DonG35Miata

If the rest of the RX-8 delivers, would 220 hp been enough to get your business?

RomanoM

Even though it wouldn't seem as such a great bargain at 220 compared to 247.

It would still be a great package at a good price, I would still get one.

BUT!!!! I would also expect better fuel efficiency from 220 compared to 250.

DonG35Miata

bump

BillK

I haven't ordered but I wouldn't have removed it from consideration even if its power was listed as 180 HP.

I love rotaries, always wanted one and the Gen II RX-7 GTU I drove for about a week back in 1989 was certainly fun and it made a lot less than 180 HP (got worse fuel mileage than a Renesis, too, but I'd still buy one today over a lot of other cars...)

Racer X-8

I already own an anemic car that only goes fast while parked. (G20T) True, 220 is plenty more hp, but - and you can sing along with me here - "Oh, the times, they are a-changin'". We're goin' back it seems to the muscle car, folks, and I don't want to be simply sitting pretty. Heck, 250 is gonna look pretty lame soon, if it doesn't to you already. That number was borderline ok for me.

220 or 210 or, what's it gonna be next month? Who knows? Crap!

RotorGeek

I just test drove it this evening. I do not think it is underpowered at all. I dont care about the horsepower numbers. I rides awesome

WickdMonkey

I totally agree with the return of the muscle cars statement. I already think 250 is not much, but considering what it cost to buy lets say a 400hp car the price of the 8 is pretty good. I just hope the slumping economy doesn't put a halt to the horsepower wars the way the oil crisis did in the 70s. To answer the question if this car only has 220 or less hp then cancel my order for sure. I can get a handful of cars with similar hp for a lot less, or a few cars with more horses for a little more.

The Wicked MOnkey

If the horse power wars are on going when is america going to jump in? Bring back Mopar power!!!!! A neon doesn't count as mopar power.

pelucidor

The car is fast enough for me, and does so many other things extremely well. Having made many comments in the dyno threads about getting an explanation for the strange numbers, I am still happy to buy my car tomorrow, and I signed the paperwork today.

ggreen29

Ditto what Pelucidor and the pelucidogs say. I'm still delighted with this car, and the notion that there may be bonus hp somewhere down the road is icing on an already well-iced cake.

Quick_lude

No because at those power levels the acceleration numbers would be similar to my current car. The RX-8, AS ADVERSTISED, is exactly what I want, a 3000lb, rwd, 4 seat, good handling potential (my current car has a Tein coilover suspension ) 247hp car. I like the philosophy = high revving engine and styling. But even though hp isn't everything, I would like to upgrade on that aspect from my current car and at 220hp it would not be much of an upgrade if at all since the 8 weighs 100lbs more than the Prelude.

yrotory

My dealer called last night to tell me my car is in. In spite of the concerns voiced about the dyno results I am excited about getting the RX-8 and expect it will be a blast to drive.

Its too bad that the major car mags don't generally dyno the cars they test. Bike mags do that as a rule, and it eliminates the paper horsepower effect. There always seems to be a gap between advertising copy and the rear wheel that is larger than mechanical losses can explain. The Car & Driver test showed the RX-8 held its own against a G35 coupe and thats good enough for me.

Anyway, I didn't order the RX-8 expecting it to be a stoplight rocket. I've got my BMW R1100S slug to handle those duties and even though it's a slow bike, it will still leave most cars sucking my exhaust.

Boozehound

The HP issue would be big enough for me not to PRE-order (just based on reports alone, etc). For the same performance, I could plunk down the same money, not have to wait, get an IS300 with way better service and reliability, and have it 3 months before hand.

Am I glad I pre-ordered? Sure. I love this car - the driving feel is much better than the IS, but the number game would be enough to keep me out of a pre-order program almost certainly. That being said, a 220hp RX-8 might have been my prefrence upon test drive, but it just isn't worth the leap of faith/pain in the a$$ that pre-ordering and waiting is all about.

I'm happy with my car. I'd be HAPPIER with the corral full of all it's ponies.

EDIT: Maybe mine's full power (I haven't dyno'ed it), so I dont know for sure, but conventional wisdom wins out here - there's no such thing as too much horsepower.

Sneakyracer

I seriously doubt that a RX8 can hang with a 350z or G35 coupe, I have seen both cars dyno at 235+-HP to the wheels on a dynojet.

