onewhippedpuppy

Year: 2009
Make: Mazda
Model: RX-8
Price: $16500
Mileage: 38481
Color: Sparkling Black Mica
Private or Dealer Listing: Private Listing
Location (US State/Canada/Int): KS

Summary: 2009 Mazda RX-8 R3, JM1FE174090401376, 38,481 miles, Sparkling Black Mica over black, new engine at 26k, exceptionally clean inside and out.

With a heavy heart I am selling my RX-8 R3. This is a special car, it replaced my FD3S RX-7 and I never felt like it was a step down. This is my third rotary and second RX-8, I really enjoy the engine and the RX-8 platform is excellent. Over the next few paragraphs I will attempt to describe my car in full detail and disclosure, I am an ****-retentive engineer and car guy and have never disappointed a buyer. Only selling because this is an extra car for me, and at this point in life I could use the cash more than an extra car. It will be missed!
R3 Basics: for those not familiar, the R3 was a limited production high-performance version of the series 2 RX-8. Reportedly only about 1,000 R3 models were produced from 2009-2011, upgrades included a stiffer chassis, Bilstein suspension, 19” BBS forged wheels, no sunroof, Recaro seats, Torsen LSD, Bose audio, HID headlights, and interior and exterior styling upgrades. The R3 appeared in a number of magazine comparison tests and won awards such as “best handling car for under $100k”. They are an exceptionally good handling car that strikes a great compromise between performance and practical, and one heck of a lot of fun.

History: the first owner of the R3 was a Canadian snowbird who purchased the car in Canada, then immediately exported it to Florida where he resided in the summer. The car stayed under his care until it was purchased by the second owner in December 2015 at a highline Mercedes dealer where it had been traded in, and was driven home from Florida to Dallas. Because the engine was still under warranty he had the compression tested, it was found to be under Mazda specification and was replaced under warranty. Per the previous owner he believed that the engine likely was suffering from carbon buildup due to being gently driven, but he also couldn’t decline a brand new engine for free. The second owner, a car enthusiast, broke in the 1.3L rotary per Pineapple Racing recommendations and consistently changed the oil every 3,000 miles. I purchased the R3 one year ago from the second owner, who had replaced it with a built C5 Z06 Corvette. Clean title, clean Carfax, no history of accidents or paintwork.

Exterior: as you can see from the pictures this is an exceptionally nice looking car. The black has a subtle gold metallic that doesn’t capture well in pictures but is beautiful in person. I had the paint professionally detailed upon my purchase, hand waxed it approximately two months ago, and have only hand washed it during my ownership. No dents or dings, the body is 100% straight. Overall it is a beautiful car. Flaws include some small rock chips around the lower half of the car, most noticeable in the rear, a small ding under the license plate in the plastic lower rear bumper trim, two very slight scratches on the rear bumper corner, several very subtle paint flaws on the roof that I believe are an artifact of buffing, and a few small rock chips on the BBS wheels, some of which have been touched up. All of these have been captured in the photos, though many are so small it’s difficult to see. I’m being very particular, these are all 1 to 2 ft flaws, the car overall is beautiful and will earn you compliments at your local cars and coffee.

Interior: the interior is nearly perfect, you’ll be hard pressed to find one nicer. No pets, smoking, food, or staining drinks, and this applied to the previous owner as well. The dash is perfect, with the crack-prone passenger side cover replaced in early 2019 when the passenger side airbag recall was completed. Interior plastics, vinyl, and carpet are free of scratches, stains, or other damage. The Recaro seats, which are typically heavily worn, show light wear on the driver’s side outer bolster. No marking on the factory R3 shift ****, and only very light wear on the R3 wheel. Everything works 100% correct, the A/C is ice cold and the heat is hot, the cruise works well, the power windows and mirrors work well, the Bose audio and Bluetooth work correctly, etc. Carpets are protected by Lloyd Rubbertite custom fit floor mats. Flaws, while very subtle, are scuffing on the kick plates on both sides and a very light scratch on the driver’s side center console silver side trim. I really can’t overstate how nice the car is inside, it looks and smells like a new car. Many RX-8s are heavily scratched on the inside plastic, this one is an exception due to being well loved. Also worth noting is how practical the RX-8 chassis is, you can easily carry four people in relative comfort with easy entry/exit, not something many sports cars can claim. My kids enjoyed riding around in the back seat, and never complained about being cramped.

