Klaus yeah man, a redline a day keeps the mechanic away, you need to rev it past 6k every now and again, I try to at least once a drive but only went temp is over 82C
doktorbimmer you have to prevent carbon build up so that you don’t suffer from it, just like with a two stroke motorbike it has to be cleared, your 8 probably drives like shit if you’re not reving it out often
@@nm5343 Don't mind him, hes been coming back to this video to talk shit about rotarys for about a year now. Kind of sad to see someone invest so much time to just argue with people about things that don't really matter.
“Its not easy being cheesy” lol but i feel you. It gets a bad name because people aren’t prepared for a rotary and dont give it that “preventive maintenance “
Javier De La Torre mate honestly even if you look after it, and I'm talking like Motocross levels of maintenance every time you drive it. it will still break down lol. Awsome car though still.
MikefromQueens You can take care of your Rotary like a child that you've adopted from a horrible family, and it will still die on you. They are just poorly designed engines.
I remember being so excited about this car before it came out. Was a bit of let down but I still thought it was cool Mazda brought a rotory out again. You knew it would be the last time so it had a cool factor for that alone.
Still worthy it tbh. There is good reason people love cars like this. They remind us of people because they aren't perfect but if you can live with those imperfections then you will be extremely happy.
@@sandervanderkammen9230 eh it got cancelled because of emissions and people not understanding what a rotary is (including the lads working at mazda dealerships) but with the community around it its not absolutely horrible as long as youre in a place where there is a culture for rotaries
Yeah, but having owned a number of RX7s and Porsche's, if you intend to drive the piss out of them and not do any prep or maintenance, expect it to break and believe me a Porsche will cost you 10 times as much to fix.
A beautiful car good oil and look after it it will last and not break down, I know a bloke who's wife purchased one of the first and its still going strong and has never let him down.
No one will probably read this but as a RX8 owner I just wanted to tell people this: - This car has an amazing engine. It is not unreliable IF it is well looked after! - Read and read and read before you buy it! This car is like walking on glass but if you put your time into it, you will be rewarded. Just read into every aspect of the car and how to care for it. - Find out what to look for before buying one. Nice one's start around 5k. - It actually isn't technically front engined but mid engined! The big transmission tunnel Alex talks about houses the engine too. It sits behind the front wheels. - Mileage is poor! Keep that in mind. - Parts are expensive. Depending on what it is of course. But don't expect a good engine to cost 500 bucks, this is not your granny's Golf. - There is not much torque down low so think before challenging your granny in her Golf. - These engines love to rev (and so do we!), they actually need a good rev to keep the carbon buildup away! - It is a head turner. The car looks wide and low, it's awesome! - The rotary community is awesome, join the rotorheads!
"- Parts are expensive. Depending on what it is of course. But don't expect a good engine to cost 500 bucks, this is not your granny's Golf. - There is not much torque down low so think before challenging your granny in her Golf." ROFLMAO This gave me a good laugh. Painfully true, I can attest for that XD
Almatik of course you can just 'turn it on' and drive it. It's still just a car. It just means you can't be a lazy piece of shit and you actually have to change the oil a bit more often and don't use cheap shit. Don't wait til the coils or plugs fail etc and don't use cheap parts. Big deal. If anything, ALL cars should be maintained this way. Plus if a rebuild scares you, it just shows you have fuck all money. A rebuild for me is less than a months savings even for a top quality build with porting. I actually can't wait for it to fail haha, then I can use it as an excuse for more power! Btw mine is an immaculate, regularly driven 2005 with no issues and the only thing that has been replaced (apart from the servicing requirements) is a radiator.
I've had a look at a few, but the problem is that a lot of second or third owners bought them as "cheap exotics" or "low budget sportscars" and let maintenance slide or straight-out mistreated the car. So a lot are in a condition where you can expect "backed up" repairs or hidden damages.
100%, me and my dad bought an rx8 that we've been working on together and the previous owners seemed like they had no idea how to maintain the car or had just not really cared
@@bapo7323Wow! you made a huge mistake... best advice is sell that POS as quickly as possible, don't waste any more time or money on one of these horrible sedans.
@@doktorbimmer With its incredible sound, Amazing chassis associated with many Mazdas, And small but loyal fanbase? Sure. The thing that killed the Rx- Brand Was the bad press It received for 'Unreliability' And bad MPG. I'm not saying that it is as reliable as any other car, But It did not kill the rx Lineup. I am sad to see you shitting on rotaries again, However it is indeed people like you who killed it. It seems like every single video on youtube to do with a rotary engine has negative comments from you on it. You must be extremely sad if you actively go after rotaries to crap on them.