I have yet to personally see a RX8 dyno locally but searching this forum I see that the RX8 only dynoes at 180-185 Hp which is a LOT less compared to the nissans, even if the Nissans are a lot heavier 55 wheel HP is a LOT of extra power and will generally more than cancel out a 450 lb weight difference. And i cant believe the excuses I have read on this site, that the car needs to get to 20k miles to release all the power WHAT? so from the dealer up to 20k miles you paid for a 220hp car and only get a 247hp car after 20k miles, reading that is really amusing. No car will get 20 wheel hp from breaking in that is ridiculous, really pathetic.

I was cross shopping between the WRX STI, G35 coupe, 350z and RX8. The last 3 look very sporty and well built so a big factor in making my desition is power/performance which in a sports car is generally one of the most important motivating factors in getting that type of car in the first place (unless you want a POSER car)

Being that a 350z costs about the same as an RX8, looks good too (both are distinctive), handles well also and is rear drive BUT has over 50 wheel hp more than the RX8, I just crossed the RX8 off my list.

IF and only IF the RX8 cost about $5,000 less would I consider it. Thats the bottom line.

MAZDA, shame on you, shame on you....

Maybe you can redeem yourself by stuffing the 185 wheel hp RX8 engine in a MIATA, now that would make positive headlines.

DonG35Miata

If C&D did 7.5 sec 5-60 on their preproduction test RX-8 would have to think the 5-60 time is around 8 seconds now, with the actual dyno'd power output of the Renesis. Apparently that video showed the RX-8 lagging behind the S2000, Accord V6, G35, Crossifire, etc, all save the Miata.

Anyone with a broken-in car have access to a drag strip?

Lethalchem

I must admit that the HP numbers are disapointing for such a beautifully crafted car. I saw, and drove, the RX-8 for the first time this weekend. It was a blast to drive, and I couldn't stop talking about how much I enjoyed it, but it IS slow...and I was in the 6spd.

My wife is looking at the auto, which we havn't driven yet, but I expect to be much less impressed with that. She doesn't care about performance though, so the car is still a good possibility (she was looking at the WRX).

I don't have a problem buying 250hp at 26k for the base models, but the sticker of 31k for the 6spd is crazy. I bought my 2003 Cobra for only a few grand over that, and they arn't even in the same class. A bit too high priced for the performance, IMHO.

Of course, this car isn't for me, it's for my wife. We all have different uses for our cars, and not everyone is as closed-minded as I am about performance. If she decides she wants it, I'll just keep the cobra at the drags, and I'm sure I'll have a blast with her RX-8 at the autoX.:D

It really is an amazingly stunning car that almost sells on looks alone. Mazda designed this thing beautifully.

wanker

Echoing RomanoM's comments, 220 HP is adequate on a 3000 lb car but not at 16 mpg (my first tank).
Also, not adequate for a pre-order.

U. N. O.

not a chance i would have gotten a wrx sti for that price or the g35 mt6 , NOW after a turbo and ecu mod for the pre-order rx-8 yes, given that peps are saying there is not even 200hp according to dyno tests done, if true, very, very disapointed and would never for my life time look at mazda the same. we will see what the magazines have to say in the next few months ...

pelucidor

I still don't have my RX-8 yet (almost 6 weeks at port now), but I have been thinking about this quite a bit.

When I test drove a heavily loaded 3600lb RX-8 (4 on board) it seemed to accelerate much faster than my 3450lb IS300 (just me on board). Admittedly the IS300 is 215hp going through a torque convertor as it's an automatic, but the difference was very noticeable, and the RX-8 had <100 miles on it compared to 45,000 on the IS300. Perhaps the RX-8's horses are there but cannot be easily measured at the wheel. Any thoughts - it could just be subjective, but it is unusual that the quieter car (RX-8) should feel so much faster.

Lethalchem

I wonder if the poor gas milage can be attributed to the fact that the car seems to need to be driven around much higher in the rpm spectrum. When I drove it I noticed that yes, it has a high redline, but for it to feel responsive I had to drive around at 3k or better. In fact, anything below that seemed useless in traffic. Perhaps that is why the gas milage is poor.

