clmantis21

This is my dilemma....

I have an 04 RX8 which I've had since Oct 2004 which I financed for 72 months at $547.80 per month (high I know). I will be done paying the vehicle in exactly 1 year.

I started having issues with power loss and all the other compression symptoms and had my engine replaced (under warranty) at 79,500 miles. I now have 87,500 or so miles and I dont know whether or not I should just keep the vehicle or trade in/sell it. I still enjoy driving it, but I have to realize it is getting a bit old. Everyone tells me that a car over 100,000 isnt very reliable. I've also read threads about people having engine issues even after their 2nd or even 3rd engine. What if the engine fails again after I pass the 100,000 miles?

Clutch: How long is the approx. life of an OEM clutch?

I have never had clutch issues before, but recently every now and then I get a slight bog at 1st and 2nd gear while in the lower rpms. I know its not driver error because I never had this problem before. It doesnt happen all the time but it's happened several times. Is this the first sign that my clutch is starting to go?

This helps me think that things will start breaking on my car and I'd hate to have expensive repairs in the future.

One thing I've started considering is keeping the car and leasing a newer one off leasetrader.com. My cousin/roommate who is 24 loves my car and says if I decide to keep it this final year he'd pay for about $350/m for me to allow him to drive it. So... if I lease a car for say 15-17 months and have him pay for most of the rx8 payment that remains I'll still have the RX8 at the end of next year and I'll be getting out of my lease for the new car. Does this sound like a stupid idea??

Just looking for opinions. Should I get rid of the RX8 while it is still under engine warranty or keep it, finish paying it and run the risk of engine failure again (which I'd have to pay for repairs).

Thanks for reading and your suggestions!

Spoolin8

iTrader: (2)

The cheapest car is a paid off one. Look at it this way with the car paid off you will be bringing in a extra 550.00 a month and that amount of money right there can buy you a basic tune up for your 8 (plugs,coils,clutch) and you will have a car thats basically back to new (especially with your engine being new). Financially you should keep the car if you have made it this far with the payments.

clmantis21

I guess I should have mentioned that keeping the car is most likely what I will do. I am more than 90% sure I will keep it.

Now would be be a dumb idea to lease a car for 17 months and have my cousin sort of pay the rx8's payments ($350 of it anyway) that way I will drive a new car and still have the RX8 and finish paying it off?

kvndoom

At least keep it until it's past 100k and the engine dies (if it does). Then you can decide if it's worth paying for a new core or putting a down payment on something new and shiny. At this point it's not worth getting rid of if you've come this far.

Like Spoolin said, once it's paid off, that money you would be putting down as car payment just goes into the bank (or investments), and even if you have to do some repairs, it won't usually average out to be more than a new payment.

I wish I could have kept my Mazda6, as it was practically paid off when I did sell it. But the car was driving me crazy and I got stressed out just sitting down inside of it. I swear it would have been nice to not have payments though. I hope to keep the Speed3 a long time after it's paid off.

Spoolin8

iTrader: (2)

Personally im a finance person and leasing a car IMO is just not smart. If you feel the need to get another car like a DD buy a new base model lancer or something with low insurance and payments of 200 or less a month (depends on how much you can afford).

kvndoom

How well do you trust your cousin? I have never, EVER had good luck with people "promising to make payments" on jack ****. Let me tell you why.

If they don't pay their phone bill, it gets cut off.

If they don't pay electric bill, it gets cut off.

If they don't pay rent, they get kicked out.

But they sign contracts for those things. If he only makes a verbal agreement to pay you, guess who's going to get screwed when he doesn't have the money? I had to take a bitch to court for a damn computer that she only needed to pay me 30 damn dollars a month, for a year. 30 ******* dollars. She could have cut back on booze, lottery tickets, what the **** ever, to find me 30 bucks. It's a damn dollar a day. But yet I had to go through that **** to get my money. So unless you want to get burned, keep your car for yourself for as long as it's in your name. Learn while you're young that the only person you should trust with money is the one looking back at you in the mirror.

newguy

wisdom ftw^

hkspoweredrx8

iTrader: (1)

Ill level with you =] I have 3500 left on my payoff. After I pay it off, im most likly going to sell it and get a clean FD...aka my favorite car

Vertigo-1

iTrader: (3)

Funny, I'm in the exact same boat as you right now. I have a paid off 04 AT, and while I have no problems at all with my engine (granted I only have 34,000 miles on it), it seems like the rest of the car is just starting to fall apart. This year I've had to replace the battery (after only about a year and a half on the last new one), replace the fuel door lid cause the opening hinge was so rusted it was almost not opening, and just recently my left tail light housing has started the infamous leaking. If I have any intention of keeping the car, I also need to replace the tires and rear brakes...in total it's another $2000 total to fix up all that stuff for a car that's worth $10k or so. I absolutely love the car, since it happens to also be my first car, but am thinking it's time for me to move on, while it has decent resale and before more things break.

