Eddie13

I second that: when I fart into my RX8 seat, the cloth quickly identifies the odor and transforms the foul odor to that of a fresh spring meadow on a crisp sunny day!

Nopstnz

I would think the cloth would absorb the fart more than the leather.

jp4wd

I was driving around in my jeep during lunch today and got behind a silver 8. we were going kinda slow and i was just looking at it and I couldnt look away. Looking at the details and how you can see the brake mecahnism when the wheels are spinning. I never get tired of seeing it on the road especially since you dont see too many of them.

On a recent road trip from chicago to montreal canada, thats 650 miles each way, i saw two, a BB and VR, thats it. While theres gotta be, i kid you not, 1 in 20 cars out there is a "Z" or "G35". They were everywhere.

Nopstnz

This is kind of off subject but I was just in Savannah and saw a black fd with a body kit, dropped, and turbod. I rolled down the window and told him what an awesome car it was. He then acknowledged mine and said the same. We are all one big happy rotary family.

Krankor

I'm totally on board with the digital speedo. I was skeptical when I first bought the car, but it quickly grew on me, and now I get weirded out when I drive a car with an analog speedo.

Smokin_LaLa

Ya this coming from a guy who posted a thread that he did some upgrade with a body kit but couldnt post a pic, your a real class act

New Yorker

Yeah, I'm in and around NYC—home of millions of cars and lots of people with the money to own fun cars—and I rarely see an 8. (Seriously, if I've seen half a dozen over the last two years, it's a lot.) But I'm really digging the exclusivity! Sure, it's not because the 8's expensive or hard to obtain, but the end result is the same. I feel like I'm driving a Lambo or a Ferrari, and people are genuinely fascinated by my car—lots of head turns, stares, and "hey what IS that!?!"'s from people all the time.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

I almost bought a 350Z, too.

I will not knock the Z, because I love it, but to think I almost spent 9k more on a car with the same equipment, is pretty amazing.

Rotario

I just thought about this the other day. The RX-8 is the 18th car I've owned in 32 years of driving (yes, I'm old). The RX-8 is the 2nd of those 18 that I've actually loved -- the first was an '83 280ZX I owned for 6 years and put 200k miles on -- and the second is now the RX-8. All the others were just "transportation", even though there were some pricey sports cars included there too.

I've added a lot of aftermarket stuff to my '8, and amomg those, 2 remain my favorites. One is the Richard Paul shifter, and 2 is the Racing Beat intake. Now add a third -- the Racing Beat Cold-Air intake scoop. You gotta have the RB intake box to use it, but once in place it feels like you've added 25 more horsepower to the car. To boot, it's totally invisible from the outside of the car. Way, way recommended if you have the RB intake box. And just like the RB intake, it sounds like a stock intake under normal and moderate acceleration, and only gets that angry snarl when you lead-foot it above 5 or 6k RPM's.

Bill

N10S

I was the same way with the digital speedo. Hadn't had one in a car since 1985 when they were introduced in the chrysler lebaron I purchased (I know what you are thinking, but it was the 5 spd turbo model with sport suspension ok ) Anyway the RX8's digital readout has been growing on me since I bought my new RX8 two weeks ago. Last night I was cruising back from Roswell and decided to try and dim my dash lights, and boom I had reverse gauge lights!! I know thats a common knowledge thing, but for me it was a new feature I didn't even know existed!! Anyway 1600 miles in two weeks and other than scuffing one of my wheels a bit yesterday at a friggin ATM drive through , I have really enjoyed the car.

The RX8 is my 53rd car to date, and I have been fortunate to have owned some really cool rides in the past. This history of car ownership has jaded me for sure, and it takes a special kind of car to keep me entertained. Of the 53 cars I have owned the top fun cars to drive and own have been my MCoupe, e36 M3, Evo VIII, stage II 337 GTi, and a R32 Golf. I also had a couple of modded S4's and a few modded Subaru's but to be honest I can't really say they were a lot of fun to drive. Fast yes, fun no.

Of those aforementioned cars its an easy win by the MCoupe followed closely by the others. Some were pretty powerful, and others not so powerful. The 337 and R32 for instance were similar in power/acceleration performance to the RX8, but were not up to par in other areas with the RX8. Handling, road feel and responsiveness get high marks above sheer engine performance and acceleration numbers for these cars.

