I'm new to the forum (first post) and I'm hoping to own an Rx-8 very soon.

I've wanted an Rx-8 for a while now and because of a recent promotion, I am now in a position to purchase one. I found one that looks promising and I'm going to check it out Friday after work. However, I know pretty much nothing about rotary engines. I will be buying used, so what should I be looking for? How would I be able to tell if the engine was ragged on? The dealer is about an hour from my house so I would like to make this visit count. Any help would be very much appreciated.

 

Make sure all the TSBs have been done on it.

 

This, and How many miles/what year is it?

 

2005, 42.5k miles, 6sp trans

 

Spend some money and get a compression test done if you are worried

The engine is warrantied for 100K miles....so just make sure you get maintenance records so you can get a new engine if it fails.....that's likely more important than the engine condition

Look for the usual....dirty/worn interior that doesn't match the mileage
Lots of wear on pedals
Dirty trunk, engine bay...

Usually clean cars are well looked after....although the dealer detailers can fix a turd

 

NA Rotary engines don't get destroyed by hard driving. Unlike piston engines they are actually more reliable when pushed hard. Lack of proper maintenance and low RPM driving are what will kill an 8. A compression test is a good idea, that's the best way to tell how healthy the engine is.

Take your time, there are a lot of used 8s out there going for bargain prices, you don't have to take the first one that comes your way. It's a buyer's market.

 

And where are you located? There might be someone close by that could take a look for you!

 

The car is in Albian, MI

 

Here's a good RX-8 buying tips thread: https://www.rx8club.com/purchasing-financing-insurance-56/tips-when-looking-buy-rx-8-a-182956/

 

i'm going to chip in here. I suggest you to test drive a new 09 before you even test drive a used 8. Reason is our coils/spark plugs tend to give out after 37k and lots of power is lost. Once you test drive a new one you then know how the power feels when driving.

When its time to test drive the car you are actually interested in purchasing it would help you to know what to look for when driving the car along with all the advice/knowledge we have given you here.

GL on your search

 

Make sure all the recalls are done for the car. If you search i believe its "TSB Recall" on the forum it will have a thread that lists all the recalls that need to be done.

Since you still have a warranty 42,500, warranty for bumper to bumper ends at 48,000. so just be a nag and have them look at everything, from compression test to checking if the spark plugs are good. good luck

 

It all depends on the original purchase date, and for 05's b2b is 5yr 50k.

 

Coils, okay I'll give you that one.........but if you don't change your plugs but every 37k miles, then shame on you!

Anyway...........all info given has been good, so follow those suggestions including that link provided.

 

I spoke with the sales manager today and he talked the car up endlessly, he couldn't really answer my questions; so he said he'd call me back tomorrow. The car looks pretty clean on their website. It appears to have all the options available: leather, nav, rear spoiler...all that jazz. Looks like the previous owner tinted the windows as well. They're asking $13,995. Is that high? It is a 6 sp with 42.5K miles.

 

4 years, 50k. Power train is 5 years, 60k. Engine 8 years, 100k.

Always hard to keep them straight. I wish they'd just merge them into a single 17 year, 210k warranty.

Ken

 

Buy one from a member here................

 

I've been looking but most of them are too far away.

 

How about Bunique, look him up. His car is excellant and he is in North Dakota.

 

ND is ~1,000 miles from SE MI. I'd rather not have to pay to get the car shipped.

 

tsb's....and compression check....

 

After work I drove out to the dealer to take a look at the car. I had planned on going after work on Friday, but I'm glad I went to today. I got to the dealer and looked around for the Rx-8 and I couldn't find it. A sales man came out and started talking to me and asked me what I was looking for. I told him that I came to look at the 8. He said that it was down in the body shop getting detailed. I thought no big deal, its just getting prepped for the lot.

He called down to the body shop and had one of the techs bring it up. I was in for a surprise. There were sratches all over it, even some cracked paint on the rear right fender. The tail lights had about an inch of water in them, but the salesman assured me that this was normal and all the rx-8's he had seen do the same thing. (I dont believe him.) The real surprise was that the right corner of the bumper was hanging off. He said the car had been in a low speed fender bender from the previous owner. He said that they had, had the car for a month and they just got the time to fix the bumper now. I dont really believe him on that either.

Also the lower, rear left trim piece on the back bumper was peeling off. The tires were pretty worn and will need to be replaced pretty soon. One of the wheels had road rash. The paint was chipped and the chip rusted under the spoiler. He assured me that all this would be fixed and the car would look practically new when they were done.

We went for a test drive. The trans shifted smoothly. The engine was smooth and delivered the power well. The problem I found driving is a roaring noise. As I accelerated the noise got louder and then remained at that tone when I hit my cruising speed. The noise would also get quieter as I would slow down.

I've had a similar problem with my current car (Grand Prix GT) and it turned out to be the ball joints and CV shafts. I really dont want to buy a car that I have to spend ~$2,000 on tires and suspension work. The brakes felt fine, the pedal feel was good.

We get back to the dealer and I asked him how much did he wanted for it. $13,995. I pointed out all the things that I had found in addition to the ones that he had shown me. I asked him again, how much do you want for it. He again said, $13,995. He asked me if I wanted to go in and talk numbers. I obliged.

He asked me what I thought the car was worth. I low balled him and said $11,500. He said that was going to be tough to do, but he took the offer to his manager. His manager came out and asked me if I had a trade. I told him I was going to trade my grand prix in. We talked some numbers on the trade. I wanted $3,000. He took the car for a test drive and came back with an offer of $2,500 for my car. I that that was fair, my is 9 years old and isn't perfect, and it is a GM. Apparently he thought that was enough for me to buy the car for $13,995. No dice.

I asked the manager how much he was going to move on the price of the car. He seemed shocked that I wanted a lower price. He told me that the blue book for th rx-8 was $17k. I asked him to look out the window and tell me if he would pay $17k for the way it was right now. He didn't like that and went back to his office.

I started working on a deal with the salesman again. I came up a $1,000 and offered him $12,500 for the car fixed. He took the offer to his manager and I could hear the manager from across the sales floor cursing about my car dirty car. (I didn't wash it before I went to the dealer) The salesman came back with the manager's counter-offered with $12,900 fixed + TTL with $2,500 for my trade ($11,375.40 OTD). I didn't think it was a terrible deal, but I told him I needed a day to think about it.

Now if you've stayed with me and read all that. Do the tail lights really retain an inch of water after you wash the car? They said that the cracked paint would be fixed but for $400 to fix everything, do you think the workmanship will be any good? What about the the road noise? Do you think I should pass on the car or should I take it?

 

^ There is a history of some moisture in the tailights (not an inch!), but there's a TSB that replaces the gasket and all is well post replacement.

Run very far away from this "deal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" There are plenty of much better 8's out there.

 

I agree with Huey52... you can find a better RX8 for the same price.

 

That sounds like one sadly neglected rx8.
If you can afford to kick up the dollars, there is a $5 000 rebate on 2009 rx8s.

 

+1 .