I actually meant to ask you how the upkeep is on that beast of a car.. I was seriously considering an M5 until I heard there were some big-time, high dollar maintenance issues with it.

 

you have never had to buy any parts for a BMW I suppose

 

I'd rather rock an IS250/300/350.

 

You know, that's a good point. The 8 is just about the same as the competitors.. which brings me to my (subjective) breakdown:

350Z - Wow, what a car.. sexy all over. Cheap interior, though. No glovebox (wtf). Good luck driving on frosty tarmac.

G35 - 40 grand is a tad out of the price range here.

Mustang GT - They're everywhere. They're porky.

GTO - That's one HELL of a car!! But it's a Pontiac.

Crossfire - again in the high 30's territory.. and with the decent (middle model) V6, it's pushing 40k quick.. Still only has two seats.. Sexy though!

Eclipse - They're pretty hot in a picture.. they look like a Supra and a 2G Eclipse boinked. Not sure about performance data, as I've never seriously considered any late model DSM. The EVO's are sweet.. Fast as hell, but that interior makes me want to not drive anywhere! Seriously! It's like a Jetta in there! Probably one of the mose uncomfortable performance-oriented cars I've ever driven.

S2000 - Convertible.. I just can't do the roadster. I'm not 40+, I'm not gay, I'm not a ricer.. 10k rpm redline is sweet.. so sweet.. But I do want to do more with a car than just drive around getting a sunburn.

Z4 - Remember when the Z3 came out? What about that car now.. Yeah.



Ultimately, putting my childish commentary on each model aside, there's really only two cars in the sports coupe segment that are price-exclusive competetors with the 8. Each having four seats, two (real) doors and the sports-coupe market segment, are the M3 and the G35 Coupe. Performance on both those cars is widely considered more than adequate.. And guess what? The 8 is just as fast on the road. And it's cheaper! So what if a stock, enthusiast prepared car pulls .04 g more than the 8. Get me a set of 18x10's and we'll try it again! It's not like I'm even getting close to the maximums on that highway offramp. Sure, there might be a car out there that goes a little faster through the slalom. There might be one that gets off the line a little quicker. How much are you willing to pay for that .04g, or that .2 sec 1/4 mile? Is there any value there? Probably not.

 

350z's don't have a glovebox?

 

last I checked G35s were in the $32k-$35k range



They also rank wayyyyyyy up there in reliability and kick serious *** in resale, you cannot compare that to a Mazda.

 

you mean an rx8 isn't reliable.... *cough*

 

Huh, ain't that some ****? I coulda sworn they were pricey-er, but you're right - base 6MT's are $33k.. Now don't do optioning that sucker out..

 

last I checked was almost 3 years ago, when the RX8 was 31k, prices on the G35 were around 35k for a nice one, toping out at 38

 

cool! a legit convo on other cars. does anybody have any facts on the latest and greatest flash for the 8? i agree with sinful in parts as well as silverseven especially the last bits. another thing i would like to add is the emissions output of the renesis. it may not be the sportiest engine ever made, but i think mazda has made reasonable leaps to make it more compliant as well as keeping it within the lower price ranges. i think i heard the 8 will be going under a refresh, i'm eager to see what they change...