flip

...definitely great that you got an 8. What matters is the issue of paying extra for a vehicle that isn't what it's supposed to be. That "extra" that you were charged could go toward some nice aftermarket goodies.

What dealer did you get it from? I lived in Chicago up until 2005...

smy266

It is an '06. They did have the brown and black leather that year. I was about to get a black '06 with that leather combo, but the dealership sold it before I could make the deal. One way you can tell it is not an '04 or '05 is the way the seats are. In the older models, the leather seats have a "rubber" (not quite sure exactly what it is) in the seats. In the '06 models and up the seats are all leather.

Falken

Exactly. Turbo here I come.

I got it from mazda of Naperville. The more I think about it the more I wonder if this was an honest mistake by the dealership, the documents DO say shinka, and the dealer I talked to actually kind of had no idea what a shinka was. In fact, he told me,

"Yeah, we just got this one in. Oh, and I just heard its a...uhhh....uhhh shaumburg edition?"

At this I jumped and corrected him accordingly. I suppose if the papers say shinka he might not have been the wiser.


Yeah. The people at the meet tonight confirmed its year. Apparently it has a sticker on the inside of the drivers side suicide door listing the manufacture date, which in this case was 02/06.

AJ's Shinka

^^^ It is a very nice 8 as well. Don't worry about it too much if you weren't looking to buy a Shinka in the first place. As for the VIN saying it is Shinka? I'm not sure my VIN sticker says anything about it being Shinka again I could be wrong, ask Flip or rddragoness because I'm too lazy to go back down stairs (9 stories).

As for the year I could be wrong about that I was just trying to see if anyone out there knows for sure.

rddragoness

Falken, Don't worry unless its a financial thing, and maybe you can get an appearance package or something, for your troubles if it doesn't have one. The car is gorgeous, there are no mechanical differences really. Most of the SHINKA experience has to do with Cosmetics and a limited color availability. IN 05, Only 1, but they expanded it in 06. I absolutely love the interior/exterior combination. I've not seen that on a Galaxy Grey before. Now...think about this. In 06 the Copper Red's were only supposed to be available in the MT..however I've talked to one person that has an AT..now that is rare...so your color combination maybe unique within its own right. Enjoy it and dont fret. You already know the car is a chick magnet!

CarAndDriver

Good luck.

shinka213

this whole thing has got me thinking...

i do consider myself somewhat of a shinka expert....somewhat...

for the year 2006, the shinka WAS made in 4 colors....most 8rs have only seen the CR (cooper red)..

it was also made in WWP (white water pearl), BB (brilliant black) and GG (galaxy grey)...

so....with that said, we need to see more pics of this "shinka"...i dont see the shinka symbol on the b pillar...also, we need more interior pics and close ups of the rims...other questions such as: does it have SAT radio...sat radio is a tell tale sign of the shinka...

hey rddragoness, did your CR come with SAT radio?
i know the 05s have it..

AJ's Shinka

He posted the pictures in the link earlier and the interior was black and brown.

My 2006 CR came with factory Sat radio with 1 yr free subscription to Sirius.

shinka213

thanks AJ for postin...

with that said, if he doesnt have sirius then it cant be a shinka...
i could see them "leaving off" the shinka decal....hmmmmm...by accident...

Falken

Whelp, I it looks like I'm not going to get my money back. They didn't write down anywhere that it was a shinka and therefore we can't prove they overcharged us. He only SAID it was shinka, which was enough to star-strike me into paying extra.

No, I don't get free upgrades.
No, I don't get free maintenance.

What do I get?

A ******* lesson. I will never, ever let this kind of horseshit happen to me again.

BUT! There is good news. The insurance company has slashed our rates by $50/month, because apparently that's how much more a shinka costs to insure.

jamesc

Just thought I'd post a picture of the interior of my '06 Galaxy Gray Shinka. The interior is called sand and it is a little darker than it appears in this picture. I have not had time to take more pictures yet.

jamesc

Shinka or not, nice car!

05shinka

For the record... my shinka has SAT radio.... the main difference IMO is the extra they put into the handleing package. it really does handle like its on rails.

delhi

There's a button on the lower left side of your steering wheel stalk that will toggle the Shinka Super-Stealth mode. Noobs.

X Rx8

Looks like a 12 year old in daddy's car.

rddragoness

Mine has the SAT radio as well.

Sorry ya didn't get a SHINKA but hun ya got an 8!

AJ's Shinka

Huh? Shinka doesn't cost more to insure than a regular 8.

jamesc

If I saved $50 / month because my car was not a Shinka, I'd be paying the same to carry full coverage on my RX8 as I'd pay for liability on a honda del sol. I don't think there is a difference for the Shinka in Michigan.

shinka213

if that were me and i got charged more for a vehicle than i should have and there were misleading statements, i would contact MNAO...something should be done regarding a refund...
shinka's do cost more...they have specific things that other 8s dont..

dont just stop at the dealer, this needs to be escalated...

Falken

I really would, I would take legal action if I could, the problem is that they didn't write it down anywhere. They just said it, and I can't prove it. True they flat out lied, but there is really nothing I can do.

I'm relatively positive it does, seeing as how when we called the insurance company and told them it was not a shinka, they slashed our rates. It's possible that they interpreted "shinka" as an upgrade modification and thus raised our rates.

05shinka

every insurance company i have ever dealt with gets your VIN number, then they know EXACTLY what the car is and what it has....So, your statement about your insurance chaging more, then dropping after you told them it wasnt a Shinka kinda doesnt make sense...

rddragoness

Its true that a VIN tells the story of a vehicle..However, on some occasions as with his explanation, Insurance companies can assume a special edition has to do with performance mods like most special edition cars do now, not cosmetic, so they could in-fact raise rates. An intake and exhaust can raise rates, if the agent assumes they are HIGH power mods...The Shinka has 238 hp.....the GT if I'm not mistaken 232. Thats all it would take. My insurance company asked me and I told them the differences.They barely knew what an RX8 was, let alone a SHINKA....LOL Right now I have my car registered as a pleasure vehicle, but once the kit and wheels go on, she'll have to be classified for show, and they will go up. It costs more to replace parts on a high performance or show vehicle because mods cost more to replace.

Falken

I just got off the phone with the dealer. I told him that the car was confirmed non-shinka and that I was distressed about the price. Funnily enough he maintains he was under the same impression (I recorded the call just for safety). So it's possible the car was mistakenly registered as a Shinka as a mistake on hiroshima's part.

The insurance company did, in fact, drop my rates when I told them it wasn't a shinka, meaning they were under the impression it was, so god knows what's going on.

kersh4w

iTrader: (3)

bs, he's just avoiding blame.

Learjet_Pilot

Is it legal to record phone conversations in your state?