I hope he did a better job of covering the Berlin Wall and the Euro. Maybe the high pitched whine he complained about is just his ears still ringing from those two events.

I woudn't read any kind of agenda into the incorrect/negative things he says about the 8. Never mistake incompetence for malice.

Ken

 

Here's a story I found about some business reporter living up in Alert, Canada.

"THE TRUE NORTH BUSINESS REPORTER

Up here, we (we, as in I and the polar bears) don't get many cars to review. Well actually none. We've had a truck before, that was given to us, for cash... I suppose that constitutes us 'buying' it. So here is our review of the 2003 Mazda RX-8 GT.

Our car comes with Moonroof, AC, Heated leather seats, heated power mirrors, power everything almost, all on Bridgestone Potenza Tires on 18" rims. First thing I try is the moonroof. Hmm, this does not bode well, IT DOESN'T EVEN OPEN!!! Are these dummie buttons? or could it just be that it is frozen over? The heated seats took a while to warm up in the -40 degree weather.

When I received the car, there was no block heater as an option! And I've 'heard' issues about flooding the engine. But anyways, I got the engine started and throw it into first gear. First thing I notice about the 6 Speed manual is that it is EXTREMELY notchy and the clutch is very hard to press down.

Starting to move, well technically I couldn't because the Potenza's suck and have absolutely no traction on the ice! I could not believe it! One think I did like was that I could fit my 3 polar bear friends in the car, though we did exceed the weight rating and only got a measley 13mpg 'city' driving. Insurance rates were pretty good, though we had trouble getting insurance for act of god damage. On a side note, the AC worked wonderfully!"

 

You can't be serious. The only thing I agree with is the gas mileage. The thoughts about the styling was honest, some people may think it is too much. He was definitely going too far when mentioning the "cramped" seats and the "annoying" exhaust note. I get compliments on the exhaust note, and people always say the seats are comfortable. I sat in the back myself, and I wasn't cramped. If you think this review is "realistic" you are nuts. I don't see whats wrong with having a car that revs high.

 

So much for Car and Driver's complaint about the AC being wimpy.

Great road test; thanks for posting it.

Ken

 

The RX-8 has a very laid back exhaust note. An example of an annoying exhaust note would be a Neon SRT-4. The seats aren't that cramped. What is his comment in relation to, a Dodge Magnum or some other larger vehicle? I can tell you that the RX-8 seats, front or rear have more room than any Civic does. I have one. There is no room in the back. This is pretty typical of any small econobox type of car whether it be a Civic, Corolla, Impreza Sedan, Lancer, etc... The RX-8 has more room in back than many think it does. True that it gets poor gas mileage but then again lets put this in perspective. The Magnum rental car I had at Sevenstock had a V6 that got 15.3 mpg and it was much slower than an RX-8. Yes it had interior room but let's not single out the RX-8 as only having poor mileage. It's on par with many cars. Unfortunately people try to justify poor mileage of many other vehicles by making excuses about other benefits of them as if they cancel each other out.

 

It seemed like the material for half the review consisted of him watching the DVD, misunderstanding it, and then writing about his wrong interpretations. I don't get it, the DVD seemed fairly clear to me; how can someone who makes his living in a form of communication (writing in this case) get confused?

As to the other negative points (such as him complaining about a rough ride quality or cockpit like interior), you have to remember this is businessweek. The guy probably is used to riding around in BMWs and Lexuses (Lexi?) and is trying to evaluate the RX-8 as such when it shouldn't be. At the very least, he is correct in stating that the RX-8 is not for everyone; it's for people that like driving and cars and he obviously doesn't.

 

i think this dude was molested as a child .. was it by the writer of that review??? just let go man

 

i like rx8's exhaust note and high pitched whine, its different and sounds cool.

 

I can't believe they actually published the comments I left on that article on their site, especially when I mistankely referred to the reviewer as a female multiple times on my comments. Bahahaha.

 

Sorry

OK done
Back to topic

 

Does the 'big engine' or the 'little engine' have more whine?

For engine quiet I will take my 8 over just about anything else - you can actually hear your tapes! It's only when you pass someone else's car that you can hear that lovely red-line singing as your rival doppler shift into the blue behind you!

