Melb Drive Day
07-11-2003, 04:50 AM
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Melb Drive Day
Have attached a pic from the Melb Drive day.
As shown in the shot, we were able to drive two manuals (one fully optioned) one auto and also a 350Z. The ability to drive the Z was excellent as it was good for immediate comparison on the track.
What did I get out of the day? A summary would read that I am definitely buying the 8 now and can't wait until they arrive. Other thoughts in no particular order:
- Engine is great, certainly better low end torque than the previous rotaries I've owned (12A and 13B). High rpm makes the engine a real joy to drive. while not as race carish as my old 12A turbo rx-7 the power is delivered smoothly throughout the range making it far more enjoyable to drive.
- handling better than I thought it was going to be, stability control is fantastic. Steering great
- Looks great in the flesh, plenty of room in the back. The vehicle 'stock' looks surprisingly finished, will need to really think about how important accessories are though I think I will go for Side Skirts, Front air dam and rear deflector, but the car stock really doesn't need them.
- Boot is fine without the spare wheel, placing wheel in will result in very little space.
- ergonomics very good
- Gear changes great
- don't bother with the auto, but that said it is a relative thing. Auto still drives well but doesn't feel grear after you've just been thrashing the Manual
As shown in the shot, we were able to drive two manuals (one fully optioned) one auto and also a 350Z. The ability to drive the Z was excellent as it was good for immediate comparison on the track.
What did I get out of the day? A summary would read that I am definitely buying the 8 now and can't wait until they arrive. Other thoughts in no particular order:
- Engine is great, certainly better low end torque than the previous rotaries I've owned (12A and 13B). High rpm makes the engine a real joy to drive. while not as race carish as my old 12A turbo rx-7 the power is delivered smoothly throughout the range making it far more enjoyable to drive.
- handling better than I thought it was going to be, stability control is fantastic. Steering great
- Looks great in the flesh, plenty of room in the back. The vehicle 'stock' looks surprisingly finished, will need to really think about how important accessories are though I think I will go for Side Skirts, Front air dam and rear deflector, but the car stock really doesn't need them.
- Boot is fine without the spare wheel, placing wheel in will result in very little space.
- ergonomics very good
- Gear changes great
- don't bother with the auto, but that said it is a relative thing. Auto still drives well but doesn't feel grear after you've just been thrashing the Manual
07-11-2003, 05:26 PM
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more information needed
Can others who drove the rx8 in the melbourne drive day please post ,from the photo i noticed a 350z did you people get to drive it ,what are your thoughts ,come on lets get off our backsides and try and make the aussie site a bit more interesting.
07-11-2003, 07:49 PM
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Thanks for the great post... agree with Lock & Load... what do the rest of you think?
Also, what was the "vibe" of the drive day... is there an expectation that we will decide on the day whether to go ahead or not?
Also, what was the "vibe" of the drive day... is there an expectation that we will decide on the day whether to go ahead or not?
07-12-2003, 12:36 AM
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'Vibe'
'Vibe' of the day was very relaxed. There was no expectation of any decisions and in fact no staff even asked regarding our individual intentions. Maxda ran the day very well and were essentially there to provide information on the vehicles while being available to answer questions if required. Basically let us do our thing without being invasive.
Fairly much this was billed as a 'Mazda Australia' event and they left dealership stuff alone. In line with this they would discuss Oz wide sales figures however didn't provide info on when cars would be here etc as the Dealers are the ones that are supposed to have that kind of low level detail (and the same would be true for the expectation of confirming order question that you asked about; as far as they are concerned that would be a dealer issue) They did say that late July 1st week of august is still first delivery.
The only bad vibe was that it was bloody cold out a calder park!
Regarding the 350Z, yes we did get to drive it. Essentially you did one lap as a driver and one as a passenger in all cars. A mate of mine owns the track Z and so I've had the chance to drive recently. Great car and was enjoyable to drive on the track. If I had to compare I would say that the Z is rougher and prone to use the traction control earlier than the 8 seemed to. This is probably due to the harder suspension set up. I expected there to be a more noticeable body roll in the 8 compared to the Z while doing slalom however was very pleased to find that the 8 handled the course as well as the Z in this regard. Z definitely had better low down torque and has a louder/tougher engine sound however the engine wasn't as 'fun' to drive. This is mainly because of the differences in redline, changing gears at 6500 is not as fun as 9500 that is for sure. Steering wasn't as nimble in the z either. Z was great but the 8 was more enjoyable (at least IMO and that of my co-driver) and when you then look at the other advantages of the 8 you can see why Mazda werent too concerned about losing any customers to the 350Z. Both a confident and a smart move to have the Z at the drive day I thought.
