I can't say it enough ... keeping the Wankel at 5K RPM on the freeway makes it feels like you're flying a jet. Just one tiny tap and you'll leave whatever that was beside you dwindling in the rear-view mirror. It was almost instant response and the rotary just Wankel away.:boink:

I have never had this feeling with any sports sedan I've driven before. Can anyone verify the range of the sweet spot for the Renesis?
:aroused:

haha. pleasure at 5k.
orgasm at 9k!!! :rofl:

sorry, i just had to say that. haha

5k in what gear? 4th I'm guessing.

Ahh man I totally agree with you. But I like to keep it at around 7 when having some fun. Like tonight I went for a drive down a super twisty road. AHHHH sooooo much fun. Keeping it in third between 55-80 mph the whole way... soooo much fun. Ripping through those corners at 60 is just a walk in the park for the 8 while others can barely take them at 45. Haha, I always appreciate the 8 so much more after I take it through some twisties. GOD I LOVE THIS CAR!!!! SO much more fun than some huge engine straight line car IMO.

^^^ yay my 200th post. Now 201

5k in what gear? 4th I'm guessing.

I don't recall now ... but it's some where there: either 3rd or 4th.

Ahh man I totally agree with you. ... GOD I LOVE THIS CAR!!!! SO much more fun than some huge engine straight line car IMO.

Totally agree with you! Experiencing straight-line acceleration is one thing but experiencing lateral G-force takes you into another dimension. :yelrotflm

Jeezus, 3rd gear? What do you guys get, 11mpg?!

Today I went to run some errands, I'd be throwing it into 6th at 40mph on city roads, shifting up every gear at around 3k-3.5k rpms. From a stop I usually rev to about 1750rpms and then delicately let the clutch out and then give more gas. On the highways I always have the thing in 6th, unless I'm in traffic of course.

Totally agree with you! Experiencing straight-line acceleration is one thing but experiencing lateral G-force takes you into another dimension. :yelrotflm


Yeah, I took the car at around 45mph around one of those almost full-circle highway on-ramps/entrances. You know the onces that feel like they go on forever before you get on the highway. This one was very small and tight.. Anyway, I had to brace myself up against the door with my left knee. I kept waiting to feel the car begin to slide but it never happened.

Jeezus, 3rd gear? What do you guys get, 11mpg?!

Today I went to run some errands, I'd be throwing it into 6th at 40mph on city roads, shifting up every gear at around 3k-3.5k rpms. From a stop I usually rev to about 1750rpms and then delicately let the clutch out and then give more gas. On the highways I always have the thing in 6th, unless I'm in traffic of course.

for normal highway driving 6th is obviously the best choice. However, the rotary can definetely endure higher RPMs for longer periods of time. Like they said...usually MPG isn't a concern, and having the power available after 6K makes it A LOT more exciting if your up for some spirited driving!

I swap back and forth depending on mood though. Sometimes I keep it below about 3.5K in town to save gas (averaging about 19 in town), but when you really wanna get and go, the undeniable excitement underlying those high revs can be hard to keep off. :ylsuper:

The engine is made to tolerate the high rev's without any damage potential, so why not enjoy it from time to time!

keeping the Wankel at 5K RPM on the freeway makes it feels like you're flying a jet. Just one tiny tap and you'll leave whatever that was beside you dwindling in the rear-view mirror

:eyetwitch

Jeezus, 3rd gear? What do you guys get, 11mpg?!

Today I went to run some errands, I'd be throwing it into 6th at 40mph on city roads, shifting up every gear at around 3k-3.5k rpms. From a stop I usually rev to about 1750rpms and then delicately let the clutch out and then give more gas. On the highways I always have the thing in 6th, unless I'm in traffic of course.

40mph in 6th gear bogs down the engine. You're better off in 4th or 5th (in terms of MPG and carbon build up) when cruising at 40ish.

Really? I thought the lower the RPMs the better the MPG.

Also, I read that I can hit 65mph in 2nd. I always panic when I hit the beep and shift right away and hit around 63mph. Is it ok to stay on the beep for a few seconds?