@@KartsAgainstHumanity the dude goes out of his way to hate on rotaries probably because he got badly gapped by one in the shitbox civic he most likely drives
Kevin Otero we don't have enough mustangs in uk, rx8 had 3 owners from new 12 months mot out uk safety test law, full service history, 2 owners, i only do 5thousands miles per year, I only paid 1000 pound, I agree rotors have there faults but there so cheap fun toy, I'll nearly 40 so insurance is cheap, happy new year dude :)
To be fair my BMW does have an oil leak which obviously isn't helping but they are still known to drink oil, some worse than others. Currently mine needs 1L every 600-800 miles depending how hard I drive it.
TIP: When you drive a Rotary forget everything you learned about driving. Don't shift at 1500-3000 RPM. These engines thrive at high RPM. You really do need to take these on the open roads and hammer it. Unlike a reciprocating engine. It'll last longer this way. At low RPM they build nasty Carbon due to the oil it burns. The only way to keep the carbon from sticking is revving the living S**T out of it. It is not a city car
exactly. too many people think they are normal cars for city driving, they are not, the rotary is a race engine, it needs to be thrashed. and any youtube fuck wit who says its not a race engine, go look at who beat the best car makers in the world at le mans.MAZDA ROTARY
Gregory Kanniard or shift around 4k rpm atleast for city driving, it keeps carbon off and if you need more pep just hit the gas and at 5k it starts to shine.
True, but still wish I had the R100, I had of course swapped out the motor, box, and had a bigger brakes and a LSD, from a early rx7 and lots other bits to make it fun however no air con would make it unbearable in summer 35c degree days we have here.
As an RX-8 owner, I really appreciate this video and find the accuracy in the information you present honestly astonishing. It's amazing how many untruths and falsehoods are spread about this fun little dorito-mobile. Truth be told, I'm simply in the honeymoon stage after a full engine replacement, but I've never driven anything like it, and it never fails to give my passengers a smile every now and then. That to me, along with the fact that I'm driving something endlessly more unique than the copy/paste Porsche/Maserati car parades I pass on the way to work, makes the maintenance and cost worth it. You never appreciate a car as much until you're actively working on it yourself, and trust me, this car will make you appreciate it.
theres people i know here in australia with rx8s, done over 200,000 kilometres still on original engine. all you need to do is rev them.too many people use them as daily cars and dont rev them, they carbon up.
If you pre mix than rotory engines are as reliable if not more than normal engines. My friends blown engine made it 5k miles before it finally completely fell through
+Wynkle *Unfortunately that old wives tale simply is not true... in fact its complete bullshit, even Mazda admitted that its RX engines were less reliable. Mazda equipped all of its commercially sold Wankel engines with OIL INJECTION for a very good reason... **_Do you know why?_*
My 2010 RX8 was incredibly fun to drive. My main gripe was the cheap seats in my base "Sport" trim level. My minor back problems got worse with its seats. Fuel economy was also my other main gripe. While I checked the oil level weekly, I actually didn't find it to consume a crazy amount of it. An extra quart would get me through, between oil changes. I bought mine used with 24K miles and sold it with 50K. So much fun to wind out and cut through the corners. The tail would kick out nicely too, in spite of the lower torque, though the skinnier 225 width tires probably played a role in that. The stock limited slip was indeed nice to have. No mechanical problems during my time with it at all. As mine was a 2010, it was a "Series II" model, which applies to model years 2009 thru 2011. They were actually lighter (about 80lbs?) than the Series I design, as well as having a shorter final drive ratio, which together improved acceleration. I think the Series II looks better inside and out as well, with cooler front and rear (those LED taillights were awesome) styling, as well as the nicely updated steering wheel.
*The biggest gripe is the weak unreliable engine. Unfortunately the series 2 cars did not have improved engine reliability... this is a typical later car problem.* ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JM0JaJ5GXik.html
@@threadworm437 The car in this video is a series 2, it's engine was damaged and replaced shortly after the this video, a new engine was installed and it has also failed.
LEMON1O59 they are actually really reliable, the early rx8s weren’t but 06 and on are bulletproof as long as they got the proper intervals of care and were driven hard
I think that fuel economy would bother me the most.. With my 1.9l petrol e36 i can get 6l/100km on open road... Its not the same type of car but hey rx8 has almost double consumption...
I LOVE my 09 RX8. Never had an issue with it in five years. It's all about the owner. Most people that had issues had them because of their own mistakes. Do it right and they last.
@@sandervanderkammen9230 Yeah. I liked my RX-8 but there's no sense pretending -- they CAN be fragile. Sold mine at 60,000 miles with few problems but I knew it wouldn't be long before it became a garage queen.
