it was inside the 'break in' period, no?

 

after 1000 miles the car gains 50hp?

 

I dunno. I thought there was a break-in period where it was significantly slower.

 

I've had the opportunity to put more than a few miles on a well-maintaned, broken in RX8, and I have to say it was probably the most fun I've ever really had in a car. It was very compliant, very comfortable, ergonomic.. Some cars you get in, and you just 'fit'. The 8 is definetly one of those cars for me. The FD was, too.. Sans headroom.

 

maybe my test drive was not great because at that time everyone thought the car had 246hp or whatever they said orginally.



The whole drive I was wondering where 50 or so hp had went.

It was almost a half hour test drive.

 

Yeah, I'd say I put a few hundred miles on one. I was expecting a 12A when I got in. When it pulled like hell as those secondaries opened, I went from being impressed to being excited. Getting it out on the highway yeilded another pleasure. Lane changes were a breeze. The car's traffic-dodging capability is something I haven't found since my old S13 240SX. I think the 'lack' of power actually enhances the experience by limiting the acceleration to a less-than-scary-yet-fun range. Don't get me wrong, I loved the FD's pull.. it was orgasmic.. But it could also get me into trouble a lot faster.

 

My idea of handling is grip, balance, flickability, transitional capability, consistancy, predictability, and confidence that the car will go exactly where you want it to go.



I feel the RX-8 is below par on all of these for a sports car, but that's because I'm comparing it to some of the best sports cars I've driven, including mine. In my opinion, there in NOTHING world-class about the RX-8, to me it's just another somewhat sporty coupe, and I'm not so much of a rotorhead that I'll give a mediocre car froms just because it has a Wankel.

 

The interesting thing is, in my experience I would use phrases like those to describe the 8. What I wouldn't do is compare the 8 to a track or road and track prepared sports car. It's also not an exotic sports car.

When compared to its major competitors, the 8 performs exceptionally well. Stock for stock, the 8 is more confidence inspiring than the FD. (IMO, of course.) The FD is revered as a handling machine, yet it can be extremely difficult to control under many hard-driving road conditions.

 

 

The only consistent criticisms I hear about the 8:



1) Why couldn't they give it a bit more power? ( A Mazdaspeed version is due out eventually--should fix that )

2) Why am I getting 14 mpg? (You play, you pay )