........................... 09 ......08

Braking 60 to zero 122 .... 114
Braking 80 to zero 218 .... 202

1/4 mi ........ 14.8@95.2...... 14.5 @95.6

Slalom 70.8...... 65.4

Only improved performance is from handing using the new Bilstein setup.

 

and that is easily fixed with aftermarket Bilstiens and new tires and wheels.

 

surprising considering the 4.77 rearend should make it quicker.
maybe not for 0-60 times due to the need to shift into 3rd
but 1/4 mile times i thought it would be quicker

 

How was "handling" measured? Are you talking about skid pad #s or just subjective impressions? An Australian mag did this comparo a few months back and they found the same (and worse fuel consumption in the '09) but they also had faster lap times from the '09.

 

Standard road and Track Slalom test

700 foot Slalom, 100 foot spacing.

 

Im pretty sure my HKS Hipermax are better than stock 09 R3's blisten setup.

I will go for something else next year I think. which will be even better.

 

my '05 rules!

 

Actually 04's rule...

They were made with more love and care.

 

Because they get more garage-time from the service departments?

 

No, at the factory when they were born they were handle with more love and care.

Tighter tolerances and more HP.

 

I love my 04.

Even after my engine looses compression, I will do a rebuild and keep the car. My next car will be an addition to my RX8, not a replacement. That addition will more than likely be an FD.

 

curious.. did they retest the "old" rx8 or were those numbers from a previous test?

 

Previous tests. But those numbers have been replicated by both ROad and Track in 03 and Motor trend in 04.

 

I say put 18 inch tires on and retest.

 

I'm not surprised at all. In fact this only verifies the fact that more isn't better. You have to shift way too much. The 4.77 rear end is worthless. I still want to see the car come with a 4.10 rear end as it always should have.

 

I don't completely agree. While a longer final gear could help reducing the shifts i had the chance to test my car on the same track with and without a shorter final gear without changing other stuff. Lap times favored the 4.777.
Mazdaspeed sells a 5.125 final gear if i'm not mistaken for their racers program and they also roll on 17inch wheels.
Why would they? Since i'm probably going FI in the future i might want to switch with another stock final gear or a 4.1 one.

 

track driving is different. you're in 2nd and 3rd gear most of the time anyway.

 

Seems to me that these acceleration numbers are largely meaningless, and within the same differences you would see between any two, same model year, RX-8s under identical conditions, and the conditions weren't identical. And breaking numbers will be mostly affected by rubber. Did the two RX-8s have the same tires? Were the road conditions the same? Seems a silly comparison.

 

Yep, I agree 100% on that.

But you would have had all the speedracers boys that buy the RX-8 and whine when a 350z or Accord Hybrid V6 beats them at a stoplight.

 

^ But they already do.

 

sorry I should have posted that in Teal, to represent the sarcasm.

But the point is that people already bitch that it is slow 0-60... think of how many more would be whining if it was another half second slower because it had a better (4.10) final.

 

I don't really think talking about how a certain gear ratio affects you on the track has any relevance to what came on a street car. We all know different tracks have different gearing requirements based on powerband and a host of other things.

A 350Z and a V6 Accord are already faster!

 

Sweet. Dibs on his coilovers

 

fixed