Yeah, I took the car at around 45mph around one of those almost full-circle highway on-ramps/entrances. You know the onces that feel like they go on forever before you get on the highway. This one was very small and tight.. Anyway, I had to brace myself up against the door with my left knee. I kept waiting to feel the car begin to slide but it never happened.

That is exactly when I notice the Zeta Products door and console knee pads ;)

'cept more in the 50-60mph :lol: it is like a dangerous drug that feeling...

Fun getting a reaction from the passenger as they don't have the tucked in feeling the driver gets. :D:

40mph in 6th gear bogs down the engine. You're better off in 4th or 5th (in terms of MPG and carbon build up) when cruising at 40ish.


Only bog's in 6th at 40mph if you go WOT. if you are just cruising giving it a little bit of gas.. its just like driving an automatic..what does an auto do on the freeway? it upshifts and eventually cruises in its highest gear... same thing with the manual.

if you are going to go WOT, you downshift so you wont bog.. i think most people know that.

i jus cant help loving 9 thousand rpm to use. i totally zone out and jus take in the sound wen i smash it... i fuckin love this car. and yes those g force turns feel so good hahaha i ono, i jus really love my car. its like whlie u smash, i always think about at 6 or 7 is wen another car usually redlines, hahaha and i got 3-4 more thousand to go ahahaha :cwm27: :yelrotflm :D:

That is exactly when I notice the Zeta Products door and console knee pads ;)

'cept more in the 50-60mph :lol: it is like a dangerous drug that feeling...

Fun getting a reaction from the passenger as they don't have the tucked in feeling the driver gets. :D:


Oh yea! you know it! on the way home from shakopee i took the 8 down some nice twisties off a road from 169 there... fun times fun times...

Really? I thought the lower the RPMs the better the MPG.

Also, I read that I can hit 65mph in 2nd. I always panic when I hit the beep and shift right away and hit around 63mph. Is it ok to stay on the beep for a few seconds?

Yeah, I usually shift around 9300ish.

God I need to find some good driving roads in orange county. The people who live here are such stuck-up, conservative, and joyless. They don't want anyone to have fun. If a road turns out to be a good driving road they either have stop signs put in at ever T-intersection or they put a few speed bumps.

Only bog's in 6th at 40mph if you go WOT. if you are just cruising giving it a little bit of gas.. its just like driving an automatic..what does an auto do on the freeway? it upshifts and eventually cruises in its highest gear... same thing with the manual.

if you are going to go WOT, you downshift so you wont bog.. i think most people know that.

The rotors need to spin, keeping it at around 2.5k-3k RPMs has given people the best gas mileage. If it was about the highest gear, why not cruise at 30 in 6th? You also want your engine to last, and that won't be by babying it.

The part that always astounded me about the rotary as opposed to the typical piston analogy was that all your life you've heard that riding high in the RPM's will wear your engine sooo much faster. Trying to swallow the idea that righer RPM's are better for an engine then low RPM's really does require a whole different mindset...just like this car does.

God I need to find some good driving roads in orange county. The people who live here are such stuck-up, conservative, and joyless. They don't want anyone to have fun. If a road turns out to be a good driving road they either have stop signs put in at ever T-intersection or they put a few speed bumps.

Isn't there a Highway 101 or Hwy-1 in your neck of the woods? That'll be a super drive on an early Sat/Sun morning with a Passport/Escort.

The rotors need to spin, keeping it at around 2.5k-3k RPMs has given people the best gas mileage. If it was about the highest gear, why not cruise at 30 in 6th? You also want your engine to last, and that won't be by babying it.


but you're not on the freeway are you? are you following this thread? i thought we were talking about on the freeway driving and being in 6th.


at 30mph and in stop and go, you'd be in 3rd at 3K rpm. 6th gear at 30mph would definately bog the engine, since you'd be in 1.5rpms. In an auto at that speed you'd be in 3rd gear out of 4 anyways, or atleast on my honda it wouldnt let it go into 4th gear. I've always kept it at around 3k when driving the 8 anyways...

sooo what's the point of this discussion again? i'm losing track...

