Wankel_lover

I feel the same way about this. So many people trading cars like a pair of underware. You WILL take a bath doing this. They are getting in the deals (usually leases) with little down and low monthly payments due to budget concerns, then thinking nothing of spending thousands on unrecoverable aftermarket suff. If I were thinking on modding a car, I wouldn't even think about buying a new one. I would buy the cheapest used model I could find (as I was gonna change most of the crap anyway (engine mods, body kit, wheels, exhaust seats...etc) My next door neighbor last year bought a MB AMG SL65 for $190,000. (he had cancer) he died 4 months ago and his widow asked me to help her sell the car. The car was a year old with 8000 miles and the most she can get is $120,000. $70,000 loss in 1 year. Depreciation is rampant with ALL new cars. The most value for your money is to buy late model used. (like an 04 low mile rx8 now and drive it for awhile) If you want to "throw money away" just buy new and trade it in every year. There is no way to ever come out clean on doing that. The problem is that the financial industry has made financing so easy for everyone to obtain, the marketing push is so heavy and the public is so impatient about everything that most people check their brain at the door when they walk into a dealership. Everyone do this for a marketing test....during primetime, see how many automotive commercials appear on TV in a 4 hour period. The marketing "push" for new cars is unbeliveable. Look at (with an objective eye) the marketing slant" of the commercials...a new car will (according to the marketeers) make you more manly, sexy, popular,cool....etc. Think of the millions those car companies pump into advertising. I wish they would cut it in half and throw some of the money saved into more R/D or lower prices. Remember a car is a mechanical object used to move things from point A to point B. I am a rotary nut like most of you here, but I see the automotive/marketing/industrial complex doing a number on lots of people. I choose not to be one of them.

salituro64

First of all it won't be 10K more than every other, and I don't give a crap about others. I know my car, I know the garage it's parked in every day and I know how it was maintained. Also, I do plan on keeping this car and when the time is right, I will add money in modifcations. For raw power, that's why I have the Charger RT. The 8 is my toy and that's why I got it. When it's paid off, and whatever amount that may be, I will either trade up or maybe give it to my kids. And you know what, they will then have a show room condition 2004 after 5-6 years.

RX26b

Honda never announced they would only make 2000 cars. This was a car celebrating their 50 year anniversary as a company. Production was supposed to last roughly 4 or 5 years, with 8 to 10K produced for the U.S. market yearly.

Back in Feb '99 I got on a local dealer's list to buy that upcoming fall; unfortunately the day it arrived (mid-September) they told me it would be 10K over sticker, so I obviously passed. For the last few months of '99 I believe Honda sold somewhere around 3500 S2Ks in the U.S. I don't know who would've told you that they'd only make 2000 for the whole run; or even moreso, why the hell you'd believe that b.s.

bascho

$10K was an exaggertated figure....but only time will tell by how much. If your going to keep the vehicle forever then it doesn't matter that you'll pay more than it's 'market value' because you give it a 'personal value' which is higher. Seeing as you have the RX8 as a second car you are also in a different situation from mine......my RX8 and now my Mustang is my only vehicle.

BTW, based on my 1 year of experience with my RX8.....unless you never drive the car, it's not showroom new. Mazda applies it's paint waaay to thin on the RX8. I seriously doubt you have no chips on your front bumper cover or elsewhere on the vehicle. If so, you would be the first RX8 owner in history.

salituro64

OK, I'll give you that, but I am very conscious not to follow too closely to anyone when driving on the highway. All in all it's still in mint condition. I also think the chips must have something to due with the position of the nose above the road. I notice that I get a ridiculous amount of bug splats compared to my other cars.

Ike

Sure, but some of us are lucky enough to have a car we really want and have great resale value.

supergoat

Agreed. I bought this car knowing full well that the value would drop quickly. I didn't care because I wanted the car.

Anyone who buys a car with resale value in mind should stick to SUVs, BMWs and other cookie cutter cars.

Meeneevan

Don't get too caught up in resale value from one year to the next, they change like the wind.... take a look.

http://autos.msn.com/advice/article....45&src=LP+utes

It will change again next year. Anyone who changes, sells, or trades a newer car for another is gonna lose. The only real winners are the ones who buy and hold and if you buy and hold you don't even care or even think about resale value. Unless, of course you have a major mishap and need some cash because you couldn't even save enough money as a result of being overextended from buying a car you couldn't afford in the first place, oh well live and learn.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Thats due to the different american market Point of view.

In order to sell a car in North america, First thing people would look for is HP numbers, thats right. HP and TOURQUE. For the same price, say, their price target is 30 K, they will compare cars in that price range, and start looking for the HIGHEST HP numbers.

They dont care about balance, dont care about design, nothing. HP, and thats it(for most)

Its pretty simple, RX8 has pretty decent resale value everywhere except North America region. So you know.

I think u're a bit crazy on this one, some Rx8 selling it @ 26K brand new ! and you want people to buy yours used @ 26 K ?

sigh, another thing to remember buddy, you always lose the MOST value outa your brand new car on the first year of ownership.

