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So I decided to very quickly get back into the rotary game. The FC is still undergoing to major engine bay surgery and doesn't really have many frills/niceties left on it anymore.

So been I've been driving the brokeswagon aka a VW golf with the coil pack eating 1.8t in the mean time. It was/is on its last legs at 208k decided it was time for a new daily. Its sort of turned itself into a project car and It’s been a fun car but very much full of its quirks that I wish to never deal with again.

Enter the RX8 I wanted something RWD/AWD under 15k that I could Auto-X HPDE and cruise some of the Alphabet roads in. Realistically that left me with a few options I'm not really for domestic vehicles so that took out a few options. Locally that left a few choices G35s MR-S Evo/Sti 350z and a few BMW/Audis and the RX8 still on the list.

I didn't want another VAG car so that bumped Audi off the list in short order. All of the Evo/Sti vehicles that I ever see are usually beaten within an inch of their lives and then returned to stock to be sold to the next victim. The M3/M5 BMWs that I was finding looked promising until I realized the now 12-13k car had parts are still priced for a 40k-50k car. $2000 for a Vanos solenoid no thanks you. The G35 is basically a fatter plusher version of the 350z and I wasn't really a huge fan of the ones I have ridden in or driven. I've owned an AW11 before and the MR-S while reminiscent of the AW11 just didn't do anything for me.

Of course this basically leaves the Rx8. It’s really hard to look at the RX8 and not immediately compare it to the RX7. The difference in Power the extra doors it all seems so very wrong. I was lucky enough that a pair of them were at my local Mazda dealership. I will freely admit I had some reservations until I got into the car and started it. I very quickly got over the extra doors and the back seats and remembered why I loved the rotary power plant. The power band, the smooth acceleration, and awesome handling were very much present in the RX8. Upon the conclusion of the test drive I realized what Mazda was trying to do with the RX8 and immediately regretted anything negative I have said about them before. The nice interior heated leather seats fancy sound system. It was so very tame and yet still fun. A more mature older half sister of the RX7 and I had to have one. I immediately put down a deposit and proceeded to the bank to get the rest. A full 2 days later and I am loving every minute of it.

Anyways if you scrolled this far down and bothered reading what must look like those awful erotica novels except instead of talking about naughty bits. It’s instead about leather interiors what is underneath the bonnet. Then I applaud you. Since this thread is useless without pics please see below.

Photo of the Brokeswagon courtesy of Spaz.

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And of course here is the RX8 I picked up Spaz also took these photos. Its pretty much stock although I do have a sneaking suspicion it has at the very least an AP tune as Redline is higher than it should be.

Image size reduced, original size: 809 x 540. Click here to view the image in its original dimension.

Image size reduced, original size: 809 x 540. Click here to view the image in its original dimension.

Image size reduced, original size: 809 x 540. Click here to view the image in its original dimension.

My personal opinion of the RX8: I actually like the body, sexy, without being overstated, surprisingly functional, despite its size (thanks to the half doors), above average interior fit, finish and quality of materials (for Mazda) with lots of "inside" references, note the rotors in the floor mats, and various other locations, seriously count them, their fucking EVERYWHERE!

On to the power train. The linear close ratio six speed is great, very intuitive, almost fool proof to correctly select the proper gear. No complaints about the chassis, well balanced (thanks to the nearly mid chassis location of the lightweight engine), solid brake feel with only moderate fade under most conditions.

Now for the only "issue" I have with the RX8, the engine. As with all rotorys you get NO power below 5k, I mean none, do not pass go, do not collect $200, go directly to boggsville. Sure you can snap shift down two or three gears, but that gets old quickly on your daily comute (or maybe I'm getting old). This car is just begging for boost, maybe 8 psi or so, would solve every thing I find lacking in the RX8.

Just my opinions Grappler. I hope you find that your new purchase is tonnes of fun and sexy good times.

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This post has been edited by Mazda ina Ford guy on Apr 18 2014, 10:06 PM

Very nice new toy you have there sir. The amount of "bad" things ive heard about the rx8s in general is a very very small list in comparison the the amount of praise ive heard for the cars. I can only assume there is a reason most owners tend to love them.

Any plans for any mods? I know you said itll remain a daily, but if you plan to have fun in it like you expressed, it wouldnt surprise me if a few things changed

He'll mod it, the bug will bite eventually because that's just how it works.

I haven't driven or ridden in it, but it sounds and looks good so that's as much approval as I can give at the moment.

Though admittedly, it has the exact trans as the NC Miata, and I have logged a bit of time in my father's. I will parrot how nice the gearbox feels, and while I feel like the gears are too short on the Miata, revving to OVER NINE THOUSAND is likely the perfect fix for that.

While a turbo kit would be super fun I think this car is going to stay N/a for quite a while. The FC should hopefully be getting most of the attention in the boost department. Although A Petitt S/C kit would not be out of the realm of possiblity at some point.

I hear you on the powerband thing though Rotaries love to live in the upper revs its definitely a different driving style/experience for sure.

There are a few things that due tend to shorten the lifespan on them that Mazda has never really addressed. 4 stroke oil doesn't burn clean so carbon buildup is a problem. Usually solved by premixing and or a Sohn Adapter. The other issue with the RX8 specifically is the ignition system in pretty weak. Usually fixed by converting the coils to GM LS2 coils. The cats also love to fail so most just take them out preemptively.

As far as mods are concerned I do have some planned, mainly reliablility things.

