"PlayerWAN" (PlayerWAN)
02/17/2014 at 19:42 • Filed to: None
2
4|
"PlayerWAN" (PlayerWAN)
02/17/2014 at 19:42 • Filed to: None | 2
| 4 |
About six months ago I had the chance to drive, then !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! about three very awesome, very similar cars; the 2013 Mazda Miata, the 2013 Subaru BRZ, and a really nice 2007 Honda S2000 with low miles. I came out very impressed with all three vehicles, but the little voice inside my head kept telling me something was amiss. "what about the RX8?" it asked. "You should check out one of those too" it said. Well, after much arguing with imaginary voices (and strange looks from everyone around me), I decided to test one out to see how well it would measure up to the others.
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
( Full Disclosure: I wanted to drive a second gen RX8 so bad that I started pestering people so much until the good guys at Subaru Of Wichita decided to hand me the keys to their mint condition, low mileage example, as long as I promised to not hoon it
...too much.)
Suffice to say, I was not disappointed. At all...
Exterior: 7/10
While the RX8 has never been much of a looker, the 2009 redesign sure helped things a bit, particularly at the front. It still has the silly grin, but now it looks like it goes with the rest of the car. And while it's still a bit of a butter face, it does have its share of good angles, particularly the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and profile views. It makes people stare, which is a good thing I suppose. Nevertheless, the exterior is not something you get to worry about too much, as you'd spend most of the time inside the car, which brings me to...
Interior: 9.5/10
Short of a high end supercar, the interior of the RX8 is as good as it gets. The seats are super comfortable and hold you down pretty well (and they weren't even the Recaros like in the R3). The steering wheel is at the right distance, the pedals are perfectly spaced for heel-toeing, your right hand falls right onto the shifter, everything just comes together to form an experience like no other car in its segment. My favorite part though? The gauges...
Seriously, if I could mandate those gauges be put in every production car, I would. It's such a joy seeing the red needle go up and down all the way to 9000rpm, the speedometer is digital and simple, and you only get the necessary information at any given time. Anything else you need to know, and some light pops up when necessary. I admit I may be a bit biased, but I love it.
Acceleration: 7/10
The cool thing about having no pistons is that the little 1.3 rotary likes to rev and rev and rev all the way to a grin inducing 9000rpm. The Mazda has very similar power (238hp) and weight (2800lbs) figures to the S2000 and, perhaps unsurprisingly, it delivers the power in the same progressive manner, with the thick of it coming after 4500rpm, forcing you to keep the needle straight up most of the time. The word fun keeps coming to mind, which is not surprising given Mazda's track record for smile-inducing cars.
Braking: 7/10
The brakes were the part I felt most familiar with since my last review, having no discernible difference from the other three. The pedal feel is appropriate, the car stops without much drama, the ABS keeps to itself unless absolutely necessary, you get the picture. I'd say the setup is perfect for the chassis, which is a good thing.
Ride: 8.5/10
This is an area where the RX8 feels a lot more refined than its three competitors, being significantly more comfortable and much quieter than the others. Part of the refinement could be due to the inherent smoothness of the rotary engine, or to the fixed roof, making wind noise all but absent. The suspension is also pretty well sorted out, soft enough to be comfortable on long drives, while being firm enough to curb body roll, which brings us to...
Handling: 9/10
The RX8, perhaps showing its Mazda heritage, excels at going around corners at speed. This is a car that was built around the perfect balance of power to chassis, sporting 50/50 weight distribution, and just about enough oomph to let you have fun without breaking the law ... too much . It's a true 9/10ths car, letting you know when you're approaching said limits without killing you first. Such a joy to drive. It's like a Miata with four seats!
Gearbox: 9/10
The gears are perfectly spaced and the clutch is firm but has a very gradual engaging point, making it easy to shift smoothly and like a pro. Unlike in the MX5, the 6-speed seems perfectly suited to the Rotary, while the Miata is considerably better with the base model 5-speed. As for the shifter, well... I can't help but keep making comparisons to the Miata and S2000, which have some of the best feeling shifters in the market, and the RX8 doesn't fall behind. In fact, it may be slightly better tuned than the MX5 shifter, although falls slightly short of the S2000, yet not enough to warrant an 8. Mazda definitely got this one right, which again isn't surprising considering they actually care about such things.
