Maxda RX-8

MikeHiow said:
Just remember the RX8 oil consumption isn't as bad as it sounds considering it doesn't require fully synthetic stuff.
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I don't think 0.5l per 1,000 miles even sounds bad, especially for a total loss system :confused:

pokerking said:
I'm not going to rush into buying one but have my heart set on one now :) How good is the Bose sound system and the satnav?
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Bose system is reasonable... not great, but there is a lot worse available.

chaparral said:
Which also makes the oil & filter changes very cheap, costing only about £30
(£23 for 4ltrs of castrol Magnatec A1 + £6 for OEM oil filter)
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Fuchs is all that went in to mine. But it's around the same price :)
 
I own an RX8 (04reg @ 18k miles). I wouldn't believe any of the negative responses from people that have never owned/experienced one. Its true you do have to watch the oil, but wouldn't you in any other car? I would be very worried if you did not.

One of the main causes of engine failure would be low compression, but this can easily be a avoided by simply looking after the car. One key thing to do when purchasing a Rex would be to get a compression test done, anything above a 6.9 average is considered above the Mazda limit and anything between this and 8.9 is considered an healthy engine. As for the low power in low revs, this is down to the rotary engine. Its an amazing car and due to the engine being dead center in the car it lets you take corners faster than most other cars.

If you are looking for sensible reliable information I suggest posting something on the owners club. People that actually OWN one of these cars....

http://www.rx8ownersclub.co.uk/
 
You can't really get into drawbacks if you know what you're getting into. If you see one of these and think they are cheap and purchase without doing a bit of research first you are asking for it. Would you seriously think anything around that price range would be fine? The best thing to do if you had £3.5k would be to purchase a £1k lemon then spend £2.5k on the rebuild and have a perfectly good health working car with a engine that's in warranty.
 
huskah said:
The best thing to do if you had £3.5k would be to purchase a £1k lemon then spend £2.5k on the rebuild and have a perfectly good health working car with a engine that's in warranty.
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This x1000. I've seen non running 8's sell for £900 and even heard of a member getting one for £600 non runner. Spend a couple of grand getting new housings and seals and a mates rate job and it will last another 60k+ and even more if you premix oil with the petrol. There are rebuild dvd's available on the torrent sites that give a step by step on rebuilding them. Follow that dvd to the letter and you and your mate will be fine.

What a lot of people think is that the engine is inefficient because it burns oil due to apex seal wear. Yes it does burn oil but not in the same way like a worn piston engined car would. There is a separate oil pump that injects a small amount directly onto the apex seals to aid lubrication. If you're concerned about oil consumption, then do what some of them do with all the other RX's called premixing. Remove the oil metering pump off the engine so no oil is actually being injected onto the apex seals, and put a small amount of 2 stroke in the fuel tank with every fuel fill up. Smells lovely like a speedway bike. This would only be advisable on a decatted exhaust system though.
 
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What about either a Clio 182 or Megane 225?

Can be had for not much more than an RX8 and are just if or not more rapid.
 
peterattheboro said:
Mate just bought a 2004 190 at 53,000 miles and FSH. Can he expect it to go bang? ;)
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They tend not to go bang. Just die a slow death.

First comes the hot start problems, then the misfiring on idle, then stalling and then onto the marbles in a blender death rattle before finally biting the dust.

At that mileage I would expect the hot start issues to start soon, unless it has the uprated starter motor already fitted (which hides the hot start issue for a while longer).
 
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IvanDobskey said:
Fully synthetic is actually damaging to the renesis engine. You have to use semi-synthetic.
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Which was exactly my point - semi is much cheaper.

I imagine most here when considering the cost of doing 1L of oil every 1000-1500 miles are thinking of what fully synthetic costs for their cars.
 
A high proportion of the M54 engined BMW's will happily guzzle a litre of Castrol Edge every 1500 miles and they don't seem to get half as much stick as the RX8 does for it.
 
[TW]Fox;21509468 said:
A high proportion of the M54 engined BMW's will happily guzzle a litre of Castrol Edge every 1500 miles and they don't seem to get half as much stick as the RX8 does for it.
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I never knew this? I believe my Z4 has an M54 engine, but it never even needs topping up in between services.
 
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