BHR Coil upgrade - Done - LS2 Coils
Sohn Adapter
Mishimoto Radiator
Something to monitor Oil/Water temps and pressure.

In the skinny pedal department
Cobb AP - Done
Dual Resonated midpipe of some sort. - "Done"
Either the Mazda speed or AEM intake.

Handling I will probably leave alone with the exception of proper tires at some point the ones on it now are brand new but I have a sneaking suspicion I will need some by next summer.

This post has been edited by Grappler on Aug 5 2014, 09:33 PM

Good thing we had a conversation about not doing that silly Cobb AP. Open ECU tuning FTW!

Grappler, you should score a set of the limited edition X-Men rims for that bad boy. Some sick shit right there. About the only thing about that edition worth getting...

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About the only way to describe how I felt when I saw that kit.

OMG, so true... It's so bad...

Went to an event at DCTC with spaz last night. Had an absolute blast got to ride with a few instructors and really learn the limits of the new car. Even with crappy Nexen tires I can already do so much more than I ever could with the golf.

I think the most awesome part of the whole event was seeing that the bar can be set much much much higher and that there is so much more to learn. I got a front row seat riding along in a rather tail happy S2000 with one of the instructors and was absolutely blown away by how much changing the way you transition between inputs can affect things.

I did have a small misfire (flashing CEL but didn't stay on) on my last session and decided to not push my luck. It hasn't happened again and I had just filled up at a station I had never been too before. So I am hoping it was a combination of things other than coils/plugs regardless I'll be doing a tune up this weekend and hopefully hitting up a local Auto X event on Sunday.

This post has been edited by Grappler on May 3 2014, 08:01 AM

^ Fucker's hooked.

Went to another HPDE on Friday and hopefully will have some video recording at some point.
Still learning and enjoying the cheap seat time. However it is now that my Catalytic converter decided it hates life.
Soon to be remedied with a crowbar/hammer and a Cobb AP.
I was put into the the Intermediate A group this time instead of novice.
In my run group was a Speed 6 a Speed 3 a 335i and 3 Evos.
Surprisingly I didn't hold anyone up. I can only attribute this to the course being laid out really with a nice balance of auto x style obstacles and very few short straights.
I wish I still had my Go Pro and I was going to borrow spaz's for the last session but I missed it by 1 round.
I will be volunteering at the next one and hopefully can borrow it for the volunteer fun run 12 min session at the end.

This post has been edited by Grappler on May 27 2014, 07:54 PM

You're ripping out there, even if you do look super slow on the front straight.

I'll make sure to get the GoPro to you for the last session this next time.

1.3L Powah!!!! There are definitely days I miss having boost but its teaching me to get better at managing entry/exit speeds so I can maintain that momentum.

Aparently Scheids posted a few clips of us driving down the front straight.

This post has been edited by Grappler on May 29 2014, 05:27 AM

Did my plate relocation yesterday, my radiator thanked me for the extra airflow.

Before,

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After

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Welcome to the rotary club

Misfire CEL when driving hard (say like only at track says but for DD you never get the CEL even on a spirited drive) is the sign of weak ignition coils cause they can't keep up on long extended periods of full out performance.

Thanks, this is acutally my second Rotary I still have my FC as of Monday I have only Rotary powered vehicles in my garage

I have done an additional HPDE since then hasn't come back on yet, but I do have my eye on a set of LS/5.3 coils just in case

Nice! I did the same last year (or was it the year before). and went to LS3 coils. I did the mod myself with an adapter harness off of eBay, locally sourced coil packs at a discount, and some custom made MSD spark plus wires. Especially having to ship to Canada, it came in much cheaper than the BHR kit.

Finally uploaded the video I took From DCTC on Friday courtesy of Spaz's GoPro its mainly an interior view which is fine because I wanted to see what I was doing in the car as well as checking my lines which you can sort of do at this angle. Anyways I've already watched this thing like 20 times and found a bunch of stuff I can improve on. I need to get rid of some bad habits but thats what practice is for right?

Also did some Auto X on Sunday had a blast with that. Its so much fun all I want is more seat time.

Is it okay to change the topic to insurance for a few posts?

I've heard both ways, but is it true insurance is cheaper on the RX-8 because it's a technically a four door with a 1.3 liter engine?

Its considerably cheaper than my mk4 golf was I dropped almost 40% off of my insurance rate when I took my liability only golf off vs the fully covered Rx8 with a $100 deductible and free glass.

So yeah its pretty cheap.

There are a lot of other factors involved with insurance though but yes the 4 doors and "1.3" engine do make a difference.

Smoother steering inputs!

I also noticed how slow your steering ratio is... I never HAD to take my hands off the wheel in the Evo. That car spoils me, I swear.

I also also can occasionally see my headlights in your passenger mirror for a couple laps when I was taking Steve for a rip.

During my warm up laps you mean

Yep, during your 2nd and 3rd lap.

Update time Friday is the next DCTC event wanted to get a bit done on the car to get it prepped.

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These finally went into the car as well as a fresh set of plugs a long with the standard oil change. Had had a couple misfires since the last event figured it was time 2 out of the 4 coils were bad and it looked like the plugs had never been done.

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I now have control of the cool graphs in my car courtesy of a Cobb AP. Stock map for now cleaned up a few things cause by my Cat which are more "efficient" now...

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Lights now have super jackass mode enabled this is done with a simple 1 wire install.
I can now run Highs Lows and Fogs all at the same time should make night night driving much easier.

Thats about it and we now return you to your regularly scheduled broadcasting.