Jay86

Hey, new member but long long-time enthusiast and RX-8 fan. I think I'm going to head out to take a look at an 04 touring (4-speed auto) later today or tomorrow and was looking for a little feedback before doing so.

The car is one owner, with 40k miles on it and they're asking $12,999. The red flag is that according to carfax this dealer has had the car for about a year now. Given the type of attention that rotaries need, is it even worth the time or potential risk not knowing for sure that they've run the car every week (or less) during that year? In addition to maintenance.

The only other RX8 for sale and within my price range is an 05 4-speed with 41k miles and asking price of $12,499 - 5 owner car.

The RX8 is really the only sub-$13k car that I really love, but I'm not too hot on what's available in my area atm. Ideally I need something soon due to my long commute to work. If not the RX8 I'm not sure what else I would get.

What do you guys suggest? The 04 I'm worried that even if it runs well today, what is its lifespan going to be later on after sitting at a dealer for so long. If I can get a compression test and it comes back ok, is that enough to alleviate any worries. Is rebuilding the engine and then meticulously maintaining it worth doing before anything happens?

Eldragon0

I'd recommend reading through a few of my posts on the same topic, a lot of your questions will be answered. Also go over ALL of the stickies in the new member forum they will answer a lot of your questions. But one question I must ask, is why do you want an automatic over a manual?

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

If you can find a 06 or newer do it. They have 15-20 more HP. The engine was changed from the 4 port to the 8 port Renesis.

Jay86

Will do, thanks. Two reasons for the auto. Right now it's my only choice as these are the only two RX-8's for sale in my area, within my budget, and at a dealership. I want to see if a dealer can beat the current pre-qualification offer that I have so I don't want to buy private. Plus, to be honest I've never driven stick and I don't think this engine would be best to learn on, so a proper manual will have to wait.

Eldragon0

I'd be very weary, and do your research. look into the upkeep of it, (Oil changes coil changes etc) Also It's my understanding that auto's are more susceptible to carbon buildup. So even more-so than with a manual I'd push the dealership to give you a current compression test. Um NOT THREAD JACKING HERE. Just I see you're actually on so come to my IRC : freenode Web IRC (qwebirc)
And we can actively talk instead of just playing thread tag.

EDITED FOR ACCEPTABLE CONTENT : Sorry Alnielsn, I was unaware of that :'(.

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

While criticizing auto's is not allowed anywhere on the site, the New Member Forum receives extra measure of attention from the Mod Staff.

Jay86

Is there something mechanically wrong with 04 autos, or you just don't like auto in general? lol, don't get me wrong I definitely get it. I know manual is the way to go, and an auto, and 4-speed at that is weird at best. But, I want an RX8 and ideally I need a new car soon so it's probably this or a manual GTI with a lot of miles. I think I'm going to go ahead and give them a call and get ready to head out. Can't hurt to inquire about it.

I'm curious though, did you get that RX8 in your post for 10k? I wonder how much I can get them down on the price, they should be desperate to sell it.

Jay86

06's would probably be out of my price range, unless high mileage. My budget is 12-13 or less. Is it enough of an upgrade to wait?

Eldragon0

Sorry for the blatant opinionated comment of mine, I edited it for some quality content.

EDIT: No I didn't get that one, I'm actually looking into another one at the moment. Some more advise to you, Don't narrow you're search to just close range. For a good reliable rx-8 searching far and wide is a good idea. Close to me 10k for an 04 with 90k miles is an avg deal. Where as 400 miles away, I can get the same car with less miles for 8k. That's saying for 2k I can fly down there get the car, drive it back and have it all checked out and good to go, and still save 1k. Just keep your eyes open for all your options. There's no need to settle on the first few you find.

Carbon8

iTrader: (4)

*4 port to 6 port*

Take your time, shop around finding an 06 auto for 13k or under is not to difficult.

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

Besides the upgrade in HP, the trans was also upgraded from the 4 speed to a 6 speed. It will still make less hp than the manual due to the reduction of the redline. The torque converter can't handle the higher rpm range.

Yes, I mistyped.

kops

iTrader: (1)

I'm a prospective RX8 buyer as well .

If you're looking for an auto, I might have to agree that an 06 would probably be your best bet. I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet, but a read through RIWWP's New and Potential Owner's Guide is highly recommended. It goes into great detail of what you should be ready for when owning/maintaining an RX8 as well as why the 04 autos were subject to concern.

That being said, with a little reading you can put yourself in a much better position to purchase a healthy RX8.

Welcome to the forum.

