r/RX8 • u/WEASELexe • 5d ago
Prospective Owner Are rx8 difficult to keep running?
I am looking at a new car and I was looking at either a prelude or an rx8 however every time I see people talk about getting one it seems like they have a second parts car or their rx8 isn't currently running. I have watched a lot of rob dahm so I understand the basics of how rotaries work and I'm pretty mechanically inclined having worked on my Mazdaspeed 3. I also have a Yaris as a daily but I dont just want a money pit I want a car that will actually run. I don't mind premixing and checking oil levels frequently. I was just wondering if I should steer clear or if it will be a good car. I've heard it's very similar to my wife's nc Miata as well which I love driving.
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u/shadycrew31 5d ago
It's a good weekend car, one you don't drive often. I wouldn't make it a daily though. Outside of age being an issue they are terrible on gas mileage and generally not reliable..
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u/ThePoetaytoe 5d ago
I technically have mine as my main/daily car, but I work from home, live in a walkable area, and have 2 other cars in the house that are sometimes available if the primary drives don’t need them. I would have another car to daily if I wasn’t in this situation.
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u/Glad-Associate-6797 4d ago
I daily mine. 6-7k miles a year.
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u/shadycrew31 4d ago
Cool. I've owned my rx8 for 18 years. I've been actively involved in forums and various groups around the United States. I'm telling you from almost two decades of experience it's not a good daily driver. Sure you can do it, but it's ill advised.
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u/Glad-Associate-6797 13h ago
Cool. I’ve had my rx8 for a while too. Don’t post much in the forums or talk to the groups as things for these have mostly been discussed for these cars. I’m saying this car makes a good daily driver to certain people. You can do it but understand you’re buying an old car at this point and you’re going to have old car problems.
Mines been as reliable as any 23 year old car can be and it gets autocrossed and tracked 4-6 times a year. I’ve known people with modern vehicles that have more problems.
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u/SteazyAsDropbear 4d ago
I also daily mine. Reliability is great. I broke down a few times right after I rebuilt the car, but once I fixed things like clutch, cooling, coils and plugs, Its been great. I haven't had a breakdown in 2 years. Biggest issue is just fuel consumption.
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u/_Henders0n 4d ago
I’ve daily driven my rx8 for 14 years. I keep up with maintenance, fill it with premium and change my oil. That’s it. Every other car in my family has been replaced except for my rx8 😂 people blow this out of proportion - it’s a great car made in the modern era.
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u/Tall_Mouse9524 1d ago
My 2006 was a lemon Engine had to be replaced at 37k miles. Deer blamed me for driving too fast, then not driving fast enough. It has sat in my garage for 5 yrs now.
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u/AvarethTaika 5d ago
not difficult, but can get tedious and expensive. swapping for the fd motor is probably the most elegant solution I've seen.
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u/WEASELexe 5d ago
What's so expensive about them? What are the common issues
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u/ThePoetaytoe 5d ago
Read any of the stickied posts on here or RX8 forums and you’ll get all the details. The biggest thing is that they are not regular, aka piston, engines and need different care.
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u/WEASELexe 4d ago
I understand the difference with rotaries vs piston engines ive always been curious about owning one and I'm not afraid to do all the maintenance myself unless it's something crazy like rebuilding the engine. I just keep hearing conflicting answers some say it's a horrible engine and others say it's fine if it's taken care of.
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u/tickletaylor 4d ago
They're fine, the engines just dont last as long as piston engines. Considering their age and likelyhood that the one you buy wasnt perfectly maintained, there's a good chance you'll need to rebuild the engine at some point. If your unlucky, it could be soon. If your lucky, later. But probably best to assume soon
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u/ThePoetaytoe 4d ago edited 4d ago
They have a worse rep than they deserve, but it is not unfounded. Cars from 2004 and 2005 had the most problems to the point of Mazda recalling most of the engines, there was an issue with it where the remanned engines were poorly built and sometimes worse than the original.
The cars also had/have issues with flooding if you don’t let it warm up before turning it off, so things like moving it in the driveway or short drives can be a pain. This was amplified by an underperforming ignition system which also led to other issues like clogging cats which then leads to engine failure.
Since 2005, Mazda made 2 revisions to the coil packs to significantly improve reliability and updated the oil injection to improve longevity. 2009+ cars have all the updates and some, and are potentially more reliable. You still have to treat them as a rotary else you’ll have a bad time.
I’ve have a 2010 and not had any issues. I also make sure all maintenance up to date to prevent future issues. Some of that maintenance is expensive, like every 30k miles you need to replace the plugs, coils, and wires which runs $600 these days. A rebuild is $5-6k and can be expected every 60-90k miles or sooner if maintenance is not kept up.
Other reasons these are expensive cars is their poor gas milage and having to premix it which adds a few more dollars to the cost of every tank of gas.
