New car primer
 

I pick up my new 8 tomorrow. Its an 2005 Canadian GT, which basically means its got every package available in the states ( touring and sports I believe ) minus the DVD navigation, which is pretty useless where I live.

Anyways, and I know im going to be told atleast 3 times to search, but trust me, I have. Answers all seem to contradict each other when I do so. Got a pair of hopefully simple questions.

Break in. Read so many topics on this subject that seem to contradict each other, that I would like a summary in this thread if possible. Is there a break in? From what I read from the owners manual I downloaded the biggest deal is to vary your rpms for the first little bit. Is this the case? Im looking at taking a @300 mile trip in the car within days of taking possession. What should I do? Is red lining bad? Is setting cruise bad? Across the search results ive read so far, ive gotten conflicting answers.

Also, the stereo. I have the upgraded model, a 9 speaker 6 disc CD player. Can it play mp3's? I know it can play burned discs of mp3's burned to redbook format ( again from searching ), but I couldnt determine if it could play mp3 data disks. ( In other words, discs where the audio is still compressed in mp3 format ). Clarity on this matter would be most appreciated.

Ive owned a rotary in the past ( 86 rx7 ), so im probrably more familar with the car then most new buyers. Im just looking for the how to drive your car for the 1st thousand miles kinda thread here. If one already exists ( and is full of good information ), redirecting me to it is also an answer I would be happy with.

Delighted to be a rotor head again! :)

Cheers,
Mike

Welcome to the real world, Neo :)

The owners' manual covers this. They say a special breakin procedure is not necessary but offer their recommendations. I'd follow the recommendations -- so vary the rpm; meaning cruise control would be the opposite of the recommendations. On a highway trip what I'd do is shift every few minutes between gears and also vary speed a bit when traffic permits and generally take it easy for the first few hundred miles. I changed my oil and filter after 1000 miles since that is the period of highest wear in the engine and produces lots of wear materials. You'll find this is also a matter of debate due to the fact that the factory oil fill has a particular additive package for engine break-in. Since the manual is rather non-commital about break-in I wouldn't worry too much. There are some who advocate really putting the engine through its paces during a break-in (redlining, etc). Personally I don't agree with that but they do present their reasons. You're going to get conflicting opinions in any public forum. Like everyone, you'll need to weigh the arguments, pro and con and reach your own conclusions. Since you're a previous rotary owner you should be well ahead of the game already. Have fun!

the 6 disc player wont play compressed mp3 files. its a different unit that is used to play them. the mp3 unit as far as i know, only accepts one disc at a time.

the best option there would be to look up the DIYs to add an aux input for an mp3 player :)

congrats on the buy!

check out racing beat's breakin instructions

"How to break-in your new RX-8"

http://racingbeat.com/FRmazda4.htm

dont redline it on that first trip. dont set cruise on that first trip. vary your speed and rpm as much as possible.

Excellent, thanks for all information. Seems like the owners manual instructions are pretty much the same as racingbeats. So I will basically just follow the owners manual. Too bad about the cd player not doing mp3's but im not shocked.

The only point of contention I have is the keep it under 4000 RPM for 1000 miles. Kinda hard to very the rpms while driving and keep her under 4K rpm. Hell, its naturally going to be hard to keep it under 4K anyways :) Does that bit of advice seem like overkill? Would the occasional 6 - 7K rpm shift be ok?

I think from what I read, I will just follow the scheduled oil change program. Just safier that way I guess.

One other question. In my gen2 rx7 if I lent the car to someone else after I drove it for long periods of time, if the other person drove it like a normal manual ( shifting at 2 or 3K rpm all the time, etc... ) I would notice for the next few drives the car would be a dog. Im assuming it was the computer recalibrating itself. Does the RX8 exhibit the same behavior?


Cheers,
Mike

And thanks for the welcomes.

Yes, I believe the 8s ECU has an open-ended memory which learns the most recent driving habits. If you drive conservatively then your MPG goes up but throttle response goes down. After a few miles of spirited driving the car gets peppier but leads to crappier gas mileage. :(

good luck with it! :D

Well, day one is over. 165 km's on the engine, this car is just so much fun to drive. I see what people say about gas though :) Im already through a half a tank, so I guess im looking at 300 - 350 km per tank, unless I ease down the rpms a bit ( .... nah :) ). I am trying to be as responsible as possible and straight line speed doesnt interest me too much( after owning sport bikes straight line speed in a car is pretty boring really... ), but damn every time I near a a twistie road, the throttle just seems to push itself to the floor! :) God I love the fact my wife cant read the speedo!

This thing just hugs the friggin road... perhaps the best handling car ive driven, and ive driven quite a few sweet rides. In so many ways this car reminds me of my GSXR. I also have to say the 9 speaker bose isnt bad at all, im not really sure what all the griping is about. After reading some of the posts on this forum, I was expecting the sound to be tin like with zero bass. Its pretty damned good in my mind. The disc changer is a bit slow and it could use a bit more low end bass, but for a factory option in an under 35K car its as good as ive seen.

So far, no complaints at all, except perhaps the gas mileage, but I knew that when I bought it. Oh, and the console in the center is flimsy as hell, but thats a small detail. Finally, if you dont get your mirrors "just right" there is a pretty nasty blind spot on the drivers side. However, normally within a day of owning a car I find dozens of things to dislike in a car. Gotta say im pretty damned impressed.

Im finding myself rather enjoying the stereo... to a point I have a question...

What volume level is safe ( not for me, the car ). I dont want to blow speakers by any means, but im finding myself constantly driving around with the stereo in the 20 - 25 range and wonder at what level does it become dangerous? Keeping in mind I listen to everything from Eminem to Mozart, so that dynamic range varies greatly. Do I even have to worry about blowing speakers... I ask because at 25, its enough to shake the rear view mirror and side mirrors... cant help but think this cant be good for the speakers.

Also, how high does it actually go. Havent had the balls to bring it past 25 ( and frankly, much past 25 I think I pass into the way to damned loud category anyways )