Just as a point of interest, there is some misinformation in the "start here" thread. For example, it lists the 2007 as the year with 40th anniversary models when it's 2008. The 2006 Shinka is also available in Grey. There are rotary compression testers available for purchase from a sponsor of this site. I'm still learning a lot, but it might be worth an edit instead of starting a bunch of rotary fanatics off with poor info. Obviously those aren't particularly important, but still leads me to believe that there might be other issues.

 

I have been saying that in the past, as some of the New Owner info is outdated.

RIWWP, the original author isn't around here often anymore so you will have to talk to him, or someone around here in the mod team.

 

Hello to all you fine people! (Post number one)

I’ve been reading so many new owner related pages on my phone these past few months my posture is resembling Mr Burns.

I’m still in denial about male menopause(53), but my wife has confirmed it’s real. She’s agreed with me to purchase a 2007 manual GT pending the compression test results.

I haven’t had a fun car since I sold my 1971 Triumph GT6 MK3 32 years ago.

I appreciate all the information on this forum and can’t wait to get started on the new toy. I’ll try to keep the dumb questions to a minimum.

 

New member here from Australia. I've been a member on https://www.fdrx7.com/ since 2011 and own the last FD sold by Mazda Australia (1998 Series 7 sold in 1999) in mint condition running 300hp and a few minor changes.

I accidentally just bought this car >HERE< "Mazda RX-8 GT at Performance Car Of The Year 2008: Classic MOTOR - A disappointing last place for a car we really wanted to love"

Originally a Mazda Australia Press car then owned by a Mazda Dealer Manager - It ended up Ric Shaw's wifes car and sold to a motoring enthusiast from whom I bought it from in June. I hoped it wasn't an ex Press car but now I have it I think it's pretty cool to own 2 pieces of Mazda history in Australia.

Whilst slow compared to the FD these things have the best chassis by far.

Hopefully I can contribute and have any questions I have answered.

 

Welcome.
It is a slow sports car compared to most, but it's handling and comfort make up for it, imo.
I've had an '04 for almost 13 years now and recently put probably more money than it's worth into it with a new engine and numerous other repairs to be expected for a 20 year old car, but it was worth it to me.
I love it.

 

Welcome RE. Same as Big Cajun - have an ‘04 that has 160,000+ miles. May not be as quick off the line as some, but it’s not a muscle car. It has good power considering it has a compact 1.3 liter rotary and can deliver approximately 230 hp to the rear wheels and reach 150mph.Its fun to drive - the perfectly balanced chassis gives fantastic stability and control and is probably one of the best handling cars ever made. Great for road courses with many chicanes. It’s comfortable for a sports car and, of course, looks great.

 

Here it is - where abouts can I start an owners build thread?

 

I'd say the Discussion section would be a good place.

https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-discussion-3/

 

Hey everyone,

I am the proud new owner of a 2004 RX8 (manual transmission). I recently picked it up from a... lets call it a private junkyard. We were not exactly on the hunt for a daily driver; its more of a project car I can work on with my kids. Surprisingly, the interior is in pretty good shape, and the engine even turned over despite sitting for so long. The guy who sold it to me suggested he could try harder to get it started but I chuckled and told him it wasn't worth risking further damage since I am doing a full rebuild anyway. He thinks its just bad seals (but that's what they all say)

Since I am doing a full rebuild, I've decided to move from the ground up and focus on the suspension, wheels, brakes, etc. There are several threads mentioning Coilovers but what I saw seems focused on track performance.

1.Does anybody have recommendations on suspension for a mix between comfort and street performance?

2. I have not pulled the engine yet so there is no telling whether or not its worth rebuilding. Any recommendations on where to find a good reman if I need one? I saw several posts that had keywords such as "dirt cheap" and "$3k" but the only reman I found online was $6500. Some of those posts were older so I'm curious if prices of doubled or if I'm just not looking in the right places.

Also, I am aware this project will cost more than the car is worth. Its not a concern for me as the value is in the time I get to spend with my kids (having a newish car at the end helps)

Thanks in advance.

 

I have 2007 6 speed auto with 38k miles that is perfect except for some minor door dings. I tracked it in 2008 for about 15 times at places like Motorsports Ranch at Cresson, Harris Hill near San Marcos. I went through all the lowering threads at the time and with all the noise had the dealer across the street install the Bilstein $700 kits in approx 10 yeears later. RX8 had that annoying bump in rear on bumps in road and all the height measurements from center cap to fender were 13.75-14.25. The kit fixed that with a firm 14.25 all around and very good shock setup. The lowering effect people wanted was done by putting weaker springs and shocks on rears which'll just make ya mad. The bilstein has that high pressure shock to support rear of car.

