Sue Esponte

Apples and Oranges.

You have to figure out what's important to you and then make a decision. Any opinions that one is better than the other almost don't make sense. It's almost like saying you have $20K to spend and can't decide between a Dodge SRT-4 and a Toyota Prius.

-Eric

Ike

No need to swap the hood, you can just swap the hood scoop if you want a slightly lower profile. However there are performance benefits to that scoop since the IC is directly under it and bigger means better cooling.

MMGDC

I get 19-20 MPG on my Rx-8. Mostly highway miles.

An overlooked bonus of the Rx-8 is that it functions perfectly well with 87 Octane gas. Saving $0.20 per gallon helps make up for the subpar mileage.

Mileage shouldn't really be a major factor when choosing between the two cars.

Deca Auto

Hmm.. the mazdaspeed miata is turbocharged 180hp, but my choice is either rx-8 or sti. Its hard for me to think I could get better gas mileage w/AWD 2.5L turbo, then a RWD 1.3L rotary (I know its 2.3L really)....

Psylence

If you drive the STi even moderately hard, it's gonna drink gas. My dad and best friend have new STi's.. My friend usually gets 14-15 around town.

There is slim/no difference in mileage in the real world.

rotarymagic

I studied the STI for many months before it came out and then a few months after. Everything from its performance, all the way to its exact specs in every facet of the car. Performance wise, it is the best car on the road in regards to performance/price comparison. As said before, it has a terrible interior when talking about comfort. One review even said that an hour in the STI is like a day in most other cars because of how harsh the ride is.

Myself, I bought an RX8. I love the complete package with 60-0 braking just as good as the STI and a 600 FT slalom that is nothing to sneeze at. The looks of the car as well as other aspects such as interior comfort, "nav", leather seats, etc. as well as performance that is still well above average compared to the other cars on the road, I believe the RX8 is the car to buy.

Also, the renesis engine is a great sounding engine and makes the RX8 extremely fun to drive. If you are worried about performance differences, I know for a fact there will be mods available for the RX8 in the next few years that will give it enough power to almost run with the STI. i.e. current 0-60 = 5.9 for RX8 current 0-60 = 4.8 for STI a turbo/supercharger for the RX8 along with canzoomers mod and maybe intake and exhaust will give it the extra power it needs to be elite in this category.

I would still get the RX8 though, the performance difference is not enough in my mind to warrant the purchase of the STI over the RX8.


Hope that helps

blksf8

Doesn't the R32 weigh over 3409lbs compared to 3000lb for the 8? I don't know if it's certainly faster than the 8.

Psylence

My wife's WRX isn't faster than my '8. Unless you were to drop the clutch at 5500.. in which case the WRX will either win or eat its tranny..
R32? No way

Dustin4u

Seriously? Its that bad?

Bigcat44

I went and looked at the Sti this weekend along with the Evo though I didn't drive them. I like the look of the Evo and I am not sure which of the 2 are faster (they are both faster then my 8) but I have witnessed first hand what the Sti will do to an 8! My question is this. The sticker price or MSRP is 32k on the Sti then hagning from the rear view mirror is a sign that says 1k off and a price of 44k??? Can dealers mark their cars up 12-13k? I couldn't believe the price. Is this normal nationwide?

VikingDJ

I have no proof of it, but I'd have to guess on highway even though the r32 is giving up almost 400lbs, in the end the hp and torque would edge out the rx8. The reason I guess this is because believe it or not, my friend's Eclipse Gt is 200hp and 205lbs of torwue, and it's can hold it's own against an rx8 on highway. Off line I take him, but that thing has some good power on highway for only being 200hp. I think the fact that my friend took his eclipse to track and ran a 15.46 (1.4 seconds faster then road tests make me lean that way. The times I have read on the rx8 aren't anywhere near the 14.5 it ran on testing. I guess there's no proof, and I could certainly be wrong. The numbers are very close on road tests between r32 and rx8, but I look at the torque and hp and I guess the r32 will edge it out. I have no proof of it, just an educated guess, even though it weighs more. My guess is the flywheel hp to whp % loss of the r32 is less then the rx8, so it makes up for the weight difference.

Ike

The R32 will have more drivetrain lose, but the HP on the sticker is ummmmm accurate... It's hard to say which would pull harder from a roll, but it's safe to say from a dig the R32 would win.

Bigcat, STis can be had for near invoice, if a dealer is charging over MSRP they're insane and probably were only allocated one or two STis. This may vary a bit depending on what part of the country, but if that's the case it's time for a cheap plane ticket and a roadtrip if you really want one.

93rdcurrent

The STI looks like a highschool Fast and the Furious wannabe. I have seen it and I will take my more elegant and refined interior and exterior any day. For a while they even made an, I believe it was called the Alpine, edition of the M3. It had a vent and heater and an AM/FM stereo. No cruise control, leather seats, AC, trip computer or nothing extra. WTF? Was that really a BMW? I don't think so. Needless to say it was a limited edition that didn't sell well. If you were thinking about racing the M3 it was the way to go but for a daily commuter? I don't think so. I feel even more so about the STI. It still looks like the interior of a highschool kids car. Is it fast? Yes it is. Is it fun? Sure it probably is. But you have to question who will be checkin' you out. All the 9th and 10th graders at You Name It High. Where's the respect. You are comparing apples and oranges.

