Last Saturday, I went to my local Mazda dealer (Herzog) and asked if I could borrow an Rx8 for a couple of hours so I could get a real world opinion of the car...to which they agreed!

The result, I love it. I was previously considering a g35c, but no more.

There where 2 areas that concerned me previous to driving the 8. One was the gas mileage, the other, low torque output.

I put in exactly 5 gallons of gas and reset the trip odo, based on the miles driven, I would estimate 20mpg average (the car had 4600 miles)

As far as pulling power goes, I am coming from an Integra GSR so the 8 felt quite satisfying.

Another thing I was not expecting; the rx8 has renewed my love for the manual transmissions. My integra has a jerky clutch that engages in about ½ inch of pedal travel and an awkwardly placed shifter which means you must really concentrate to get a nice smooth launch and shifts. The rx8 has beautifully weighted clutch and perfect shifter. Very nice.

 

welcome to the club! The 8 is an amazingly balanced car. The handling is incredible, and the clutch and shifter seem to fit me perfectly.

 

yes, the handling and balance of the car is awesome. I was tempted to switch off the dsc and see if the rear would step out but decided the dealer would not like their loaner in a ditch.

 

I was in the same boat as you Plutonium. I just traded my GSR for an 8. The difference between the two cars is night and day.

I liked my Integra, but I love my RX-8 :D

 

Wait a second, what's wrong with 20 mpg average?

 

Sorry, I guess I left that one in the air....20 mpg is great...especially compared to what others have reported.
I was driving it very hard to boot.

Madronin, Curious, what year was your 'teg and did you trade up or sell it yourself?