yoluun

Hi everyone, I'm glad I found this forum with such a great community! I've been reading a lot of posts regarding the rx8 and found a lot of things I want to do with it.
I finally saved up enough money from internships and co-ops over my college years and just decided to buy myself an Rx8 r3 mt as a token of surviving college and moving on to grad school.

My first awareness of rotary engine came from watching Initial D back when I was living in Japan. I loved the rx7 FC a lot but my mother was firmly against it, so I looked around a little more on used FDs and other options but boiled down to rx8.

I live in Ann Arbor and I'm well aware of the winter risks, but I'm not too worried about it. I tried doing some search on shops that know the rx8 in the Michigan area because I do plan to do some modding, namely the BHR ignition, then suspension and clutches in the near future but I haven't found any seemingly good ones. The michigan crew seemed to be modding mostly themselves(?).

Does anyone know good shops in Michigan that will do moddings? I do want to take this car on the track in the future. The ignition, suspension seem like a good DIY challenge for me, but I think the clutch may be too much work, plus I don't have the tools yet. I doubt the dealer would install something like tein suspensions for me.

I'm also confused about the tires. I'm thinking of getting the pirelli tires for winter and some nitto for summer, but is it better to: buy a set 4x wheels, 4x tires, have some tire shop fit and inflate them and i can do the tire swap myself , or just buy 4 tires and have the tire shop change them for me? Are the tires reusable after they've come off the rim once?

Sorry so many noob questions... I'm really excited though! I love driving and I practiced a lot of stick in preparation to own this car the past 2 years on my room mate's Mazda3. I think I was his driver for the past year haha.

Any advice is greatly appreciated! I'm planning to make the purchase as soon as I go back to the US. Currently overseas for intern -_-;

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Michigan Shops:
Chances are, Michigan has the same level of "rotary shops" that most other area's of the country does. If you life in Florida or California, you have options, anywhere else and you are on your own. Keep in mind though, that you are discussing suspension and transmission work, but looking for an engine specific shop. That is inherently the wrong way to look at it. There is nothing so unusual about the 8's suspension or transmission that you have to take it to a rotary shop. In fact, it is so easy in general that you can do much of it yourself. Otherwise, just find an honest shop that will charge you fairly, and you won't go wrong. And yes, alot of dealers have no problem doing installations on parts. I've noticed that Mazda dealers that DO NOT share space with other manufacturer dealers are generally more prone to be willing to assist, and generally understand the 8 more.

Finding a dealer that understands the 8 at all though will be a challenge. Most don't.

Winter tires:
Buy a 2nd set of rims to put the winter tires on. Just leave that as the dedicated set. Sure you can swap tires on and off the rims regularly, but in general, it isn't worth the trouble. R3s also have 19" rims, and winter tires that fit 19" rims are hard to find, and hella expensive. The price drops for 18", but still high. I don't know if the R3 can fit 17s, if it has the same brake package as the non-R3s and most series 1 8s, then you can fit 17s. winter tires in 17s gives you several benefits, 1 being cost, 2 being more sidewall for better flexibility to deal with winter road surface issues, and 3 being that you can get a thinner tire to cut through the snow better. You also don't want road salt damaging your rims that had an original OEM price of $2,400 EACH. (No joke)

REsuperD

welcome! i'm currently in ann arbor also! i've found zero rotary shop in the area; i'm from soCal and there're tons of rotary shops and a handful of personal favorites that i love and trust, but it's LA. there's bonzai that's supposed to be pretty good w/ rx-7's, but they're in indiana. so i'd say as far as rotary shops go, you're out of luck in michigan. if you want to do suspension work, any reputable shop would be fine. i also haven't heard any great things about any dealers, so i'm usually wary of them. anyway, r3 is going to be hard to find in the area; you may have to travel a bit. i actually think an fc is a pretty good way of getting into rotaries and modding rotaries; they're cheap and underrated. good luck

yoluun

Thanks for the input! It seems I may just to drive a long distance if I have to do engine work.
I'll search around for rims and see what works and doesn't in terms of size I'm surprised that the rims+tires cost much more with the 19".

I've asked around a few dealers in Michigan and it seems they have to get the r3 from Ohio. Which probably means I won't get to test drive?

DocBeech

iTrader: (1)

If you or a friend has a truck, goto Penske or Uhaul and just get a trailer. Or you can rent an enterprise pickup and just get a trailer from someone. Doesn't matter how you do it, but its not incredibly expensive unless you don't refuel yourself. They charge 5 dollars plus for a gallon of gas if they do it.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

I bought my 8 from Ohio, and I live in RI. The drive back was wonderful memories.

burglar

You can test drive any series 2, it won't be too much different from an R3.

Dedicated winter tires are a must, just pick up a used winter wheel/tire combo from the classifieds. They're cheap.

Go to Sears and buy a $150 (or less if there is a sale) tool kit, jack, and jack stands. You'll be able to do any suspension work - and just about any other work - yourself. There's a how to guide on everything here.

Although modding is a lot of fun, the RX8 is a wonderful car as delivered. I'd recommend enjoying as is for a while, especially if you're buying new.

I'm right down I-94 from Ann Arbor and would be more than happy to help you jump into the world of autocross and track driving when you're ready.

yoluun

W00t! Thanks! I do plan to drive the stock stuff for a while. Am planning to get the winter set of wheels first.

As for autocross/track I'm hyped about it. Let's go drive around when I go back to the states mid august~september?! I would love to see how you modded your 8~

yoluun

I drove 10hrs to Wisconsin for skiing and my butt ache was the only thing I remember from the trip haha.

Chibana

Yeah, the main difference between the R3 and normal Series II RX-8s will be the seats (and a bit firmer suspension on the R3). I found that the seats in the R3 were just a bit too snug for me, but I'm 6'3" and 215 lbs. If my hips and legs were a bit smaller, it would have been fine.

yoluun

My 8! Just got it today. It's a blast to drive!

Thanks again to everyone for the inputs.

I saw a yellow 8 today on Plymouth. Who was it!?

DocBeech

iTrader: (1)

wrong forum. try at the bottom where the regional forums are.