so, the dealer has offered to give me exactly what i owe on my rx8 if I want to buy or lease a new car, and being as how I want to start leasing cars because I learned that i like to change cars alot, im debating....

only thing is im not sure if i can give up my rx8 for.....well, anything. It's def the better financial choice to get a mazda3 since they dont take premium, can be driven in snow (alot better), and gets better mileage. But it's not as completely awesome as my rx8.....

hmmmmmm

although I know posting this on the rx forums im going to get primarily pro rx8 opinions, anyone have any input?

 

easy choice

weigh the love you have for the 8 vs the benefits of driving a 3. If you'll be happier with the 3 for whatever reasons, then do it.

 

We will be keeping the RX8 for show and track the misses has decided awhile back so we picked up a 2010 Mazda 3 hatchback for her DD and she loves it, it handles very well, brakes well, lottsa getup and go and does ok on fuel. We went with the hatch because I traded my van in on the cash for clunkers deal, plenty of room to haul practically anything.

 

that's a hard choice...
I think it just depends on what you'll be primarily using the car for.
you can't go wrong with the 3...best sport compact hands down. My 06 with I/H/E would pull away from stock 8's no problem and hang with if not beat slightly modded N/A 8's. pretty capable car at auto-x events too. FWD can only be so much fun though. The 2010 is apparently much better but the new 2.5L engine needs to prove itself IMO
rx8=love, hate relationship. Can you love it all the time? give it all the little attention it needs? it's a spoiled brat, really it is. you already own one so i don't have to go into detail

 

The Mazda3 is certainly a very competent car in its segment, but it will be a totally different driving experience. We just sold a 2010 Mazda3 GT. Mazda builds some very good suspension, brakes and steering into the 3, but I don't think it'll really equate to the 8. Keep in mind that I do not have my 8 yet, but do have experience with an RX-7 and a couple of Miatas. The 3 is very practical, and as good as you'll find with that practicality.

You need to test drive a 3 and see if you find it good enough. From a handling perspective, no FWD is going to be comparable to what I expect from the 8. If you're willing to accept the trade offs, the 3 is the right choice.

 

Keep the 8 and buy a beater 4 banger econo box. More is better. If you take payoff you don't get to enjoy any post payoff benefit. IMO the longer you have a car after paid off the better. With proper corrosion control Rx-8 can last the rest of your life.

 

My wife had a 3 with stock tires. I now have an 8 and have another set of rims with Dunlop wintersport tires. That 3 sucked in the snow compared to the 8 with Wintersports on it. Get stopped on a hardpacked hill with the 3, you have to back down it. That never happened once in my 8 this winter and we got alot of snow! I did like the 3 though and actually considered buying another before I got my 8.

 

I'm actually thinking about getting rid of my 8 and getting the 2.5 3 to hold me over until (hopefully) the 16x makes an appearance. Also considering the 370z but I don't really want to throw tons of cash at that if the 16x is only a couple of years away.

My hang up with the 3 is the stupid smiley face. I'm trying to find out if there is an aftermarket front bumper available.

 

77mjd-yeah I agree totally. I came here just to comment on that retarded look.

it makes it look like a pokemon.

I used to like the mazda 3's, that's how I ame to know of the rx8, but now it's solely a chick car. The previous front end looked unisex, with a tad a masculinity. Now it's just for girls.

*cute* eh..

 

I don't know what the 3 costs, but it doesn't seem to get impressive fuel economy.

I paid 24k for my 2010 Jetta SportWagon TDI. And it qualifies for $1,300 credit on my 2010 taxes. The Golf TDI costs even less. You'll be able to do 50 mpg on it and have an engine that goes 300,000 miles or more.

 

I think any STOCK mazdaspeed3 can own an Rx8 on a straight line - no I/H/E needed!

If you are talking about 3 series...well anything at / above 328i level will pwn an Rx8 on a straight line.

However, if you're talking about a Mazda3...then ???

 

yes regular 3s grand touring. 2.3L engine. Of course a speed 3 will walk an rx8 all day

<------check the avatar....

 

IMO, the only 3 worth compromising for from the 8 would be the mazdaspeed 3. It's by far one of the only cars other than the 8 that put a huge grin on my face the whole way through the test drive.

 

I hate the hatch. The speed3 is just plain ugly. That ugly scoop on the hood....ewww I don't wanna keep going I'm getting sick

 

Sorry I cant believe that unless your I/H/E combo gives the 2.3L a 40+hp jump...

 

go find a modded 2.3l and race him. it's not just about HP...I hate it when this happens. I'm not going to start a pissing contest here. I HAVE beat rx8's. I would go find one to pick on right now and video it but I totaled my 3 (RIP). I had the same skepticism on the mazda3forums about my car beating stock civic Si's. It's possible and I know it is because I've done it.
Think about the powerband here. I can't remember exactly, but with around 168whp 167torque I have pulled on 8's. My most memorable moment is when this guy, in a grey 8, had his girl in the car showing off, flyin down the road. My girl instantly told me me to leave him alone because he was "faster". I proved him and her wrong that night. We did 3 runs and he never came out on top.This was not the only instance BTW. we're talking about a torque curve generating more TQ than the 8 throughout the entire powerband.


sound check for ***** and giggles:

 

It's hard to judge based on peak torque. On paper my TDI makes 230 torque. It pulls hard, but it's a lot slower than my rx8 was. 140 hp vs 180ish on the 8.

A dyno chart would help a lot more than numbers racing.

 

I looked through my little black book where I keep everything and found out I misplaced so much stuff. All I have is my first time slips from the track at moroso where I managed a 15.9 1/4 mile time stock. brings back memories...I'll keep looking and if I find something I'll post up the dyno chart.

I know it's not all about the tq but 168whp is not all that low.... I think what I'm saying here is the torque made up for the 10-15hp deficit. I don't want anyone to think I'm bashing the 8 because I'm not at all I'm just saying that I have beat enough of them to say that my old 3 with mods was faster than a stock 8. MORE FUN? that's debatable... modded 3 vs modded 8=8 on top and a much better driving experience...Who compares modded cars to stock ones anyway? me I guess lol

 

The engine may last 300,000 miles, but the rest of the car won't--have you ever looked at VW's quality rankings?

 

I hate to break it to you, but no 2.3 liter mazda 3 is going to beat an 6-speed 8, i am sure the guy you went against wasn't racing you or didn't know how to drive or was in a autotragic 8. I always get Mazda 3's trying me on the highway all the time on my daily commute to work. Its not even a contest, honestly....it always ends the same way , them becoming one with the horizon in my rear view mirror.

From a stop it's not even a contest either, a 7k clutch drop and the RX-8 is simply gone with the 3 not even remotely catching up.

If you would have said a Speed 3 then that playing field is on a different level all together.

 

Without a tune he would be lucky to get a solid 15HP from I/H/E on his 3. And I am being generous!

OBD2 or 3 is a mod killer!

 

as far as a race goes, Ive beat alot of cars..its hard to believe that a 3 rev limit is at 6500 could beat a 8..just yesterday. a guy in a 2010 camaro SS 2, step up and beat me by a half car length which I didnt realize he was attempting to play around with me..maybe he was a shitty driver but I'll never get rid of my 8

 

Yay more and more high school kids street racing in their 8

 

Not a HS kid, like you never have raced in your 8, I highly doubt that?

I don't do it all the time, lord knows the cops on my commute wouldn't allow it. But every now and then you have to see what the 8 can do , or can not do. And I for one know first hand a Mazda 3 will not trump an 8.

 

Far from a hs kid, its called having a ***** to do it...dont baby your 8