Taller sixth gear= improved overall gas mileage= happier owners group= better word-of-mouth on the car= more sales.

 

Alright, I'll bite...

Mostly I'm seconding the things mentioned already that I agree with, others I don't care either way, and some I might disagree with, as noted.

I'd like to see:
telescoping steering wheel (it's on the 3, it should be on the 8)
sensitiviity settings for the auto dimming mirror, or just make it more sensitive... the rear spoiler makes it not work well, even with the mirror adjusted up as high as I can get it.
auto down passenger window
lumbar adjustment (manual) for non-leather drivers seat
spare tire under trunk floor, covered, OR, even mounted under car, below the trunk... re-design the exhaust to use a split system, with smaller mufflers (more sport sound?) on the sides, like Rotary Extreme's, maybe raise that center/lowered part of the trunk floor to accomodate
car speed sensitive steering as opposed to engine speed
automatic climate controls
taller 6th (and maybe 5th) gear, I want to be able to cruise at 80-85mph with the revs BELOW the 3750rpm second injector activation point.
speaking of which...
raise the rpm point at which the secondary injectors kick in... to 4250rpm-ish
gas cap clip is a good idea
battery gauge
keep the digital speedo, was kinda weird at first, but I quickly came to love it.
[b]make that green headlight indicator on the dash only come on when the fogs are on... I can look at the headlight switch to see if the headlights are on
external CD-changer connection
headliner color that better matches the Chapparal seats, maybe a light buff color

Don't care either way:
Xenon high beams
high/low seat heaters, I think mine work fine as they are

Don't want:
fold-down rear seats, to provide a truly useful-sized opening would compromise structure too much for my taste.

okay, now my mind is starting to wander too much...

 

I agree with the taller 6th gear. Since you don't really need 6th for acceleration.

My other one would be a larger gas tank. I don't care that the MPG is low, it is comperable to similar performance cars, but it really needs to get more than 220 miles per tank. Maybe make it an 18 gal tank?

 

All great suggestions. Two very minor things I would like to see. I prefer the manual heater controls to automatic, but I would like a more visible marking on the temperature dial. It's just not visible during the day.

Move the door locks. Many people get out of the car and when the pull the interior door latch the push in the door lock. I then have to unlock the door for them to get back in.

OK, one more thing. When you hit unlock on the remote, unlock both doors. This stupid "safety" thing of hitting it twice to open both doors gets old. At least it doesn't have automatic door locks, I really hate those.

 

Better/stronger door hold-open mechanisms, adjustable clutch pedal, and factory forced induction option. :D

 

One more..
Have the TPMS actually tell you what the pressures are on car startup.. This shouldn't be that hard considering they are already monitoring the pressures, unless they are highly imprecise..

 

A leather option WITHOUT the sunroof.

Please.

Pretty please.

Oh, c'mon Mazda, just do it!

 

Hmm... how bout your own personal road that no one else is allowed on to drive on? :D

That would be lighter on the car than a mounted machine gun/rocket launcher...

 

Or 1 more inch with the sunroof... lower seats or taller roofline, but my head rubs

 

How about less DUSTY brakes, Lighted overhead switches, and change that FREAKIN dipstick location.

 

How about a way to turn on the fog lamps WITHOUT turning on the headlights? (Or am I missing the obvious?)

Light Sensing headlights that turn themselves on/off at dusk are cool, too.

Lumbar Adjustment on the cloth seats, too, please.

Make the STRAKES standard equipment!

Of course, all these things would cost Mazda $$$ and reduce profitability. Chances are they would only change things that would actually cause a person NOT to buy the car. None of these things stopped me from buying!

 

My wife complains about the car's blind spot... but this would be a HUGE design change.... Me, I would like memory seats similar to those I have in my Integra. This would make getting people in and out of the back seat a lot easier.

Please note, we have had our cars for six months and still LUV them.

 

What blind spot? Search for how to properly adjust your mirrors.


EDIT--Also they definitely need to allow for increased head room. If you think it's bad now with the sunroof, try wearing a helmet.

 

This was sorta touched on, but I'll say it again.

Offer the GT WITHOUT a sunroof. Or add an inch with the sunroof (this would be better).

Move the cupholders, aux in, Force Induction form factory all get my vote.

Offer the Burnt Orange from the mazda 3 & 6 on the 8 for '05!

When are you going to this? How much more time do we have to give you suggestions? Thanks for looking for everyones feedback!

 

i agree with 6 gear,sunroof that auotmatically closes when you shut the car off.better heated seats

 

Wow, are they ever going to be sick of me....

However, I agree with most people on this BB that the glass is mostly full, not empty (about 90% full in my case), now if Mazda could just tweak a little here and there.

 

I see no evidence in the seat warmer wiring diagram of the seat warmers being controlled by or even being connected to the climate control temperature dial.

Each of the front seats has has it's own thermostat (located in the seat at butt sensing position) which is supposed to close the heat warmer circuit (assuming the seat warmer switch is on and the car is on) when my rear is less than 82 deg F and open the circut when it's more than 99 deg F.

You should be able to have warm buns and cold air coming out of the vents at the same time if you want . I've verified that my seat warms up even with the climate control temperature dial set to cold and the fan in the off position.

rx8cited

 

Here's a whole thread titled "The little (dissapointing) things" for you to use :D.

rx8cited

 

I hugely feel like I have been bait and switched. I spent two hours looking at each of the Mazda line and then the competitors of the RX-8. At least I got to ding the Z, but I have thought that this would be an opportunity to have a substantive discussion about the 8 (the quote from the phone scheduler was, “We are calling RX-8 owners for a focus group”). Truly, I would not have traded three hours of my time (travel included) for a $100 if I had known that this was going to be a generalized peek and grade for a number of cars.

Thanks for your combined whines and suggestions, sorry they went for nothing.

P.S., I’m really liking the mazdaspeed miata, Mazda got it right. However, second best bang for buck after the 8, IMHO, is the Honda S2000.

 

Sorry to hear that, I was all excited about your chance to share our ideas.

I really think the TPM could be improved by having the pressures listed or at least id which tire is the guilty one.

 

If they ever call back for a real focus group, then here are some serious changes that shouldn't break the bank:

1. Electronic Dipstick Guage - To give an oil level readout since the engine is designed to burn a bit of oil and the dipstick inconvenient and located under the engine cover.

2. Added heat shield under the center console, it gets real hot there and I don't know how long the MP3 player can take it.

3. Different tires, these seem to be tramlining a lot on grooved roads, run flats would be great since there is no spare but it would impact the cost.

4. A bit more engine noise, I like the sound of the rotary but it is so muffled in the FE.

5. Grey or Buckskin instead of black as an interiror option. I live in the Vegas valley and the black gets super hot.

6. Aux in in the head unit.

7. Change nothing else, the car is damn near perfect.