As for the engie use snowmobile synthetic like ravenol mixed 1/2 ounce to gal of gas you thik car needs even if the oil feed works.

Get the BHR ignition kit .
Get the latest fuel pump. I still have recall due on mine, but will play that card later if I can, since I have the BHR improved fuel pump.

This is free but worth a lot!

 

RX8 doesn't do well in hot stopped traffic, so you need to attend to the cooling. It's great even on hot road trips but air has to flow. My BMW X1 can idle for hours at 110 deg f and stay cool using only 40%/gal hour while rx8 idling would use approx 1/2gal an hour and over heat in first hour. I use simple scan gauge plugged into OBDII port on both cars. It told me my top temp in X1 was 242 deg f so I put half quart Mobil 1 0w40 in and it then showed top temp 238. Later I put full quart of full strength BMW coolant and it went back to highest temp of 234. I strayed to BMW info to make point about how I could tell Scangauge was a great tool while driving and thinking. No Radio! LOL! Car is my music.

 

Has anyone here bought parts from this IG account?
Do you know if they’re a scammer or not?

https://instagram.com/gibbons_serge?...RlODBiNWFlZA==

 

Salutations Team,

can anyone tell me what the health of this 2011 RX8 GT compression test results are?
Im Thinking of buying it for 9000$.
but would get additional opinions first.

thank y’all kindly

 

The test doesn't state what rpm those results are at, which is kind of important. At 200 rpm those are passing values, at 300rpm, those are very very failing. Also I'm surprised a Toyota dealer has a rotary tester? If they used a regular tester, I would ask for my money back, the results are not valid.
Also 280 dollars? Mazda book value for this test is ~1 hour of work, so 130-150. What did they do that took 2 hours?

That said, if those results are adjusted for 250rpm and altitude above sea level, you have a ~$10k engine replacement in your future. Could be tomorrow, could be in 2 years, but compression doesn't improve on its own. Factor that into whether you want to spend $9k on the car. May be worth if it it's mint, but you need to decide that for yourself.

 

Thanks for getting back to me, the Toyota Dealer claims to have gone to a mazda dealer for the test.
Do rotary engines average 4000K?
What do you mean by might be mint, you think the mazda dealer bumbled the test?

 

If it was done at Mazda, the numbers should be trustworthy.
These days engines from Mazda are about 10k, from what I've heard (I don't live in the US) installed. May want to call and ask. Otherwise a rebuilder like Rotary Resurrection, Pineapple, Pettit, etc. can quote you on their own. Either option is good, just a question of price/time to deliver/convenience of installation.

Mint: I mean if the car is in excellent condition, low miles, $9k with a questionable engine might still be worth it. But you could at least use the compression test results to negotiate it down, seeing as you're buying $10k in predictable repairs.

 

I paid $6000 for a new engine about a year and a half ago.
It cost $1200 for installation from The Rotary Doctor minus $400 he paid for the old engine.

I don't know what others charge, or if they give credit for blown engines.

 

Also, if it's an auto transmission, I would pass.
They are underpowered and aren't as valuable as a MT as far as resale is concerned.

You can find a running AT for less than you're going to spend for a new/rebuild engine and install.

Like Loki said, if it's really clean and you really like this particular 8 and willing to invest almost as much as you're paying for it now down the road, pass.

A really clean GT chassis might be worth the investment if it's a MT.

My 2 cents, fwiw.

 

Thanks man, your dope.
Do you have a link to a site or place I can get a rebuilt and/or improved engine?

 

Yes sir, it is a manual. I'm not married to this 8 it was going to come with a 3yr bumper to bumper warranty,
the dealer claims that after the compression test, they can not do the warranty because the engine "life" is consciously known.

When I google rotary rebuilds, my average findings are 4000K, any insights.

 

A rebuild for $4000 is using your engine keg.
This thread has a lot of useful info about rebuilding, with lots of links to other related threads.

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-tec...ispreloading=1

Especially of interest here for you would be the input Kevin from Rotary Resurrection gave us about rebuild expectations and the variables that affect the price.

Post #79

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-tro...-264695/page4/

 

^^ Keep in mind the numbers Kevin used are from 7 years ago, so you can add inflation to those, they'll most likely be higher now.

 

So I have an 05 rx8 Shinka and was wondering if I can use/buy an 04 rx8 to use the parts ?

 

#edited

It depends on the parts.
Also many parts from ATs are not the same as MTs.

https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-discuss...a-base-179748/