Okay, just a quick little intro here. I've been in love with the RX-8 since it came out and still have the bug for one. I'm 18 and currently driving around an 01 chevy tahoe...which i baby to death, but i've wanted to get out of it for the past year now. I've noticed that on autotrader prices for used rx-8s are going way down, probably because of gas mileage, reliability, incompetent owners....etc.....

anyway, i would love to make the jump this summer into an 04-05 model and am wondering what i'd be getting myself into. Ive lurked on here for a while and know you all love your 8's, but what do you think the wise move for me would be? I have a paid off tahoe, insurance around 250 a month because of my parents full coverage, paying $4 a gallon for regular....should i wait it off another year or so?

 

A lot of people would say that you should just wait until you are older to get an rx-8. However, I would say get it now if you can afford the gas and keep in mind it's only going to go up. This car doesn't get the best mpg. Also, you have to check your oil every now and then. Redline once a day. If you are buying used make sure it has had all the recalls done. It's a good car, not the fastest car, but an absolute dream to drive on twisties. Do your research and don't get ripped off by the dealer on what kind of car it is (i.e. trim or Shinka). Ummm, get a manual. lol Manuals are nice to drive, but if you live in a heavy traffic area an AT is understandable. My insurance is pretty decent; although, I haven't had any accidents or tickets yet. So yeah... Lastly, if you are a good driver, then yeah go for it.

Oh yeah, you might want to stick with the 05's +, the 04's don't have the best reliablity.

 

Yeah...i've test driven a few and honestly i really question some of these dealers judgements....


Here's a couple fun quotes

I had noticed some rust on the front caliper of an 05 on a lot and asked the salesguy what was up..."Oh, its from when the car was shipped over on the boat and the ocean air rusted the rotor a little bit, it will come right off" Too bad the car was at 30k miles by that point....

another, from a ford dealership...."Make sure you redline the engine for 10 seconds while you are about to turn off the engine before you cut it so it will burn off the carbon deposits!"

Yeah, i do know these arent the most reliable cars in the world....but thats the fun in them, i know a manual is the way to go here, to drive it spiritedly, that it is an oil burner, that mazda is stupid for not using 5W30 in its engines....Seriously, the only time i need to drive my tahoe is in winter when i'm trying to get up snow covered roads for some boarding, other than that, i'm mostly all freeway drving, anybody else have some advice or want to throw in their 2 cents? I'd really appreciate the help