BlueHoney

Joined a couple of months and after months of dealing with dealerships and checking for new car postings daily. I final went to see an RX-8 last weekend.. White 2005 Grand Touring Manual with only 58,000 miles. It is soo clean... Car is garage kept perfect condition. On Sunday the seller is dropping it off to my house. I am sooooo excited I have been hunting this car down for a while and something always seems to be an issue. Just thought I'd share since I announced I would have one soon. I decided on a name today hahaha (Such a Female thing to do) I will post pics soon too


First things first...
1- Register the car on Monday
2-Inspection
3- Handle the Passenger Airbag Recall
4- I'm already looking at covers because this snow in NY is ridiculous
5- What else do I need? (first time car owner here..lucky me it's an RX-8)


Any advice? (I know the car will be expensive I've read a lot of threads.)

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Read the new and potential owners thread at the top of this sub forum.

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Oh, you bought it already? Without a compression test? Bad idea. tsk, tsk.

BlueHoney

I brought a mechanic with me to look at the car. Test drove it too. Don't make me nervous now, but no I buy it on Sunday

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Well a mechanic cannot see the compression of the engine.

200.mph

iTrader: (9)

comp test would be a good idea and keep up on maintence. if it does blow up you can always drop an ls motor in it for less than 2k in a weekend. (jk about the ls)

read all the stickies, theres pretty much no topic that hasnt been covered here

BlueHoney

I'll be visiting the Mazda dealership up the road Thank you

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Very smart idea and worth the $100.00-$150.00. Just make sure you get printed results and if you want us to take a look post the results up here.

BlueHoney

if I blows up? Lol gee thanks. I have read quite a few... there are just so many. I'm a very late new owner. Ill search keywords about care... I'm just worried about my neighborhood and this snow... I'll be peeking out the window all night I can see it now. lol

BlueHoney

Sounds Good, will do!! I appreciate it. I'm so excited..so far so good

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

The thread you should start with: https://www.rx8club.com/new-member-f...t-here-202454/

200.mph

iTrader: (9)

its kind of a joke here about rotaries but not really lol. im not sure where in ny you are but im in north east pa and im always willing to help people wrench on their 8s.

BlueHoney

Thank you very much. I've been through that thread The advice was more for dealing with snow storage and parking in streets haha. Sorry I wasn't specific.. I know I'll have plenty of questions down the line and I def. did NOT read through all the threads, but I tried to hit the main points: the potential issues of the car and costs lol not excited about that part

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Well, you probably skimmed the thread if you missed the importance of the compression test

BlueHoney

Ill get hip to the jokes soon enough. Lets just say parking spots are blocked by a lot snow and most days ICE...not to mention the ahole drivers that cant drive and might hit you while trying to squeeze by

BlueHoney

lol I didn't. The mazda dealership is up the street from me. The seller lives a couple hours away. Easiest to do everything by me

200.mph

iTrader: (9)

yhea dealer for a comp test but only for the test. we call them stealerships for a reason. parts and labor at the dealer is an *** raping w/o lube. you can always find local members to help as long as your nice about. ive worken on quite a few local guys cars and so has riwwp.

BlueHoney

Good tip. I already called the dealership for the comp test..they're charging $95 and the recall for the airbag is free, but they don't have the parts..just my luck lol. I cant wait to get it on the highway..bye bye clean driving record

200.mph

iTrader: (9)

do you know when the last time the ignition was changed?

BigCajun

iTrader: (1)

Welcome.
You might want to get the OBD scanned for any codes while you're there.
Good luck!

BlueHoney

Yessir ignition coils changed at 36k

BlueHoney

Thank you.. I will post tomorrow as well once the transaction is complete

BigCajun

iTrader: (1)

Don't be discouraged by a lot of the issues you may read about.
People tend to post in these forums when they have problems, not so much when everything is going great.

I have a 2004 Lightning Yellow GT 6spd.
I bought it 2 1/2 years ago with 18k miles.
The CEL came on 4 days after I bought it for a bad catalytic converter.
It went bad because of a bad coil.
I replaced it with a midpipe, changed the coils, plugs, and wires, and I've been driving it problem free ever since, now over 42k.
A few tips I've learned;
One of the most important things to do is to keep the ignition components maintained.
Always use premium gas, try to not let it get below 1/4 tank to keep the fuel pump from overheating and dying prematurely.
Check the oil every other fillup.
Change the oil every 3k miles and don't overfill it, 4 qts. is usually enough.
And the best one, be sure to take it out on the highway and redline it occasionally, this keeps the carbon from building up, and is also the funnest part of having an 8.

"Drive it like you stole it!"
Have fun!

gwilliams6

Beyond that critical compression test, BEFORE BUYING, here are some maintenance items to have checked out. get the maintenance records from the seller and check out the following:

RX8 Club’s recommended maintenance schedule from actual experiences of RX8 owners, worldwide
30,000 miles:
- Replace Ignition coils
- Replace Plug wires
- Replace Spark plugs
- Clean MAF (mass air flow sensor)
- Clean ESS (e-shaft sensor)
- Reset ESS profile
- Clean power steering connections
- Clean battery terminals and clamps
- Replace transmission fluid
- Replace coolant (Mazda FL-22 is highly recommended)
- Replace air filter
- Replace brake fluid (fluid in the brake lines AND the clutch line)
~$300 USD in parts if you shop smartly.


every 60,000:
...all 30,000, plus...
- Clean all chassis electrical grounding points
- Replace accessory belts
- Clean OMP lines
- Replace rear differential fluid
- Replace thermostat
- Clean / Straighten AC condenser fins
- Clean / Straighten oil cooler fins
- Inspect catalytic converter
- Clean / Inspect intake valving
- Consider / inspect all points in 90,000+ as well, many items fail early
~$130 USD in parts if you shop smartly.

90,000:
...all 30,000, plus any 60,000 not yet done, plus...
- Replace coolant bottle
- Replace radiator hoses
- Replace radiator
- Replace front O2 sensor
- Replace motor mounts
- Inspect clutch pedal assembly for flex / weld breaks
~$900 USD in parts if you shop smartly.
At 100k, anything original in the cooling system is really suspect and failure prone. It represents the biggest threat to your engine.
__________________

BlueHoney

Thank you so much. It def. Can be overwhelming but i still wanted one haha. I think I'll probably be super nervous and be at a shop every week. I def. Have to learn my way around under the hood so i can know whats going on too.. *googles diagram* lol actually was given the same advice by Mazda... The car needs to be driven he said so drive it. Excited to get on the highway!!! Bye bye clean driving record