z 1

hey, i should be getting my 350z in a month, lot of people hate it but i think it is awesome, we all know its faster than the rx. the only reason i didn';t want the rx is because ford owns mazda. so u know they definetly had an influence of the car. and who the hell wants a ford rx8

MyT13B

I think it is quite reversed.

I have seen many Ford cars that are Mazda clones. But I don't ever recall a Ford clone that was a Mazda!!

In my opinion the true Mazda is always a better car than the Ford clone

Image12

Ford doesn't own Mazda. They are only 1/3 partner with Mazda. And since when has Ford built something under Mazda's name?

Elara

So, what you're saying is you came here to start a fight by proving yourself somehow superior to those of us that want the RX-8? Honestly, I find the Z boring and average looking. There are currently no specs to prove it's faster. I would also never buy a Nissan, because I don't like the rest of their lineup- they are too generic. But if you want one, great. I hope you enjoy it.

Grimace

Whatever. If you want the overweight love child of an Audi TT and a Lexus SC430, be our guest. Troll on, troll on...

Edit - by your own logic, I guess you'll be the proud owner of a Renault 350Z...

TLuuV

i believe that the mazda tribute is a clone of the ford escape, if i remember correctly:p

Styjan

The Tribute/Escape project was developed on a Mazda platform. Ford did it's own engine and trim and mazda did their's.

Ford does not own Mazda, they have a controling interest.

The rotary development team is all Mazda engineering. (No ford)

Dazz

z 1 has just been owned lol

Hercules

Faster too eh?

Let's do an autocross, as soon as you hit turn one you're going to start lagging behind... specially with the rigidity of the RX-8's chassis.

The Z MAY beat the RX-8 in a straight line (and I say MAY because there are no final straight line times), but as soon as you hit a turn that Z is dust and the RX-8 will be owning, just as the RX-7s owned Porsches, BMWs, and more in lap times.

AZ-ZBum

Ford Ranger/Mazda pickup.

Ford Explorer/Mazda Navajo.

those are the two that come to mind that I know are/were ford built with mazda badges.

but yeah, most of the other vehicles were clones of mazdas. Face it, the japs build much better motors.

Grimace

Thats true, but the Ranger's are using Mazda 4 bangers starting with this model year.

(Strange you never hear of any Navajo's in the Firestone debacle)

Quick_lude

Well he certainly achieved the result he was looking for.. :D Let the kids troll and ignore them.. best way to shut them up.

Hercules

Hopefully the car will be introduced to car mags next month, and then he'll REALLY shut up

At least we can so hope

Jerome81

Man, I'm gone for 2 days, I get back, and trolls are everywhere?

Don't people have better things to do? :o

Sputnik

Uh-huh, and a Ford Explorer Sport model, with over 200 hp, is faster than a stock Miata, right?... Wrong. It has bigger brakes too, but it doesn't stock any quicker either.

Who is supposed to be working the door today?

---jps

magazineracer

little known fact, perhaps because i'm wrong, but for several years ford probes and mazda mx-6's were the same car. sure they looked different but so do 350zs (and i do mean Zsssss) and a G35s

Grimace

Yep. Chassis's were the same Same engines and 5-speed transmission. Mazda used their own 4-speed auto for a few years, then used Fords more reliable (!) tranny then on.
MX-6 had a slightly softer suspension which I prefered over Ford's.
Interiors/exteriors were completely different.

cbr_xx

I believe they came of the same line in Michigan, too. I've parked my '93 MX-6 next to Probes of the same era and the similarities are uncanny. Most of my friends wouldn't believe they were the same car until I did that. I think that even the pre-'93 models were the same. I remember reading somewhere (C&D I believe) that Mazda switched over to the sportier look after the sportier looking Probes outsold the MX-6s 2-1; pretty big deal when the car was the same under the skin but one of them looked like a 2-door 626.

houstonRX8

The Z has been getting mixed reviews from its owners. Many say that the car is way to stiff, and hard to manage. This complaint coming from an avid performance car enthusiast. He made the same observation, saying that the Z is hard to enjoy because it doesn't come out of turns like he would have hoped. But hey, if you like the Z so much, why join the RX8 forum?

WankelWannabe

The Ford trannies were definitely NOT more reliable. Smoother? Yes.

Just do a search for the most common complaint on the 1994-97 626...the auto trannies on the 4cyl cars are garbage. I believe they were designed for the Ford Contour/Mystique. In the 626 they tended to overheat and spew their guts every 40,000km.

My parents had a 94 and it managed to last until 100,000km before the transmission went. It was never the same again...kept leaking no matter what they did.

We then started looking around for others with the same problem and discovered that it was a VERY common problem.

Grimace

So, the moral of the story is shift your own gears. :D

Brian_RX

How you know the Z is faster than the 8? The real model of 8 hasn't come out, yet. Don't make the quick decision, and the regret usually cause people to hurt. After you bought your Z, you don't be Jealous when one of us drives 8 beside you.

Mazda is Mazda, and Ford is Ford. They both are completely different company. If the Ford owns the Mazda, how come the Mazda didn't change to Ford.

RX-7_16

great have fun with your z......but don't come to an rx forum and start spitting bs, because a 3rd gen rx-7 would eat a 350z alive..