With that in mind, the RX8 has immediately jumped into that grouping, and although I would still rather be driving the MCoupe, the RX8 provides the extra seating that allows my sons to ride along in reasonable comfort. Clearly the handling prowess and balance of the RX8 is its strength, and as long as you have access to tight twisty roads the lower power is not really a big issue. Out on the open road, I miss the torque and velocity that can be achieved by a modded turbo car, or even an NA car with a bit more torque, and I think this will motivate me to head down the mod path at some point next year (hey thats only a month away!).

My .02 as a new owner...

Jeff

.whisper

Hello to all, I've been trolling the forums for a while, a relatively new owner of a 2006 Shinka. I've gotten some awesome information from you guys, i.e. getting snow shoes (in NJ), learning that 15 mpg is 'normal', and I'm absolutely loving this car.

I leased it for 2 years simply because I'm from little old South Africa, not sure how long I'll be in the USA, and I've never wanted to 'buy' a sports car that I intend to have a good time in (thrash). Knowing what I know now, I would definitely consider purchasing it if I could make the choice again. Maybe when the lease is up I'll purchase a new 2008 if the specs differ, or extend the lease, I LOVE this car.

However, for blue lights on the dash, when you have your lights on, you can have the blue background if you use the dash dimmer? My dash is only white and red when the lights are off, otherwise it's the deep blue.

And to the previous poster, I scuffed my rim the other day reversing trying to parallel park. Real bummer Will I get charged for a whole new rim when I return the car for the lease, or should I consider trying to get a wheel repair specialist to try repair it better? It's fairly small, just scuffed the edge of the wheel lip by the tire, however it probably covers 25% of the rim. You'll only see it if you look for it.

And to end off my lengthy post, I agree with Cayman statement! Whilst I love the RX8, I must admit, I'll take a Cayman-S above it. Until I can afford a porcshe (if ever), I think the 8 may be my car forever

Winfree

When I first got the car, there seemed to be a blue display over in the music nav section that we were able to turn off but never got back on - since then all we see thats blue is the instrument panel when all the other lights are turned off -

Even the dealer did not know about this but if anyone discovers the secret I would sure like to be able to turn it back on - it is really spectacular with a blue car

Nopstnz

I wonder how hard it would be to change all the dash lights(radio, windows, steering wheel controls) from red to blue...

CTrx8

iTrader: (2)

i think someone asked about this in the DIY or interior forum and it wasn't an easy fix. had to remove everything and change the LEDs if memory serves correct.

N10S

Sorry to hear that you also had a wheel scuffing experience. Mine was fairly insignificant, although anything is too much. I used a little silver touch-up for now and it looks pretty good. There is a nice DIY on fixing rim scuffs that I will try and locate and forward. Its a bit involved, but is worth a try. Alternatively you can have a wheel repair place fix the rim. Its certainly a lot cheaper than buying a new stock replacement.

As far as the dash lights go, when I open my door in the evening I see the blue accent lights faintly illuminate my gauges. Once I am in and I switch the headlights on the numbers and gradations are all back illuminated in bright white light with red needles. Really bright white light which is nice and easy to see, but can be too bright at times. Last night I decided to see if I could dim the level of light a bit. When I turned the **** down it kinda clicked down and suddenly the backlighting was gone and all of the numbers, gradations, and needles were glowing red against the dark charcoal background. It really looks cool, and is a lot easier on the eyes. Unlike the white backlighting, you can also adjust the level of illumination when its in the "red" mode. I do notice the blue lights above the gauges that appear to be accent lights when you open the door to be illuminated during this mode. Its almost like the blue is actually a UV/blacklight type bulb making everything glow. The color of the numbers to the naked eye during the day is actually white, so it has to be backlit in red when its in the low-light mode.

JR

N10S

Just a follow-up to my last post with a link for DIY wheel scuff repair for those that really love their RX-8s! (trying to stay on topic)

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/ext43.shtml

Jayd41

Where about in northern Wisconsin are you located?
Wausau/Marshfield area here.

volk

truer words were never spoken.