AS an ex-RX-7 owner, this car has some similarities to the imperfection of the 1st yr. 3rd gen RX-7, much to my suprise, the paint on some of the plastic pieces started to peal off, especially on the center console(where plastic pieces does not have a rough surface), the back of the seats(rubberish plastic) scratches up so easily, there are at least 10 deep marks on the car I sat in, as well as the surounding of the scuff plates...I hope they fix these soon...

the front seats are set so low that it feel weired when looking out of the window, it feels like you are trapped in a box

the back seats are pretty comfortable, the little opening to the truck is kinda cheap piece of material...

I'm waiting for a test drive and see if I'm going to buy this year model....

that is all for now...

I believe that some commented that the 8s at the shows are NOT production models and that the paint imperfections and such have been corrected.

Omega nailed it... the PRE-PRODS are not up to the spec of the final production spec'd cars...

the finish that they have in reguard interior surfaces and other various parts of the car are less than usable for a daily driven car, much less on that sees as many at hundreds of people a day.

Note: the PRE-PRODS at the REVITUP do have VIN numbers, however closer inspection show the VINs to be slightly different than a production VIN and therefore are for show only.

:)

good to know...but the seating still irks me a bit...like trapped in a box...

The seats are 6 way adjustable (in the leather). So i'm assuming the low seating position issue can be corrected, right? Or were you at the highest setting?

Sorry to interject here, but does anyone know what the adjustablility of the cloth seats is?

Originally posted by chikai
The seats are 6 way adjustable (in the leather). So i'm assuming the low seating position issue can be corrected, right? Or were you at the highest setting?

not sure about that...but either it's at lowest or highest level, it still sinks in like trapped in a box, that is how I felt when I sat in it...., hmmmmm...

So they aren't electrically adjustable? Or are they just not six way? Or do you not know because you didn't sit in one and you don't care because you ordered the leather anyway which is what I probably should have done ;) ?

Thanks for the repsonse

I cannot vouch for fianl production models.. but one of the PRE-PRODS I sat in had a simple manual seat. It looked very much like the finished product seat, but this was months ago.

Originally posted by Merciless


not sure about that...but either it's at lowest or highest level, it still sinks in like trapped in a box, that is how I felt when I sat in it...., hmmmmm...

to be honest i prefer a closed cockpit rather than an open one like most of the Honda Civics i've driven...i think i the wide open space reminds me of the SUVs i've driven while a closed one feels more like a sports car or i would imagine (since i've never been in one) the cockpit of a jet...

i also like the raised center to lay my elbow on and the way it wraps around onto the dash board...

also, i do like low seats, but not too low where your legs go straight out...

with this configuration, it feels more secure like the car is hugging you into place...also, all the buttons are easier to reach...

i haven't sit in an 8 but i have seen pictures and it "seems" fine from those perspectives...i'll just have to sit in one to find out if it's too confined or not...but then again there will be nothing i can do about it

the front seats are set so low that it feel weired when looking out of the window, it feels like you are trapped in a box

having said that you have owned RX7s, i find it interesting that you say the seats are too low.

i sat in the 8, and the seating is higher than in my 3rd Gen. i was hoping it would be as low as the 7's, but i still did not feel cramped or trapped in a box. i am a big fan of having the car feel wrapped around me.

and ditto on what the other guys said the interior plastics.:D

santino

i'm not sure, but that is how I felt when sitting in the car...the RX-7 actually do WRAPs around you, the RX-8 is a bit different...

I guess since it's not a REAL sports car, that is why it's different I guess

Remember these cars are trucked along on the tour and get more lookie-loo seat-time than the autoshow ones. :)

Originally posted by Haze
So they aren't electrically adjustable? Or are they just not six way? Or do you not know because you didn't sit in one and you don't care because you ordered the leather anyway which is what I probably should have done ;) ?

Thanks for the repsonse

Only the Leather seats are electrically adjustable. OOhhh and I Mean only the driver leather seat. The passanger seat on all models are manual adjustment.

