok, so I just got back from the SF event. There are a few things that I learned there from a tech guy that works in the development side who was there with one of the RX-8 prototypes.

I didn't get to test drive. :(

I did get to sit and play with anything, and they even ran the engine if someone wanted to hear and see it.

Some questions that I had answered:

1. I'm 6'-3" tall, will I fit? Yes, and it was comfortable. One of the sales people from my dealer even got in the back seat behind me, and she was around 5'6". The electric seats have a large range of motion.

2. What is with the HIDs that don't look like HIDs in the pictures? Well, they aren't, that is why they don't look different from Halogen lamps. The real HID lights will be on the production, but didn't make it into the prototypes.

3. What is the deal with the stuck valve rumor from the SCC article? I didn't get a straight answer on that, but he did say that the tuning was just recently finalized, hence the MPG rating on the RX-8 site. This tuning has about 247-250hp available and is more powerful than what all of the reporters at Leguna tested, which was around 240.

4. This is posted in a different place too, but the guy said that Mazdaspeed is working on a hydraulic supercharger, which gets around the problem with low boost if it is run off of a pulley set to the proper high RPM ratio.

5. Racing Beat has been working with an RX-8 for some time, but has not had any luck with intake changes (the original air box design is pretty decent). They are doing a cat-back exaust design now.

6. Everyone was clueless about the changer and climate control. The tech guy said he doesn't keep up with the package stuff.

I'll post some pics too, but there isn't much new to see. Just proof of a tall person fitting and a couple of different angles.

Oh, and the event itself was a blast to drive at, I'd recommend it to everyone.

Me in a red one. 3rd try.

Two in a RX-8. 6'-3" in back, 5'-6" in front.

Great report! What exactly was this SF Event? Is it open to the public and/or pre-order customers?

nice work gazita! now i can't wait for the july event in DC!!!!!

Originally posted by Gamera
Great report! What exactly was this SF Event? Is it open to the public and/or pre-order customers?

Today was invite only. My dealer called me up and asked me to come, but the rest of the weekend is open to the public. There is a whole other thread about the Revitup event somewhere around here.

Originally posted by Gamera
Great report! What exactly was this SF Event? Is it open to the public and/or pre-order customers?

it's the Mazda Rev It Up competition event, where they let you autocross in Mazda-prepared Mazda6 sedans.

http://www.mazdarevitup.com

it's open to the public :)

I already signed up for the July event in DC :D

My favorites.

Last pic.

Originally posted by ZoomZoomH


it's the Mazda Rev It Up competition event, where they let you autocross in Mazda-prepared Mazda6 sedans.
[

They also had some nice manual Protoges that were for the slalom practice. They had really nice tires and the suspension was tight.

Thanks for the info guys! I had no idea and LA is next weekend.

Are those RX8s production models or are we still seeing the pre-production models.

Originally posted by brownchiro
Are those RX8s production models or are we still seeing the pre-production models.

gotta be pre-production since they JUST started on the first builds for Japan market a couple weeks ago :)

My satisfaction at ordering (eventually) Titanium has just grown exponentially! ;)
Nice images.

Originally posted by ZoomZoomH


gotta be pre-production since they JUST started on the first builds for Japan market a couple weeks ago :)

You are correct. They were the prototypes. Showing a bit of wear and tear from the show circuit.

Originally posted by Gamera
Thanks for the info guys! I had no idea and LA is next weekend.

just letting you know, you don't need to sign up for the autox to check out the RX-8 :D

heck you can just show up!

Originally posted by ZoomZoomH


just letting you know, you don't need to sign up for the autox to check out the RX-8 :D

heck you can just show up!

Which is a good thing, since they said that all of the CA slots have been filled already.

Wow! Nice pictures gazita123! I was wondering if the car in the pics is silver or titanium?

Originally posted by chenpin
Wow! Nice pictures gazita123! I was wondering if the car in the pics is silver or titanium?

Titanium. It isn't as dark as some of the pictures have shown. But, it does change a lot depending on the light.

Man how did the TI paint with Chap interior look in person. I have seen the red on red/black.

It looked nice. I kinda had second thoughts on my black on black interior for a minute. :)

how was the sunroof opening. Was it small or big .what did you think?

The sunroof opening was just right. It is not as long (front to back) as some cars have, but I would say that the proportions fit the vehicle nicely.

