would I recommend you buying the RX-8? Well, I'll give you the consultant's answer: It depends...

Kidding aside, it really does depend on a few important things. First of all, some info you should know. One is the fuel consumption that you are aware of not being too good. There seems to be a relatively big spread between individual cars, and nobody knows why. I would consider my car a bit better than average, and on the freeway, constant 72-75 mph gives me about 21-21.5 mpg. That is not very good, but not too bad either. Certainly my PGT was much better than that, even after 130K miles (25-26 mpg or so). When driving in the city, it can go down to 16-17 mpg. If that does not bother you, that's good. My car runs fine on regular gas, but some people say theirs doesn't like it. The recommended is premium, but according to the manual, minimum 87 is acceptable.

Oil consumption is a natural thing with the rotary, it is due to the engine's design. That's the way the car lubricates the apex seals. So there is absolutely nothing unusual about it. With that said, there seems to be also a significant difference between cars how much oil do they consume. Mine does not drink much oil, but I'm not sure if that's really a good thing. I premix (4 oz oil before fillup in the tank, then fill in the gas. Premix oil must be TCW-3 designated at the minimum). That gives me piece of mind that the engine gets better lubrication. I'd also recommend to use 5W-30 oil instead of the Mazda recommended 5W-20 as it is quite thin.
So, the bottom line is: the engine is a quirky one for sure. You must pay close attention to the oil level (much more than in case of a piston engine). If you are willing to put up with this quirkiness, then I'd say, go for it. It is not an appliance-like vehicle for sure (so not a Honda Accord or Toyota Camry), but I know you're not looking for something like that anyway.

There were quite a lot of engine replacements (apparently) due to lubrication issues. Still, that does not scare me at all. My car had absolutely no significant issue so far, but I only have 13K miles on it (in 4.5 years!). The RX-8 had a bad rep due to these engine replacements.

I just read that Mazda increased the engine warranty to 8 years/100K miles, which is awesome. Guess they want to make sure people understand that reliability should not be a concern.

Torque is not too much better that the PGT. Certainly the car is faster as it has more HP, but you have to rev it - it likes that. Still, you don't have the feel that it pushes you into the seat when accelerating - the engine has a different characteristic. You have to test drive it to see what I mean.

Handling is excellent, hands down. You will have enough space, certainly not worse than in the PGT (note: this guy is 6'6")

Are you thinking about buying new or used? The car does not keep it's value too well, so you can get a much better deal used, but then of course you have no idea how it was driven and about the exact history. The 40th anniversary is rarer, so it'll be probably harder to get a good deal on it. Also, a facelifted 2009 model is just around the corner (with some dealers already having a few in stock), so maybe that helps to get the current car cheaper even new, because dealers are more willing to negotiate on the previous model. By the way, the facelifted car is ugly (at least in my opinion). Well, not ugly, but I don't like 90% of the changes they did.

I'd strongly suggest to take some time to hang out on and read the RX-8 forum at www.rx8club.com. There you will get a pretty good idea about possible problems or any other info you are interested in. Of course you will see a bunch of people writing about problems, but that's natural - folks are much more vocal if they have issues with the car than those who have no problem.

So as you see, I don't blindly recommend getting an RX-8. But I like mine a lot, and had no problems with it so far. If you are willing to put up with the quirks of the car, it is a great vehicle in my opinion. Get as much info as possible before deciding, and know the possible issues.

i cant say enough about how great a car the rx8 is, and especially as a race driver. ive learned a lot from it. the chassis and driving dynamic is unlike any other car, and only the tiny size and weight of the rotary can provide that. the brakes will blow your mind and there is actually more room in the rear seats than the front for larger people.

the oil squirter are much more conservative than the older rotaries. even at laguna seca i consumed less than a quart in 6 sessions. for street driving it takes about 6K miles of normal driving. did you know the probe also had oil squirters in the pistons?

the mileage is the only area where the rx8 is not absolutely tops. i got 23 in probe driving hard and get 17 driving the same way in the rx8. driving easy the probe was about 27 and the rx8 19-20.

the biggest weakness is also its biggest strength- it is a raw, merciless sports car. it is tiring to drive in traffic and always begs you to break multiple traffic laws, pass over the double yellow and threshold brake.