The problem is too many people will catch on how good the RX8 is and then prices skyrocket. I've owned mine for 5 years now and has not broken down on me once. Used as a daily for the first 2 years then became a garage queen after modifying it and using it on track. It is by far the most fun I've ever had in a car, think of it like a miata on steriods, and oh that glorious exhaust note at 9k rpm
Dude this is such a great video, can see the quality improvement, really articulate speaking, great camera transitions and just an overall attention holding video. Keep this up Liam, really really good production quality.
Installing a brand new engine on mine after rear stationary gear bearing failure. I bought it with 103000 KM, I put another 15K along with all the maintenance needs and new parts, but ultimately the original engine had a bad owner. This will be a new start as I replaced almost everything in the car. Pretty much a new gearbox would make it mechanically brand new. It's a 2005, 4 port, 5 speed. Love the car to bits.
Nice review mate, certainly looks like a heap of fun!, loved the run up the hill, making some swift progress and the car was unflustered! 9000rpm is just bonkers!
True, although this more competes with things like the GT86, Integra type r etc, this is definitely more practical. Civic Type R is an MPS 3 competitor
If you get special editions, you get the added bits and pieces you asked for in the conclusion, two tone interiors, bluetooth, comfort bits etc, i miss mine everytime i see one, its a joy to drive. VERY underrated car. (Awesome video)
Found the section comparing this to an mx5 interesting, I mainly watch these videos to know how these cars stack up to each other. Need to review an RX7 next haha
I had a mint 5 speed 4 port RX8 that I sold about a year ago. It was a great car, the issue was I also had an NA MX5 at the same time that was better at everything. Handled better, somehow faster, more economical and just more fun. I funnily enough replaced the RX8 with a 130i.
Yeah 4 port RX8's aren't quick but this one I reckon is better than an NC. NA is a much more connected experience. And yeah glad the 130i is getting some love it's a brilliant car!
Awesome review, as always. Historically, I have owned a 6 Port Type S, and I must say these are one of the most balanced and pleasurable turn key drivers I have experienced - thoroughly recommended to anyone with a couple of caveats being future maiantance and the fact these cars do not respond well to modification as they are high strung and tuned from factory ie many bolt on modifications will be detrimental to the performance. And yes, they are firsty, just like any performance vehicle that makes power in the high rpm range.🎉
Great video and good to see a car review channel from my old home NZ.👏 Just like to add that not all series one rx8s were only 4ports. Mine ( in my profile photo ) is a 2004 series one with a rebuilt original 6port with small bridge port over the aux port. Generally it was the autos that had the 4port as early on Mazda were concerned about the auto being able to handle the extra revs and torque from the 6port. But series one manuals were available with the 6port engine. Lovely car that one you reviewed. Would have preferred a series two myself when I brought mine, but there just wasn't any available in the right colour and price at the time over here in West Australia. Great video, keep up the work. 👍
Yeah the 4 ports are auto and 5 speed manuals, 6 ports are 6 speed manuals. The series II’s aren’t too easy to find, but they’re really good if you find one!
Immediately knew I was in for something special with that crescendo of a intro. When your voice comes over the music, dip the mid frequency bands so your voice goes clearly over the audio without quieting the audio too much.
I am a Mazda mechanic and have made a lot of maintenance and repair on RX8’s including engine repair and the only thing that needs speciel tool is to get the flywheel of…. That’s it..!
The way that RPM climbs! Love how they really leaned into the sharp driving experience. Did you notice that the silver trims in the center are shaped like two giant katanas? Even the parking brake is like a sword handle! Would love to own one some day
man how the RX's have changed, use to have a white 1979 RX7 Savanna with a full Bodykit, its crazy to think how much these cars are worth now and sold mine for just $3500 lol, I miss the sound of a good Rotary that RX8 is nice!
It bothers me when people call rotaries "unreliable". It ask for more regular maintenance, that's all. "Unreliable" to me implies that "something" will happen "eventually" and it will happen to most, but not all consumers. With rotaries you have to change the oil more frequently, and about every 100,000 miles you replace the seals and that can be a pain in the neck, but it will reliably give you problems at given intervals if neglected, and if you stay on top of that extra maintenance then you can trust them with your life. The rotary does have real cons like hating stop and go rush hour traffic, which most people deal with regularly so most people are going to hate and that's valid. Reliability is just not one of those cons, or at least not the right word for it.
