Quick_lude

I would like to have an "auto-x/track" option with Recaro type seats that hold you like glue, Brembo calipers, stiff suspension and lightweight 17" wheels. Everyone wants 18's but when was the last time you priced a set of 4 18" high performance tires? Mucho dinero and they do not last long, maybe two seasons. And 18" wheel/tire combo creates more unsprung weight on the corners. For me 14lb 17" wheels would do just fine. Oh, and since I'm in Canada, bun warmers please! :D

SPDFRK

I seen somewhere (can't recall right now) that the new BMW SMG is actually cheaper for to produce than a standard automatic, they just charge more than usual ($2700) because of the novalty.

Rich

Wow! The Miata has some of the lightest 16" wheels that I've ever seen on a production car, and I think they're 15.5 lbs. I fully agree with the sentiment (big wheels hurt performance, a concept many can't grasp), but I can't imagine 14 lb. wheels that would last. It seems to me that 16"-17" wheels would probably be best for performance, but most people buy the high performance version just to look fast, not to actually *be* fast.

Hercules

The M3 doesn't come in auto, just stickshift and SMG.

Quick_lude

What most people also don't realize that with big 18" wheels it takes torque to move the car off line.. Ok maybe I was optimistic about 14lbs but Rota makes 17" Subzeros which weigh 16.5lbs.. I know a few people that have these with very stiff suspensions and no chipping/damage.. So it is possible. Or I will just use the 16" Rota Slipstreams that weigh 13.5lbs :D

Grimace

So, in the R&T article from April, the yellow RX-8 was wearing 225/45ZR-18 tires. From that aspect ratio, that means the sidewall height is 101.25 mm.

What tall would the sidewall height have to be on a 16" tire to be the same total height of the 18" tire quoted above? (Could someone who's good at that sort of thing give us some potential tire sizes, maybe a range from 205-225 in 16" sizes?)

What I'm worried about is this: yes, I know a large heavy wheel saps up torque (but Mazda is very good at making lightweight wheel). I'm potentially more interested in the base RX-8 if it comes with less gizmos I don't need, is much cheaper, and still has the 250 HP engine. But I will be turned off if it has tires with tall sidewalls.

Thin sidewalls, while less comfortable over bumps, are much more crisp on turn-in and cornering, and that is what I really want the 8 to do well.

HottRodder

Attached is a zipped Excel file that uses some formulas to derive tire width and diameter. Apparently you can only upload images and .ZIP files and my website is 'parked' so I can't anything to it for downloading. So download just download and unzip.

Grimace

Ok, so a 225/45R18 setup has an overall height of 25.97". Some tire sizes that come close in 16" sizes: (Note, I'm assuming a max width of 225 mm)

205/60R16, height 25.69" --> 60 series tires = mushy response
215/55R16, height 25.31" --> also mushy, plus this isn't a popular size
225/55R16, height 25.74" --> mushy
225/50R16, height 24.86" --> too short, you lose over 1" of ride height, doubt this will be on the car.

For fun, lets try 17" sizes:

P205/55R17 = height 25.88"
P215/50R17 = 25.46"
P225/50R17 = 25.86"

Therefore, in my humble opinion, the base car should come with 17" rims, not 16". At least make a 17 or 18" option!

ZoomZoom

I agree with your analysis but I am planning to go with the 17” tires (225/45/17 would be my guess), the 18” tires if available are just too expensive to justify.

stan11003

The roads where I live are crap, some stretches are always full of pot holes. Right now I am riding on 15" rims. Sure it looks bad but I never have to worry about a bent rim. Anyone in NYC can tell you how bad the raods are.

houstonRX8

if you check out the following site:

www.fasterfords.com/mazda/rx8.htm

In the specs at the bottom of the page, it says that the wheels are actually going to be 19 inch. I thought that was wrong, but when I called Mazda in Irvine, I asked the person I was speaking with, and he told me as far as the information that he has, that it is going to 19 inch wheels. Unless you guys have gotten some other updated information, this is what I found. But above is my source.

Peace!
HoustonRX8

Grimace

Interesting, but I'm a little skeptical of that site, since it says the car will be coming with a 6-speed automatic. I'm pretty sure that was ruled out a while ago.

Thanks for the link anyway!

Pork Chop

Hmm, that's strange.

Doesn't make sense to go to 19"s. There aren't too many tire options in 19" sizes and they're all very expensive. I don't think a bean-counter at Mazda would approve, since it adds a significant increase in cost.

This is supposed to be a sports car, right? Don't know why they'd weigh it down with heavy 19" wheels. Maybe they can find a way to make a lightweight 19" wheel, but, again, that's not going to be cheap.

I'll believe it when I see it, but I would be very surprised if the car came with 19's.

Pork Chop

BTW, the original red show car had 19's and a 6-speed paddle-shift automatic. Maybe this article is based on that car and not the more recent yellow car (despite the pictures).

houstonRX8

Sorry if the information is wrong!

I just wanted to share what I had read!!!!

Just trying to figure out exactly how I can get it...

Aeterna

I'm not sure where, but I thought I read that Mazda 'might' consider releasing a 2-dr sport/coupe version that screams at 280 hp? Does anyone else know about this?

I'd also considered one single perf.mod. for my own RX-8 and that would be a supercharger on the 'supposed' 280 hp version (if it will exist) other than this, I would not have the audacity to try to alter/improve the engineers of the RX-8's design. I would just like to feel it pull me...

Even cooler than this, (and I intend to try to make it happen) I would like to make this thing so stupid-fast minus nitrous oxide (that's for cheaters and babies) and yet so excruciatingly silent a ride as possible. That way when us older guys go floating/flying past the euro-teens, we look like noiseless ghosts who 'just go faster'. We don't even revel in it, because a 'kill' is for an insecure child, we just like to drive...

"my 2 cents is free"

Quick_lude

Forgive my rotary engine ignorance but is supercharging a rotary possible? What shaft would the supercharger pully run off?

Grimace

Aeterna, what you were probably reading about is the next RX-7. It will be based on the RX-8 platform, supposedly have more horsepower, and supposedly come out ~2005.

Welcome to the forum!

GOFAST

I'm not sure, but i too heard that Mazda wanted to make a 2dr rx-8...but from what i can remember is that its still on the drawing table. If anything i hope it will incorporate the EVOLV body style... !!

GOFAST

I personally dont think its possilbe to supercharge a rotary engine!!

fuz

I think a new electric powered charger just finished testing in europe, and is about to be introduced on a number of cars there.

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...threadid=12741

Sputnik

It certainly is possible. It would be connected to the same pully that the A/C or alternator is already hooked up to, just like on a piston engine.

There was a so-so centrifugal SC kit available for FCs (2nd gen RX7s), but it normally took some decent tuning on the owner's part, and there was a reliability issue with the SC itself (which was not related to the fact that it was on a rotary).

---jps