I would love to consider the RX-8 R3 next but am afraid to go right back into all these little reliability issues again, and while I love the rotary to death, I'm also tired of its little quirks. I'm very likely going to go with a MX-5 Miata next...I think it's the next closest thing to an RX-8's "feel" under $30k, and hopefully it'll be a lot more reliable all around.

heartygrain

I just did all 4 corners for brakes (rotors and pads) for $400 myself, it's easy. You can get ok tires for $500. So, that's $900 tops. Also, I will point out that brakes, tires and batteries are wear items and have nothing to do with reliability. You can fix the tail light with a $35 gasket. Easy fix.

My opinion in both cases is keep the car. Car payments suck. Four or five hundred a month saved goes a long way towards fixing little stuff like this. That's 5K-6K/year.

RedRocket8

I think you should, you said you got a brand new engine. In theory you have a brand new car. I say you hold onto it, very rare for the engine to blow a 2nd time.

clmantis21

is this quote accurate??

I have read on the boards of people having issues with their second and even third engine. What are the odds of my engine going again??

I wont have the money for fix it after 100k

04RX8man

ddrive it yourself and get it payed off then think about buying something cheap for a DD and keep the 8 for weekends if u dont want 2 rack up the miles 2 fast!

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Getting another car to "Save money" its just pure stupid.

dont trust anybody with YOUR money/property, even close relatives. Like Kvndoom said, what if he/she stop making payments? what you going to do ? kick his/her ***? Go "ask" for money usually end up with a "SORRY I DONT HAVE MONEY ANYMORE IM REALLY SORRY GG BYE !"

Your question :

- How OE clutch last : It really depends on your clutch's quality, MT driving skills and your driving style. Stock clutch have "Durability" in mind. so if you go easy on it, dont drop it at 8K rpm, I would say its easy to go over 100K with it. why I mention Clutch's quality because, even it came from the same factory, same material and same manufacture line, there WILL BE a slight variation which might affect the life of the clutch.

- Engine --- If you think your engine has a problem, why not get it tested? for about 100 bux. you know the health of it, so you will know what to expect. The most important thing is ---- Find a dealership that knows EXACTLY what they're doing.

Its pretty easy to see if clutch is slipping --- Go find the steepest hill you can find. drive up and FLOOR your car in 1 gear. if it slips. well, u know what to do. if it grabs and shifts without problem. its probably something else. Maybe your clutch pedal is about to go, it could be yout slave, it could be the master, it might need a brake fluid flush, who knows.

RedRocket8

From doing tons and tons of searchs on the forum and other 8 forums. I don't want you to end up paying after the 100K warranty is up, so im just trying to give you as much knowledge as i know.

hkspoweredrx8

iTrader: (1)

2 thumbs up.

Keep it and get a DD.

rodjonathan

iTrader: (6)

definitely keep it bro

clmantis21

Funny how things work... today I got a phone call from Royal Caribbean offering me a job aboard their new ship "Oasis of the Seas" (google it). It is an amazing ship, Largest in the World. Anyway they want me to train all of their bartenders how to flair, and all types of bar tricks as well as perform once the ship sets sail. They are flying from San Antonio to New York, New York to London then eventually to Finland... Sail throughout Europe and eventually back to NY and then to Miami. They are paying me $1600/ wk for a total of 17 days all expenses paid plus extra spending $$. Guy said when all said and done I should come home with nearly $5000.

Reason I mention is because I owe something like $6,500 so I'll def keep the car and pay it off when I get back.

I have no engine problems at the moment. Engine feels stronger than ever, just curious as to how many people suffer from problems down the road later after 100k on their second engine.

I will test the clutch on the next hill I find. Hopefully its nothing major for now.

Thanks guys!

kvndoom

Great news! Enjoy yourself and then get a taste of life without car payments. I do miss that feeling, but soon... soon...

Razz1

You'll get a Nickel for your car.

Keep it.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

is the ship still hiring? LOL !

tekk's 8

I have a huge problem as well. I have an 05 rx8 and right now I am over 100,000 miles (I did a lot of road trips and when I moved from San Diego to VA, I drove, so that's why I have so many miles lol..). Obviously I am outside my warranty on my engine. I took my car into a dealership because I am having problems with the engine. They did compression tests and told me that compression is the problem and that I need a new engine. I still have less than 1.5 years left to pay off the car. I really don't have $6000 to shell out for a new engine. What should I do? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot.

heartygrain

I have thought about this as I approach 100K. I think what I would do is try to find an independent shop to swap in a used or rebuilt motor. I think the labor would be about a grand. You could look for a low mileage used engine on car-part.com, they seem to run about 1300-1500. Or go with a rebuilt for around $2500. The way I look at, you could never get another car like an '05 RX-8 for $2500-3500. If you don't have the money to pay for an engine perhaps you could refinance your car with another bank and get enough to pay off the original loan and pay for the engine. Higher payments for two years or something.

White_Shadows

If it is going to be paid off why do you want to keep paying for something else? Take that $550 save enough for a new engine. Then continue to add parts to make the car feel "new" to you. Problem solved. Last thing I want to do when I get this beast paid off is have another car payment all over again.

tekk's 8

Thanks a lot for your reply and information. I have never thought about those options. I will try one of these options.