Yea this car sucks a lot of gas like a V8 and burns oil naturally. My friend had one and complained about gas even though the motor is small. One thing about reliability you have to start it up cold which you may have trouble and then warm the motor. Most people don’t do that and just drive off. A rotary is a whole different animal and have never really been reliable from the get go without constant care and maintenance
My friend bought one new and complained terribly about the high fuel and engine oil consumption. I didn't enjoy the lack of torque. I was driving a E46 330i at the time. The RX8 did hand on around corners more impressively than my 330i, but it did have bigger and wider tyres.
Iv heard that the way they measure the litres of this engine is not accurate to the point its not accurate 1.3L but actually more but I havent digged for much more info on this. edit: these with a screamer pipe are probably some of the best sounding engines ever made
It's either 2.6L or 3.9L depending on how you count it. Usually they were classed as double the capacity for racing, so 2.6L. An output of 240hp would be about on the money for a 2.6L, although it would be very poor for a 3.9L! It's three chambers per rotor but the rotor moves at 1/3rd crankshaft speed (so that cancels out) and has one combustion event per rotor rotation (as opposed to every two rotations for a four-stroke), so I think classing it as double the capacity for four-stroke equivalency seems about right.
Yeah I guess that makes sense, double as there’s twice as many combustions per rotation as a normal piston engine. Also explains why it uses as much fuel as a 2.6 haha
I wished Mazda made a twin turbo version of this engine. 9 grand RPM with 350 rear wheel kilowats on a car that handles as good as it does would have definitely made it a worthy touring car champion contender from the factory floor.
@@KiwiCarLife The motive behind having more power than rivals like the M2 is to commemorate the banning of rotary engines at the Leman 24 hour race, a monumental achievement that is comparable to the Nissan GT-R being banned from Group A in Australia.
Fuel consumption and regards of routine with maintaining the rotary to prolong it's lifespan should be at least mentioned in reliability segment, but I understand it was just a first encounter. Great review regardless. :)
The series 1 in manual also had the more powerful engine and 6 speed and in Australian delivered vehicles and slightly more power than the series 2 (177kw vs 170kw) however the series 2 does have shorter gearing with a final diff ratio of 4.777:1 vs 4.440:1 in the series one. Which also meant it technically got a slower 0-60mph since you had to shift to 3rd before 60mph but in real world driving on a twisty road the shorter gearing on the series 2 made for a much better drivers car, keeping it in the power zone more of the time 😉
The series 2 RX8 looks great but I have to say I think the series 1 looks just a bit better, quite a fan of early to mid 2000s Mazda designs, the first MPS 3 looks just as good imo
Seems they skimped out on the standard equipment there. I have a 2009 & it has bluetooth, auto lights, auto wipers etc etc, but also has different seats (half-leather Recaro, although not electric or heated). The rest looks the same at a quick glance. Is it because mine is an R3 RX8 or UK Spec? No idea as outside they look identical. Either way it's a great car to drive & even though mines been sat since March 2020 (just before lockdowns😷), I have no intention of selling it. Just not sure when I'll decide to brush off the cobwebs & get it out on the open road again. Still starts first time (when I cut the lawn it gets started up) even with 4 year old rotten fuel & being sat for long periods. 🤫
My man, you're inside my head aye? Every time I start to lose sleep because I'm thinking faaaar to much about purchasing an "odd ball" car. With in days/ weeks it randomly pop's up infront of me on your Channel.... You know what they say about great minds right..😊
@KiwiCarLife we didn't get anything other than the 6spd manual with the 177kw engine and the two lowered powered 4spd and 6spd autos in Australia, we never got the 5 speed with less ports.
Hey bro, sorry for commenting on this video but was wondering if you knew where to get aftermarket body parts for 2007 honda accord 2.0l? im looking at getting one I can only find parts for euros, cheers in advance
@@districts8166 all the Accord Euros are the same body regardless of engine so you’ll just have to find them from wreckers as you certainly won’t get them new
Great video, I loved mine but shit fuck that engine, mine went on me and I bucketed money into it, only to have more issues. They needed a better engine but yeah so fun to smash around corners
Yes although as discussed the series II’s are a lot better. Still use a bit of fuel though. I guess if you’re getting 2.6L levels of power, you’d expect similar consumption
