Sure, but going in for an optional TSB does not indicate a reliability problem. A reliability problem would be something that would keep me from sending my pregnant wife off with the kids for a day downtown... and there's nothing about this car (or any of the TSB's that Mazda has been fairly reactive about) that makes me concerned in the least.

My 8 has been to the dealer twice in the year I've owned it- once for the airbag harness recall/L-Flash, and once for the M-Flash/AC Amp upgrade... nothing that affects this car's reliability, and after a year I'm comfortable knowing that the RX-8 looks like it's going to be as bulletproof as my Miata was.

I would disagree. It left the factory subpar and they want to fix it.

Well, I believe I can say I have had "reliability issues". when I have owned the car since May and drivin it 150 days and it has been parked for over 85 days... I think that is highly unreliable. They didn't even mention the transmission or clutch? Someone tell me this is reliable: https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-trouble-shooting-95/brand-new-clutch-explodes-42633/

I'm not trying to bash the RX-8... I love mine... but only when it's on the road.

Oh yes, this is argument based on reason. :rolleyes:

Doomed? Puhleeze.

What is wrong with the fit and finish? If you're beating up your interior, that's not a Mazda quality issue. My daily driver still looks mint inside, and I drive the whole family everywhere in it. The build quality is on par or higher than most cars in the same price range that I've looked at, and so much better than the run of the mill american junk that the big three cranks out year after year.

I'll grant you that dealer ignorance is Mazda's biggest hurdle... I'm lucky to have a decent dealer and service dept, but I've seen some real bad ones around here.

The RX8 was under developement for many years- I was surprised it wasn't released as an '03. If they had waited another year, they wouldn't have likely caught some of the small things that they posted TSB's for... if you look at the '05's, there's nothing earth shatteringly different- just the minor fixes that came out while we early adopters tested out the '04's. This is the same story as any new model's first year. The RX-8 has been a dream compared to the first year experience of the '95 Pontiac Sunfire GT that I lived through.

Thats a bag of crap....................those people must have favorites already in their minds and are picking at the little things. But thats strange havent had one problem with my car yet. "Knock on Wood"............. oh sorry I went to the dealership to get my PCM fix. But thats is it! Some magazines are funny. LOL

First you say:Pretty harsh. I have been driving mine for thirteen months and it feels as good as when it left the lot. It is not falling apart. It has never failed to start or left me stranded. It has not a squeak, not a loose panel or fastener.

And then you say:

OK. Yet, at the owner's discretion, the early production cars can be identical to the 2005 models in terms of "reliability:" As far as I can tell, every one of the problems people list, save mileage, has been corrected already, and not just on the cars being made now, but the fixes are available for all the earlier ones, too. We can all get upgraded a/c amps, firmware, brake pads, etc., for free, to the extent we need them.

So how can they be "doomed" while the next year cars are, by your own assessment, OK?

Makes no sense to me.

How long have you had your car and how many miles on it and how far do you commute?

I have had the car over a year with 25k miles and I drive 90 miles a day.

There are posts after posts of crap going wrong with the car.

It does not take a genius to add 2 and 2 together.

I do not beat up the interior at all. When the center console needs replacing....twice that's a fit and finish issue.

Cracks and squeeks are a fit and finish issue.

Don't assume anything.

15000 miles and no problems. The car has never died, never flooded, never stalled. Aside from the rattling in my passenger door, nothing is wrong with this car. And my interior looks mint as well. And whoever said this car wont last long, think again. There is a rotary under the hood. When PROPERLY maintained, they run just about forever. Here is a testament to the build...

I currently drive the car with my timing way advanced all over the place, and have been running an Average AFR of 13.7 (above the closed loop) with 0 reliability problems, and I beat the hell out of my throttle, suspention, and brakes. I doubt I will even have any reliability problems even after P&P work and adding a turbo kit. This car is solid. There are some superficial problems, (squeaky brakes, flashes, rattles, etc) but otherwise an extremely solid car.

Slavearm

I did my part!
 

I filled out my CR survey and said nothing but good things. I can tell you that the survey itself doesn't lend itself to explaining away minor annoyances. If you had to take the car in for an electrical problem, no matter how small, it is a ding.

