Great for you.

Buying a Z is not an option for me, I was trying it out before I got my 8 and I didnt like it.

Different cars for different foks. Z is not a bad car just because I didnt like it, RX-8 isnt bad just because you dont like it.

Put your act together.

 

What is it with people wanting "more power"? Sure, a little bit more wouldn't hurt anything, but do you hear what you're saying? A 20B in the RX-8 would be not only way too expensive, poor on emissions and thirsty, but just not right.

On the other hand, 20B parts would be a bit cheaper, since there will be more of them out there!

*EDIT*

Also, I find this engine to be plenty fast. I don't need to get to the next stop light the extra .5 seconds faster. If you want to track your car, make the proper modifications to make it track safe and track fast. Complaining and saying what you 'imagine' will be Mazda's saving grace for the Rotary will get you nowhere. They have the money to pour into the R&D for this engine, and they know what they need to do more than you. Just sit back, enjoy what you have, and smile. No need to be up in arms about an engine.

 

Everyone keeps talking about the build quality of the rx8... Why does my center console suck? Why did my clutch pedal just snap off while driving??

I absolutely love the interior on the 8 but it just seems very cheap and creaky to me. But then again I came out of the most rock solid build, the Toyota Camry =).

 

^Agreed. I'm very happy with the power we have now.

Some people will never get it, but the 8 is not about power. Vipers? Power. 'Vettes? Power. RX-8s are about smoothness, agility and feel. That's the way it is, and the way it will be.

 

I went to the Z forum
I listened to my friend who owns one
I read the article in R&T

Sure enough... long term ownership shows bad quality.

Still is a good car as 77% of owners do not regret their purchase.

 

did you really just compare our interior quality to a toyotas. I used to sell toyotas and those things werent *better* by anymeans.

My car is 5 years old and has 72K miles on it and my interior still looks brand new. I drive like an *** and my clutch pedal is still fine. IDK whats the deal with yours.

 

unfortunately, he does have a point about the pedal... quite a few people have had the pedal issue... enough people that both BHR and mazsport had a product to fix the problem. It's not every single clutch pedal, but more than it should be seeing as it's not a wear type of item. There's also a lot of rattles and such... some people dont mind, others do. I still love my 8 but I can see why some people might dislike the car.

 

True, but that doesnt deem our interior subpar.


*Need I mention a 350Z interior ***

 

My wife owned two previous generation Camrys, and neither impressed me from a quality standpoint. The change holder door kept falling open on both of them. The doors had a horribly cheap feel and sound to them (very tinny). Overall, the car was struck me as targeting Americans who just want basic, no fuss, transportation, and was tediously dull, both to look at, and to drive. On average, Camrys may have few troubles, but I sure can't say either of ours felt or looked all that solidly built. The first was totalled in a crash while it was still pretty "young," but the second had complete engine failure at 200,000 miles. That may sound like a lot, but all of my cars have been very high mileage cars (except for the first, which was only moderately high mileage). My 1997 Ford Contour SE (V6, manual transmission) had 206,000 miles on it when I traded it, and that Duratec V6 was still running great.

 

Every camry I have sold from <03 with over 120,XXX miles had suspension issues. Just an observation. The interiors always seemed, as described above, very very basic.

 

thats not actually true. "its pretty well documented " that race teams are able to steadily post 260 bhp engine dyno numbers where as the average 8 is only achieving 220-230 at the crank from the factory.

 

me too so why dont you leave. oh wait you just did. bye

 

^^ haha.

 

Did I miss something?

 

I sat in a z and it felt pretty solid to me. I didnt go wiggling everything though. I was told that they do start to flex and creak after a while. My camry though... very basic. But it all worked. I was never scared that my clutch pedal would break off...

Whats next? Brake pedal snapping off? Good thing our car is not known for that.

 

The Z is solid for the first 20K miles.

lol, I was a sales manager for a Nissan Dealer and it was funny to compare an 03-04 used interior to a new 08 Z.

Same materials and everything, but the 03-04s looked like ****. haha.

 

So... I'm the only one that thinks the Zs are ugly? Same with the new GT-R. Overdramatic headlights, old fashioned curves in untraditional places. Dunno. Judging by the looks I get on the 8 I'm thinking the RX-8 design was ahead of it's time, while the Z goes looking for the past.

 

I think the 350z was cheaply made and it showed in the interior of the car. I mean I like the car a lot but when I sat in it I was completely uninspired. It is horrible inside. While on the other hand i love how my RX8 looks inside.

Now the 370 is another story. From the pics I have seen it does look way better although I still dont like the way they did the gas and temp gauge other than that it looks good. I cant wait to go out to a dealer and sit in one.

I wish the RX8 had the power then ew 370z has. Guess thats why I boosted minel.

 

Camry is a totally different market though.

Imagine telling the avg. Camry buyer they will need to replace coils and plugs every 30k? It's all about low maintenence more then "fun to drive" for those buyers.

Has an 8 hit 200k yet?

 

That's your experience and that's OK, however the facts are that every model-year Camry since it's intro is more relable that ANY America-made or non-Japanese-made competing vehicle. Oh, and don't count on an Contour as a typical reliable make...it wasn't, though I'm glad you had good luck with yours.

 

The argument about the Camry was simply meant to illustrate that quality of materials is not necessarily all that great on this car that was brought up for comparison *by someone else*. They were junk, plain and simple. They may have been reliable junk, but they were junk, aimed at Americans that like junk, as long as it doesn't leave them stranded at the side of the road.

There was a book published a while back concerning why the last generation Taurus (before the 500 was renamed) lost to the Camry. The main reason? Quality? Reliability? Nope. It was because Ford aimed too high. The Camry was basic and inexpensive in everything, and it showed in the interior and in the tinny sound of the doors.

Of the five new cars I've owned, by FAR the least reliable car I've owned is our 2005 Honda Odyssey. It has, by far, had more, and more serious, problems than my 1991 Escort GT (a slightly restyled, reengineered Protege), my 1997 Contour SE (which was probably 2nd most troublesome, but still not terrible, and no comparison to the Honda), my 2001 Ford Focus ZX3 (which was quite reliable, except for when I fucked it up with my modifications), and my 2005 Mazda3 (which has been, by far, the most reliable).

 

there are 8's on this forum that have over 150K with little to no problems.

100K seems to be easily obtainable with the 8. Mine has 72K and still runs 14's with no problem.

 

Doesn't seem to be overflowing with them.

Did they need multiple sets of plugs and coils to get there?



We have 2 different definitions of easily obtainable then.

 

you won't see a 200k rx8 yet, if you bought it new in 2003 you'd have to drive 40,000 miles a year.

 

guy at the track i was talking to over the summer had about 120k on his 8 and was racing it on the weekends

original motor, tranny, no major problems....


can we end this conversation about the Z by just calling it the japanese corvette?

it encompasses everything about the car