Mazda Rx-8 What to look for when buying ??

I bought one brand new in 2004 when they were the talk of the town. Sold it 18 months later and bought an Audi A8 4.2 V8 to save money on fuel/oil.

In all seriousness, having owned one I don't think I'd have another at any price. The handling was sublime but it wasn't very comfortable, felt far too clinical (like it was electric), wasn't very fast in a straight line, was too finniky (would flood if you didn't do things right), and it squeaked and rattled.

For £4k now, well, I guess they make a decent used buy if you go in with your eyes wide open and fully expect big fuel bills, and potentially expensive engine re-builds. I just think they are fundamentally dull with their power delivery when compared to the likes of 330s, Z4s, 350Zs, etc.
 
Rilot said:
For £4k now, well, I guess they make a decent used buy if you go in with your eyes wide open and fully expect big fuel bills, and potentially expensive engine re-builds. I just think they are fundamentally dull with their power delivery when compared to the likes of 330s, Z4s, 350Zs, etc.
Click to expand...

Thing is even for £4-5k you can't really compare it to 330s, Z4s, 350Zs and the like because they are nowhere near available at this cost. The fact that it is often compared to cars of this calibre speaks volumes for it's credentials really.

On a similar cost basis you could probably compare it to say an ST220, Civic Type R EP3, Octavia vRS and Seat LCR. Although of those 2 are hot hatches and two are medium sized four door cars, hardly a credible alternative. The closest thing I can think of is probably a Celica.

The RX8 is quite unique which is why I can't really see any credible alternatives if you want a modern performance RWD coupe for under 5k. However that said the OP needs to be aware of (and it seems you are) the higher running costs that the car will throw at you and be happy that the cost is worth it for the performance you will be getting.

I haven't owned an RX8 but I did look into it at one point and decided on balance it probably isn't for me.
 
Last edited:
IvanDobskey said:
Engines are usually knackered before 60k miles, they drink oil and fuel for fun and they aren't 'That' fast. I had one for a year, loved it as a car but by the time I had added 5k miles to the 50k purchase mileage it was just about on it's last legs. Managed to get shot of it eventually but at a massive loss.
As much as I loved driving it, I wouldn't touch another one with a fifty foot pole!
Click to expand...
Prime example of someone you should not take RX 8 advice from.

Too many people buy a knackered one, or fail to maintain theirs properly and go on to proclaim that every RX 8 is dead by 60k miles.

They require more attention than most four pots, but provided they get it, they are perfectly reliable.
 
Seen a few with well over 100k on the clock on pistonheads. In some respects I'd choose that over one with half that on the clock. It'll be clear that it has spent atleast the vast majority of its life being looked after!

Going to get a test drive in one soon, starting to like the 350z the more I look at it mind, think if I can stretch the budget that far it'll make the call a bit more difficult. But being able to get RX8s for 3-4k easily sounds appealing - even if it is just a bit of fun for 6-12 months!
 
Crizzy said:
Thing is even for £4-5k you can't really compare it to 330s, Z4s, 350Zs and the like because they are nowhere near available at this cost. The fact that it is often compared to cars of this calibre speaks volumes for it's credentials really.
Click to expand...

Indeed, I have also found that in the main, it is people with poor driving skill who don't like the RX8 because they do not have the ability to drive the car well and exploit its potential.
 
 
Last edited:
Crizzy said:
On a similar cost basis you could probably compare it to say an ST220, Civic Type R EP3, Octavia vRS and Seat LCR. Although of those 2 are hot hatches and two are medium sized four door cars, hardly a credible alternative. The closest thing I can think of is probably a Celica.
Click to expand...

How about the Alfa GTV? It hasn't got 4 doors, but you could pick up a very lovely V6 for this budget, though possibly not a 3.2 unless you got lucky.
 
Dogbreath said:
How about the Alfa GTV? It hasn't got 4 doors, but you could pick up a very lovely V6 for this budget, though possibly not a 3.2 unless you got lucky.
Click to expand...

Not comparable because they are FWD, older for the money, and (with the V6 anyway) have terrible understeer.

I did like the 2.0 TS I had, but I was certainly glad the company was footing the bill if it went wrong.
 
[TW]Fox;19964806 said:
It's a non runner which would have to be trailered away and it has no MOT. Under those circumstances £2k seems quite steep!
Click to expand...
Says the battery flat and needs a new battery but starts fine off his mates jump starter pack
battery is flat so requires a new battery does start of my friends jump pack fine
Click to expand...
 
So why does it need collecting on a trailer if all thats wrong is the battery?

Anyone with half a brain would pay £80 for a battery, drive the car to the MOT station, MOT it, and sell the car for £1000 more.

It's broken.
 
[TW]Fox;19964976 said:
So why does it need collecting on a trailer if all thats wrong is the battery?

Anyone with half a brain would pay £80 for a battery, drive the car to the MOT station, MOT it, and sell the car for £1000 more.

It's broken.
Click to expand...
He makes it sound like it got be trailored because of no MOT and TAX or does he also mean it because the coils & plugs are gone

the management light is on but took to mazda dealer for health check which cost £59.99 they have said needs new coil pack and plugs
the car has got some service history but has no mot or tax so would have to be trailored for that reason
Click to expand...
 
paradigm said:
Not comparable because they are FWD, older for the money, and (with the V6 anyway) have terrible understeer.

I did like the 2.0 TS I had, but I was certainly glad the company was footing the bill if it went wrong.
Click to expand...

But OTOH they don't grenade themselves, are just as quick, have better fuel economy and vastly superior styling and interior (IMO obviously). If you read the post I was responding to, the RX8 was being compared against an ST220, Civic Type R EP3, Octavia vRS and Seat LCR so I don't see why the GTV is out of place.

I've not driven a V6, but Evo love them and don't mention anything about terminal understeer. I wouldn't expect it either, given my Coupe is very front heavy but again doesn't suffer from excessive understeer.
 
Don't tend to grenade themselves? They go wrong a fair amount and practically everything is an engine out job (on the V6). They do indeed have pretty terrible understeer, as is to be expected from a FWD chassis with all the weight at the front, on the converse, they also suffer lift-off oversteer for the same reason. The 2.0 TS is far more balanced, but pretty slow.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom