RXSeven1

I found a black 2004 rx8 in a dealers back lot today, its black auto with 113k miles, nav system, 18"s, apperance pkg., red and black leather. its looks seriously molested. there are dings over and it looks like they side swiped something lightly....as it sits it looks dirty but i bet it would clean up nicely.

now my question is what do you think its worth...its marked as-is.

i already have a fd and ive been in the rotary community since 2001....so i know a fair bit about them ...im new to the rx-8 scence though.....my biggest concern is the possiblly of converting this car to manual down the road. will the 6spd bolt up to the at motor.

my question is the power loss. I know the mt have a 6 port and the at's have 4 ports, but fd motors are also 4 ports, so wouldnt adding a turbo yield simialar hp #s?

if i can get this car for a good price it will become my daily driver at about 180 miles per day...

tjbourgoyne

Get an MT.

Razz1

Not worth it

RXSeven1

anyone got some constructive feedback?

Raptor2k

Converting the engine to a 6spd manual would probably cost as much as the car. Find a a stock MT, it's pretty quick, and there's going to be better FI for it soon.

Too many miles, can't stand dings and stains...what's your budget?

'87 Turbo II

I say get a manual. A turbo 4 port Renesis just sounds weird to me, I don't know whay and I even have a 4 port turbo. The Rx-8 is a bitch to tune because Mazda was tired of people blowing up FDs and giving the rotary the "unreliable" title so there are several fail safes you'd have to overcome programmed into the ECU, which can be overidden with a heavily priced HKS ECU. I love th eRx-8 and all, but other than handling upgrades, I don't thni kyou'd be able to tune it much.

(probably irrelevant but in forza you can swap a 20B into the Rx-8 and no other car in that game, not even FCs and FDs)

SayNoToPistons

iTrader: (8)

Youre talking out of your *** again.

'87 Turbo II

last time you said that, I was right and you were wrong. I read that info out of Car and Driver, so I have a feeling htis is a repeat of one of those times. Even if I'm right you'll disagree with me just for the sake of disagreeing, you should really find something better to do with your life. You have to much fun trying to annoy me which I guess leads to some inner self doubt. Honestly, I don't give a damn, seriously, just stop trying to **** me off because you could be closer to a banhammer than I.

RXSeven1

+1

let me reinforce the fact, im keeping my FD, i need a daily driver

'87 Turbo II

+1?

you said "it's 4 port so throwing on a turbo should yield similar hp to the FD" I am saying that tuning/turbocharging would be hard(and expensive) for you.

Wouldn't you call that useful information? I give up. I'm just trying to help, no need to be an *** about it.

RXSeven1

im not trying to be an *** but you just disrespected the FD and the Turbo II. Both 4 port motors, to say that they gave the rotary a unreliable image?

fail safes built into the ecu? so.....thats why i run a power fc in my rx-7, its only a matter of time until these products come available for the 8.

RXSeven1

lets get this thread back on track......

as a daily driver, 180 miles of garden state parkway every day, would this rx-8 be worth it if i paid 8-10k for it. not from a performance stand point, more from a gas milage/ comfort standpoint.

SmokeyTheBalrog

1st get the VIN, run it through carfax. This will let you know if an acident got reported. Note that not all acidents show up on carfax so it is no garuntee. YOu want to know how many people owned this car. Have people been dropping it a few months after they bought it?

You haven't told us how much it is goign for? So without a price it's hard to say if it's worth it.

Keep in mind that the ports are very different. 4 wall ports do not equal 4 side ports. You risk ending up with a car slower then your current one.

It comes down to what you can afford and what you want. There are lots of discounts out now so you might be able to get new. Also, look around the board, their are some peopel selling their 8's some already have a turbo on them.

1. You should go for a test drive. How does it feel?
2. Have YOUR mechanic look at it. Have him do a very therough inspection. Keep in mind they my be selling you a car that in 2 months with transform into a 3000 lbs paper weight.
3. Do they have the service history for the car? Where all the oil changes and mantence done?


Personally, I would stay away from it. If someone just got a beeter car that they abused for a few years there is no telling how soon something major will break. You have NO garuntee. It can roll of the lot and blow an apex seal and there isn't much you can say to the dealer.

Also!

-Can you buy a power train warranty from them?
-On other used cars they have to they offer a warranty or can you buy one?

If you do decide to buy this the first thing you should do before drving it around is buy a 3rd party extended power train warranty.

* Also, can you get a print out / histYou haven't told us how much it is going for? So without a price it's hard to say if it's worth the heavy risk you would be taking.

Personally, I would stay away from it. There is no telling how badly this car has been abused or how soon something major will break. You have NO guarantee. It can roll off the lot and blow an apex seal and there isn't much you can say to the dealer.

With 113K of possibly abusive miles on it you are driving on borrowed time. I know Rx-7 engines where supposed to be rebuilt every 100K, the RENISIS engine *might* last 200K, but that's assuming it was well cared for, NOT abused. This engine could die at *any* time.

Keep in mind that the ports are very different. 4 port Rx-7 engine does not equal a 4 port Rx-8 engine. You have a good chance of ending up with a less powerful engine.

It comes down to what you can afford and what you want. There are lots of discounts out now so you ought to be able to get a new or used 8 at a great price. Also, look around the board, their are some people selling their 8's some already have a turbo on them.


1. You should go for a test drive. How does it feel?
2. Have YOUR mechanic look at it. Have him do a very thorough inspection. Keep in mind they may be selling you a car that in 2 months with transform into a 3000 lbs paper weight.
3. Do they have the service history for the car? Where all the oil changes and scheduled maintenance done and done on time?
4. Have the recalls been done on the car? (Any Mazda dealership should be able to pull up the recall history)

Get the VIN, run it through carfax. This will let you know if an accident got reported. Not all accidents show up on carfax so it is NO guarantee. Also, you want to know how many people owned this car. Have people been dropping it a few months after they bought it? How many owners have their been?

Also!

-Can you buy a power train warranty from the dealer?
-Does the dealer offer warranties on other used cars they sell?


This is buyer-beware. You can go from a functional and fun Rx-7 to a dead and useless Rx-8. Not only will you pay for the pleasure you could end up with no recourse aside from scrapping the car and buying some used POS with the money you managed to salvage..

If you do decide to get this car the first thing you should do is buy a 3rd party extended power train warranty.
ory pull from the ECU. That should tell you how often recently it has hit the fuel cut off

SmokeyTheBalrog

Dang I took to long to write that... now I gatta look at all these new posts too.

EDIT: If you are keeping your 7 that does make this not quite as bad of a gamble.

EDIT #2: I would post in the Mazmart forum and ask them how much a used 6 speed transmission would be. Then you could have an idea how much it would have an idea about how much it would cost.


EDIT #3:

Whats you current MPG? For comfort go for a test drive. Get on a highway and drive the speeds you usually drive. Also make sure to push the car a little to see if it responds as it should. (Go someplace else and test drive a 8 in better condition to compare it with.)

RXSeven1

thanks for the input i was under the impression the 4 port renises was simalar the 4 port rew. i so hard to see that car sit there going to waste... O

AdRoCK3217

The 4-port has nothing to do with the unreliable image. The stock twins on the FD, and its amazing maze of (rubber, WTF) vacuum lines gave it it's horrible image. Let's face it, a LOT of modded FD's blew up! I LOVE the FD, but with improper mods, they WILL let go. This is the same with ALL cars, especially turbo's, BUT, being as these have rotaries, THEY STAND OUT IN THE CROWD!

And yes, there are fail safes built into the ECU. It is (basically) impossible to piggy-back the RX8 (and most new-cars) ECU's..they will just learn what mods you did and work around them, by either subtracting air, fuel, ignition, or adding, etc, to achieve stock-numbers. The Interceptor-X replaces the entire fuel/ignition section of the stock ECU, just like the PFC for the FD..

Fail safes which prevent you from ELIMINATING the stock ECU: It controls....uh, almost EVERYTHING. Power steering, AC, heat, power brakes, ABS, etc...it's rediculous. I like how in the FC and FD's, there was a seperate ECU for the AC and ABS ****..