I've been a CR subscriber for a few years now, and I take their automobile ratings with a grain of salt. A car as unique as the RX-8 really can't be compared to other cars. Some people do purchase cars based heavily on the CR ratings. But they are more likely to be the Camry and Accord buyers. BORING!

I guess you've just had really bad luck then.

Responding generally to Mr. Sonite1, I am sure there are lemon RX-8s, just as there are lemons of any model car. The question is not whether he has a lemon (if he does, he should invoke the lemon law--I would), or whether others have reported problems. The question is whether the common problems with this car (flooding, a/c, etc.) have been fixed. As far as I can tell, they have, and not just for the new cars, but for anyone who cares to get them corrected (free, with a free rental car) by their dealers.

Let's keep in mind the CR reliability data comes from an owner survey conducted in Spring of 2004. I took it myself back in April (for my 94 Civic), which is when the RX-8 had only been on the U.S. market for 6 months. I suspect people who bought the car later, after Mazda implemented fixes at the factory, have experienced fewer problems and are more satisfied.

Exactly.

Please don't get me wrong. I loved the car when I got it and I had no issues until about 18k miles. Then all sorts of things started to go wrong.

The 8 is my commuter. I get in drive it to work and get out. That 's it. I don't take it to the store or the mall.

It expect more quality if I am spending 30k on a car. If it was a 15k hyundi then I would expect little issues.

hmmm... just want to point out one more time.... If you want solid evidence that shows how reliable this car really is, search for clutch or transmission problems. Every one of them has the same symptoms. Personally, I think Mazda's biggest problem is their Customer Support. However, we all must agree, it's not just a new car, it is a very different car. It's one of those car that you either like it or you don't. I loved mine, but after having it parked for over 85 days... it's not so reliable.

What are those problems? My clutch and tranny are fine. :confused:

There are a handful of transmission problems, and it sucks that yours blew up... but it's not widespread. The tranny is the same one used in the 6SP Miata, so there has been a lot of test miles on it already.

take it easy....!!!!! not really bad.. at least our 8 still "working"..haha..

Samsonite1 and I actually live in a same area, work in the same area, and have similar mileage (I'm at 27k miles now). My experiences is a little better but I am also experiencing slight rattles from the navigation unit and wear marks in the interior where Mazda could have done a little more design work.

For $30k, there are other cars with fewer issues. But those cars were boring sedans. It seems that the Mazda designers and engineers leaned towards making the car as sporty, driver oriented, flexible, and affordable as possible. The engineers were probably also under a time crunch from Ford to get this car out as soon as possible. Since the car wasn't beta tested as much as it should be, issues leak through, and CR picks it up and reports it.

The RX-8 is still a pretty good deal now for $27k. No other car can acheive the balance of kid carrying sportiness with great driving feel at this price.

If I was to buy a new kid carrying sporty car now at what I could afford ($30k), the RX-8 is still my first choice. I can't recomend this car to most people though. They won't appreciate the balance Mazda acheived, just like CR could not report.

You need to take your own emotions out of it and see you don't have the facts to support the claim that "the car is doomed" and "will never be a long lasting car period." Those statements simply cannot be proved -- not until we see what owners' actual experience is over several years.

I'll grant you that some of the reactions here are emotional, with people attacking CR because CR's survey results don't match their own personal experience. But your experience is not a predictor either.

Overall, I'd say the CR survey results are hopeful if not encouraging. I wouldn't expect an RX-8 to have the same reliability history as an Acura or Toyota. I think the RX-8 did very well given that the survey was conducted just 6 months after the car came out, and I'm guessing it would do even better now.

I think the other thing we could look at, if we want to make predictions about the RX-8, is the history of the RX-7, which is the most closely related car.

first i dont agree witht your statement. i have not had any clutch or tranny issues or symptoms. to grinding no hard to get into /get out of gears. nadda. and many others have not either. yours broke yes thats a bad thing. and then in my estimation some one did some shoddy work putting it back together and its broke again. that's really bad. but that doesnt make all of them unreliable. and neither does scratches,dings, fuel consumption etc.

no problems here, just the usual stuff, car appears to be rock solid to me. Maybe the ones that have issues were built on a Friday :D

Price doesn't predict anything as far as reliability goes. Otherwise, you'd see a lot of stranded Honda Civics and Jaguars that never break down.