@@BixbyConsequence You were lucky... alot of owners experienced engine failures at 40k miles and Mazda was intially not owning up to problem... later the replaced nearly every engine under recall, extended warranty or class action lawsuits.
I am really happy you chose to talk about the RX-8. I've owned my '05 RX-8 for 2 years now. Best car you could ask for, imo. Yeah, it has its problems, and I can vouch for all that was state din this video to be true (give or take 1 or 2 things, especially about oil and fuel economy). I get 21-22 MPG average in mine, city driving. I will say this over and over again, it does NOT drink as much oil as some people think. I redline mine every day, and even so, I only top off a little bit. Oil consumption should NOT be anyone's motive for staying away from the RX-8. Also, I use the conventional oil w/ the viscosity on the oil cap. Reason I use conventional is because I feel like it burns better. Oil changes every 2,500 to 3,000 miles are a MUST in conventional oil applications for the RX-8. Yearly spark plug changes. Also ONLY premium fuel. Do NOT cheap out on fuel, or you will regret it. Who cares if it lacks torque down low? This car was made for autocrossing now drag racing. And who doesn't like shooting massive balls of fire out the exhaust? XD EDIT: I feel like I need to come back to this and say that 5W20 is NOT the preferred oil for RX-8's; I forgot about this post, and I need to say, 10W40 should be go-to for all-year, 20W50 if you're in really hot climates during the summer.
..."the unreliable Mazda RX-8". starts the video with the R3 which had most of the engine issues resolved. But it's his first rotary experience so it is understandable. Very good video, very informative and well made. I do hope this doesn't drive the prices up though...
only replaced the clutch on one of my rotaries at 85,000 miles; my Porsche's were constantly in the shop until they finally broke. Drive about the same.
Own an 07 RX8. Its at 120k miles and all I do is the typical rotary maitenance. Also I daily the thing. At the end of the day the only problem I have with the car is the gas milage since I daily it , other than that the car is great.
S2k All Day not really? I own an automatic 06 rx8 , first off I drive it in manual mode to avoid the automatic shifting which is shit for some reason (it'll literally go to 5th gear at about 35mhp) anyways shifting it manually i get about 35mph im 1st gear and about 60 mph in second gear before having to shift , so no you don't have to go through allot of gears to pass cars in an automatic rx8 and samr for a manual rx8 i suppose bcuz if an automatic can do it , then for sure a manual can too
DanBo do it dude, especially an r3 I daily drive one and shes got almost 90k miles and never misses a beat the maintenance is frequent but can all be done by yourself really easily. This car truly is special and you’ll find out once you track it and or take it into the twistys with some buddies, the car simply out paces everything the only car I couldn’t hold a candle to was a 1st gen viper but even so I could still keep him within 50-100 meters of me. You get near super car handling characteristics out of a small lowish power coupe. The time is now to find one in great shape for a great price.
I will NEVER get rid of my rx8. It's almost impossible not to smile while driving it! I remember when I got it, other Rx8 drivers and myself would wave at each other as if to say "Hi! I Know you're having as much fun driving your Rx8 as I am mine!" It's a Rotary thing; most wouldn't understand... mandatory mods. It's a lubrication/temperature game mostly... completely worth it. But if you aren't ready to become an enthusiast and put serious $$$$$ into it, yeah I wouldn't. Much Love to all my Rotary Heads! #ZoomZoom ❤💜❤
doktorbimmer Oh yeah if Mazda was so small how come Mazda Sold 800,000 Mazda Rx7’s? And how come they are the third biggest auto manufacturer in japan???
+WillDagamerkid053 *WTF? Toyota makes more cars in ONE MONTH!!!!! Mazda is the **_SMALLEST_** Japanese automaker! with only 1.5 million vehicles produced per year.*
@@doktorbimmer I'm confused about what you say with Mazda's website in mind as to what's official. They clarify the continued research of the Wankel Rotary design that you claim was sabotaged, the purpose of this research is to put the new engine into the next entry in the RX series which is also featured on their website. Even more absurd was the claim of it's concept being imaginary despite being released for the public to see lol. What are you trying to accomplish with all these lies if you're not a hater? Maybe appeal to Mazda on removing the official content on their website so that your lies are fact, good luck with that.
doktorbimmer people stopped buying them as they couldn't be sold in Europe (due to not meeting emissions regulations- WAIT, most cars after a certain point will fail to meet emissions standards eventually as they get stricter and stricter laws implemented on emissions)so there was no one there to buy them as they couldn't.
