Huhwha

Great - the dumbasses at Mazda Direct strike again

Dropped it off yesterday for the recalls, the squeaky brake tsb and the milky dipstick tsb, which they didn't have the parts for in April. This time when I made the appointment, I made them check their parts stock and put my name on the required parts.

They call me yesterday and say I'm all set, but they don't have a dipstick for me.

No I'm not coming back to get it until you find my dipstick that you never ordered and lied about having. I'll keep this POS Corolla you saddled me with until then.

I might have to open my own stealership to get any satisfaction. Will you guys be my customers?

RA-Eight

iTrader: (6)

I did notice that if I'm cruising at 65 MPH in 6th, the engine speed is lower, appx 3200 vs. 3500+ before the PCM update. I think this will help the MPG.

Tyler - If you have a copy of the service record, you should see a line item saying Updated Powertrain Control Module to latest .... or something of that sort. The service manager should have given you the rundown when you picked up the car. Frank at Byers ran down the list of work orders and explained the items in detail.

Huhwha - Sorry to hear about your experiences at MD. :o That really sucks. Have you considered contacting Mazda NA? How about going to another dealer? Good luck!

RX-ayt

NEW GUY IN THE HOUSE!

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but I wanted to say "hi" and ask a couple of questions. First, about me. I have loved the RX cars for as long as i can remember. I couldn't afford the rx-7 when it was out a decade ago, and as I eagerly awaited the RX-8, my other car died and I couldn't put off a purchase long enough for its debut. so I did a 3 year lease on a BMW 3-series. It's a great car, fun to drive, but nothing like the rx-8 in looks or performance. Now that my lease is nearing its end (not for another 7 months) I am already planning my purchase of the RX-8. First, let me ask about dealers - seems like Mazda Direct gets overall good marks, as does Boib Boyd abd Ricart. The others seem a bit spotty. Is that correct? Also, I've been reading about the upgrades for 2006. I assume those models wiht the upgrades are worth waiting for and will probably be out when I'm ready to buy next March or April. One other embarrasing question/admission. I cannot drive a stick - never learned. But for this car, I think it would be worth it. Any ideas where/how to best accomplish this training so I'll be ready for the rx-8 MT? feel free to reply to this post, or email me directly at pmyers1@insight.rr.com. I'm glad to find out I'm not the only one who loves these cars so much. (Spoken like a true newbie, huh?) Anyway, thanks in advance for any and all advice/counseling, etc.

alphapenguin

I went by byeres yesterday and saw a Black RX8 on the used lot. It had the Xmen style wing. it looked pretty cool. It's sad to see one of these baby's on the used lot

as to Rx-ayt's post, I dont think there are a lot of significant changes for the 2006 model, except for the:
Additions:

- 6-speed Sport mode AT w/ 212hp
- Intelligent key-entry (keyless entry & start)
- Galaxy Grey exterior color

Deletion:

- Nordic Green color exterior color
- Titanium Grey exterior color

you can keep up on the post at
https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...light=2006+Rx8


As for dealers, I'd say all of them have their off days, but Ricart has a bad rep for trying to rip people off. If you do a google search for them you can find a website dedicate to their defamation.

The people at byers, I had some issue with the sales people, but the service and parts dept are pretty nice. MAzda Direct I personally havent had any issues with yet.

RA-Eight

iTrader: (6)

Rx-ayt - Welcome! I think you will find mountains of answer in the General discussion forums. Theres a subforum there just for potential buyers like yourself.

My advise to you is to shop around. If you're looking for a brand new 8, check out each of the dealers here in Columbus and see who's offering the best deal. Use that to your advantage, and negotiate. I wouldn't target one dealer because one member had good luck there. Like Alpha said, each have there good and bad days. Good luck!

kellybrf

iTrader: (2)

rx-ayt...go see chad at byers, tell him brian sent you. if you like cars youll love him, and the sales at byers was great. service, however, is another issue

Bothuwui

I bought my from Chad at Byers also. He was great. Didn't really need to negotiate much either. I did my research and new what the wholesale and retail values were on everything, what kind of incentives the dealer got from Mazda, what incentives they could offer me, etc. Went smoothly.

As far as the service dept., I'm not quite convinced yet. I took my car in for an oil change, and convinced them to do my recall. They did 3305G and said 3405G wasn't in their system yet. So I pick up the car and drive home, and there sits recall 3405G in my mailbox. I also didn't see anything about the PCM flash on my invoice.

zelig2

I'd say Mazda Direct and Byers are the two best places to go in town for a new RX8. Avoid Ricart like the plague. I got mine at Direct but that's only because I got a better deal than at Byers. It sounds like people are having better service at Direct right now but that could change.

I never had a manual transmission car before I bought my RX8. I only went out once with a friend to learn. Driving home from the dealership was definately a challenging experience but I'm glad I got the stick. I'd suggest going to a dealership that you like and just asking them to teach you. Most places are willing to take you out in a car to have you learn. It doesn't take long at all.

Huhwha

RX-ayt,

Welcome to the club! There is a ton of information here. Read all you can and get prepared for your purchase. Car dealers in general suck, period. Yeah, they all have good and bad days, but I'd still rather take a beating than visit any of them. When you are ready to buy, get your information together and know exactly what you are going to pay. Then contact all of the local dealers and offer $1,000 less than that number. That will thin the field down in a hurry. Get their best counter-offer and take it someplace out of central Ohio. You may get a better deal with better people. Not likely, but worth a shot.

