If the RX-8 came with a 300hp V6 would you be happy or sad?
 

Rotary power! Would like some of that oomf though.

I would be happy with 238 lb ft to match the hp, with the 1.3L rotary

It most likely would have been on the list of cars I was looking at. Rotory power was a plus.

Neither. Since the weight of a 300hp V6 would send the car's handling into the toilet, I'd own a different car.

It wouldn't be much of an RX either.

If the RX-8 had a v6, I'd likely be driving a 350Z right now.

^ true that

If the RX-8 had a v6, i'd go pay for a 20B swap.

Just another car without the rotary engine. If all I wanted was hp there are many cars to choose from; I wanted the rotary experience.

i would have gotten an s2k. only thing i LIKE about the car is the glorious engine. screw torque, i wanna spin it to 9k!

If it had a V6, it would not be in the RX family so I would not care. :)

yeah I would agree I like the 8 the way it is, but if it came with 300HP V6... I would probably be driving a Dodge Neon SRT-4 in White.....

I probably wouldn't have gotten one :o

Without the RENESIS you simply would not even have the RX-8...it wouldn't have even been possible. My understanding is the entire car was built completely around the engine layout and location, particularly the 4 door 4 seater concept. Throw in a V6 and yeah, I can imagine how badly the handling would go to hell.

As far as I'm concerned, a RX without a rotary is downright...disgusting. People dropping LS1s into FD RX-7s need to be shot off a cliff with a double barrelled shotgun.

I agree—the rotary "defines" the car. It's like asking "if a steakhouse served fish instead of steak, would I be happy?" I wouldn't go! If the 8 didn't have a rotary, the car would lose all appeal for me. It would be totally off my radar. I will NEVER have a car that trades handling for power.

RX8 without the Rotary Engie, I will drive My brother's Infiniti G35 Coupe now.

I could only imagine how much weight the car would add. I would have an elise instead!

eh, i don't think i would care. the main things i like about the car is the interior and the body style. i guess i'm a looks type of person, lol.

This is so damn spot on, if it were to be a V6 then it would be a very similar car to the Z.

only uglier

How would it be similar....stick a v6 in and you lose your 50/50 weight distribution, you have better suspension than a Z, and 4 seats instead of two. That would make an odd car.

Like it's been said, the car was built around the Renesis.

Why wouldn't it be similar, you lose the 50/50 and get close to the Z's 53/47 weight distribution. You gain overall weight close to the Z. What makes you think the 8 has better suspension than the Z, both uses double wishbone and multi-link, only difference is spring and damper rates, wheelbase width and length. It only shows one performs better on track and one more forgiving on the street. I don't recall ever saying they are the same, do you even understand the word "similar", big deal with your 4 seat vs 2 seat, I could just easily rephrased it similar to a G35 which is the SIMILAR thing as the Z.

I'll take the 300hp, but it HAS to stay rotary. Wouldn't be an RX without it. Add turbo to make it happen like the old days...

Time

Maybe the weight distribution will be worse than 53/47, not only its gonna be heavier, also the center of gravity will be moved, u know how far back the renesis sits? I guess its gonna be like 60/40 if you drop a V6 in the RX-8.
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Mayra11

It's more than just weight distribution. The rotary engine enables a low center of gravity and low polar moment of inertia.

From http://www.autozine.org/html/Mazda/RX8.html: "Low center of gravity, low polar moment of inertia and perfect weight distribution are what all sports car engineers dream for, but not many cars can achieve them. For example, Nissan 350Z with its big V6 engine achieves only 53:47 and a much higher polar moment of inertia because a portion of its V6 hangs over the front axle. Benefited by the weight and size advantage of Wankel engine, Mazda RX-8 can easily beat its opposition even though it is a 4-seater. Chassis engineers will love this car."