Audio: 8/10
Let's get one thing out of the way: the sound system on the RX8 sort of sucks. It may be because the particular car I tested didn't come with the Bose sound system, but I just couldn't get it to sound right. I adjusted everything there was to be adjusted and it still didn't sound the way I wanted it to. But that's alright, because when you turn it off, you get to listen to that marvelous exhaust note, especially when you really put the foot down. Seriously, if the BRZ sounds like a classic Subie with the burble and the pops and stuff, this one sounds like a sport bike, revving and revving all the way to a well auditory bliss. There's absolutely no reason to be mad about the mediocre speakers when I can just turn it off and listen to the engine note.
Toys: 8/10
The car came equipped with all the toys you'd expect from a car in its class and year. Cruise control? check. Keyless entry and alarm? Check. Automatic climate control? Check. Stability control? Check. Steering wheel mounted audio and CC buttons? Check and check. It even had self leveling headlights, which I had honestly never heard of. One of my favorite features is how the AUX input is inside the armrest cubby, leaving your phone and cable out of the way when you want to listen to pandora and stuff. It may be irrelevant, but I liked that a lot.
Value: 7/10
Here's where we have a bit of a conundrum. As tested, the RX8 I drove had 23,000 miles and cost $17,000. While that may sound like an amazing deal considering what you get for it, it comes with a fuel efficiency of about 18mpg combined, which is crap in this day and age. Couple that with the premium gas, the more frequent than usual oil changes, the special coils that need replaced every 30k miles, and the time bomb reputation of rotaries (although I hear the issue has been largely resolved with the redesign), and you have to really reconsider whether or not it still sounds like such a deal. Folks in the RX8 forums say that you never want to max out your budget with just the purchase, so that says something about future repair costs. Unfortunately this car doesn't have the reputation for reliability that the Miata and S2000 enjoy, which makes it much harder to sell if you ever want to get rid of it.
80/100
Engine:
1.3L rotary petrol
Power:
238 HP at 8200 RPM/ 156 LB-FT at 5,500 RPM
Transmission:
Six-Speed Manual
Curb Weight:
2,885 lbs
MPG:
16 City/22 Highway/18 Combined Est.
Final thoughts: As a contender with the other three, this car is also an amazing proposition, being just as fun as the others, while even more usable for everyday living, having a real back seat and a bigger trunk than the others, and being more comfortable when you just need to go to and from work/school/etc. All that however comes at a price, which in this case is reliability and high cost of maintenance and running. Whether you consider that a good deal or not, it's up to you. And as always, YMMV.
Photo credit: Whoever takes the pictures at Subaru Of Wichita. And Google images.
feather-throttle-not-hair
> PlayerWAN
02/17/2014 at 20:27 |
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I almost bought one, but got a 350z instead. needless to say though, I really really like the rx8. Personally, I think it's better looking than the z, though I think most non car people feel the opposite.
In the end, maintenance and general pain in the butt factor along with me wanting something sort of "bigger and dumber" steered me towards the z, which I think has more of a sense of humor about its self, wearing its weaknesses on its sleeve. The Z says "fuck you I'm a sports car, my interior sucks and I ride like shit! Now quit being a pussy and do some fucking donuts!"
But acceptable though the z is on a back road, there are times when I wish I'd gone for balance over brute force, for lightness over power. The rx8 is a really cool car that does many things very very well.
JR1
> PlayerWAN
02/17/2014 at 21:14 |
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Seems like you were a tad generous with the score. That being said it was a great review and I really enjoyed reading it. I always like reading a good car review. Not sure I could buy a RX8 though seems a little outdated.
N51fanatic
> PlayerWAN
02/17/2014 at 22:21 |
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was looking to buy a blue R8 R3 last year. Checked it out on a weekend, went back during the week it was gone. I do admit, I was worried about the engine flooding issues but was prepared to buy it anyway. It wasnt meant to be, picked up a manual 128MSport a few weeks later. Do love the RX8, not very common, and in R3 trim, was adequate.
spicybanana
> PlayerWAN
02/18/2014 at 00:58 |
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I love my 2004. Definitely disagree on the looks as I personally feel this car stands out from the crowd. Definitely agree with the points about reliability. I did my research before picking one up. I'm expecting the engine to fail but as far as I can tell it's still on the original one which is a couple hundred miles away from rolling 100k.