Rich

I went down to Bob Penkhus Mazda in Colorado Springs the other day to test drive an RX-8. Even though I told the salesman that we were absolutely not looking to replace either of our cars within a year, he was still very polite and low pressure about letting us take the car out. Kudos!

My girlfriend (Jody) came with me, and we first spent a few minutes looking at the car from the outside. When the initial pics came out over a year ago, I have to admit that I didn't like the look - hated it actually. It's grown on me a bit since then, but I still think it looks overdone. The taillights are horrible, and it just generally looks like they went too far overboard. I love the lines of the FD and the more understated lines of the Miata. Jody didn't like it either, but neither of us disliked it enough to keep us from considering it as a replacement for our current 4-door. I have a feeling that it's going to really look dated in a few years.

Once I got into the car, things improved dramatically. I didn't pay too much attention to the interior materials. The g/f cares a whole lot more about that sort of thing than I do, and she thought it was fine. Better than the 6, but neither of us liked it as much as the Miata. The materials are probably of higher quality, but it was just too busy for me. Again, I really prefer simplicity of design over things that are overly stylized. I didn't touch the stereo or Nav system, since they don't matter one iota to me. I have a high end stereo at home, and no car audio system will even approach it, so I don't try. Besides, when I drive I concentrate fully on driving. If I have music on it's just background noise.

I was shocked to find that I didn't have much headroom. I'm only 5'10, but with the sunroof I'm not sure I could fit with my helmet on. That would be a huge factor, since I would certainly autocross it and probably do some track days. However, I wouldn't get the model with the sunroof so I should be ok there.
The feeling was generally a bit more cozy than I remember, but it still is cozy and not tight. I consider that a compliment, not a criticism. The space in the back is amazing! Sure, I wouldn't want to travel across the country back there but it's quite comfortable for a trip under an hour or so. Major, major edge over the G35 coupe.

Once we got moving, I remembered how much I love rotary engines. So smooth! I know many people have complained about how quiet the engine is, but for me it was fantastic. I really don't need any more sound, and besides, it's a simple thing to fix with an aftermarket exhaust. I was concerned about the 6 speed, because I have heard lots of criticism about the Miata's 6-speed transmission (the 5-speed is the one that everyone talks about). It wasn't quite as nice as my Miata's 5-speed, but it was as close as I've ever felt! Great transmission, great engine. What a combination! But the best aspect of the car is its handling. Without question, the RX-8 is the only car I have ever driven that has the same mind-reading capability as a Miata. In both cars, it feels like you just have to think about making the car go in a certain direction, and it reads your mind. Incredibly direct steering (this is the most shocking thing from DonG35Miata's review), fantastic turnin, very good grip, and most of all excellent feedback all make this car a dream in the handling department. And on top of that, it absorbs bumps far better than any other car I've driven with such good handling.
True, there was more body roll than I'd like, but I would change out the shocks anyway pretty soon after I bought the car. For me, nimble handling is what makes or breaks the deal. Even with a bit of body roll, this car wins in the fun to drive catagory! Great balance!
There are only two additional complaints I have about the car. First, I hate hate hate hate HATE! the digital speedo. Ugh. Horrible. Can't stand it. Loathe despise, and abohr it. Really, really, a lot!
The second thing is the gearing. You redline in second at nearly 70 mph! That's absurd! I think you can get up to nearly 40 in first. The best thing for a low torque engine is for it to be aggressively geared. IMHO they should change the gearing so that the max speed in the first 2 gears is about 10% lower, yeilding a 10% increase in torque at the rear wheels in those gears. I'll never understand why the geared it the way they did. I'd bet they could drop a noticeable if not significant amount of time off the 0-60 time (maybe 0.2-0.3), improve the driveability of the car, and also help the clutch last longer by doing it. There's probably a reason they did it the way they did, but I just don't get it. I only see benefits from more aggressive gearing and no drawbacks. Obviously I'm missing something.

I'm not in the market for a new car now, but if I was the RX-8 would be #1 on my list. I've driven the G35c, and have absolutely no interest in it. By itself it handles well, but compared to the RX-8 it feels like an understeering boat, and the back seats are completely useless for anyone over 5'6". Gotta love that low-end torque, but I value a light, nimble feel over grunt, and I would need it to be able to seat 4 adults. The G35c simply can't do that. The STI and EVO exceed my ugly quotient - even though I don't find the RX-8 all that pretty it's not as bad as those things. Besides, this would be our more luxury oriented car, and from what I've read those are both all-out performance machines. Depending on your priorities, all 4 of those cars are good choices, but for the tradeoffs I want to make the RX-8 is the hands down winner.

