please get a z and make us all happy.

 

We have both an RX-8 Grand Touring 6spd and a 350Z touring roadster.
The Z is mine and the RX-8 is my wife's.

RX-8 = Chick Car (aka No *****)

 

rx-7 or Z should be the question lol.. rx8 should be outta of question :P

However, since you are in college... the rx7 might give you maintenance cost related issues. It is not a reliable car unless you throw a nice ls engine hehehe

 

rx-7 > rx-8
But you gotta do what you gotta do. Its going to be your car you choose. I say a Z though! =o

 

If you want a mazda go with the miata.......HAHA LMFAO

 

you get what you pay for when it comes to the 350 and a RX8.. some guy at a dealer tried selling me one when i was looking for my Z, i passed on that deal and im very happy i did.

 

RX8 isn't a bad platform. Very well balanced. But the rotary engine kills it.

 

The fun starts at 5:10, too bad the RX8 isn't more similar to the s2000 in terms of overall performance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-CwBbk7hEw]width=425

 

RX8 Pros: Rotary Engine=High RPM
Nicer(fancier) looking gauge to some people (depends on peep's preference)
Extra Seats
Exhuast tip looks nice/unique
Cons: Whats up with the 3rd door??
What happen to the turbo?? Or Weak N/A power??
Weak power even after FI
No torque
RX8 newer then RX7 but it didn't get upgraded but downgraded
Will get OWN by stock 350Z

350z Pros:Nicer than RX8 (I think)
Male car
V6= TWIN TURBO BABY
Torqey as fawk
Will require lesser money to maintain
Looks Sick on 19"
Cons: Too much power after FI
Too many upgradable options
Too many on the street (man back in 03 it was rare as fawk)
Way too sick looking from Stock
Way too much power from Stock
It getting way too cheap where it is becoming Civic/Integra

If i were you i'd get RX8 but Me want 350Z

 

do what I did. pay off school, focus, graduate, then buy the car and still be out of debt. or you can do like everyone else and give into yoru urge and splurge. what do i care, i dont have that dark cloud looming over me. do as you please man. i say focus on and pay off school. buy a beater.

rx8 more family oriented sports car (am i allowed to say that?) 350z is poor mans sports car (as stated by others) id pick the Z out of the 2, hands down any day.

 

^^ True im in school now, 3 years after buying and half way through paying for my Z and its getting hard. I'm really stressed right now and for a few minutes I actually considered selling the Z. But i'm going to keep on trying!!!

 

All I hear is of complaints about the car. Or maybe the rx-8 didn't live up to its "hype"
your asking on a 350 forum, so you may feel as though your are being given biased suggestions, but trust us. Z G or go join the s2ki boys. lol

 

Dude if you’re in college you’re probably going to want a Z based on reliability alone. As far as RX-8's go I would only ever buy one new. If you have done any research on them you should probably know that shortly before Mazda began producing these cars in America, the United States changed some of its laws regarding required minimum gas mileage for cars. The RX-8 did not meet this new law so instead of redesigning the car/engine, they simply required that U.S. 8's used 5W-20 motor oil instead of 5W-30 which is used in every country these cars are sold in but the U.S. The thinner oil allows for better gas mileage but the problem is that this oil is not thick enough for the rotary and wears away the seals extremely quickly. A.K.A. you will need a new engine, which is fine if you’re under warranty but sucks if the car has 50k mileage, is out of warranty, and you’re in college. I would encourage you to look into this more yourself on some of the rotary forums, they are very helpful. Do your research, the 7's and 8's are amazing cars but they can be horrible money pits if you don't know what you’re getting into.

 

rx8 is better

 

Yeah, RX7>RX8

 

I had an RX8 and sold it for the Z... best decision ever. And im a chick... so technically, they're both chick cars.

The only thing i miss about the 8 was the closed trunk... made my car look cleaner. It was slow as hell.

/$.02

 

The RX8 is one of the best handling cars of all time. It is like using a surgeons knife to clip every apex in the world. If anyones ever actually driven a prepped miata, you know that they are unbelievable in the cornors, but the slowest machines to ever grace the earth. The rx8 is an improvement on this, but still quite slow when compared to cars like the G/WRX/Evo etc.... The Z/G on the other handle, handles well, but it in a big tank that gets around the track without much grace. It doesn't handle in particular thrilling way, it is competant, but it has none of the grace of balance of the RX8. Like Tsuchiya said when the 350z was first released, it handles more like an american style sports car. It has the power, but is overweight and does not have even close to the beautiful steering rack that the rx8 possesses. The Z sets a good lap time, but you'll have more fun in the 8

 

Let me put it this way and correct me if i'm wrong here, about 2 grand will give a Z insane handling via coilovers. Will the same 2 grand fill the reliability and the power gap in the RX-8? Else, both cars cost about the same.

 

You cannot replicate lightness with suspension. I was talking about chassis balance, steering directness, and lightness. "Insane Handling" is a broad and sweeping generalization that does not cover the scope of the cars' differences in driving dynamics. Sure, it will improve the handling and reduce roll, but it will still handle like a 3300lb-3400lb car. Drive any car that is 500lb less. s2000, MR2 Turbo, Mini Cooper even. The way those cars handle is beautiful, you cannot replicate light weight with more power or stiffer suspension. I am talking about driving feel, not lap time. A lotus elise handles how it does because it is sub 2000k pounds. Sure 2k dollar coilover will make any car handle better, but if you put coilovers on an EVO and it won't handle like an Elise. If you've ever driven a prepped Miata with 235 series tire or wider, it'll revolutionize what you think about wheelbase, absolute grip, and ease of control below and beyond the limit of grip. They are fundamentally different in their purpose, design, concept, and production. The Z is the jack of all trade, does everything reasonably well at a decent price, but it doesn't really really stand out in one area. Everything is decent, nothing is amazing.

 

I raced(on a closed course ) a turbo RX-8 with a built engine (ceramic rotors or something like that ) and at the time I had CAI, Exhaust and a tune. It was so close it wasn't even funny he got me by about 1/2 a fender. He almost started crying he had an insane amount of money dumped into the engine/turbo kit he sold it shortly after that. So the 8 is certainly not going to be anywhere near as fast