I just looked these up and found a 2010 with 73k miles at a dealer for 10,900. That seems like a steal. I think I may have found my next car.
I just looked these up and found a 2010 with 73k miles at a dealer for 10,900. That seems like a steal. I think I may have found my next car.
I recently looked at a 2009 with similar miles that the (private) seller was asking $9k for, so they are out there.
Mind you, a thorough inspection of the car and its service history is well advised, I've bumped into a bunch of them that had very patchy service history that would likely invalidate the engine warranty and those were at the expensive end of the price range.
Yeah, I would run a carfax at the least. I imagine a PPI is in order for one of these too. What is the warranty on the newer cars good for? FYI I will probably only consider the smiley face cars at all and maybe even just the R3s at that.
just wait a couple more months when the Renesis pops and they'll be down to about $1500.
They get that cheap when the rotary gremlins find them (but before they succumb to the infestation, as Bobzilla pointed out). Add rebuild & important retrofit costs to the car's cost and then consider whether it's a good deal.
Why spend 11k for a gen 2 when you can spend 3k and get a gen 1?
Leafy wrote: Why spend 11k for a gen 2 when you can spend 3k and get a gen 1?
09+ looks better, and has many little changes that add up to an entirely different car.
The easiest way to ruin an 04 rx8 is to drive an 09 rx8.
singleslammer wrote: I just looked these up and found a 2010 with 73k miles at a dealer for 10,900. That seems like a steal. I think I may have found my next car.
Ohhh, 7k left on the motor... you should be fine.... 
Leafy wrote: Why spend 11k for a gen 2 when you can spend 3k and get a gen 1?
Because R3.
Can't you just change the bits that are different?
What is special about the R3?
(Coming from a former 2004 owner)
Rob R.
The bits that I can recall are the 2nd generation RX-8 engine has three injectors per rotor housing instead of just two, and 4.78 final drive. The 4.78 may have been an R3-exclusive item at first but the final year or two of production had all cars with the fun gears.
Sadly, RX-8s have gigantic wheels so 4.78 in an RX-8 is like 4.10s in a car with sensible wheels, but it's a start.
singleslammer wrote: Yeah, I would run a carfax at the least. I imagine a PPI is in order for one of these too. What is the warranty on the newer cars good for?
Replacement engines because the PO didn't necessarily know how to treat a rotary properly.
They have a separate warranty for the engine alone (8Y/100k miles IIRC), but from what I heard they do check if the car was serviced in accordance to their guidelines. One of the reasons I decided not to get an R3 earlier in the year because it had holes in the maintenance history that most likely would've invalidated the warranty. It was too expensive for that.
Re PPI, the one thing you need to get done is a proper rotary compression test at a Mazda dealer or rotary specialist.
I know, now the people who tell me they can get accurate compression results with the right slice of Idaho potatoes are going to come out of the woodwork again, but trust me, if you're paying, you want someone to use the correct compression tester.
singleslammer wrote: FYI I will probably only consider the smiley face cars at all and maybe even just the R3s at that.
The later ones aren't that easy to find though and especially not the R3s.
R3 details found in some magazine I read: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/new-cars/2010-107-rx-8-r3/
Also watch out for the ones with sunroofs (most of them) the head room is non-existent. If not for the fact that an RX-8 stinks as a daily driver I would have kept mine. Definitely get a compression test at the dealer.
I already know about the sunroof/leather seat issue. That is the problem I am finding with the Gen 1 cars. All are GTs with both of those options.
Do the Gen 2 cars have the same issues with the engine as the Gen 1s?
IIRC the 2nd gens are similarly picky when it comes to owners, yes. Maybe a little less than the gen1s, but not necessarily by much.
So what is the proper way to treat an RX8? If I got a first gen it would be running at the time but with a savings for a heart transplant later, most likely pistons.
Just make sure it has good compression first off. Then make sure not to turn off the car before it warms up, because you will likely flood it. If you do flood it, don't try to clear it yourself, just have it taken to the dealer and let them clean it up. Add oil when it needs it and every so often take it to 9000rpm to keep the motor happy. Replace plugs and coils at scheduled intervals.
If you do all that you can enjoy 18mpg no matter how conservatively you drive it.
Once the LFX reaches PNP status, I foresee the 3k gen1's disappearing.
