Series 1 vs Series 2
 

Greetings Earthlings,

Used to be a member/owner back in '06. Had to sell my 8 for financial reasons :wallbash: anyways I may finally be back in the market for an rx8 sometime in the near future and have been pouring over the site for differences between the series 1 and 2 rx8's. The biggest thing that I finding confusing are the track results differences between the 2. The series 2 has a number of reliability upgrades as well as a lower rear end. In every other car I've dealt with a lower rear end means a faster car, but the I keep seeing the series 2 rx8's are .5 second slower than series 1. Anyone have an answer for this?
The only thing I could think of is with the series 2 you have to shift into 3rd before you hit 60, which would drop your 0-60 time significantly, but it seems like it's slower in the 1/4 mile as well.
Has anyone actually put a stock series 1 against a series 2 and seen who comes out ahead?

BTW, love seeing the rx8 community still going strong. I've owned quite a few cars in my short time on this earth and the rx8 is the only car i regret having to get rid of. Absolutely nothing drives like an rx8.

The performance difference in terms of 1/4 mile times is insignificant. The S2 is a much better more improved car all around. Do your homework, there are plenty of threads outlining the difference. If you care about 1/4 mile times in an RX-8 you might want to look at something else or consider buying a used S1 that is turbocharged or supercharged.

Series 1 is faster... :p:

Series 1 is also better looking.

Ken

neither, get a Civic, vtEc kickED in y0 !

S2 has a lower rear end but the trans ratio are different leading the S1 to having a lower final gear ratio.

I never had to in my 2011 Sport.

BC.

Differences between S1 and S2 were considered minor by every auto publication. But yeah, difference in front grills is huge, and the smarter looking S1 clearly doesn't like having the newer Mazda corporate mouth hastily stuck on it against its will.

;)

If you want to tune your car, S1
if you don't, S2
Personally I would go for the S2 for reliability's sake.
1v1 in the straight the S2 should be just as fast, if not a bit faster since it's now newer and has a lower final drive ratio. But around a track and corners, the S2 is noticeably faster,

I know exactly what I'm buying in to, I've have owned an rx-8 before. I ask because I have only driven the series 1 and am investigating the series 2. and let's be honest here, anyone who is buying a sports car (no matter what kind of sports car it is) and says that acceleration doesn't matter to them is full of crap. Now there are a ton of additional factors that go into a car (which is what makes the 8 such a great car) but we are talking about 8 vs 8, so every little difference matters, atleast in my opinion.

for now i'll leave the question open, has anyone actually put a stock series 1 vs a series 2 and just see who was faster? someone else mentioned above that the series 2 is slower in a straight line but faster on a track, any data or examples to back that up? track speed is definitely important. looks wise both cars are sexy in their own way so I can't base my decision on that

Yeah because that always ends well :rollingla

The numbers you are asking for are marginal at best, if you are concerned about performance go for an S1 as the aftermarket and tuning availability is much more diverse, if you want a little more reliability and plan to stay stock (for the most part) go for an S2. Its that simple, the number differences are less than a second, and nothing noticeable to the average driver.

Stop crying over .5 seconds and get the one that fits your needs and future wants.

the S2 is lighter by just a tad (60lbs), and has slightly different suspension geometry too.

the engine, gets a giant oiling system upgrade, new oil pump, higher pressure, completely different oil metering system..

that being said, although they changed a lot of stuff, its a lot of small tweaks, instead of big changes, so you might not notice

I have a 2009 and can hit 60mph right at the top of 2nd gear. Well that is according to the speedometer which is probably a couple mph off right?

The differences are immense, the publications don't know shit. I have an R3 in my driveway that has been taken apart in many ways. There are a ton of changes. the engine (lubrication system, OMP, water pump, rotor housings, oil pan, starter, injectors, etc.), ECU, the trans, interior, fuel pump, rear end, cooling fans, radiator, etc. etc, etc. Sure the chassis and some of the body panels are the same but it is a largely different car and if anyone says otherwise they have no clue what they are talking about.

I agree. Although, the S2 can now be tuned.

The difference in performance is in terms of acceleration is so insignificant that the driver plays more of a role than anything else does. Now on the track at Harris Hill locally, a seasoned instructor who is a series 1 owner (suspension upgrades but stock power wise) beat his fastest time in a basically stock R3 (had Moton coilovers IIRC). So with a good driver, stock to stock in well running condition, I would say a series II is faster, especially an R3. But there are so many factors that come into play that it is ridiculous for that to be an important buying point.

The difference in performance is in terms of acceleration is so insignificant that the driver plays more of a role than anything else does. Now on the track at Harris Hill locally, a seasoned instructor who is a series 1 owner (suspension upgrades but stock power wise) beat his fastest time in a basically stock R3 (had Moton coilovers IIRC). So with a good driver, stock to stock in well running condition, I would say a series II is faster, especially an R3. But there are so many factors that come into play that it is ridiculous for that to be an important buying point.[/QUOTE]

That helps me out. It's difficult to read in between the lines because everyone keeps saying the speed difference is minimal, but coming from someone who used to do a ton of drag racing, .5 seconds is a lot in the racing world. I've spent over $1k to drop my 0-60 time by that much (and no I'm not buying this vehicle for the purpose of dragging it, but on a road track that .5 seconds makes a big difference coming out of corners). It sounds like perhaps the numbers between the 2 models are perhaps more of an apples to oranges situation. Either way, at this point I'll just have to find a series 1 and series 2 that are near by each other and go drive each one back to back to get a feel for each one individually. Thanks for the help, it's nice when I get a response that isn't simply, don't buy this car if you care about 0-60 times.

That helps me out. It's difficult to read in between the lines because everyone keeps saying the speed difference is minimal, but coming from someone who used to do a ton of drag racing, .5 seconds is a lot in the racing world. I've spent over $1k to drop my 0-60 time by that much (and no I'm not buying this vehicle for the purpose of dragging it, but on a road track that .5 seconds makes a big difference coming out of corners). It sounds like perhaps the numbers between the 2 models are perhaps more of an apples to oranges situation. Either way, at this point I'll just have to find a series 1 and series 2 that are near by each other and go drive each one back to back to get a feel for each one individually. Thanks for the help, it's nice when I get a response that isn't simply, don't buy this car if you care about 0-60 times.[/QUOTE]\


The RX-8 is a momentum car.

^really? What do people use now to tune the s2 rx-8? Can't be the Accessport... Int-X?

Search Mazdaedit.

I think C/D is the only one to test the S2, twice. They got a 14.9 @ 94 and a 15.1 @ 93--both slower than the S1. The S2 is not lighter either. And the steeper rear end doesn't seem to help, mine hits 59 in 2nd. The looks of the S2 are finally starting to grow on me, although the wide mouth and the silver crap on the outer sides of the taillights still bother me.

Thanks for the numbers. I think between price and tunability the series 1 will end being what I go with, although I still need to find a series 2 and drive it.

Although not released to the general public, Versatuner should also be available soon.

Word. Forgot about versatuner. Is everything mapped out yet?

yessir. they even went as far as getting an S2 ecu for bench testing to confirm. i should have a fully functional test version by the end of the week *crosses fingers*

Epic. Buy that Pettit SC from Moon.

let me just replace the ink cartridge on my uS Currency printer.