Mechanical: again simply exceptional with zero issues. Runs, starts, drives like a new one. The R3 package is fantastic, the rotary provides instant response and revs like a superbike, the shifter is one of the best ever, the brakes and clutch are perfect, the steering is still the best electronic assist system that I’ve driven, and the suspension is a fantastic balance between sport and comfort. These are special cars, they were just about perfect from new. No leaks, smoking, or warning lights, and the car is super dry underneath thanks to always being in dry climates and not winter driven. The replacement engine was broken in correctly per Pineapple Racing instructions, had oil changes every 3,000 miles, was premixed since new, and runs amazing. I have continued the previous owner’s care by using Indemitsu rotary synthetic oil every 3,000 miles and using their premix as well. Compression was re-checked in September 2017 at 31k and the results were excellent. Tires are nearly new Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 which are an exceptional UHP summer tire that I have had on multiple cars, they have approximately 5,000 miles on them. All maintenance history is documented on a spreadsheet that I can provide upon request, and I have records for all service and repairs from myself and the previous owner. Recent service includes an oil change, spark plugs, and oxygen sensor, the failure prone coolant tank and sensor have been replaced, the transmission and differential have been changed to Redline oil, and the coolant has been changed. Finally, the passenger side airbag recall has been completed, and I installed a brand new dash cover panel to replace the crack-prone factory unit. Simply put this is a fantastic car that can be driven anywhere and needs nothing.

Upgrades: one of the appealing aspects of this particular R3 was that the previous owner had completed a number of tasteful upgrades that improved the overall R3 package without deviating from what makes the base car so great. Upgrades include an Autoexe stainless steel header with ceramic coating by Swaintech (factory manifold included) and BHR resonated test pipe (factory pipe included). The factory muffler is still in place, so this combination provides a great rotary sound without being obnoxious. Whiteline polyurethane stiffer rear differential mounts tighten up the rear without making it overly harsh, and Race Roots polyurethane engine mounts improve shifting and responsiveness. BHR ignition coils and wires replace the failure prone factory parts, and an 8 gauge engine ground kit has been installed. 5 mm front and 17.5 mm rear wheel spacers give the perfect stance, flushing the wheel faces with the fender lips. Alpine SPS-110TW front door tweeters replace the weak Bose units, an 8” Rockville powered subwoofer is installed in the trunk, and Fat Mat sound deadening was installed in the doors and on the rear deck, greatly improving on the mediocre factory Bose system. There is also a 2 lb automotive fire extinguisher installed in the trunk. Finally to help protect the engine, the following changes were made using MazEdit: lowered radiator fan engagement temps by 5 deg C, increased oiling rates by 20%, eliminated CEL for catless exhaust, and reduced fuel cut RPM to 8,500.

Summary: bottom line, this is a turn-key car that needs nothing except for a new owner. I am selling with a heavy heart, and will miss it. Upon request I can provide over 100 high resolution DSLR photos, a copy of the clean Carfax, and the Excel maintenance file. The car will include the factory manifold and cat pipe, extra Indemitsu rotary synthetic oil and premix, extra Mazda OEM oil filters, and a custom fit sun shade. Clean and clear KS title in hand, in my name, and ready to sell.

onewhippedpuppy

onewhippedpuppy

onewhippedpuppy

Uploader isn't cooperating, I'll try again later to add more pics. Craigslist ad has a few more: https://wichita.craigslist.org/cto/d...937356119.html

Nopstnz

Oooh nice. I foresee lots of attention for this car, would expect the price to be about 2k lower at least but this car in this kind of condition is definitely in demand for the right market.

Is it me, or is the Canadian version of SBM have slightly more of a greyish hue than the US counterpart? I have seen a few Canadian SBM and they always appear this way.

GLWS

speed7

Thats the normal color actually. Saw one in person not long ago and I was in aww of how they look in person. Depending on the light they are black or a dark dark metallic grey.

speed7

Also to add this this car, because it is a Canadian version you have extra features that are not available on US market R3’s. Rather only on the Grand Touring.

Automatic headlights
rain sensing wipers
automatic climate control
daytime running lights - Canadian specific
headlight washing system - European specific

onewhippedpuppy

Speed7, thanks for the reminder, I had forgotten about the different features.

With regards to the color, it is quite striking and really hard to capture in photos. In the shade it looks like a normal black but in the sun the metallic starts to pop and it is stunning. Porsche has a very similar color called Basalt Black, I had it on a 911 years ago and loved it as well.

