As we all know a 8 ain't cheap and as belts get tightened things gotta give.

The math for any newbies who run across this...
Gas $3000/yr minimum if it is a daily driver
$300/yr in maintenance minimum
$960/yr on insurance pretty close to minimum for a mid to late 20's driver
$4800-$5000 and you still gotta tack on loan payments...tack another 2-3k on.
Oh and don't forget about $1,500/yr in depreciation.

With that said, she's a 2008 40 AE and I still love her.


It was 2 years ago we found each other. She was a nearly flawless single owner manual with 15k miles on her, still under b2b warranty; which was put to good use fixing her two flaws, a cracked sun visor and cracked passenger dash. Since then we have had great times, just passing 40k.

Options:

1. I could sell her easily for $16k and after all cost I'd only be out 2 years of depreciation
2. Convert to LNG or CNG or whatever the F#*$, keep the great 13B sound
3. Sell and get another cheaper 8 to do an electric conversion on and in the process kill the great 13B sound. Oh the humanity!!
4. Continue with my woman but demote from daily driver marginally reducing cost by about 3,000 in gas and in lowered payments though refinancing, but that would be garbled up by the daily driver...
5. Just bloody stop looking at the finances and drive it like you stole it!!

I want a conversion electric car in the near future, they are too interesting and cheap to run.


Sorry baby about these second thoughts I'm having, I knew you were a high matiance chick when I bought you.

 

I don't think you will get an easy 16k out of it. Maybe I am wrong but check the buying and selling section and you can see the general prices. I know yours is a 40th ae but it is hard to sell any car right now let alone one that has an increased price tag because of a badge.

 

5 for the love of god man fiiiiiive!! Money isn't everything. Quit smoking, eat less junkfood but V!!!

 

since you already own it 5 is the best option. yep the mileage sucks as does depreciation but for those who are looking to buy an 8, don't buy one as a conservative good commuter mile car... buy it for the spirited engine.

if you commute a long ways a toyota, honda or hybrid would be the best option as a daily and leave the 8 for weekends.

 

Someone voted for 1....who done it!!??

I apologized to her this morning, I was tired and weak...
I actually have a short commute, just 5.5mi/ea way.

 

When I run out of engine warranty is when I trade mine in. Probably for as new an R3 I can find. A blue one. Although she won't be as pretty as my S1, when all I get is complaints it's time to trade her in for a younger model that's more willing

 

I've been tossing the idea of getting rid of mine too. It will be 6 years in February. I'm in the process of saving some money to buy a c6 z06. My first thought was to keep the 8 and make her a project. But if I sell I could buy the Vette right away with the money I would make selling it. (It's paid off)

 

I have a 2008 with 24k on it and the book value is only $12,500 trade and about $14,500 to sell. A 5 year old car is still a 5 year old car, especially a discontinued one due to lack of sales and practicality. Personally eat some ramen noodles and go buy a s#it box daily driver for $1500 and don't put more than 4k a year on the 8.

 

Your nuts if you think you will get 16k. There have been 40th AE's for sale here for a long while.

 

Yeah, 16k is a bit high.

Hopefully you don't owe more than that amount on the loan

 

Its so beutifull,thanx for nice pic.

 

If you love the rx8 that much, then keep it, it's only money your throwing away...lol

 

Unless you're looking to burn money then you omitted the option of just keeping it.
1. There's no way you're getting 16k in this market and if you are already underwater then this option is really just shitting on yourself.

2. Im not familiar with this conversion but i can't imagine the parts are cheap. Then you are stuck trying to find places to fuel up that deal in the gas you need and more carefully planning trips and mileage. I also don't see this fuel being much cheaper so your only savings will be in an mpg increase.

3. Nonsense, sell it at a loss, then buy another of the same car and then spend the money on converting?!? Did you actually read that when you wrote it?

4. This is the most feasible option, but is the savings in gas going to be more than even a dirt cheap clunker and its maint/gas costs?

5. Dangerous option as most likely your financial situation is whats dictating your thought into all 5 of these options. If you can't afford to keep the car then thats a talk you need to have with yourself not forum members. Trading in an upside down car to help reduce your payment and gain a more reliable/cheaper to own car is something a lot of people deal with. When it involves an RX8 though i'm sure theres going to be a hit to your ego, but thats better than a constant slam on your wallet and the financial stress that comes with it.

If im off base with the financial motivation aspect then my vote is to just keep it. In the long run it's probably the cheapest option anyway, more so if you are upside down on the loan.

On a side note i see your sig has a 15.7 mpg?? How hard do you drive that 5 mile commute? I use tourque pro to measure my mpg and ive been able to get over the 18mpg range when i intentionally drive for mileage. I normally stay in the high 16- low 17 range and this is my toy car for sunny summer days which gets driven like your number 5 option every time i take it out.

Oh and when i sell mine is when my audis warranty is up. dont get me wrong i love my 8 and this decision is probably from the lack of driving it but im sorry about the lack of high HP mods on it and my audi is just screaming for a turbo kit that gives me more power than the rx8 can dream of without being a millionaire. Tune, FMIC, and turbo back exhaust bring me around 300bhp and a turbo kit for around 2500 gets me considerably higher without risking an engine rebuild every 10k miles either. thats a few years away though so i can still change my mind!

 

Don't sell it!

 

well as long you still like it, keep it. one day you will pay it off and the car will have a value that you can use towards something new. OR, if you are bored with it then move on.

 

keep her!
Gut her.!!
Track her!!!

Make her in to a nice race car and go start having fun!!!! Its what they were made to do.