My photos of the red RX-8 at the Rev It Up event: http://www.pbase.com/bryanh/mazdarevitup

Sorry, no pics of the Titanium, it was in bright sun. I personally didn't care for the black/brown interior. The black/red was more my style. :)

The perception of quality from the car really impressed me at this price point. The front and back seats were both quite comfortable. I fit in back just fine and I'm 5'11". My hair brushes the roof a bit but I'm used to that. Front headroom was definitely adequate for me without the sunroof. With the sunroof it was even enough, although not if I was wearing a helmet.

A couple interesting tidbits... reverse gear is engaged by pushing down on the shift knob while in neutral, and then moving the knob to the right and back. Pretty nifty way to lock out reverse while driving!

Also the main front grille is not a true grille except for the bottom third. The top 2/3rds is all blocked off. I predict we will see aftermarket grilles that go through from top to bottom.

Clutch pedal travel seemed a tad long, but not bad. Forgot to check brake/gas spacing for heel and toe. The shifter and wheel were well placed relative to the pedals, which is great, although the seating position was a bit high for my tastes.

Some bozo stole the shifter knob out of the automatic RX-8 saturday morning. Don't know if it was the same person, but a bunch of production knobs (protoge, etc) were stolen as well.

The pre-production cars we've been seeing reviews of so far all have coil-over shocks which will not be OEM. Kind of a cheat there.

Confirmed there is no spare tire and a six-disc changer will be a dealer option. However they're still sorting out details so early orders may not be able to get it preinstalled. Kind of a bummer but that's what you get for being an early adopter.
________
GANG BANG GOTHIC (http://www.fucktube.com/categories/594/gothic/videos/1)

Originally posted by BryanH
...Forgot to check brake/gas spacing for heel and toe... Shame... You should know better.

---jps

The spacing was pretty good for Heel/Toe action from what I could tell.

They removed the shift knobs so they wouldn't be stolen, according to their rep.

But then again I got into an argument with one of them, who claimed there was a RX-1.. and wouldn't believe that it was R100.

Originally posted by neofreak

But then again I got into an argument with one of them, who claimed there was a RX-1.. and wouldn't believe that it was R100.

perhaps he meant the rx-01?

Originally posted by zoom44


perhaps he meant the rx-01?

Nope, the context was the first rotary besides the cosmo 110s.

She said "There was a RX-1, RX-2, etc"

oops!

I went on Sunday as a spectator. I did get to drive a Miata and Protege5 on the "slow" course. Also got scolded for fiddling too much with the Miata shifter (was just getting a feel for the throws). "This is not a Playstation!" :o

Anyhow, the RX-8 looked great. The rear was fairly roomy, but I didn't have anyone sit in the front seat to get a true feel for the space back there.

Shift throws were nice (hard to gauge since the knob was missing). Pedal spacing was great.

The main problem for me was that I didn't fit :(. I'm 6'0, mostly torso and my head rubbed on the sunroof car. On the non-sunroof car, there was maybe an inch more clearance, but that's still not enough for a helmet. I could compensate by reclining the seatback pretty far, but that's not really an ideal position.

In comparison, headroom in the non-sunroof car was about the same as my 2001 Prelude (with sunroof).

I'm pretty bummed, since I really had high hopes for the RX-8. :(

I'm surprised you can fit in the Prelude but not the RX-8. I *barely* fit in a Prelude, but did not come close to hitting in the RX.

The cars were beautiful. Red is not my tastes, but the titanium with the tan/black inserts was fabulous.

And the rep started her up and revved it. Man, that engine has the smoothest, most incredible sound I've heard in a long time. It gave me goosebumps.

I also saw the luminescent gauges lit, and I REALLy liked those as well.

I was more than pleased with rear seat room in the car. My hair barely brushed when I sat up completely straight. Leg room is tight, but not uncomfortable because my feet had plenty of room under the front seat. The only complaint is that it can be hard to get your feet under the seat, but once there, everything fits very nicely.

Lastly, this car has huge potential. There were several people there who saw the car, said "wow, theres a pretty big back seat", and then I popped open the freestyle doors and their jaw about hit the ground. They had NO idea this car had that feature, and they became even more impressed.

I came away very impressed. The car looks much more athletic, taut, and smaller in person than you can see in the pictures. Inside, it fits like a glove in every way.

Only question I have is, why is there a huge hump in the floor protuding into the footwell. if you put your feet straight, there is no problem, but if you like to ride with your feet close to the seat it is kinda a bummer. What is that hump?

Consider where the engine is situated and then you'll realise what the footwell 'bump' is...

Yeap that bump was the Bell Houseing. It is only noticable on the passanger side