And please don't mislabel the gender of the opinionated again - Mom says of your reviewer
"He might be prissy, but it was obvious, he was no lady!"

 

Kimberly Lynn... Your Avatar is of you? Wow...I never bothered to stop and really look, but I thought it was Shannon Elizabeth!! She's gorgeous...that makes you gorgeous. Congratulations...you'll now have everyone drooling.

 

Guys, the reviewer obviously either:

1) Doesn't like cars or driving them, and/or doesn't know jackshit about them
or
2) Prefers/Is used to completely different type of cars (like someone said earlier, BMWs or Mercs)

He makes obvious mistakes, because probably (1) is the correct option, but he does point out the various intricacies of the RX series and the rotary engine.

Too bad he is a ****-poor driver. 7,5" for 0-60mph ? I did 6.9" for 0-100kph in my 4port Challenge, and I'm no Ayrton Senna...

 

You're friggon hot girl....Don't worry about these leg humpers. I don't see them posting pics of themselves and thank g-d for that

 

Thanks Rotarctica. I disagree but *shrug* it's a compliment none the less.

DarkMaz8, haha, I wasn't worried about it. It was a joke more than anything else.

 

Kimberly Lynn - You're smoking hot. Damn, girl. I may be an admitted leg-humper, but I'm still discriminating in my preferences of hump-worthy legs.

Ace - I saw that, too (7.9 seconds to 60 with a M/T). The reviewer is incompetent on multiple levels, including basic ones such as driving. There is so much blatantly inaccurate information in the article that it is better to simply relegate it to the scrapheap.

 

A pretty pic of your face in an avatar will only get you in trouble around here.

 

Meh I think everyone needs to calm down a little about this review. The guy obviously didn't do his homework, as indicated by his comment about the 8 being around for 5 years here. I do think he tried to keep it fair though, as he mentioned that the engine gets better over time, and that C and D were able to get 5.9 0-60 out of it.

I think the problem that everyone is having with the review is that he went at it from a sedan point of view. He compared it as if it should have the space and mpg of a camry. It's just like when car and driver knocks a Jeep wrangler for not being as quiet on the road as a Rav 4. These things happen.

Me, if I'm going to drop 30k on a sports car, I'm not going to be niggling about the extra $20/mo it costs me in gas. I could care less if it costs me an extra $3 per fill up to give it premium rather than 87, and I certainly wouldn't be bitching about how ergonomic the backseat is (although, Mazda really messed up the chances of anything fun happening back there due to that center console).

Just my two cents.

 

I'm known to start trouble so... nothing out of the ordinary.

Back to the topic, I agree with Zen. It's just a review. Whatever. Life goes on.


& Thanks Roto.

 

7.9 is just sad! I can do 8 flat in my contour on a good day. Id hope a car that is rwd, has 60 more hp, and gearing where you dont need to shift 3 times for 60, would get a better time. I think my mom could get a better time than that.

 

Agreed. And again, I can't be too hard on this reviewer because, whether he meant to or not, I think his thoughts reveal why the 8 doesn't sell particularly well: to someone who's looking for a "sporty-ish" car that seats four, the 8's not as practical as a traditional sedan—and to someone who wants a "real" sports car, the 8 is, well, just not like the other sports cars. In this country, at least, not being like the others = bad.

Let's face it—we happen to love a car that really is, well… different. And when something is really "different"—and those differences impact, even just a little, convenience and practicality—well, it's not going to be hugely popular. I have no problem never starting my car, moving it ten feet and then turning it off. Doesn't bother me at all. It's a quirk I'm willing to overlook because I love the car. And you know what? I like people and things that are different—even a little bit high-maintenance—if the differences are compelling and make me happy. I liked Betamax, I love my Mac, and I'm dating a girl who likes old Carole Lombard movies, so there you go.

 

i predict a war will happen between the cars and hovercrafts in the year 2020. who side will you be on....

 

You're really setting yourself up here.

 

priceless.. many people owned by there own comments..

Good thing Borat wasn't around; god only knows what else would have been said..

 

Borat: Niiice!