You guys are getting about the same gas milage (maybe even a bit less!) than my cobra. Something's wrong with that picture. When a 3700lb supercharged V8 that's been modified to over 500hp can pull in 22mpg on the freeway...matching your 3000lb 1.3 with 200+....something just seems wrong. Is this normal for these rotary engines?

delhi

at a cheaper cost I will think about it.... 24-25k would be right in the ball park of a WRX. Anything more it's a loss cause for me. YMMV.

Chuck Clifford

Hey Lethalchem if your hot Shot cobra is so hot, why are you shopping? Look at the list of cars you have owned. Do you really expect anyone to believe you are objectively evaluating the RX8. It appears to me you are trying to justify buying another mustang. Go ahead you have our permission. In all the articles I have read, any stock mustang of any kind didn't even come close to the 8. Horsepower is overrated, if you drove the RX8 for any period of time you would finally understand that fact. This car is putting as much on the road as it should. When its all said and done, they will find out why this and many 03 model cars are not dynoing right. It will come down to all these wiz bang computer sensors that monitor everything and somehow compensates for what it sees with a programmed model of what to do. Maybe back tires spinning like mad, and front tires standing still tell the engine to pull over, you have just entered a hurricane. Who knows. The engine tested at 247 HP, something electronic is is probably limiting it on a dyno. Personnally (on the road, not standing still in a garage) I don't feel limited in any way with the power I'm getting right now, after breakin at 1400 miles. I'm loving it, and I won't be shopping for another car for quite a while.

Lethalchem

I'm not really sure why you felt attacked enough to warrent a response like this, but perhaps you should go back and read it again. I was not putting down the RX-8, I was offering a suggestion as to why the gas milage might be poor. I know nothing of these kinds of engines, so my question at the end of my post was sincere, not sarcastic.

I'm not sure why I'm responding to you, but I guess it's in case others share your opinions. Go back and read my other posts. I do not bash your car in any of them. I'm not a troll, nor have I come here to say my Cobra is better or worse than your cars. I only mentioned the cobra as a point of reference for gas milage.

As for the plausibility of me buying a Rx-8, I'm confused as to how you would know what my interests are? For one, I respect and enjoy all cars that have their fingers on the pulse of what driving is all about. I will admit, that were I looking for a car for MYSELF, I'd not be here. As it is, however, I am looking to purchase a car for my WIFE, and thought that the RX-8 was a beautiful work of art that she would have a blast in.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, I appreciate the info on how the car feels for you as a driver. That makes me feel better knowing I may have to drive it now and then if I get it for my wife. As stated in several, if not all of my posts here thusfar, I think the Rx-8 is beautifully done. it just lacks the power to back up it's looks and style.

Elak

What are people looking for? Actual performance or just numbers to impress? Peak HP tells you about as much as CPU MHz when comparing performance: everything else must be identical for it to be relevant.

If you just want the number to impress people then the 247hp in the specs should be enough.

If you want to out-distance competitors at red-lights, then wait for 1/4 mile results and see how the RX8 performs.

If you want acceleration numbers then check for 0-60mph results.

What matters is the amount of work performed, and that will be a time integral over the HP curve in the RPM range used. High but sharp peak will not necessarily be better than low and flat.

/Elak

Lethalchem

I don't care about numbers, I care about how it feels on the road. Numbers, both from the factory and in magazines are poor marks to judge by since they are invariably inaccurate. My statements and opinions stem from my test drive of a 6spd the other day.

Chuck Clifford

Maybe my comments were harsh, and I never implied you to be a troll, a mustang hermit would be more appropriate. Throughout your posts you mention the RX8 has no power, probably good enough for your wife, and mutiple mention of your manly cobra. (A very fine machine in its own right). Many people who drive a Rotary for test drives or for a short periods of time,(me for one many years ago) drive them with preconcieved notions of a piston driven machine. This innate misconception ingrained in us by Ford, GM, Dodge, Honda, and many others, is that at or around 4500 or 5000 RPM you need to be thinking seriously about shifting. Right assupmtion for your Cobra, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG assumption for the one and only rule breaking Mazda rotary. It is at the 4 to 5K RPM in the rotary that you start to play, have fun, get real happy, and most of all, learn to respect the amazing difference between a rotary engine and its conventional counterpart. Most are afraid to make the jump, very few who do return to the status quo. No disrespect intended lethalchem. I wish you all of the fun and driving enjoyment I am currently having. Zoom, Zoom.