Hey everyone,
Just joined this club because I bought a brand new Shinka RX8 and felt like I had to tell someone. It was a hold over from 2006 and I couldn't believe it hadn't sold yet. So I'm happy and I love driving it. It's the manual 6. The icy Dakota roads are gonna suck but I will cross that bridge when I get there. Which will be soon

P.S. great club, great discussions and ton's of needed information.

 

Get snow tires asap or you'll be very sorry. Anyhow, welcome to the club and congrats on the new car.

 

Congrats on the nice find! Enjoy.

 

Thanks Ike
Snow tires you say? Can you recommend any particular type?
I just spent $181.00 fixing the heater core on my '96 Corsica. Didn't want to drive it anymore but now I see it's beauty as a bad weather car. My RX getting dirty makes me sad.
Thanks again for the tip on the snow tires, hadn't thought about them, I was just planning on driving like a grandma. Probably still will just to be safe.

 

Wow! An awesome find indeed. Congratulations and welcome to the club!

 

what is shinka? if you dont mind me asking?

 

Hey chetrickerman,

Mazda started Job1 on the Shinka Special Edition today, for a total production run of 2150 RX-8's. The some of the features of the special edition include the Black Cherry Exterior, special bright finish wheels, and bright-chrome head and tail light fixtures. On the inside, parchment leather seats and more use of piano black accents provide a look and feel of luxury. Looks aren't all that changed on this RX-8, however. Chassis improvements include:

Suspension cross member injected with foaming urethane improving performance and ride quality
Unique Suspension tuning with thicker 14mm damper shafts (up from 12mm)
Other Equipment includes:
Interior Design:
Seat & Trim Material -- Parchment Leather with soft-back seats (Light Beige)
Steering Wheel -- Sewing pattern change (4 pieces -> 2 pieces) & Colored Stitch
MT Shift **** -- Colored Stitch
Parking brake lever – PVC -> Leather & Colored Stitch
Front & Rear Consol Lid -- PVC -> Leather
Rotary Bezel -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
Meter Ring -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
Ventilation grille -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
Center panel Ring -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
HVAC Dial -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
Shift-base Ring -- Chrome -> Semi-gloss
SW Bezel -- Material color -> Piano black
Consol side bar -- Silver -> Piano black
Bose 300 Watt, 9 Speaker Sound System with Audio Pilot noise suppression technology 6 Disc CD Changer Satellite Radio receiver with 1 year Sirius subscription (N/A Hawaii & Alaska)
Auto Dimming Mirror w/Homelink
Xenon Headlamps w/ auto leveling
Fog Lamps
8-way Power Driver's Seat w/Lumbar Support
Heated Mirrors and Seats
Power Sunroof
Dynamic Stability Control w/Traction Control
Tochigi-fuji torque-sensing limited-slip differential

I copied that stuff from rotarynews.com. I love the Sirrius radio and the Bose sound system. And it say's "SHINKA" really neatly between the driver and passanger windows. Hope this helps!

 

For '06 they added, black, Copper Red, and White as exterior colors.

 

damn, that is sick. oh well, im happy with mine

 

Congrats on the car. You'll definitely need new winter tires though, there are a few posts around about someone driving on the stock tires all winter but it's not a good idea. I bought mine in March and couldn't even get it down the block without getting stuck (on 1/2' of compacted snow.) Luckily I hadn't sold my truck yet...

 

Galaxy Gray was also a SHINKA color for '06. I believe.......that only 1500 were made in 06. and there were supposed to be about the same for the Black Cherry version in 05, however, In '05, If my recollection of a conversation with a BC owner is correct, only about 8-900 came off the actual production line. Those stats I'd have to research to make absolutely sure. They are out there though if you are interested.

Congrats on the car. I've got 22,650 perfect miles on mine..and not a regret to be had.

 

Hey congrats! Definitely get snow tires. It's not a suggestion - it's a requirement. Anyways, welcome to the club!

 

Snow tires can cost from 150 to 300, depends on what you want.

Dont drive OEM tyres in cold weather, first it will wear the rubber really fast, cuz the compond will freeze and crush easily, second is that you will not get much traction cuz the rubbers are freezing (dangerous)

Im planning to fix my 2 bent OEM wheels thats been in my garage since earlier the year (Thanks to NYC's Great Road Quality) then put 4 snow tires for winter. I think Im going to go for Bridgestones LM-25.

oh Congrats on ur new ride !

 

Yes, they did have one in Galaxy Grey - our companies CFO has a Galaxy Grey Shinka. If it wasn't for her, I probably wouldn't have even considered an RX-8 (only because I was pretty much ignorant of its existence if you can believe that!)

 

Grats on your new car looks nice

 

nice shiinka.

 

I gota 06 G.G.

LOVE IT

 

grats. good luck with her.

 

Cool a Shinka! welcome

Oh and chetrickerman, Shinka is Japanese for evolution, progress

 

Congrats. I've always loved that version of the Shinka, esp. the parchment seats. Go here for information on tires and wheels: https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-wheels-tires-brakes-suspension-55/. The second thread is the winter tire thread. Look at the posts starting Fall 2006 for most updated info. Happy Driving!

 

Welcome to the club, love the Shinka! What part of SD are you from? I grew up around Sioux Falls.

 

Grats on the shinka. Just say no to strakes


I would say to get snow tires but I wouldn't know much about it since it only snows here like every 4-5 years, and only for a day or two. :P Other than that the weather is just chilly

 

Best of luck with the Shinka! Have Dunlop Sport M3's for mine. Can't wait...should be fun & safe.

 

COngrats on the buy! welcome to a long time of enjoyment, at least before the hp craving starts, then the real fun begins

 

15,000 miles on my Copper Red Shinka - no regrets either. The color is awesome as the day it was delivered and the interior is great.

I'm from Buffalo, so I know snow. Driving any RX8 on snow, ice or even cold and wet roads on the stock tires is a mistake. You really need performance all seasons at least - I'd go with snow tires if driving all winter (mine comes out to play in the winter but only on a nice day - otherwise its the AWD crossover).