+Under Serious RX-7 *_ABSOLUTELY FALSE!_** That old myth simply does not hold water... because the RX-8 continued to meet the toughest emissions standards in the world (California's CARB regulations) right up until the RX-8 was discontinued in 2012 due to LACK OF SALES and a notorious reputation for bad fuel mileage and premature engine failures.*
+Under Serious RX-7 *NOT TRUE! Automobile manufacturers frequently resubmit models for emission certification if that model is still SELLING WELL ENOUGH to recoup the cost of submitting the existing model for emissions testing and certification. Why would any automaker certify a car that was not selling in that region due to its horrible fuel economy and bad reputation for poor reliability?*
+Under Serious RX-7 *One only has to look at the EU sales volumes to see they were so bad that the model probably would have been discontinued even without pending EURO 5 emissions standards..*
The engine is reliable. But you need to known how to care a wankel. If you care properly, you can do 350.000km without opening the engine. I know some rx8 with 250.000km, 300.000 and 350.000 km with the original engine.
Boaty Mc Boatface That's it! Enjoy that beauty!!!! Now, with a friend, I'm helping him to restore 3 FC3S. 2 S4 NA, and 1 S5 turbo. Pretty good cars are that Mazdas.
98 tahoe with nearly 400k on the originaly engine from 1998 still running strong like 110k is not even remotely impressive like seriously thats nothing
RX8 is not slow, kid. 0 to 60 is about 6 seconds and if the car is already in motion it is much quicker than standard vehicles. also, mechanics do not like to work on rotary engines because they dont know what the hell they are doing so be sure to find a somewhat specialist in your area.
Bryan Reyes they are quite reliable, you just have to be spot on with maintenance and repairs. Most people who drove these and aren't car enthusiasts didn't think it was very important to get the oiled changed at exactly it's Mark. Most people just waited to long.
SaltyMax that's what my dad said. He says they're very reliable as long as you keep up with maintenance. He had a 1987 or 1985 Mazda RX7, I'm not certain of the year.
It's the perfect car for swap kits, such a great little car, I feel hugged by them when I drive one. Just a horrible mess of an engine if you get it wrong, there should be a ton of aftermarket support to extend the life of it, and correct horrible engineering.
Problems: almost everything that could go wrong will probably or likely go wrong, although for a fun and beautiful car for around £700 you probably cannot get better (bar the SW20 MR2)
Tho MR2 would be slower if we are being honest due to the fact you can't get turbo one for that price and only good NA one had like 1k of them built and almost all sold in Japan.
Buy an RX-8! Treat her well (get a rotary specialist for servicing) and you'll never regret it! I LOVE my 2006 Series 1 RX-8 & have never had any significant issues. Absolute joy to drive!!!
I owned a 2010 (very last edition) RX8 R3 GT edition here in Australia - bought it brand new, absolutely LOVED it, didn’t care about fuel economy, totally reliable and made an amazing noise. Practical and turned heads, hated selling it 2 years later but barely drove it.
While my car was in the shop for a week, I rented the RX-8. My G35 coupe needed brake work and there was a bit of damage underneath from me hitting a pothole that I couldn't see. I had a tonne of fun with this car. A really engaging experience, I really felt like I was playing Grant Turismo when I was driving.
I'm on my second and I love it. I realise it's not a massive saving in the grand scheme of things but both mine were 55 plates or older to avoid the higher road tax. Just might be something to bare in mind
The rx8 would of been a lot better if it came with a high revving I6 or V6 engine from the factory! I love the body shape of it, however, I would never buy one because of how unreliable the engine is!
Hookie : Right on. Those mx-5 are fun cars huh? About a decade ago I had a Mazda Protege5 company car and I loved it. Drove the wheels off that badboy. It was a great car.. Fun to drive. Low on power but tons of fun on twisty roads.. So how do you like your new Rx8???
I take it you’ve never driven a fast car before. Sell it and buy a Miata. It’s not fast ether but it can be made faster for cheaper and is a far better car all around. Everything about that car is a compromise from an engineering standpoint.
The left hand drive models have more leg room. Im 6'4'' and have never noticed anything funny. I eorked at mazda for a while and drove a lot of them with my big ass work boots on.
I currently, daily an RX-8. It has 120 K mi on it and it still performs like a dream. I have previously owned 4 Mazda RX-7's, an 82,84,86, and an 89. My first car was the 82' RX-7, purchased in 87. The joy brought me back again and again to purchase another. They all took everything i gave them and performed well to the end. The end was always someone essentially losing control of their vehicle in some way, usually snow, and hitting my car. These are absolutely demanding vehicles to maintain, but they give back more than you give them in terms of enjoyment and driving control. Mindfulness and awareness of the needs of the vehicle are key to long life. These cars are not for casual driver's, but for those that also consider their cars, their hobby.