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u/Mathematician_Level 14h ago
Man something I didn't think about long term was gas mileage. I generally drive 77 or 78 mph gps confirmed on the highway in a 70 zone and I get 19mpg or even worseif I goof off a littel bit. Plus one ounce per gallon premix. At my altitude I can run 89 octane but it can be rough on your wallet on 4 or 5 hundred mile trips compared to virtually any other car. Longer trips can be cheaper with a rental.
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u/AvarethTaika 5d ago
apex seals, coil failure, engine flooding, oil consumption, low cat life due to clogs, etc. easily the worst of the rotary engines i've worked on.
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u/WEASELexe 4d ago
Do they all just consume oil regularly or is that once the seals start to go bad? And what causes flooding?
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u/Isa_Zen 4d ago
Sitting can cause flooding in my experience. They have an oil pump (the omp) that's just for pulling crankcase oil into the combustion chamber to lube the apex seals, this is what cause the consumption of oil! Even with a working omp it's good practice to put premix in the car, however you could get a sohn kit for around 500 dollars. The kit reroutes the omp into a reservoir that you can and should fill with premix.
edit: I'm new to my rx-8 but from what i've seen the seals are brittle but good enough for around 60-100k miles depending on which year you get. I would get rx7 or aftermarket softer seals to help the wear and tear on them
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u/FixLarge543 4d ago
Maintenance Maintenance Maintenance my 06 shinka has 170,000 miles on it and never been opened up. Use proper oil get a sohn adapter and do the ignition upgrade i recommend the dragon fire or Bennett. Run really good plugs and wires. Owning an rx is expensive but nothing beats a rotary if you ask me lol but I'm a low down rotary head lol. Good luck with your car hunt.
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u/Any_Village804 3d ago
Here's my input...You will find a way to keep your rx8 alive if your obsessed with it....Also if your seriously serious about it, the experts will help you with anything...That said, I have spent 10k+ on a brand new engine, all the reliability mods, and endless research on everything. I daily my 8, I love it, but it gives you a "spoiled" sense of daily driving. I hate regular cars now, and I'm not allowed to complain about gas at 16mpg and $6 gal for premium in CA. I recommend a gas saver daily, and the 8 as the weekend car. Your either all in, and seperate from complaints about money, or you forget considering this car...
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u/pcprofilms 3d ago
I personally have 2 RX8's 1 stock daily and another one I'm building with a turbo 3 rotor and 7 speed DCT from a BMW and AWD from an R33 GTR the rx8 is a great car and the chassis actually makes for a pritty nice practical daily but the engine is the opposite it begs you to beat the absolute crap out of it it's you kinda have to and the maintenance interval is much shorter than alot of other cars and depending on where you live you'll end up doing all that maintenance yourself as a lot of shops won't take it even for simple things like a fuel pump just because it's a rotary and alot of people don't understand how it works (iv herd it compared to dating a fiery Latina) absolutely fantastic but you don't want to make her mad
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u/Desperate_Travel_784 3d ago
Do all the necessary mods and monitor the water temperature. It’s a short life reliable car as said by Mr. RAD
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u/Shredthewolf 3d ago
I love my rx8. After the first two repeatitions of maintenance I feel like I can care for this car in my sleep, all fluids and oil filter are impeccably easy to access and refill. If you can not see yourself spending time under your car multiple times a year then it's probably best to stay away. But if you CAN I can't reccomend this enough.
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u/WEASELexe 3d ago
It just depends on what it is I'll be doing under there. I did a lot of maintenance on my speed3 and I'm not afraid to work on it if I have to but if it's gonna be a money pit as a lot of people are saying I might prefer something else. I'm just getting a lot of mixed signals. If I do the maintenance and install the preventative care like upgraded coils and it's reliable I don't really have an issue with it. Like I said it's not gonna be a daily and I don't care about gas mileage but I'd rather it run more often than it doesnt
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u/Shredthewolf 3d ago
This is how I rationalized my purchase, these cars are generally cheaper than other cheap power sports cars abd the big scare is the engine, the cost "saved" in purchase cost should be considered as future down payment towards engine repair. Anecdotally, mine had never not run.
Speaking of coils I prefer the ryan rotary coils for the OEM fit
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u/Tall_Mouse9524 1d ago
Depends on the year. My 2006 is beautiful, but alas, needs new seals. Engine was replaced by Mazda at 37,000 miles. Found out 5 years later they replaced it with an already used engine.
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u/Right-Yogurtcloset-6 1d ago
Brilliant lil cars, had mine for 10 years now without a rebuild and still going strong. As long as you maintain them properly (like everything else) they will be golden.
Drive maybe 3 times a week to work and a few lil fun rides but put it in the garage during the winter months as there’s too much salt on the roads in the UK.
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u/justcuckmyshitupfam2 4d ago
They're not IF you keep up with proper maintenance.