Deca Auto

I think you have it the other way around. Little kids look up to the RX8 for its looks. Real car guys respect the STi for its performance. They realize the owner chose performance and driving experience over impressing girls and kids.

MazdaManiac

iTrader: (3)

Uh, you got that mixed up. Re-read...

Ike

See I just don't get that. To me it looks like the closest thing to a rally car that I'll ever be able to afford. I love the car first and foremeost for it's performance, everything else is an afterthought for me. A car being all about performance is about as opposite of a Fast and Furious wannabe as you can get. I think you would also be surprised the amount of people that have respect for the STi.

MazdaManiac

iTrader: (3)

I think rally cars look kind of silly too, though I love the sport.
Love it to death.
However, rally cars are as attractive to me as dirt oval track trucks.

93rdcurrent

I also like rally racing as a sport. Doesn't mean that I will impress the mortgage banking friends of mine by showing up in an STI. Sure they might want to look at it for a moment but as soon as they see inside they will feel the same way I did. Where are all the comfort features I like in a car? I like performance too. That is why my 8 is going to see F/I in the next year. What can I say... I like the best of both worlds and that is why originally I wanted to get the '04 M3. I decided to go with the less expensive RX-8 with the intent of giving it some boost .

VikingDJ

If you go by the claimed 238hp of the rx8 and claimed 241hp of the r32, and (the r32 is 3256lbs), then I'd say the rx8 has more drivetrain loss. I love my rx8, but I'd never count on it being faster then any hp rated car, and after reading the reviews on the r32, it does indeed really pull hard on highway form 4k and on. My money would be on the r32, especially on highway with all that torque and 7k redline. Then again, if I wanted speed, I'd have never gotten rx8. I think the r32 will take out an rx8in a perfect world with two perfect drivers, but in real world, it would certainly come down to driver.

Trx8

According to Edmunds the 2004 HUMMER H1:
- 0-60, 17.8 seconds
- EPA City, 13 MPG
- EPA Highway, 17 MPG

I couldn't find EPA data on the H2.

The RX-8 has an EPA of 18/24 MPG.

Although some people report RX-8 MPG in the range of the Hummer, I think the vast majority of the posts do much better.

My last two tanks were city+highway and were 19.2 and 19.7. My current tank is looking better than that. Of course if I operate in the high revs the MPG goes down.

Ike

Correct, if you believe the 238hp then the RX-8 does indeed have more drivetrain loss. But the possibility of that actually being the case is slim to none. It's almost unheard of for an AWD to have less than 20% (usually closer to 25%) drivetrain loss, and at the same time unheard of for a RWD car to more than 20% (usually around 17%) drivetrain lose. Those numbers are assuming it's an MT and a modern day car with no mechanical defects. I don't want to turn this into another hp debate, so you can make your own conclusions from what I've said.

racerdave

Well, I tend to agree with Ike after driving the 8 for the first time... didn't feel like 238... more like 220-225 or so.

But whatever, the car is still great.

And I would not want the R32... too much nose weight.

Choosing between the R32 and STI would be simple... I'd choose the Evo. :D

Seriously, between the R32 and STI... STI all the way. No, the R32 isn't out yet, but I just like the STI (apart from looks... I'm just too old for boy-racer, even if it is a WRC look)

Ike

The R32 is a nice ride, but it's going to sell to a very different buyer than someone looking at an STi or EVO. It's for VW fans, and people that care about German engineering (or over engineering in some cases) and a snazzy interior.

For me, the choice between an EVO or an STi would be very difficult. It's almost a coin toss. In a year or two I will most likely be making that decision and it will probably come down to how I feel about my WRX at the time.

VikingDJ

Yes. There are no facts here, so it's an endless speculation from every angle. I think you finally understand why I said what I said. I am comparing the numbers given here, with the way the rx8 feels to me powerwise, which is all you can really compare, since there is nothing otherwise to discuss or prove. You can't lay any facts out about what it may feel like hp wise, all you can do is judge it by the way the car feels to you personally, none of which are proven facts. I don't know or care if the rx8 is 238hp like they claim. It certainly doesn't feel like it, then again car is so smooth in power delivery it can be deceiving. It is however what they claim, so you go by it, Rather then make up your own number. The 80lbs more torque is what I look at, even with the 250lbs the r32 is giving up. Of course this is all speculation, and I don't bring it up for any other reason, then the enjoyment of talking about cars. No one can prove right or wrong, no matter how many facts you spew out, so it's all opinionated. My personal opinion is that the R32 would edge out the rx8. Just an opinionated guess is all it is.
The R32 is out BTW. There is one sitting at the local VW dealer for sale. It's probably sold already. I am a big fan of german engineering, so it made me consider it. Of course I have read plenty of articles on VW, and the power potential is quite impressive. Definitely a different market there though on this car, but being a fan of all types of cars, it was on my list when looking to buy a new car. The rx8 was already decided though, I just had to look up other cars and get info to be 100% sure of what I wanted.

downshift

I think this anecdote by RX8Bliss sums up what the RX-8 is good for best:

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...threadid=22357

Seriously, I think at this price range, you can't have everything (performance, looks, luxury), so decide what your priorities are and get the damn car.