I know this thread is about freeway driving, I only replied to BlueSky's line:

6th at 40mph on city roads

^that's lower than 2k, iirc.

Oh yea! you know it! on the way home from shakopee i took the 8 down some nice twisties off a road from 169 there... fun times fun times...

Cool! Hope to see you on Saturday for some more driving... if you haven't seen yet check www.mnrx8club.com. ;)


Don't think I would drive below 45mph in 6th gear. Doesn't make the engine happy...

Isn't there a Highway 101 or Hwy-1 in your neck of the woods? That'll be a super drive on an early Sat/Sun morning with a Passport/Escort.


I'll have to look into it. I heard the Bel 65-whatever is the best one actually.

Oh yea! you know it! on the way home from shakopee i took the 8 down some nice twisties off a road from 169 there... fun times fun times...


I use to do that drive all the time back in the old days when Chanhassen was a one stop sign town.

Sweet spot? ah.. the pwer starts at 5 to 5 1/2k.

Sweet spot is 6.5k

for madness keep it at 8 or more and hold on.

I use to do that drive all the time back in the old days when Chanhassen was a one stop sign town.

Sweet spot? ah.. the pwer starts at 5 to 5 1/2k.

Sweet spot is 6.5k

for madness keep it at 8 or more and hold on.

Nice!
Shakopee is a fun area to drive with some of the hills and turns.

Only bad thing is with an aftermarket cat the exhaust tells everyone you are on your way from some distance. Seems to quiet down higher than 5000 but that may be because it doesn't have a chance to catch up. :naughty:

Daily driving, I usually keep it at 3-3.5K. Its easy since each gear gives you roughly 10mpg/gear at 3k. 3-35 mph. use 3rd; 40-45, use 4th, and so on.

Daily driving, I usually keep it at 3-3.5K. Its easy since each gear gives you roughly 10mpg/gear at 3k. 3-35 mph. use 3rd; 40-45, use 4th, and so on.

So if a person drives around in first they get 10mph, second 20mpg, third 30mpg... :Wconfused

I can't say it enough ... keeping the Wankel at 5K RPM on the freeway makes it feels like you're flying a jet. Just one tiny tap and you'll leave whatever that was beside you dwindling in the rear-view mirror. It was almost instant response and the rotary just Wankel away.:boink:

I have never had this feeling with any sports sedan I've driven before. Can anyone verify the range of the sweet spot for the Renesis?
:aroused:

I hear you man...
This is such a 'motorcycle' feeling... Touch 'n' go...
VooooooommmmmmmWOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

:ylsuper: :ylsuper: :ylsuper: :ylsuper:

if you have any one of the aftermarket intakes, the engine sound is even more intoxicating :D

I would probably feel kind of bad if I did that crazy spirited driving now. Was just watching the Science Channel and their was an hour special on Global Warming: What you Need to Know. What's worse, was about to purchase a midpipe. I wonder what it would smell like being behind an 8 constantly at 6-9k rpms for about 5-7 minutes.

I noticed a difference when I first got the intake but now I don't remember what the stock one sounds like so it seems the same to me. I would love to ride in a totally stock 8 at 6-9k rpms and see what its like then do that my modified 8.

I'm guessing the OP has never driven anything with torque. My previous E36 M3 would rape my RX8 from a highway roll or from any speed for that matter. I think the illusion of speed at 5000 rpms is just that the engine is very smooth and the pull is linear. I did a 60 mph highway roll (both in 3rd) with my gf driving the S2000 and me in the 8 and she pulled a bus on me to 100

I'm guessing the OP has never driven anything with torque. My previous E36 M3 would rape my RX8 from a highway roll or from any speed for that matter. I think the illusion of speed at 5000 rpms is just that the engine is very smooth and the pull is linear. I did a 60 mph highway roll (both in 3rd) with my gf driving the S2000 and me in the 8 and she pulled a bus on me to 100

i think he was more referring to the SOUND of the engine as it goes beyond 5k, which no piston engine can ever emulate. I don't think he has any illusion about whatever power this car makes, it is what it is.