In the end, I'm very jealous of all of the owners out there! Except for the *&^% speedo, the complaints I have about the car are minor, and the positives are HUGE. No other car on the market combines that much luxury, utility, performance, and fun to drive for the price. If anyone gets tired of their car and wants to drive a Miata for a week, let me know and I'll trade you!

rxeightr

Agreed -- and I don't know how Mazda pulled it off.

Also, the digital speedo is something I am getting used to. Not as bad as it once was.

BillK

FWIW, I'm used to a car with a digital speedo so I didn't even notice I was reading a different one, I just knew what speed I was going and at what rate my speed was changing.

If you're coming from any vehicle with a digital speedo, you won't have any problem with the RX-8's... (it's even much larger than the one I'm used to...)

Personally, I love the speedo and, I feel, it's one of the best features of the car. The alternative would have been to cram a speedo with tiny markings somewhere else in the gauge pod making it a farce at best to read. (A good example of this is the Porsche Boxster; no one reads the analog speedo, everyone reads the digital one inset into the bottom of the analog speedo.)

Someday I'll understand why many people have a strong anti-digital speedo bias; must be people who are used to analog watches as well. :D

RomanoM

It's all about strong foundations! A stiff body structure with good vibration characteristics and excellent suspension geometery with the proper calibration of bushings.

Of course to get that requires the will to put in the development time and costs.

And people wonder why Porsches cost so much, development engineers don't work for peanut you know

jbebernes

I believe the gear ratios are set for a good 0-60 time...only one shift, not two, on the way up.

Puppy1

This is my first car with a digital speedo and I have adjusted very quickly. The tach is the fun to watch move and the speedo is so easy to read. It is lightyears ahead of the first digital attemps back in the 80's. I really like it now.

racerdave

And could the tall-ish gearing be an opportunity for the aftermarket, straight out of the pages of the musclecar market?

Just swap out the rear end gear for something a little lower (higher numerically)!

Buger

Thanks for the review Rich,

Although I was hoping that the RX-8 would be geared a little more aggressively, it appears that fuel economy concerns won out. This is probably a good compromise to make though since much of the target market for the RX-8 may care a bit about fuel economy as well.

Originally posted by jbebernes
The RX-8 isn't really geared for the best 0-60 times. Most sportscars are geared so that the 1st to 2nd shift comes at around 60 - 65 mph. We will probably find that the RX-8 0-70 times will be very competitive with higher hp to weight ratio cars though.

Brian

Puppy1

Buger:

I get so excited each time you post. It's like some wise guru has returned from the mountian after months meditation and fasting to dispense the latest word of wisdom from on high.

OMG, that is actually what IS happening!

Rich

As Buger said, they're *not* set up for a good 0-60 time. If you've ever read any of my posts, you'll know that I'm about as unconcerned about that sort of stat as anyone on this board. However I understand that many (most?) people buy cars based on that sort of thing. Had redline in second gear come at 63 instead of 70 (I know that's probably off by a few mph, this is just an illustration) then there would be 10% more torque at the wheels. You would get 10% better acceleration throughout second gear, yeilding a faster 0-60 time. That still means only 1 shift before 60.

In addition, I think it would improve the drivability of the car. That's really the more important reason.

jonalan

Ditto! I watch the tach when accellerating and just use the speedo when cruising. I actually like it better than analog. I adapted immediately to the digital speedo from the second I first got into the car.

My $.02

ZoomZoom

I was very disappointed when I found out that the RX-8 was coming with a digital speedo; however, after driving the car a few days it doesn't bother me any more. Who knows I might even like it in a few more days. I guess time will tell.

j1mb0x99

Sorry to go off-topic and I mean no offense, but zoom... your avatar is freakin me out man.

-JiM

S2 and RX-8

Hey zoomzoom,

Do you know X-viper from the s2000 forum? Same avatar, also a Cannuck. Back to the topic.

My s2000's speedo is digital too. I need a shift beeper for those redline shifts.