D_a_Z_z_Z

This is a very nice looking R3 and the paint is beautiful on those pictures.
One comment though, I don't necessarily agree with the "tasteful mods"...especially removing the converter (but I see you provide it) and reducing the fuel cut-off to 8500rpm. Is that something you can change back easily? Are you providing the tool when selling the car or should it be done at a workshop? I'm a potential future owner, long time fan of RX's but not yet familiar with the tools used to tune the ECU...

onewhippedpuppy

While tasteful is subject to interpretation, the upgrades to my R3 are pretty consistent with those commonly done and recommended on this forum. The exhaust is 100% easily reversible and the original parts are provided, so that’s a non-issue. The software tweaks were done with MazEdit, which can be downloaded by anyone. The original settings file is included if anyone wants to restore to bone stock.

D_a_Z_z_Z

Understood for the software, but what hardware do you need to connect to the ECU and are you providing it with the car? I am assuming a 2009 ECU didn't have "over the air" programming capability
I'll probably need to look if there is a thread on MazEdit on this forum...

onewhippedpuppy

You’ll need an OBD to USB connector, and no it is not included. If you search in the forum you’ll find days worth of reading material on MazEdit and Cobb options for ECU tuning.

tslegendary

Very nice R3. Wish you were closer.I did a shipping quote and it came up to almost 1000.00 all said and done to the east coast.

onewhippedpuppy

Fly in and drive it home, epic road trip!

D_a_Z_z_Z

That's exactly what I was considering although it's closer for me being in IN so won't be as epic!

onewhippedpuppy

Best road trip ever was driving a 911 from Charlotte back home. Even had it planned to hit Tail of the Dragon but my flight was delayed and it didn’t work out.

onewhippedpuppy

I’ll let you know where to send my commission for selling your car in my for sale thread.

Having owned an immaculate low mileage 2005 Sport and now this R3, I can tell you there’s a reason for the premium. They are worth it. There’s also a reason why clean low mileage examples have plateaued in price. I can’t name any better sports car value for the money.

onewhippedpuppy

Any chance you guys could take your opinions and pissing contests elsewhere?

As for price there’s always somebody that bought or sold a car for less. Don’t care, and usually there’s a reason. I think my R3 is priced consistent with what similar excellent condition, low miles, turnkey cars are selling for.

mazdaverx7

iTrader: (6)

That's an exceptionally clean and well cared for 8! Its an absolutely stunning example and the person that buys it will be lucky to own it. Its just a stunning example!

tslegendary

I just went to look at a RX8 R3 with 36k Miles for about 8k. All I have to say is it makes me appreciate previous owners like you that are honest.

If I figure it out I will definitely be contacting you soon.Wish more people would be less harsh to people who post up cars like this.It seems like no one puts this much effort to sell a car anymore, RX8 or not.Most of the time its Cellphone pics and a few words..even worse they don't even respond to your messages.Theres a RX8 up on Ebay with 26k miles with a BIN for 12k in Velocity Mica Red.He still hasn't responded to my questions about the R3.I'm willing to pay his buy it now price but, I messaged him 3 days ago and no response.Id even trade you my 72 Z for your rx8 but again your too far.

onewhippedpuppy

Thanks, I appreciate it! I've sold a lot of cars over the years, most Porsches who are about as OCD as car buyers get. I've never had someone be disappointed or feel misled. I use the same username everywhere, so I'm a pretty open book.

I have on more occasions than I can count gone to look at a car and felt totally lied to. That's not how I roll, life is too short for bad karma.

UnknownJinX

OP: as some have pointed out that I was rude and per forum rules, I apologise for what I said, and I will keep my opinions to myself. Best of luck with your sales.

On the other hand, you have to realize that there are a ton of scammers nowadays, along with low ballers and tire kickers, so it goes both ways. I take cell phone photos for my car, but let's just say Huawei's Leica camera is way more than enough for good photo quality.

Life also gets busy for some so they cannot respond the quickest, especially if it's through emails or website messages. If they leave a phone number, I would usually text them since that's a quicker way. I do my best to respond quickly when I sell cars, but I would also be understanding about others' situations.

onewhippedpuppy

Price drop.

onewhippedpuppy

Price drop.

onewhippedpuppy

Fresh oil change today with Indemitsu rotary synthetic and a Mazda OEM filter. I also reinstalled the original cat pipe with new gaskets because some buyers were concerned about emissions. The resonated test pipe will be negotiable separately.