Thanks for the info!! I just was wondering what to expect. The most comfortable seats that I have ever owned were manual adjustment anyway . . . of course they were both built by Recaro. One was in a 1967 Alfa, and the other in a 1988 VW Jetta GLI, but a well built seat does its job no matter how many adjustments it has. I just hope that it's comfortable. It's my only hang up with the car.

As for the wrapped around effect, I found the third gen RX-7 to be a very comfortable car, and it didn't particularly make claustrophobic. As for "wrapped-around-edness", any of you guys ever driven a Jaguar XKE. Huge car with a tiny sculpted cockpit. You kind of slide into it, and it reminded me of driving an egg, but there was no sense of claustrophobia for me at all. It had an intimacy that I really appreciate in a sports car. The third gen RX-7 reminded me more of the '67 Alfa spider. Kind of a low seat with long legs and very comfortable. No matter what the 8 sounds great to me!!!

-H

There also seems to be a trend in auto-design where the bottom of the windows is higher, and the window is narrower. Even though you might be sitting at the same height as another car, the height and narrowness of the windows gives you an awkward feeling of being more enclosed. Not awkward as in claustrophobic, but awkward in that the more you can see when you are driving (and sometimes riding), the more comfortable you feel, even though you can see all that you need to.

Take a close look at someone driving an Audi TT convertible, and notice how the door relates to their shoulder. I wonder if some of this newer "style" was incorporated into the RX8, causing that effect.

---jps

Originally posted by DrKillJoY


Note: the PRE-PRODS at the REVITUP do have VIN numbers, however closer inspection show the VINs to be slightly different than a production VIN and therefore are for show only.

:)

what do they do with the show cars after the revitup is over? are the cars scrapped or sold as used cars? or do they just sit in somewarehouse for years?

i was told they are scrapped. useable parts may save for testing or something(renesis engines?) but otherwise off to junk heap they go. :(

There also seems to be a trend in auto-design where the bottom of the windows is higher, and the window is narrower.

Definitely true, at least with the sports cars. Take a ride in a 350Z or G35 coupe and you get that same type of feeling. This may not hold true with the Lancer EVO or Subie STi, but since their platform is built off an econobox (not a sports car), that trend wouldn't hold for them, anyway.

Originally posted by Toadman
Remember these cars are trucked along on the tour and get more lookie-loo seat-time than the autoshow ones. :)
yeah
Even if only 1,000 people a day got in and out of the 8 at the NY Auto Show that would be around 10,000 in/outs. Multiply that by the number of shows the cars appeared at. That's more in/outs than most of our cars will get in a lifetime.

Originally posted by Sputnik
There also seems to be a trend in auto-design where the bottom of the windows is higher, and the window is narrower. Even though you might be sitting at the same height as another car, the height and narrowness of the windows gives you an awkward feeling of being more enclosed. Not awkward as in claustrophobic

I agree with this whole heartedly, and it does seem to inform the design in the 8. I believe that this trend is driven by side impact protection standards, but it could also just be a desire to give the cars a solid look, like you are buying something solid and worthwhile. The greatest example of this that I can think of is the latest Lexus convertible which has to my eye massively out of proportion side height to body length. I also find that my mother's S-Type has the window sill too high, and it makes me feel constantly out of place in the driver's seat. I keep wanting to raise the seat until my head hits the roof. It's odd. It's sort of the antithesis of a '71 Triumph Spitfire in which you could reportedly drag your knuckles on the ground while driving.

-H

There also seems to be a trend in auto-design where the bottom of the windows is higher, and the window is narrower. Even though you might be sitting at the same height as another car, the height and narrowness of the windows gives you an awkward feeling of being more enclosed

This is something I wanted to pay attention to when I went to the Rev-It-Up event in Atlanta.

The window ledge is higher than a standard sedan, and my elbow rested in the 9:30 position. While higer than I prefer, it was not something I felt that I could not live with.