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Back in 2007 I picked up my first RX-8. It was a WWP GT with all the bells and whistles and I loved it. I owned that car for nearly 10 years. Unfortunately, late in 2016 I was rear ended and the car was totaled. I put a ton of blood sweat and tears into that car and I was really sorry to see it go. At the time I lived in central California and I took advantage of being close to PCH and many other awesome roads. I made a ton of friends because of that car, but all good things must come to an end.
Believe it or not I even won a bracket race night at Great Lakes Dragaway when I lived in Highland Park, IL.
April of 2016 A good friend flew out to California to drive to DGRR with me. It was a great trip, we had a blast. My buddy had owned a variety of first and second gen RX-7s. His brother drove his GSL-SE down to meet us. Lots of good times ensued.
My buddy was a Mazda fan and a rotary enthusiast, but prior to that trip he had not been sold on the RX-8. Our 3 day Marathon across the country changed his mind. A few months later he picked up a low milage '09 R3. A few months after that my RX8 was gone. He has enjoyed the car for years, adding some great mods along the way. I have always told him that if he ever wanted to sell the car I would buy it. Last week he decided to sell so I picked it up this weekend. I am super excited to be back in an RX-8. I will say that the R3 seats are not great for long drives, but otherwise the 13 hour drive was great. Unfortunately I only have a picture of the back of the car in my garage. I will take more tomorrow, but I just wanted to share with the group. Thanks for reading. Questions and comments are welcome.
Caleb
Just in case anyone is interested the R3 will be replacing an 09 Legacy spec.b that I picked up a few years ago. I will be sad to see it go and I will certainly miss the power, but I couldn't resist the chance to pick up another RX-8.
Does the reality match the memory? I’ve had a couple fun cars but, never bought one again after parting ways.
That is a great question. Normally I would advise against trying to go back in time. So far I am good, except for the seats. Damn, the seats are firm and take a toll on a long drive. I drove my last 8 across the country at least 3 times and it was a great long trip car, gas milage aside.
I am going in to this eyes wide open. No doubt the relative slowness of this car has only gotten worse, etc...
My expectations and requirements are very different. My answer would be that I think this car fits my needs now at least as well as my last 8 fit my life many years ago. Its hard to express.
welcome back Caleb and congrats on the R3
The seats are a bit different than your S1 but hopefully you can get used to them.
now we need more pics of the new-to-you car.
RE: R3 seats, they are actually pretty comfortable for what they are. Any discomfort I dealt with was due to being in exactly the same position for a long period of time. The side bolsters (everywhere) hold you in place very effectively. The seating position is great, but you can't really shift around to change precure points.
Welcome back! I enjoyed your "comeback story". The Legacy Spec.B is rare.
Hope your friend's rx8 was well cared for. I wish the R3 has a sunroof to introduce some sunlight. Enjoy the miles of smiles again.
We are spring cleaning. Looks like the Spec.b is sold. Someone will be traveling down from Rhode Island to pick it up and my wifes weekend cruiser aka "The Kaiser" (03 7445Li) just drove away with its new owners. Things were starting to get our of control around here.
....and we're off. Ordered an STS from AFE. I had one on my last 8 and I really liked it. This car doesn't need much. The gentleman I bought it from, a close friend, took very good care of it.
It has a full Racing Beat exhaust, Racing Beat intake, BHR coils and a conservative tune. I don't think this one will need much in the suspension department. and I don't usually do exterior mods. The aftermarket stereo may need some work and I will probably replace the LH airbag cover and put a new set of tires on, but other than that I think I will be good for a while.
