New (to me) car... What to buy???

[martispeed]

I currently drive a Mp3 #474 as my daily driver and the miles are climbing up there at almost 142,000mi. I have been looking at a few options and the main two are a low mileage Rx8 or a MSM.

If I were to choose the Rx8, it would become my daily 4 season driver (with snows for winter) and I would sell my Mp3 for what ever I could.

If I were to choose the MSM I would keep my Mp3 as the DD for insurance purposes and as a winter car, thus using the MSM as a summer/ weekend car.

Now I know these are kinda 2 totally different cars but I absolutely love good handling cars and these are two that rank with the best... As for comparison, I know about all the rotary quirks and how a well maintained one "should" last, but lets not forget the all reliable miata 1.8. I have researched both and I just cant decide what would be the better option???

I guess I would just like to see what the rest of the community would do?

 

[JamesCH]

I'd rock the MS Miata plus your old car unless you could deal with having your only car be a RWD two-seater.

 

[MSP300]

yea man defenatly go with miata, those cars are awsome, never heard bad thing about it

 

[martispeed]

Yea I mean I just replaced my engine with a Jasper one 3X,XXX miles ago. Sooooo I have put quite a bit of money into it and it still has a warranty untill sometime summer 2011... So keeping it would probably be a good idea.

 

[martispeed]

Also if I ever wanted more out of the car performance wise... the MSM would probably be the best choice. But I just love the 9000 rpm goodness of the 8.

 

[SeR_Cyclops]

That 9000 rpm goodness, goes with a goodness full of headache.

The best thing that ever happened to the RX-7's were the LSX swaps.

 

[martispeed]

While some may agree, there are many Rx8 owners who have not had a single problem above and beyond the normal maintenance.

 

[SeR_Cyclops]

I knew a chick that had 3 motors and 2 trannys in her RX8 or something like that and she never beat on it or anything ever.

 

[JamesCH]

...she just found that oil light was very annoying... it kept on coming on all the time... anyway...

The Miata is one of the best sports cars ever made. I believe it's been the most popular sports car in the world since it was introduced.

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123756918&highlight=top+100+drivers+cars&page=9

 

[SeR_Cyclops]

If your saying she didn't take care of her car, then you are mistaken. My dad is a car dealer, and he talked to a Mazda mechanic that mostly all he did was change motors in RX8s. I have not heard anything bad about the Miatas. If I were you I would get the MSM. About the only thing good on the RX8s are the rims, and those belong on a protege HAHA lol they do look good on the protege though..... skip the headaches and get a miata.

 

[martispeed]

Did she drive it like she was supposed to tho... redline a day add oil every other fill up, did she ever premix, and so on…

 

[martispeed]

I mean I'm not trying to argue just get the full picture of her experience

 

[JamesCH]

That's a good point, if a performance car isn't ever pushed hard that can be almost as bad as abusing it. A co-worker of mine used to be a BMW mechanic and most of the engine problems he saw were from not pushing the car hard enough, which can lead to carbon build up and such. (shrug)

 

[Metallic36]

We had an RX8.. can't say I would EVER buy another.. freaking headache, thank God we traded it in, pretty stupid that it will flood if you simply start it up, back it up five feet, turn it off. Had to take out and clean the spark plugs, pour oil in the intake mani, finally got it running and took it to the dealership the next day. It's fine if you enjoy the extra bs that you have to do to it, add oil occasionally, sit there and warm it up completely before you drive it at all, rev it up to clear the carbon buildup before turning it off, drive the hell out of it to prevent carbon buildup.. so yeah, if you want all the extra crap then go for it, if you just want a normal car to get in and drive without having to worry about it flooding and carbon buildup, I'd vote for anything else.

