2005 RX8 or 2004 RX8 with $3000 off
 

I'm looking at getting an RX-8 through X plan.

I think I can get a 2004 RX8 with $3000 in rebates.

I think I can find a 2004 with acceptable color combination and options.

I plan to keep the car 4 years and sell it just before the warranty expires with about 48,000 miles.

Do you think it is worth it to buy an 2004 with this sort of discount?

How much do you think I'll lose on the back-end when I go to sell the car on a 2005 vs a 2004?

Also, I'm thinking of getting a 6 speed with Sport Package and no other options.
Do you think not having the sunroof and leather will kill the resale value on this car? I want to track the car and I don't think that I will have enough helmet room with the sunroof, hence my desire for a base car.

Go for the 2004. There aren't any noticeable upgrades for 2005. What's the mileage on both?

I agree ... Go for the 2004. I have a 2004 RX-8 without a sunroof. I don't miss the sunroof and I have 2 inches more headroom without it (a selling point for a taller driver). Mine is also lighter, and therefore more a "sporting" machine.

Yeah, but the 04 is so . . . last year :D

Lack of a sunroof and leather will diminish, but hardly "kill" the resale value of the car. (The argument that the absence of a sunroof will actually increase the resale value among tall drivers is like saying painting it pink will increase the value among Mary Kay reps.)

However, "tracking" the car depending upon what you do with it and whether that fact is disclosed will have a much more negative impact on resale than the absence of a sunroof and leather upholstery.

If you wish to use a car for racing, enjoy it and stop worrying about the impact on its resale value. As they say about yachts, if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it.

Both of the 2004s and 2005s would be new cars so basically no mileage.

Any build dates that I need to worry about?

As for the tracking, it would be only 2-3 times per year on a roadcourse and 10-15 autocrosses. Not enough to seriously abuse the car. Not anymore than city driving, stop and go traffic and hitting massive potholes anyway.

I recently bought an 04 with GT and AP packages (I wanted sunroof and leather is not bad). I got it for about $4k off list (got for $28k, new).

My build date is 4/2004. I recommend a build date of April 2004 or later. If you browse this forum and see the technical services bulletins (do a search on this forum), you see that many (most?) fixes occur for cars of earlier build dates. Yes, you can get things fixed later but it is more of a pain. Aside from the M-flash, nothing is really major but you should consider this.

Mine is perfect, at least in my eyes.

:)

neither will help keep the resale value up.... the sunroof will make it a little easier to sell, but thats about it...
the leather might actually hinder the resale value because it cracks (especially in cold weather) and looks like shit over time if you dont properly care for it.

save money and go for the '04 .... the 05s don't really offer any changes except for a few minor things

Have you considered leasing it? You can get really low monthly. Rebates apply to leases as well. Worked out leases before in Finance class, found out sometimes leasing to buy is cheaper than financing depending on your beacon, down, residual, etc. In this case, you won't have to find a buyer for it at the end of 4 years. And for some reason, if you decide to keep it you can negotiate the residual. The only problem is you'll be tied down to it for 4 years. Oh yea, get an 04.

Some of the reabates I'm looking at don't apply to leasing.

I'm also kicking myself because I was in the dealership last week of December and I could have picked up a 2004 6 speed, sport package, with appearance, spoiler, rotary accent, spare tire for 410/month with nothing down. At that time, they were running a $3500 lease incentive.

In fact, the $3000 I mentioned might have dried up now. I didn't see it listed on the web today. It was $1500 customer cash and $1500 if you finance through Mazda Credit.

If the incentives are gone, I'll go for a 2005, straight S plan invoice. Or I could wait until June when they might put incentives on 2005s.

My wife really doesn't like the 8 so I'm struggling a bit here. She wants me to buy a BMW, which I can get for 6000 below MSRP which is really sweet. I also like BMWs but I can't stop thinking about the 8.

She does like the Whitewater Pearl color though so maybe I can sway her.

I'm taking her to the dealership tomorrow for an introduction. Wish me luck.

Get the 04. I got mine for ~26k, brand new. Has a bunch of goodies on her too!!! You can just about force the dealer into your price since the 06's are coming out... as well as it being winter time. Though, being in florida, that may not matter.