*Too bad most owners didn't have a similar experience or share your rosy opinions... if they had the RX brand would not have been discontinued half a decade ago.*
*Charming anecdotal theories but unfortunately these old wives tales blaming owners for the notoriously poor reliability of Mazda's RX engines was finally dispelled once and for all by the NHTSA recall investigation... the exhaustive investigation found NO LINK between the extremely high number of premature engine failures and owner related abuse or neglect. Mazda DID NOT CHALLENGE the findings of the investigation and voluntarily recalled all applicable model years and reimbursing RX owners that had been forced to pay for replacement engines that Mazda had refused to cover under warranty or in good faith.*
*Wow! You really are out of touch with reality... Mazda cancelled development of production Wankel engines permanently in May of 2009.. its last production engine was unveiled over 23 years ago!*
You must have been hurt badly in the past to fight so hard for your rotary dislike. I hope you are able to move past this in the future and live a somewhat normal life. Good luck to you.
Owned an rx8 for 4 months, only 4 months because it destroyed my wallet. Mpg was terrible for the power and it was so balanced that you couldnt push it on public roads. It was almost too easy that I never felt truly excited however my friend loved driving it and misses it more than me. I do miss the way it looked and the practicality of it but dont regret getting rid of it
I tried one after I wrecked my 2004 GTO and it just wasn't there for me either. Going from 375HP with torque in any range, in any gear, and 25 MPG on the highway and almost bulletproof reliability. This car just wasn't even in the running after that.
Scott Rider Yeah used to have one of these, then got a gt mustang,similar story to yours, this just couldn't match the gt, glad I got rid of it and moved on to better things.
That isn't the car for going fast in straight lines anyway... :/ Have you tried on a circuit? Like a real circuit where you really can push the limit of the car... if you can... because you'd probably be too scared to even achieve the handling limit of the car... well, I have one myself and after 3 years, I still haven't got the limit of it. Haha. x) But yeah, MPG sucks, that's for sure, but besides that, if you maintain it well and drive it like you stole it in corners, it's for me, IMO, the best car ever. I don't care about going fast straight, everybody can do it but in corners, where the fun starts, it's where the RX8 shines. 😀
Reminds me of a buddy i had that had ~350whp RX7 that wore the Apex seals every 15K miles, AND how easy it was to maintain if you got used to it lol. It was just an afternoon for him to replace them and inspect the drivetrain after owning the car for 10 years. Point is, its ironically extremely reliable under extreme stress for a short period of time.. yeah..
Hate to say it but it's crap. I love the sound of a rotory engine but it's flawed and unreliable. If this car had a 2l turbo engine could still bring similar performance and the resale value would still be around high. I wonder if Mazda lost money producing this car?
Its estimated that Mazda lost over $3 billion USD on the RX-8 fiasco and would have gone bankrupt without receiving the 3 massive bail-out loans it got to stay solvent, they discontinued the RX brand and the Wankel engine completely in 2012 to bring the company back to profitablity.
Flawed? Really? You ever owned one? Most characterful engine I ever had in my RX-8; reved so easily, only flaw was lack of torque made low speed cruising in built up areas (speed cameras everywhere in U.K.) a pain as it took work to keep at precisely 30mph. Oh; and the Renesis engine took ‘Engine of the year Award 2003’. Not crap. Just light, cheap, fast, powerful but also fuel hungry. Still keep wondering if I can afford the time to look after another one....
@sullivanrachael *Unfortunately the RX-8 never lived up to its initial reviews.. defective engine recalls, scandals about Mazda lying about power output figures, destroying customer satisfaction surveys and record number of Lemon Law buy-backs in California... poor sales and well earned reputation for weak and unreliable engines tarnished Mazda and brought the final end of the entire RX brand.*
not surprised it takes 10w-40, the rx8 has almost motorcycle-like qualities with the smooth high revs. I switched cars for a day with a buddy years ago who had a 6 speed rx8 and it was such a blast to drive.
Saying the rx8 is unreliable is not even the point, its about the driving, the experience of actually driving! The feeling you get from taking the engine to redline in every gear! If someone asked you, "ill give you this honda accord to drive for 5 years or this ferrari 458 to drive for 2.5 years, which would you like?" No one in their right mind would take the accord. Id take 2.5 years of pure excitement over 5 years of just getting from A to B any day!! I love my rx8 and i know with 142k miles on the clock its getting close to the end of its life and you know what? I dont care!! It turns heads everywhere it goes and i can honestly say its worth every extra penny spent on keeping going!! Rotor life forever!!!