Eldragon0

It was mentioned in my first post :P

kops

iTrader: (1)

monchie

Welcome and good luck with the search.

Jay86

Thanks all. Turns out the one-owner RX8 sold anyway and I really don't like the prospect of the other one. The 05 has 5 owners total with 3 coming in the last few years. The dealer is selling as-is with no option to buy a warranty, plus it's the less desirable 4-port as pointed out by others. Searching online and up to 75 miles from my location I'm not finding anything else out there. I guess it'll probably be Porsche 944 for me

Jay86

On second thought, I really don't want to put a lot of money (any car purchase is a significant investment imo) into a car that wasn't my first choice. So I think I'm going to purchase a 6-port AT online.

I found a 2007 with 80k miles and they're asking 10k OBO. What's a good number that I should offer? Any tips to buying online? I'm going to have an independent shop check the compression, is there anything else important I should have them look into.

Also, I read in the potential owners thread that failure is less common on 07's. Is there a rough percentage on that? To be safe, I still want to rebuild the engine on my own anyway. At least that way if it goes I'll know it was my fault.

One important note. Shipping the car might take a couple weeks for it to arrive, so it would be sitting the entire time. Not really anything that can be done to avoid that, so how hard would it be to start once here?

thanks

kops

iTrader: (1)

I've never purchased a car online, nor do I think I ever would. However my circumstances might be different than yours. I'm trying not to let my desire to own an RX-8 get in the way of buying one thats in great shape.

Failure is less common on the 2007's because by that point, even the autos were using 6 port engines and had the recalls taken care of from the factory. This is usually the case with 2006's as well.

turboguy327

iTrader: (1)

I payed 14500 for my 07 GT with nav. Car is completely loaded and had 26422 miles when I picked her up. Its had one previous owner and its in mint condition save a nick in the headliner and a couple dings. So the cars your looking at are hardcore overpriced.

Jay86

Ok, so I'm back again... Still searching... I saved up my money and was dead set on an fr-s, went to test drive one and turns out I don't fit in it comfortably, head room is fine but my long legs were cramped and against the steering wheel. So I'm back to the rx8 and thinking about going manual for better reliability. But getting back to my initial concern is this a good car to learn stick on? It's unavoidable I'm going to stall it, repeatedly, how bad is that for rotary?

Stephen T

Just let it warm up properly first or better yet rent or borrow a normal car for the first couple of practises.

Eldragon0

Well Good news, if you keep looking, you'll find a great one. I finally settled on an 06 black shinka with 47k miles for 11.5k. As for learning stick I'd have to asked if you've ever driven stick before? I was taught when I was about 14.... and hadn't touched a std transmission since. I picked up my 8.... stalled a few time and got on my way. It's important to remember DON'T get mad at the car. It's like learning to ride a bike without training wheels. You'll be able to do it if you can get some good tips, but if you get worked up you'll end up doing more harm then good. Furthermore if you have any friends that know how to drive std then I'd ask them to help you out. I ended up asking a buddy to come with me to an empty parking lot and spent a good tank of gas over a weekend just working on takeoffs. From there I was good to go. Best of luck to you.

Jay86

How much should I expect to pay for this: cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mazda-RX-8-4dr-Cpe-Man-4-dr-cpe-man-manual-1-3-l-power-windows-power-door-locks-tilt-wheel-cruise-/161069349850?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item25807b3bda &vxp=mtr#ht_19883wt_882

seems willing to perform a compression test, but I'd like to know what the $ should be before moving forward.

Jay86

I still can't post new threads yet, so I have to keep sticking these here for now.

Any opinion on this 08 GT?

Mazda : RX-8 Grand Touring in Mazda | eBay Motors

My biggest question is whether or not the 09 is worth the extra money to gain the engine modifications made during that MY, for assumed added reliability?

If it's not worth the extra money, then I'm thinking about making an offer close to their asking price, with the requirement that they cover the compression test at no charge. If it passes, I'm in.

The 08 does have minor damage to the rear reported on carfax.

Also, I plan on using premix regardless of what car I buy.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

If it weighs in at all on your opinion, I'm pretty much back in the market to find another RX-8, and I'm pretty set on a 2009+ due to the significant reliability gains. The cost markup is very much worth it in my head. Keep in mind that with a 2009, you are going to average 1 year more left on the engine warranty as well. That alone might make it worth the money.

I would say that a 2009+ also won't need premix, because the engine has 3 injectors already for the seals. The series1 could benefit from it because the center of the apex seal were un-lubricated, but that is now covered in a 2009.