So.. Grand Touring or Not?
 

I thought I read somewhere that Shinkas are only the Cherry-reddish color with beige interior and Grand Tourings have the two toned interior. But I'm probably completely wrong. I couldn't find the page again, so I don't know.

Looking to buy my first Rx8 soon, as soon as I get my Celica paid off that is.
Just wanted to get some insight on a few things about the car so I'll know more than I do now.

google.com rx8club: enter question

Try my thread for starters: https://www.rx8club.com/new-member-forum-197/new-potential-owners-start-here-202454/

It includes a link to the colors and trims: https://www.rx8club.com/purchasing-financing-insurance-56/spec-decks-color-charts-pricing-each-year-2005-2011-a-200591/


But in short, the Shinka trim was offered in 2005 and 2006.
All 2005 Shinkas were Black Cherry Mica (dark purple-reddish), and had sand parchment colored interior
2006 Shinkas could be any one of a number of colors, but one of the colors it could be was Copper Red, which was not available to non-Shinkas. They had a light grey/white/sand color interior I believe (not 100%, but I don't think I've seen one with a dark interior color that wasn't a swap)


Grand Touring was available in all colors for these two years except Black Cherry and Copper Red as noted above. Which interior color (single or dual tone) depended on the exterior color, and GT vs Touring vs base all had the same color options, interior and exterior.

Ahh, okay.
Thanks for the information.

I just got a Grand Touring Edition. Love It! The biggest difference is the leather inside. It was very important to me that the car felt refined.
It all depends on what you want out of the car and where you are in your life.

if it's any help my GT is an 08 Velocity Red w/ all black leather interior. stock w/ sport suspension, lsd, keyless button entry, power sunroof, power driver seat, no navi.. i'm sure there's more but that's all i could think of from the top of my head lol.

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This.

The added luxury of the GT certainly influences the overall driving experience. Sunroof, bose audio system, keyless entry/start, electric seats, optional navigation and sat radio, etc. All those things are important to many people.

Conversely, other people don't need any of that. So whatever floats your boat...go for it!

Some people hate leather seats - which is certainly a concern if you live in a very hot or cold climate.

Keep in mind that newer GT's are mostly all black leather. YOu might need to buy an older model to get the two tone interior.

The Shinka is certainly beautiful inside. Very nice combination of colors.

I certainly love the two tone interior of my 40th Anniversary Edition:ylsuper:

You gave the only right answer to the op's question...lol

So what have you searched for and learned recently?

Motor mounts? Seafoaming? Ignition health? Fuel pump? Suspension improvements?

I really reallyyy want a Shinka so bad. But it's very difficult to find one within 100 miles of where I live and at a price I can afford. I was lucky to find the GT that I did & it's exactly what I want. White exterior, leather seats, sunroof, and a few other small things that have my interest. I really didn't want a car without the leather seats despite the climate in which I live in. It's gotten to about 100 degrees this past week and our winters only get as low as about freezing, maybe lower sometimes.

I just hope it's still around when I've finally gotten rid of my Celica, hopefully in October.

If you found the RX-8 that you really like, and if it's close to your location, why risk it? Just trade the celica for the 8 :)

I still owe money on the Celica. Probably around $2k now. I need to get a down payment saved up and getting a financing option worked out won't be easy with none to hardly any credit.

Be patient... It took me over a year of (off and on) searching before I found the one for me. http://swampnews.squarespace.com/uni...t_emoticon.gif

No credit history is pretty much as bad as bad credit these days.

Set up an account at a Credit Union now so you're in good standing when you're ready to buy. They tend to be kind to their own.
Talk to the bank your celica is financed through.
If it's at a dealership, see what they can do. They always deal with multiple finance sources.
Check with Wells Fargo or Capital One. They have loans for people in your situation. (read high interest rates and a lot of requirements)

i had a chance at either getting a gt or shinka. but this was wayyy before i knew anything about our cars and well i went w/ the gt LOL.

I love'z my GT

wtf?!

Exactly :lol:

It's just really difficult to find a car exactly like I want around where I live, and it sucks that I can't get it immediately. I'm going to try and see what I can do or work out.

So stop looking around where you live. Expand your search. Putting more effort and time into getting exactly what you want will pay off for years to come. Don't settle for something local and always wish you had <this> color or <those> options.

I spent 4 months looking for the exact one I wanted, and flew to Ohio to pick it up, spent 2 days driving it back, loved every minute of it.


We have owners everywhere, if you want someone local to the one you are looking at to go check it out, 100% positive we can help you.

Dang. I don't know if I would fly to another state to get it, but the drive to the one I'm wanting is about 4 hours and still in state. I live in North Carolina, it's just the money and the time issue that's ruining it for me. I have the job to save the money, but with the car payment I have now and some other things to purchase, I don't know how soon I can save up a good down payment.

The furthest I would go distance-wise is South Carolina or any surrounding states.

I took a four hour train ride to pick up my Shinka... One of the most fun days of my life. It was a great experience.

I can understand the reasons not to go farther out. But in the end, how much money are you spending? Ask yourself if it's worth it to make sure that you spend that money on exactly what you want? Ask yourself if it's worth the added cost of time and travel to go get it?

Your answers might be "no, it isn't worth it."

And that is acceptable.

But my time here has typically shown me that the people who would honestly answer "no, it isn't worth it" are people that are probably better off getting another car. Nothing bashing or downing anyone, but it's a unique and quirky car as it is, and if it isn't worth traveling to get the right one, what else are you going to determine that it's not worth doing?


Again, not downing you or anyone that decides not to.

Just ask yourself the question honestly.


And don't max yourself out buying this car (or any car really). Make sure you still have an acceptable level of positive cash flow after purchase. You always need it.

I'm definitely doing all I can to get this one. I just can't find a place to get a loan since it's through a broker and Capital One or Wells Fargo don't do that :/

When it comes to financing, you probably know that your interest rate will always be higher than with a brand new car - at times twice as high.

Even if you get a rate that is a little high, if it's the car you really want, you can get around that rate by sending extra money with your monthly payments. That will shrink the interest you would be paying over the life of the loan.