bdown62007

im thinkin of buyin a 04 rx8 from a dealership near me. the car seems to be in good condition but it has 80,000 miles. it is only $11900 but i was just wondering if this would be a wise decision?

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

looks like a good price. Good thing about buying it from a dealership is that all the recalls SHOULD have been performed.

There's a few 8's on this forum with over 100,000 miles already.

DarkBrew

Get the history, maintenance record and have a compression test done.
Report back and we can help you interpret the results

Astral

Yes, if it was driven properly (and not grandma-driven). So I would drive it first.

Check the maintenance history. See whether the engine has been replaced. If the engine *has* been replaced, make sure it wasn't just a few K miles ago. But, say, if it was replaced at 30K or something like that, then you know you basically have an engine that's 30K younger.

Drive a brand new or a not-as-much used 8 to get a feel for acceleration and then drive the 8 with 80K miles to make sure that it still runs strong and there's nothing abnormal/lackluster about the engine. Make sure that 7-9K topend power is there. I guess if you don't drive any other 8s, just make sure that there's no hesitation or power hole in the power band and the power builds smoothly to 8-9K.

Make sure the transmission shifts smoothly with no grinds after it warms up (after 1-2 mins). Do a fast 1-2-3 acceleration run (e.g. highway merge), don't slam it into gear or anything, just nice and smooth, but basically make sure that you can shift grind-free into 2nd gear at 8000+ RPM and such.

If you want to be on an even safer side, you can tell the dealer that the purchase is conditional on a good compression check.

bdown62007

thanks for all the help i plan on going to test drive this one and a new one tomorrow

valpac

iTrader: (2)

I dunno. I wouldn't. There are better deals out there I'm sure.

Razz1

If you get it make sure they pay for an extended warrenty.

suay

I wouldnt do it. Personally i wouldn't for the fact that we all know that rotary engines are not "high mileage vehicles. i agree with recalls since the 2004 model had so many recalls. It even had a recall to replace motors! i would get a new one with a facelift infact, and get a R3 version. Worth the money. You will end up paying the money anywayd down the line. Fellow rotar head

kersh4w

iTrader: (3)

^ not true. there are several members here with 100k+

i fully expect my engine to last 200k miles.

tiltmode43

iTrader: (15)

Power
na rotaries = :/
turbo rotaries = :D

Engine Life
na rotaries = :D
turbo rotaries = :/

tons of 2nd gen rx7s (non turbo) made it to 200k - the renesis won't die young

Razz1

And plenty of 04's that track their car and now have well over 50k miles and still no problems.

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

yeah, contrary to popular belief the 04's are not cursed. Should still be easy to find a good one

Razz1

Just buy Kwelscotts.

G3tR3DDY2GR3DDY

iTrader: (8)

Pink Flea's car has 112k on it and still runs strong. Needs a new starter and just put a new clutch in but its still a great car! Mines at 45k on original motor and its an 04... i think hers runs better

TrochoidMagic

^^my very first rotary that my friend got me onto the rotary boat(in 1999) was a 88 rx7gxl... got it at ~166k. didn't know what to fix to pass smog (exhaust light was on) but was still surprised by the 140hp it had. didn't know $hit bout the rotary back then(premixing or otherwise)...just dogged it everywhere. then sold it for more