Fairly much this was billed as a 'Mazda Australia' event and they left dealership stuff alone. In line with this they would discuss Oz wide sales figures however didn't provide info on when cars would be here etc as the Dealers are the ones that are supposed to have that kind of low level detail (and the same would be true for the expectation of confirming order question that you asked about; as far as they are concerned that would be a dealer issue) They did say that late July 1st week of august is still first delivery.
The only bad vibe was that it was bloody cold out a calder park!
Regarding the 350Z, yes we did get to drive it. Essentially you did one lap as a driver and one as a passenger in all cars. A mate of mine owns the track Z and so I've had the chance to drive recently. Great car and was enjoyable to drive on the track. If I had to compare I would say that the Z is rougher and prone to use the traction control earlier than the 8 seemed to. This is probably due to the harder suspension set up. I expected there to be a more noticeable body roll in the 8 compared to the Z while doing slalom however was very pleased to find that the 8 handled the course as well as the Z in this regard. Z definitely had better low down torque and has a louder/tougher engine sound however the engine wasn't as 'fun' to drive. This is mainly because of the differences in redline, changing gears at 6500 is not as fun as 9500 that is for sure. Steering wasn't as nimble in the z either. Z was great but the 8 was more enjoyable (at least IMO and that of my co-driver) and when you then look at the other advantages of the 8 you can see why Mazda werent too concerned about losing any customers to the 350Z. Both a confident and a smart move to have the Z at the drive day I thought.
07-12-2003, 12:41 AM
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The drive day was great - who said Mazda wasn't looking after its customers! They deserve a real rap for giving us such a great opportunity, including a rare chance to compare the RX-8 and the 350 Z around a race track.
Mazda didn't run the day as a hard sell exercise - they just let the product do the talking.
It wasn't a drive around the car-park either - we each drove all of the cars around Calder with the only restrictions being some chicanes and witches-hats to slow us down on the staights and a request that we not attempt high rev take-offs. Otherwise we were encouraged to try the cars out in all ways - acceleration, handling and braking.
The manual RX-8 was definently the pick of the three cars (manual RX-8, auto RX-8 and 350Z). As many of the press reviews comparing the RX-8 with other cars (eg the Age on Thursday), the RX-8 scores highly in all categories - an amazing achievement. The 350Z seemed to invoke the traction control in circumstances that the RX-8 simply handled in its stride.
I didn't talk to anyone who wasn't impressed or wanted to switch from the RX-8 to the 350Z.
Mazda didn't run the day as a hard sell exercise - they just let the product do the talking.
It wasn't a drive around the car-park either - we each drove all of the cars around Calder with the only restrictions being some chicanes and witches-hats to slow us down on the staights and a request that we not attempt high rev take-offs. Otherwise we were encouraged to try the cars out in all ways - acceleration, handling and braking.
The manual RX-8 was definently the pick of the three cars (manual RX-8, auto RX-8 and 350Z). As many of the press reviews comparing the RX-8 with other cars (eg the Age on Thursday), the RX-8 scores highly in all categories - an amazing achievement. The 350Z seemed to invoke the traction control in circumstances that the RX-8 simply handled in its stride.
I didn't talk to anyone who wasn't impressed or wanted to switch from the RX-8 to the 350Z.
Last edited by RX-3_13B_Tommo; 07-12-2003 at 12:58 AM.
07-14-2003, 06:15 AM
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We are waiting for a red manual, with leather pack. Not sure about the accessories yet. Would prefer the Mazdaspeed spoiler and side-skirts but can't get a fix on availability and price.
07-14-2003, 06:39 AM
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accessories
Yeah, same issue with the accessories, the mazdaspeed stuff may well be the go but am unsure how to purchase / checkout in Oz. If they become easily accessible here then I will probably look at the mazdaspeed option. I too prefer the spoiler on that vehicle.
07-14-2003, 08:53 AM
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Just to add my thoughts to what has already been said, the Drive day was very good.
The chance to compare the 350z and the RX8 in the same conditions on the same track within mins of each other was priceless. Apparently the 350z was purchased by Mazda for the purpose of testing and comparisons.
I actually got to drive the 350z first and i must say i was very impressed with the power not just low down but right through each gear. Unfortunatly that is where my compliments stop for the Z.
Then i stepped into the Manual 8 with full extra's. I tell you they were like chalk and cheese. The 8's interior was more user friendly, the gear change was MUCH smoother and to be honest the car overall was so comfortable i felt like i had driven it 100 times before.