Fuel4theFury

I agree with supergoat on that one. I am looking at 8s right now and i know the resale value on these guys sucks. I really dont care because i will have it until it dies on me. Eh, i am just curious what i can get as the resale value on my 05 Mazda 3. Haha, want a Mazda 3 and $9,000 for your 8 :-D

pieter3d

iTrader: (7)

Ugh a mustang? what a downgrade.

cruzdreamer

I am trying to sell my 2004 RX 8 GT...automatic with 39,000 miles. It's been about two months and I have had about 5 calls and 3 emails......only one came out to test drive it......a young guy with his parents. Needless to say he loved it and the parents were leary! I have been asked what's the lowest I'd take and have had people offer me $16,000-17,000 for it. A bit too low. We won't take a big hit on this car as the hubby is getting tired of doing that and I don't blame him...I want a new car every 2-3 years. I want a Mazda CX 7 because I need a little more room and that vehicle is exactly what I want! Little nervous as it is a first year car again and a turbo engine. Well, I am thinking of going to Carmax to see what they would offer....I am sure it will be lower than what I want but a good gauge to see what they would offer. Two dealers want my biz and I have negotiated $250 below invoice on the CX 7 with one of them who two months ago offered me $18,000 for my car and I said no and he was shocked....OK...now I would take the deal! So, it will be interesting to see if I do a deal this fall or if I end up just waiting for 2 years and just pay it off and not worry about what I get for it then. Sounds like if I am smart I should wait out the 2 years...it's hard but it's a cool car and if any car I could hang on to for that long it's this beauty! Just thought I'd share!

bascho

I thought that when I got the Limited Edition Shinka model that it would mean something.......it didn't. I should have researched a little more into the Mazda "limited edition game". When other OEM's build a LE model, that model tends to be special and hold value better than others......that's not the case with Mazda.

I was asking $26K because the car was $34K brand new (summer of 2005 before the incentives started flying). That's $8K of depreciation in 12 months!!!! Which is fine....but some of you think that I was asking too much

Just how much 1-year depreciation do you guys think is normal for a $34K car? I thought $8K was a lot. I've never lost that amount on any new Mustangs I've owned.

bascho

In some respects......not in performance. In fact, I would bet the Mustang is just as fast around most road tracks as the RX8 and faster on any 1/4 mile strip.

To each his own......you like the RX8 better......I like the Mustang better. That is still legal isn't it?

9291150

Well maybe, just maybe, one day we’ll all be as wise as you and also buy riced out econo-boxes with rides as smooth as Brooklyn cabs.

Seriously, the fact that our car may not appeal to the masses is not a negative to me. If we all bought based on mass appeal, we’d be shopping at Walmart, eating at McDonalds, driving Corollas…On the weekend I ran into a old riding buddy who was driving his restored Austin Healy 3000. Here is an absolutely beautiful car that never sold well in its day, especially in North America. So much for mass appeal!

What I find funny here is that some complain about 8 resale values relative to MSRP, while ignoring the fact that they likely bought their 8’s at fire-sale prices…if they were smart. Owning my 8 for a year now, I could likely sell it for 90% of the price I paid, which is way better than most other examples I can think of. But if I paid full MSRP, it would be closer to 70-75%.

So whats the problem? Do you all forget that its not exactly a bull market for car sales. The brand new Mustang, already a cheap car, selling at O% financing says it all.

9291150

Bascho, the Mustang made my top three that I considered before buying the 8. A HUGE improvement over the previous models for sure. But you won't find many other fans here, still a mullet machine for many.

kachud

I helped my father restore his Austin Healy 3000. It is a great car.

bascho

I know I won't find a lot of fans......but bashing other cars is not needed. If everyone bought an RX8 it would not be a special car.......why do people on this site attack other car purchases? They should want people to get other cars to retain their RX8's uniqueness. That's one the things that really appealed to me about the RX8.....you just didn't see many here in Michigan.

I could bash the RX8 a lot if I wanted......but I'm not that kind of person. I enjoy the differences in every car offering.....because variety really is the spice of life. I would hate a world where every car was an RX8......or Mustang......or Camry.

bascho

It is a great car......but watch out for the rotary heads. Apparently you can't like piston engine car on this site.

hedgecore

True, it isn't illegal to be a hillbilly...









JK

bascho

Hillbillies don't own cars.....they like trucks

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Summer 2005 ? eh ? thats excatly the time I got my car. June 2005

I got my Shinka 28 K brand new so .... the problem is not really Mazda. Its more like you didnt do enough homework before you sign the contract.

hedgecore

True, i had one of the first shinka's of 2006 in the midwest, and still got way under invoice...

Sorry for you

ShottsCruisers

Curious Bascho.....why do you want the Mustang GT instead?

pieter3d

iTrader: (7)

Touché.

However, I test drove the GT and had a rental mustang v6 (both '05). I disliked both. Granted the GT had some power, but it just felt cheap. Big plastic, kinda drove like a truck.

I do agree that they are much much nicer than the previous interations. But I am all about the nimble rx-8, and the mustang just feels a bit unwieldy to me.