Harvey wrote: Just make sure it has good compression first off. Then make sure not to turn off the car before it warms up, because you will likely flood it. If you do flood it, don't try to clear it yourself, just have it taken to the dealer and let them clean it up. Add oil when it needs it and every so often take it to 9000rpm to keep the motor happy. Replace plugs and coils at scheduled intervals.
...and add at least 1/2 ounce of 2 stroke oil per gallon of gasoline. The engine will thank you for it.
If you do all that you can enjoy 18mpg no matter how conservatively you drive it.
Which I find to be hilarious, because Lumpy can pull down 25mpg easily, sometimes higher enough that people think I'm lying. I get down to 18mpg in the winter, though.
Lumpy is an old school 4 port 13B bridge ported to slightly bigger than Mazda's Group A homologation ports.
The trick with fuel economy in a rotary is the BSFC sucks at light load but gets good at heavy load. So drive with a heavy foot and upshift early. Lumpy gets upshifted at ~2000rpm but is driven at near WOT while accelerating.
When the heck did they get that cheap? I was looking about 4 months ago and sketchy 2009s were still in the 13k range.
I've decided to sell my 2004 and get something reliable. I'm considering a MkV Golf.
Right so I can only tell my personal adventures with my S2 but here we go.
Just about all info is right here.
Now I do love mine but i do have a P5 for a DD duty and this is after DDing the RX for about a year, so be prepared to pay for premium.
Like all others take care of the spark plugs and do the coils around 30k with OEM ONLY!!!
The best way to make the engine last is beat it like ray rice beat his wife but on a more constant basis (think Ike and Tina.) I know it is the complete opposite of any piston engine but once warmed up dont be scared by 9k because it will actually treat you with longevity.
1 major gripe is don't ever break the head or tail lights ($700+ EACH!!!!!!) and yes the S2's have the greenhouse effect just like the S1's or maybe I just got "lucky" with one that still does.
Automotive ADHD will have my mind wandering like a young man at a college beach but I really doubt i could get rid of the old black pain in my ass.
Knurled wrote:Harvey wrote: Just make sure it has good compression first off. Then make sure not to turn off the car before it warms up, because you will likely flood it. If you do flood it, don't try to clear it yourself, just have it taken to the dealer and let them clean it up. Add oil when it needs it and every so often take it to 9000rpm to keep the motor happy. Replace plugs and coils at scheduled intervals....and add at least 1/2 ounce of 2 stroke oil per gallon of gasoline. The engine will thank you for it.If you do all that you can enjoy 18mpg no matter how conservatively you drive it.Which I find to be hilarious, because Lumpy can pull down 25mpg easily, sometimes higher enough that people think I'm lying. I get down to 18mpg in the winter, though. Lumpy is an old school 4 port 13B bridge ported to slightly bigger than Mazda's Group A homologation ports. The trick with fuel economy in a rotary is the BSFC sucks at light load but gets good at heavy load. So drive with a heavy foot and upshift early. Lumpy gets upshifted at ~2000rpm but is driven at near WOT while accelerating.
And your car is saddled with what sort of emissions control equipment?
In reply to Harvey:
It has an ignition switch...
It doesn't make sense to blame "emissions control" on the poor fuel economy. I had a thermal reactor RX-7 that was EPA rated at 20mpg, and it would get 20mpg. The thermal reactor worked by pumping air into a fancy exhaust manifold to burn off excess fuel, but in order to keep it working the engine had to run very rich all the time, and even shut off the trailing ignition sometimes.
Modern emissions controls mainly just require that you run stoich and let the cat take care of the rest, and monitor the fuel storage system for leaks since evaporative emissions is a large percentage of/most of a new car's emissions. It should not affect fuel economy much, if at all.
BTW, my car cruises at 12.5-13:1. Any leaner than that and it starts to buck and fuel consumption goes up, not down. But then I have something like 170 degrees of overlap, and not negative 32 or whatever like the RX-8 engine has, so it's a tad bit finicky. Adding ignition advance reduces the throttle required to cruise, which makes it get more exhaust dilution, so it needs to run richer. Removing ignition advance allows me to run leaner but performance suffers and it's also a zero sum. I chose a balance between peppy drivability and minimizing fuel dilution of the oil.
I've had people claim they got 25mpg in the RX8, I've just never seen it, best I got was 18mpg
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