Cornering was fantastic and while i was not driving as hard as possible, i was amazed that the rear of the car didn't slide out.
The 350z i nearly lost a couple of times and going quicker into the same corners, the RX8 only slightly drifted.
One other comment comparing the two cars, the body roll on the 350z was surpisingly apparant. The body roll on the RX8.........well...what body roll?
It sits alot lower to the ground than i imagined from other peoples discriptions, and looks very well finnished even with out the extra's. Interior was great but i was a little disapointed with the cheap metalic strip that runs along each side of the centre console. They will damage easily.
I have ordered the Mazda Aero Kit aswell as the side strakes, Rotory emblems and silver pertol cap. I was going to really dress it up with after market kits (mazdaspeed) but i think that will wreck the look of a nice looking car. I'll stick to Mazda's more subtle changes.
I went into the day not totally confident that i was happy with getting the RX8 but I've been convinced. I found myself with only one unanswered problem when leaving, that was i had ordered the Titanium and after seeing them, i REALLY liked the Black and Blue coloured cars.
I have changed my order to Black with Black-Red interior as of today and i've had cofirmation that i will still get my car at the same time which is delivery in the first week of August.
All in all, i'm very happy and comparing the z on the same day only helped me make my decision. I think that it was a bold move by Mazda to have the z available but after driving them both i can see why they did it!!
Now....anyone want to buy a Subaru STI?
The chance to compare the 350z and the RX8 in the same conditions on the same track within mins of each other was priceless. Apparently the 350z was purchased by Mazda for the purpose of testing and comparisons.
I actually got to drive the 350z first and i must say i was very impressed with the power not just low down but right through each gear. Unfortunatly that is where my compliments stop for the Z.
Then i stepped into the Manual 8 with full extra's. I tell you they were like chalk and cheese. The 8's interior was more user friendly, the gear change was MUCH smoother and to be honest the car overall was so comfortable i felt like i had driven it 100 times before.
Cornering was fantastic and while i was not driving as hard as possible, i was amazed that the rear of the car didn't slide out.
The 350z i nearly lost a couple of times and going quicker into the same corners, the RX8 only slightly drifted.
One other comment comparing the two cars, the body roll on the 350z was surpisingly apparant. The body roll on the RX8.........well...what body roll?
It sits alot lower to the ground than i imagined from other peoples discriptions, and looks very well finnished even with out the extra's. Interior was great but i was a little disapointed with the cheap metalic strip that runs along each side of the centre console. They will damage easily.
I have ordered the Mazda Aero Kit aswell as the side strakes, Rotory emblems and silver pertol cap. I was going to really dress it up with after market kits (mazdaspeed) but i think that will wreck the look of a nice looking car. I'll stick to Mazda's more subtle changes.
I went into the day not totally confident that i was happy with getting the RX8 but I've been convinced. I found myself with only one unanswered problem when leaving, that was i had ordered the Titanium and after seeing them, i REALLY liked the Black and Blue coloured cars.
I have changed my order to Black with Black-Red interior as of today and i've had cofirmation that i will still get my car at the same time which is delivery in the first week of August.
All in all, i'm very happy and comparing the z on the same day only helped me make my decision. I think that it was a bold move by Mazda to have the z available but after driving them both i can see why they did it!!
Now....anyone want to buy a Subaru STI?
Last edited by Wizza; 07-14-2003 at 08:58 AM.
07-14-2003, 01:37 PM
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Originally posted by Wizza
...Then i stepped into the Manual 8 with full extra's. I tell you they were like chalk and cheese...
...Then i stepped into the Manual 8 with full extra's. I tell you they were like chalk and cheese...
---jps
07-14-2003, 05:31 PM
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Originally posted by Wizza
I have changed my order to Black with Black-Red interior as of today and i've had cofirmation that i will still get my car at the same time which is delivery in the first week of August.
I have changed my order to Black with Black-Red interior as of today and i've had cofirmation that i will still get my car at the same time which is delivery in the first week of August.
:D
07-14-2003, 06:18 PM
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Wizza you bastard, I too liked the black but figured that hey, too much maintenance and of course I'm not waiting any longer for the car. Now that you pulled that stunt I'm in two minds again as to whether to contact the dealer........thanks a lot!
07-14-2003, 08:16 PM
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:D
I appologise for any problems i may have caused in delayed deliveries or decision making.
Yes the black is going to take alot of cleaning and looking after..... but damn it looks nice!!
I appologise for any problems i may have caused in delayed deliveries or decision making.
Yes the black is going to take alot of cleaning and looking after..... but damn it looks nice!!
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