 

[MSP300]

rx8 its hit or miss, if u get lucky its gonna work with no problems if not u just gonna keep fixing it. my neighbor had 2 rx 8 and no problems at all, my freind on the other hand had one it would flood, it had all knids of problems so he just get rid of it and got ms3

 

[martispeed]

We had an RX8.. can't say I would EVER buy another.. freaking headache, thank God we traded it in, pretty stupid that it will flood if you simply start it up, back it up five feet, turn it off. Had to take out and clean the spark plugs, pour oil in the intake mani, finally got it running and took it to the dealership the next day. It's fine if you enjoy the extra bs that you have to do to it, add oil occasionally, sit there and warm it up completely before you drive it at all, rev it up to clear the carbon buildup before turning it off, drive the hell out of it to prevent carbon buildup.. so yeah, if you want all the extra crap then go for it, if you just want a normal car to get in and drive without having to worry about it flooding and carbon buildup, I'd vote for anything else.

Yea I have read about your experience and this is what scares me with this car.. I mean I dont mind warming it up, adding oil, and hearing that beeeep at least once a day. But with buying an 8 used you would just never know how it was taken care of, just like any other one. I just feel that maintenance with this car is a bit more important

 

[Pastime-Gamer]

I love RX's and Miatas, either one would be sweet, but I'd go with the Miata myself. If I can ever become financially stable theres a NA or NB Miata with my name on it somewhere.

 

[Titanium_8]

Well, I have to say I love my 8. I've had not one single problem with it (knock on wood). There were flooding issues early in the production run due to weak starters and batteries, but those should have been fixed under a TSB. I've started and shut mine down almost immediately several times when I forget to warm it up and I've never had a flooding issue. I do premix with Lucas Upper Cylinder Lubricant to give a little better lubrication to help out the apex seals. The latest ECM flash increases the oil metering. I go through about an extra court of oil between changes (3000 miles). The new 8's have a redesigned oil system anyway, with an extra center injector, so reliability should be greatly increased. I would still premix though. Damn two cylce engines

I redline several times a day, it just begs to be driven hard. Most owners will tell you that's the key to longevity. Carbon buildup is the devil for this car, so you need to blow it out and you need to get the third set of intake ports to open up (>7500 rpm I believe).

The only bad thing I can think of is that I have squealing brakes, but I hear that's quite normal.

All that being said, if you don't need the rear seats, go with the Miata. With the new retractable hardtop, it's quite a nice machine. You won't get the stares as you drive by the grocery store, but you'll probably have more fun.
And you'll get hella better gas milage.

 

[martispeed]

Well, I have to say I love my 8. I've had not one single problem with it (knock on wood). There were flooding issues early in the production run due to weak starters and batteries, but those should have been fixed under a TSB. I've started and shut mine down almost immediately several times when I forget to warm it up and I've never had a flooding issue. I do premix with Lucas Upper Cylinder Lubricant to give a little better lubrication to help out the apex seals. The latest ECM flash increases the oil metering. I go through about an extra court of oil between changes (3000 miles). The new 8's have a redesigned oil system anyway, with an extra center injector, so reliability should be greatly increased. I would still premix though. Damn two cylce engines

I redline several times a day, it just begs to be driven hard. Most owners will tell you that's the key to longevity. Carbon buildup is the devil for this car, so you need to blow it out and you need to get the third set of intake ports to open up (>7500 rpm I believe).

The only bad thing I can think of is that I have squealing brakes, but I hear that's quite normal.

All that being said, if you don't need the rear seats, go with the Miata. With the new retractable hardtop, it's quite a nice machine. You won't get the stares as you drive by the grocery store, but you'll probably have more fun.
And you'll get hella better gas milage.

Hey thanks for the post... and truly I am leaning towards an 8. I have never been much of a vert. guy but I figured if I got a miata I would get used to it. Truly I have no clue though, one day its this the next its that... but I always seem to go back to the Rx8 almost like shes calling for me hahaha

 

[Titanium_8]

I don't know if you've checked out RX8club.com, but it's a good source of info. Read this link if you want to be convinced to get the 8:

http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?t=67045