better deal?
 

I am trying to make a decision between a new 2011 Sport for $22,500
or a 2010 GT with 16,000 for $21,000.

What's a better deal?

We can't answer that, as we don't know what you want in a car.
Do you want the sport or gt package?

I rather have the Sport but have concerns not having the Stability & Traction control.

I have a sport and don't find any problem not having those things. They may be nice in adverse weather, but all in all I prefer not to have them.

Be more specific about what you're looking for in a car and we can better help you.

Those are not a big deal to have, mind you the only bad weather I see out here is a bit of rain.

This really just comes down to what you are willing to not have. The gt has lots of little things the sport does not have. Dsc/tcs, heated seats, leather seats, few other things I cannot remember. I think the sport is the better deal tbh, I am sure they could come down on that gt by a bit if you really wanted it.

I would say there's a bit more to it than just "Do you want heated seats or not?"

The main thing to ask is "When did the warranty start?"

There's a big difference if your bumper to bumper warranty has 18 months left, or 32 months, since there is only 16k miles left on the warranty for that 2010.

So, aside from the extras in the GT car (heated leather, BOSE radio, sunroof, HID headlights, etc), you have to wonder how long you have left on the base warranty. if the car was bought in March of this year, you have way more time than if it was bought in November of '09.

The brand new 2011 will have a full 36 months.

Also, are these cars manual or automatic?
The autos don't have the limited slip rear axle, whereas the manuals do.

Also, are you tall?
Do you plan on driving the car at a racetrack?
If yes, you will need to wear a helmet, and you might want to see if you can fit in the car with a helmet on in the GT before you buy it. I couldn't, so I had to buy the Sport.

BC.

It really depends in your situation. What is exactly your looking for in a car? What was already said by others, are you asking us if its a good deal getting a 2010 gt with 16,000 miles for $21,000, or the newer 2011 sport for $22,500? If its the price, then the good deal is the 2011 sport. The price difference is just $1500, and its brand new.

Exactly. For that price difference, I would certainly go for the newer car. That's the rational thing to do.

However....

My personal taste - which is not always rational - would be to go with the GT. I do like having those added fancy things, like smart key, bose stereo (not amazing but certainly a good compromise), leather interior, fog lights, sun roof, in your case you would have factory bluetooth installed as well as rain-sensing wipers (or whatever that's called), etc.

As others said, I think the traction control is not that big of a deal if you live in a place with overall decent climate. Here in the northeast I've already been in a couple of rainy situations in which I was glad to have it, lol. I do not intend to drive the car during snow days, but I imagine it would be helpful if they need arises.

But even if you ever race your car, or do auto-cross or anything like that; you would disable the traction control anyway. Otherwise....it wouldn't be fun!

The RX-8 will be my daily driver. Another thing, thoughts for those who have a manual and use the RX-8 as a daily driver. How's the manual in every day use, traffic?

get the GT
2011 is no different than 2010

depends, if you just want to get somewhere with the least amount of effort, you might find manual is a bit of work.
if you want some fun even stuck in traffic, get a manual.

It depends on where you live, and what type of traffic you have in your area that you would have to deal with on a daily basis.

It would be a different experience if you lived in downtown San Francisco and had to commute to LA every day than it would if you lived in rural Kansas, now wouldn't it?

BC.

I have no problems with my manual dd in heavy traffic. Well, no different than I'd have with ANY vehicle with ANY transmission.

I find it a bit frustrating to be stuck in a traffic jam with my RX-8 more than any other manual transmission car I've ever driven. If fact, I would rather drive my truck (also manual tranny) in a traffic jam than my 8, lol.

The RX-8 does feel - to me - incredibly underpowered and anemic in heavy traffic - especially in situations in which you are just moving a few inches at a time. i guess NYC traffic sucks:cussing: It feels as if I'm driving a Toyota Yaris or any other small-underpowered 4 cyl car out there.

In other words, coming from a dead stop, then back to it, then forward, then back to it...etc... is where you really feel what people mean when criticizing the RENESIS' low torque.

If I'm in heavy traffic, I'd rather be driving my 8 than any other vehicle. And before someone mentions "well it's worse here!", I've driven my 8 in heavy traffic in Boston, NYC, DC, Baltimore, LA, and Chicago, so I feel qualified to say that :) Even though it's MT, you can still let it crawl with "idle speed" in 1st at 6mph as needed, it's comfortable, and it's got a precision of reaction that lets you take advantage of opportunities very easily. I admit that I did find my Miata even better for NYC traffic in Manhattan :lol:

I'd also prefer to be in my 8 than any other car for any inclement weather too. The confidence of knowing my grip and performance level, having the appropriate tires, etc... Keep bad weather from being anything more than an irritation point for how other drivers react to it.

the clutch needs a bit working when moving slow since it engages pretty quickly.
I have driven many other cars and their clutches have rather wide sweet spot.