Anyone driven an RX8?

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I find that with a lot Japanese cars though. You have to rag it to get any power out.

 

You obviously haven't driven an Impreza turbo, or Evo 1 to 9, or Lexus is300, or Land Cruiser, or Lexus Soarer, or a Skyline..... then!

 

Anyone ever driven a Lotus Carlton? There's one on autotrader for £39k .. Always fancied one of those .. 419 lbft through the correct wheels ..

 

The VXR8 makes more sense, or an old Monaro. Better built, cheaper, handles better, more power, similar torque, more reliable and cheaper to maintain.

 

Ask Vauxhall how much Lotus Carlton discs and pads are (AP Racing) and you'll soon forget that idea!

[dr_mat 0]

The VXR8 makes more sense, or an old Monaro. Better built, cheaper, handles better, more power, similar torque, more reliable and cheaper to maintain.

 

Ask Vauxhall how much Lotus Carlton discs and pads are (AP Racing) and you'll soon forget that idea!

 

Don't think I was ever serious enough to actually look in any details, and anyway a full exhaust system for a Corrado will cost £1200, so I'd never be able to claim I drive a sensible car..

I know the LC has seriously expensive parts, considering what it's based on, but hey, it was the right era for me. For the same reason I like the Corrado I think - I've a soft spot for the LC - I have no doubt there are bigger/faster/gruntier/reliablier/whatever cars, for similar money.

[Sonicriot13 0]

I find that with a lot Japanese cars though. You have to rag it to get any power out.

 

You obviously haven't driven an Impreza turbo, or Evo 1 to 9, or Lexus is300, or Land Cruiser, or Lexus Soarer, or a Skyline..... then!

 

Er, you would be right. I haven't driven any of those cars! :lol: Not that I wouldn't given half a chance....

[Sonicriot13 0]

I was responsible for running the European launch event for the RX8 and writing all of the dealer training material so have a reasonable amount of experience with them, including driving development models in Hiroshima and Laguna Seca.

 

Fuel consumption isn't great no matter how gently you drive them, low to mid 20's is about all you can reasonably expect. The Renesis is a completely new engine and theres little scope to upgrade the powerplant as an owner but it is certainly pretty reliable, certainly no less so than a conventional piston engine, after all there are only 3 moving parts in the engine itself. The engine is supposed to use oil, a mist of oil is sprayed continuously into the rotor chamber to lubricate the rotor tips, an RX8 that didnt use oil would concern me more than one that did.

 

I actually preferred the engine characteristics of the 192PS engine to the 231PS, the 192PS was designed to be a lot torquier (comparatively speaking) than the 231PS and is a lot less frantic.

 

Build quality is very good althought the interior plastics and especially the hard shells of the seat backs on cars with leather trim scratch incredibly easily.

 

Handling as standard is a bit soft with more body roll than you might expect but its very controllable, the three stage traction control is pretty decent and at least you can completely disengage it if you really want to.

 

I think a lot of the horror stories have come about as a result of people buying RX8s when they have been used to BMWs etc where you never need to lift the bonnet, like any engine, if you neglect it it will cost you money and the Renesis does need to have its oil checked pretty regularly - I would look to buy one with a full service history and ideally a full Mazda Approved warranty - just to be safe.

 

Off topic: How do I get a job like yours?

[Andy665 0]

Nothing life as good as it sounds and certainly not now that I do do the amount of travelling - very much UK based and restricted to Volkswagen Group activity - for now :lol:

[Jim 2]

Er, you would be right. I haven't driven any of those cars!

 

I've had the good fortune to have driven an Impreza WRX STI on a track.. it was absolutely spectacular!

[Sonicriot13 0]

Nothing life as good as it sounds and certainly not now that I do do the amount of travelling - very much UK based and restricted to Volkswagen Group activity - for now :lol:

 

I bet it's a lot more fun than my job! I'd love to work with cars. Got to get off my ass big time and get myself sorted. Working in insurance sucks. Big time.

 

Er, you would be right. I haven't driven any of those cars!

 

I've had the good fortune to have driven an Impreza WRX STI on a track.. it was absolutely spectacular!

 

My mate has just gone on one of those Aston experience days and they took him round the track in a Scooby before hand. He reckons the Scooby was the best bit!