THis week I have driven a stick at one dealer and an auto at another (which I had to demand to drive after I refused to sign the purchase agreeement just to test drive ) On the east coast it seems harder to find cars- some dealers didn't even know the auto had shipped..... I ended up being the first customer to drive each of them. (and I did respect the rev limits in both cases)



SInce I live and do 90% of my driving around and parking in Manhattan at night- I was planing on getting the auto to replace my Probe GT '94 auto trans (greatly improved with Greddy catback, K&N cone replacing airbox, and custom chip mapping fuel and airtaike runners) With the storage of a hatchback and 5 seats- it's the perfect city car for me- and it stilll looks great- but It' gonna start needing alot of $$$ work at 9 years old) I will miss it- any other Probe GT owners getting an 8?


The first 8 I drove was the stick - I had driven a 78' 5 speed Celica GT a few years in the city before I had the probe, but I was never thrilled about manually shifting since the trans was nothing like 8's


The 6 speed 8 was simply amazing- Even with all the talk of the dyno test and low rpm torque, It seemed to wind to 3000 so quickly I didn't feel any deficit of HP. I found it to be quite responsive and a pleasure to drive.

Since I had read good things about the auto I was hoping the pickup off the line was at least as good as the probe's 6 cyl Mazda engine - I'd be fine with the auto trans in that case.


But the truth was that even though there is ample power in the auto once beyond 3k- with great acceleration and real conttrol of the gearing up lo redline- I had no problem downshifting into 1st or 2nd when wanting to slow.

But off the line there simply was no power- I was waiting for something to happen. And in the city traffiic - I have a very agressive yet cautious driving style-

Since the auto was a base model and didn't have the sport suspension- I could feel more body roll than the 6 speed.

Again -since I live in the city, with the 6 speed I will mostly stay in 2nd gear almost all the time- it was easily good up 45-50 MPH on the test drive with RPM to spare (for break in sake)

I would barely use 4-5-6 gears.

Another factor is our undrgreound garage- lots of low speeds (2-3 mph) around tight columns for two floors with ramps every time I pull in and out. I dont want to trash a clutch just pulling in and out every night.


ANyway my car is for sale- I want to buy an RX8 in the next 1-2 weeks. I'm leaning toward the 6speed- I just hope I don't end up dreading taking the car out

(on the good side my girlfriend learned to drive on a stick- so she's ok when she has to drive it- - DOH!)

Congrats! It'll be interesting to hear your opinions after driving it in traffic for a while. I think it'll be a breeze, judging from the little that I've been able to drive the 8. It's just a really easy stick.

...and I'm also thinking (seriously) about buying an RX-8.

I have my '94 Probe GT (5-speed) for more than nine years now - drove it off the dealer's lot back then when it was brand new. Now it has over 125K miles, but it still runs very well. During these years, I had a great time driving the PGT. Sure, it had some bugs to deal with (nothing major), but all in all, a very reliable, fun-to-drive coupe which is quick and has truly excellent handling. The darn thing just sticks to the road like it was on rails. So certainly I would not want to have a car that can not give me the same.

I already had my test drive in the 8 (6-speed) - and my impression is that off the line it doesn't have enough oomph (at least not as much as I would expect). Seriously, I had the feeling I'm sitting in the Probe... :D
Once you open it up a little bit (over 4K RPM), then it starts to pull really well, so that makes up for the lacking low-end grunt. What was funny though is that when slowly rolling, you almost HAD to shift back into 1st gear to take off. This is something they usually tell you NOT to do, only use 2nd unless you're at a complete stop. With the 8, slow rolling and second gear do not mesh very well.

Handling is spectacular with the RX-8 - but again, I'm used to have good handling so I wouldn't take less :)

Now it all comes down to finding a good deal. Certainly, I'm not in a hurry, and am not willing to pay even MSRP, let alone mark-ups. I'd rather wait then until the hubbub dies down since the PGT serves me still well - albeit as you say, I can see (and feel) that certain things would need to get fixed and that requires more and more money with a 9-years-old car.

I love most of the things the RX-8 offers - shape is to die for, a beautiful interior, power is adequate, handling is great and the rotary engine just makes it even more interesting. What I'm concerned about comes also due to the rotary (and not knowing it first-hand): longevity and reliability, although I understand that this is largely dependent on proper care and maintenance. However, fuel consumption is certainly an issue - I can hardly accept the fact to get about 20 mpg when I'm getting 26 mpg (even with 125K miles) on average with the PGT.

But, as others pointed out - you live only once :D Gotta try the RX-8, methinks.

Oh, and I would not want to have an auto tranny - 6-speed all the way for me, baby :D

Do you visit Probetalk (http://www.probetalk.com) ? The forums there were a big help whenever I had any mechanical issue. Fun pics and some really nice, turbo-ed Probes. :cool:

Some pics of my car on that forum can be found here (http://probetalk.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1701038023) .

The stick does not bother me and am an everyday driver with a path to work that is 30-50 mph zones but a lot of stop and go. I had the same thing in my mind about the workout in traffic in a manual but the revs seem to compliment the speed (if that makes sense) and I find that I can operate easily in the first 3 gears.

thanks all for the replies-

What about my multi level underground parking garage obstacle course (the garage was designed incorrectly)

Can I be at 2mph in 1st without riding the clutch?

as much as I love my 93 PGT, I'm really looking forward to getting my 8 (hopefully) within the next 2 weeks. I love my current baby to death, but after the test drive with the 8 I felt it was time to move on. All the controls on the 8 are so much crisper then the probes - steering/shifting/handling/braking... and without being a complete rattletrap like my probe unfortunetly has become.

... i still don't want the day to come though when I have to part with the "pr0ber" :(

I commute daily in Atlanta and prefer driving a stick. Unless traffic is at a dead stop & only inching forward, the stick is like 2nd nature now.

Did you use the paddle shift on the rx-8 automatic? Just wondering if that helped any with off the line speeds for you.

As far as navigating a large parking garage, I don't think a stickshift will hurt at all. Now if your sitting in line going uphill that could be a burden. But you won't wear out the clutch any time soon unless you really do drag it by the way you drive.

I did use the paddles exclusively in the auto test drive.