it does sound like a goddamn jet engine i tell ya :ylsuper:

God I need to find some good driving roads in orange county. The people who live here are such stuck-up, conservative, and joyless. They don't want anyone to have fun. If a road turns out to be a good driving road they either have stop signs put in at ever T-intersection or they put a few speed bumps.

overall i agree with you!

i only drive about 5 minutes to and from work, but my drive is pretty sweet. never crowded, lots of sharp turns, and a few gradual turns that i like to pick up a lot of speed in. south coast metro area costa mesa.

yea but otherwise OC is boring for driving. irvine has some nice windy parts.

im to lazy to shift, so i just tend to say in first gear the whole time. and i drive hwy 20miles one way to work

I'm guessing the OP has never driven anything with torque. My previous E36 M3 would rape my RX8 from a highway roll or from any speed for that matter. I think the illusion of speed at 5000 rpms is just that the engine is very smooth and the pull is linear. I did a 60 mph highway roll (both in 3rd) with my gf driving the S2000 and me in the 8 and she pulled a bus on me to 100


My previous 2K2 Maxima would rape all three cars mentioned above , but i still have the most fun in my RX-8. :)

Winding it out , is intoxicating! When ever somebody is on the cell phone and they hear the RX-8 winding out, they always ask? What the hell am i driving, a F1 car?..............I like that. :) :yesnod: :mdrmed:

I'm guessing the OP has never driven anything with torque. My previous E36 M3 would rape my RX8 from a highway roll or from any speed for that matter. I think the illusion of speed at 5000 rpms is just that the engine is very smooth and the pull is linear. I did a 60 mph highway roll (both in 3rd) with my gf driving the S2000 and me in the 8 and she pulled a bus on me to 100

Where/how did you find your girlfriend?

I use to do that drive all the time back in the old days when Chanhassen was a one stop sign town.

Sweet spot? ah.. the pwer starts at 5 to 5 1/2k.

Sweet spot is 6.5k

for madness keep it at 8 or more and hold on.


Highway 101 is a fun place to drive too,with a lot of banks/hills/turns sweet stuff. just south of 212 and highway 5.



i agree the sweet spot is definately at 6-7K.

I don't recall now ... but it's some where there: either 3rd or 4th.


It has to be 4th, because thats where my sweet spot is, especially with the AEM intake the ms catback, my friend with the windows down told me that it sounded like a ferrari :rock:

Highway 101 is a fun place to drive too,with a lot of banks/hills/turns sweet stuff. just south of 212 and highway 5.



i agree the sweet spot is definately at 6-7K.


But you're from Minnesota.

I'm from MA and while driving up to VT I found Interstate 81 to be a killa drive. Alot of decent corners and curves and alot of hills. Just taking a corner doing 90mph knowing another car would be spinning out or drifting outward just made me smile the entire time. I kept my A/T in the triptronic mode the entire drive and it was a blast. I know I know.. "Its not the same as a MT man!" leave that debate outa this lol... but it was fun hearing that engine whine as many have stated like a Jet Engine. Though I did learn that 4th with A/C on sucks my power hardcore.. sad seeing my speed go form 120 then shift into 4th and slowly see the speed going down One Mph ever 2 seconds.. turned the A/C off and it stayed the same. (btw if this is bad please tell me.. I havent had a chance to get my baby back up to this speed since my trip.)

I'll have to look into it. I heard the Bel 65-whatever is the best one actually.

Escort - Passport 8500 X50. Top of the line in many reviews....

^^^ I am still debating between the Beltronics and the escort. I read the thread on radar detectors (don't know where it is now) and from the first 3 or so pages a lot more people seemed to have beltronics. Someone said it is the same as escort but with a few more features. But I do like the look of escort more and the blue display. However, I think it is a little ridiculous for the blue display to cost 40 bucks extra..

Really? I thought the lower the RPMs the better the MPG.

