I've heard what the rx8 community has to say and now Id like to hear what the Z community thinks.
Ive been driving an 04 rx8 6spd for the past 2yrs and I love my car. However, I use to drive a 90 300zx 2+2 and it holds the title as "my favorite car ever" (so far). I recently picked up am 05 350z that the owner abandoned for 2yrs at a property where I work. It took me a few months to track the owner down (who had moved literally to the opposite side of the country), but it was definitely worth it. He shippes me keys and title saying he had no way to get it and had no where to keep it in the BIG city where he now lives....SCOOOOOOORE !!!! After fresh gas, fresh fluids and a new battery, the car started right up. The previous owner told me it ran perfectly but I was obviously skeptical. Owner told me it has Berk test pipes, Invidia N1 exhaust and an intake spacer. The only problem wirh the car is that the rear passenger coilover is bent to **** due to previous owner "slicing a pole". I'll assume he means that he slid into one becasue theres a dent next to fuel door and that coilover looks as punished as could be. I inspected the rear end closely with the car up on jackstands and the rest looks great. I've ordered a single coilober strut from Raceland and will replace it this weekend. So hopefully my free Z will be on the road soon. Now for what I'm here for....
My rx8 is fast ,but not quick. Meaning that enen though it's a 6spd, it's still not winning many races from the jump. Now from a rolling 40 I'll punish most cars on the road around here. On a track it's pretty dominant too. Best handling car ever. It shines when in the upper rpms (7,000-9,000). At a rolling 40 I'm in 2nd gear at aroumd 7k rpm.....car redlines and clips about 9,200. So it's an incredibly fun car, BUT.... The upkeep is rediculous, buying or rebuilding the engine every 2-3yrs is just insane and the lack of low end is disheartening. Im honestly leaning towards selling the rx8 and putti g every penny into the Z. Somebody sell me or talk me out of it.

 

The Z is the superior car IMO

 

My perspective is one from door-to-door racing. The RX8 is a great handling car, but the lack of any low-end torque severely limits it. Both cars have great brakes, particularly if you've got the Brembo brake option. But overall, the 350Z is simply faster and it's not even close. Add in the lack of powertrain durability and good resale pricing for the RX8 and I'd sell it quick.

 

My experience with an NA FC and my previous go'round with a 12A rotary taught me a couple things that dkmura already pointed out (as well as in your original post): Rotaries, as fun as they are, make very little torque and as we all know, it's torque that gets the car rolling, not horsepower. So, from that perspective, a Z33/34 will immediately have more grunt off the line than an RX7/8, owing to it's decent displacement. (FD is another story with sequential snails...whew...)

But.... and I know I'll get flamed for saying this but Zs just aren't that fast unless boosted. But, not saying that's a bad thing at all. I have plenty of fun in the hills and valleys with applications of decent power and decent torque. But, that said, you really gotta force feed a Z to make it fast all around. All of the NA mods in the world, especially when you're going for max NA power, needs cams. And once you do that, you're starting to get back into a "not a lot of usable power down low but plant your eyeballs above 5k". Even the HR engine vs DE proves that point.

Seriously, you want power from the get AND the go? V8. My other car proves that one to me every day. Displacement AND FI, down low or up high, just works.

The Z, IMO, is a better car. Mazdas, as much as I like them (car I'm looking at for our other home is a Mazda), feel cheaper to me. I could be wrong, not having spent an extended period of time with them.

 

I would have to agree with the previous comments whole heartedly. Not putting down Mazda's or the RX8 specifically, but the Z is just a better performing car. You sound mechanically inclined so with a little bit of elbow grease and a few extra parts, you can make the Z to your liking.