When you get closer to buying, let me know and I can help you learn stick. It's not that hard.

RX-ayt

well, i've officially got the bug. now I'm talking to dealers and some are saying they can buyout the rest of my lease, and get me a deal that will take 4-5 grand off the sticker price on a new '05. The reality that my wife refuses to drive a stick, and the chance thta someday she will NEED to drive my car, precludes me from buying the MT. reading other threads, I see there is talk of a 6 speed AT with 213 HP in the 06 rx-8. So, if that is true (which the guy at one dealer told me is not - but who can trust a car salesman?!), should i wait for the 06 because it will be a much better (i.e. fun) AT car to drive, or would the difference be so slight that i would be better off saving a ton on an 05. I was thinking of waiting until the 06's actually arrive so no facts will be unknown, but I don't know if that will risk the 05's being gone.

Also, I wnated to ask about winter performance here in Columbus. I won't have the luxury of garaging my rx-8 in the winter, so I'd like to know what your experiences have been in winter driving - do you buy snow tires, are studs allowed in Ohio (I moved here only a few years ago and I'm not sure)?

Thanks for all the great welcoming posts - youz guys is good people!

rx-ayt

alphapenguin

i got snow tires for the car, and it was still annoying to drive in BAAD snow days. I dont know about studs, but chains are not allowed on ohio roads I believe. Rumor says 06 will have a 6 speed Auto.

In short, the 8 is driveable with snow tires in the winter, but it's still a pain in the *** in my opionion.

RA-Eight

iTrader: (6)

Definitely a set of winter is needed because the tires on there now are strictly summer performance tires. Found out the hard way last winter, I got caught in the last snow storm of the season. Nightmare! Anyone will tell you the same, 1/8" on the ground and it's ALL OVER! I'm eager to test my new winter set up this year.

Oh, and it's highly unlikely that the dealers will run out of MY05s when MY06 comes out. I'd wait to test drive an auto MY06 and compare it to the 05, if you're leaning towards an auto. It is confirmed MY06 will have the 6-speed auto. Good luck!

kellybrf

iTrader: (2)

snow tires are a must. assuming you can get out of your neighborhood youll be fine, although you may have to take it slow. some weight in the trunk wont hurt you either

zelig2

Getting winter tires last year was a must when I bought the car. There are a couple of places you can go, I ordered mine from TireRack.com since they're a member here at rx8club.com. I hardly slipped at all on the road with winter tires. I can't quite remember when I put them on my car but it wasn't till the first snow showed up.

Columbus

What's the consensus on snow tires? Has everyone plunked down on Blizzaks? There was a thread that Omicron started on all season Pirelli P Zero Nero M+S tires really lauding their snow performance. He lives in eastern Colorado so I was thinking that if they work there, then sporadic central ohio snows should be a piece of cake.

any thoughts?

RX8rider

I also bought my winter tires and wheels from TireRack.com and it made a huge difference. The car went from dangerous to drivable. I went with ASA rims and 17 " Michelin Pilot Alpine A2 tires (I think that they're 225 but they may be 215, I'll have to check)

Huhwha

I'm getting ready to buy mine soon. Got Blizzaks last year for my wife's Miata. They totally transformed that car, so I'll probably go the same route, unless somebody has a better idea.

RA-Eight

iTrader: (6)

I have Michelin Pilot PS Winter, 225/55, which is a little taller than stock but at the price I got them for, I couldn't pass up. I'm throwing them on 17x8 Privat Kraftwerk wheels. I've had the set since last spring, but have never mounted them. Eager to see how they perform, but I know they'll look pretty horrible.

success07

How a Ford Expedition? :D

Boy, am I glad I don't have to drive this car in the winter. :p

Huhwha

We'll see. The Miata was excellent with 4 Blizzaks. I expect this will be at least as good. Not that I go out much in the snow - not worth the risk. If it snows, I just take a vacation day :D

kellybrf

iTrader: (2)

i went with the blizzak 18s since i have a set of extra stock rims

zelig2

I picked up a set of 17" Kazera KZ-V rims with Dunlop Winter Sport M3 tires. Fantastic results in my mind. I also got mine fitted with the mazda TPMS for added security. I didn't slip at all last year but I drove pretty carefully with my car whenever there was snow on the ground. I actually like the way the rims look on the car more than the stock rims. Some point in the future I'll replace the stock rims and get something darker (in color) and lighter (in weight).

kellybrf

iTrader: (2)

yeah, my winter stock rims are painted gunmetal which i think looks better, except the guy i bought them from put a red pearl lip on them which makes it look pink which is gay

Tyler8

My wife *has* to work the day before the Mazda zoomzoom event (when we were going to drive up there). So, I'm out for that trip.

Tyler
2005 6MT Shinka

Huhwha

Tyler,

After I heard what was really available at this event, I had already cancelled this, in my mind at least. 12 hours of travel for 2 minutes of fun seemed a little extreme

As it turns out, other family events are going to keep me close to home for a while anyway.

I have to remember to cancel my reservation I guess.