Also, I read that I can hit 65mph in 2nd. I always panic when I hit the beep and shift right away and hit around 63mph. Is it ok to stay on the beep for a few seconds?

In my manual for my 06 it gives where you should shift into what gears and I nearly always do as close to this as possible with the exception of occasionally continuing accelerating when pulling out from a stop on a road where I need to get my speed up VERY quickly and then I will shift into 3rd and forget about second. In that case I am around 5500 rpms when I hit the speed to shift into third.

2nd: 14 mph
3rd: 22 mph
4th: 29 mph
5th: 36 mph
6th: 46 mph


These shifting point all end up being right at about 2750 rpms. If I shift sooner than that the car feels like it bogs down a little bit. My mileage is nearly always in the 23s unless I get stuck in crappy, stop and go, very slow moving if at all traffic and then I will see it go down depending on how long I am stuck in it. A week ago I had to sit mostly stopped for two hours although occasionally moving at 8 mph. My mileage went down to just barely over 21.

I can't say that I've noticed the driving to be "more fun" if I let the engine rev up a lot higher for straight driving or anything.

BunnyGirl, you shift at 2750rpms? How do you even keep up with traffic? I can understand shifting at 2750 RPMs in the later gears but early on I have to at least shift around 3500rpms in 1-3 in order to keep with traffic.

I just bring 1st up to about 6000rpm and 2nd to about 4000rpm. Screw gas mileage in those gears, I'd rather get up to speed than bog the engine down.

Shift at 4500 to 5000 rpm in all gears. 1st to 2nd to 3rd to 4th

Oh by the way I have an AT. :bootyshak
Nothing like driving down the freeway in traffic in second gear doing about 6000 rpm that is about 6omph It's like 1 to1.

BunnyGirl, you shift at 2750rpms? How do you even keep up with traffic? I can understand shifting at 2750 RPMs in the later gears but early on I have to at least shift around 3500rpms in 1-3 in order to keep with traffic.

I've always managed fine and I can smoothly and consistently accelerate. I've gotten better with this the more I have driven my car. The only exception is that that is a slight issue from Beavercreek Road pulling onto 213. It's basically a four way intersection where the crossroad happens to be a highway. Unless I have a green light I have to yield and merge with the other traffic that is already going straight and they are all going 60. This means that since I am pretty much anywhere between a dead stop and 10 mph (since it's like turning right at a regular intersection instead of any sort of on-ramp or lane that merges) when I pull out I have to really step on it. Hence, my skipping gears because it is nearly impossible to shift all those gears that fast to get up to speed. Of course, by doing this I usually end up accelerating very quickly and have to back off on the gas a lot or I will run down other vehicles that are moving slower. This is especially true if the lane I would turn into is clear and someone pulls out before me. I take my turn and accelerate the way I was describing and end up accellerating far faster than the other vehicle and in some instances have to brake if I can't just change lanes at that point.

Basically I just pull out in first and step on it until around 24 mph and shift into third gear and then just keep going from there accelerating. At that point it is easier to keep going and shifting smoothly (cuts down on all that arm movement) and I haven't been run over or caused the other cars to have to slow down much if at all. One time I did have to keep accelerating pretty fast so I ended up going from third to fifth.

Besides, it's not like the car stops moving just because you have to shift. LOL

I don't have a problem getting going or pulling out and getting up to speed shifting in the right spots. I seem to keep up with the traffic flow just fine. :dunno:

I can't say that I've noticed the driving to be "more fun" if I let the engine rev up a lot higher

what? :shocking:

2750? :shocking:

why do you own a car that can rev up past 9k RPMs??? :sad:

I've always managed fine and I can smoothly and consistently accelerate. I've gotten better with this the more I have driven my car. The only exception is that that is a slight issue from Beavercreek Road pulling onto 213. It's basically a four way intersection where the crossroad happens to be a highway. Unless I have a green light I have to yield and merge with the other traffic that is already going straight and they are all going 60. This means that since I am pretty much anywhere between a dead stop and 10 mph (since it's like turning right at a regular intersection instead of any sort of on-ramp or lane that merges) when I pull out I have to really step on it. Hence, my skipping gears because it is nearly impossible to shift all those gears that fast to get up to speed. Of course, by doing this I usually end up accelerating very quickly and have to back off on the gas a lot or I will run down other vehicles that are moving slower. This is especially true if the lane I would turn into is clear and someone pulls out before me. I take my turn and accelerate the way I was describing and end up accellerating far faster than the other vehicle and in some instances have to brake if I can't just change lanes at that point.

Basically I just pull out in first and step on it until around 24 mph and shift into third gear and then just keep going from there accelerating. At that point it is easier to keep going and shifting smoothly (cuts down on all that arm movement) and I haven't been run over or caused the other cars to have to slow down much if at all. One time I did have to keep accelerating pretty fast so I ended up going from third to fifth.

Besides, it's not like the car stops moving just because you have to shift. LOL

I don't have a problem getting going or pulling out and getting up to speed shifting in the right spots. I seem to keep up with the traffic flow just fine. :dunno:

im so glad you took the time to describe what we all know as merging into traffic.

somebody need to go give bunnygirl a visit and *show* her how an RX-8 SHOULD be driven *evil laugh* mauahahahahaha

When driving casually I will shift anywhere from 3 to 4k, when having fun I generally tend to "lurk" or cruise at about 4k RPM or higher in curves, so that I am working up from there when I really need a little (or big) burst of power on exit....

Where/how did you find your girlfriend?

Met her through some friends, when i met her she drove a beat up 96 automatic 4 cyl accord. She wanted a fun car so we picked up the S from a friend who bought an Elise. I taught her how to drive stick in an afternoon and she autocrosses with me now a few times a month. Ironically she hates the RX8 and thinks we should have another s2000 in the garage, i'm starting to agree. Having no power off the line is ok but having no balls up top is getting annoying, I haven't owned a sub 99 mph 1/4 mile trap speed car in a long time and I don't think I will ever again.

im so glad you took the time to describe what we all know as merging into traffic.

Yeah, well some people can't seem to understand things on here short of a video demonstration. LOL

why do you own a car that can rev up past 9k RPMs???

+1

what? :shocking:

2750? :shocking:

why do you own a car that can rev up past 9k RPMs??? :sad:

That doesn't mean I don't rev up that high and drive it hard periodically. That is just not my "typical" driving habit, meaning I don't do that in everyday driving.

everyone shifts differently, just make sure you get the feeling of 9K!!!! :rock: :rock:

Met her through some friends, when i met her she drove a beat up 96 automatic 4 cyl accord. She wanted a fun car so we picked up the S from a friend who bought an Elise. I taught her how to drive stick in an afternoon and she autocrosses with me now a few times a month. Ironically she hates the RX8 and thinks we should have another s2000 in the garage, i'm starting to agree. Having no power off the line is ok but having no balls up top is getting annoying, I haven't owned a sub 99 mph 1/4 mile trap speed car in a long time and I don't think I will ever again.

FI?

Teach women how to drive stick...I'm on it.

Met her through some friends, when i met her she drove a beat up 96 automatic 4 cyl accord. She wanted a fun car so we picked up the S from a friend who bought an Elise. I taught her how to drive stick in an afternoon and she autocrosses with me now a few times a month. Ironically she hates the RX8 and thinks we should have another s2000 in the garage, i'm starting to agree. Having no power off the line is ok but having no balls up top is getting annoying, I haven't owned a sub 99 mph 1/4 mile trap speed car in a long time and I don't think I will ever again.

i'm sorry to hear of your woes. maybe you should sell the 8 for another S if it really seems more fitting for you and your other. As i'm sure you're aware by now...the 8's definetely not for everyone.

Did some spirited driving today. Third gear at 7k RPMs is good fun.

Did some spirited driving today. Third gear at 7k RPMs is good fun.

xbox or pc???

beers :beer:

4th dimension. Magic shrooms.

4th dimension. Magic shrooms.


that is all you have..

beers :beer: