2616cc 
Alloy Wheels
SMOOTH ROTOVATOR
Mazda RX8 (2003 – To Date)
Introduction
History of the RX8
The styling, while challenging and fresh, was nowhere near as slinky and menacing as the old RX-7. It looked as if Mazda had changed a street racer into a rather sit up and beg coupe. With four doors, it hardly looked like something that would put the frighteners on Porsche the way the RX-7 did. Still, despite, or perhaps because of, its less hardcore appeal, the RX-8 soon found favour with customers. Two models were available, one with 189bhp and another with a claimed 237bhp. A brief embarrassment followed when US versions of the ‘237bhp’ car were found to be routinely producing 228bhp, and Mazda’s power claims were rounded down in this country.
Drawing many plaudits from an enraptured press, the RX-8 has shown that bold design and engineering can find favour with consumers.
Why should I buy a RX8?
Four-door coupes are pretty thin on the ground, the term practically reading like a contradiction, but this one has been carefully thought out. The rear-hinged back doors create a pillarless profile and despite their truncated dimensions, allow easy entry and egress to and from the rear pair of seats. It’s an idea that Rolls-Royce have adopted for their Phantom and it works very well.
The doors may attract the causal observer but as anybody who knows anything about Mazda’s RX series of cars knows, the real Unique Selling Proposition lies under the bonnet in the form of a compact rotary engine. Rather than use a conventional internal combustion engine in which a number of pistons pump up and down in their respective cylinders to provide the motive power, a rotary engine like the one used by Mazda instead adopts a completely different engineering solution. Two triangular rotors spin in ellipsoidal chambers which, as any student engineer will attest, is a very elegant theory. Why? Because constantly spinning a rotor is a far more efficient use of energy than the wasteful, reciprocating motion of a piston accelerating from 0mph at the end of its travel up to around 40mph and then decelerating to 0mph at the other end of the cylinder, all in the space of a hundredth of a second.
That’s the theory. In fact rotary engines have a reputation for being thirsty, dirty and difficult to maintain. Mazda claimed to have addressed these issues with the RENESIS engine found in the RX-8, the powerplant winning the 2003 Engine Of The Year award. As well as building on the traditional virtues of rotary engines, namely their smooth revving nature, their low weight and their flat, broad spread of torque, Mazda ironed out many of the bugbears. The efficiency of the engine was improved by a fundamental redesign of the way air and fuel are pulled into the combustion chamber and the way that exhaust gases are ported out. Cleanliness was improved as well, with unburnt hydrocarbons being recycled back into the chamber for another torching. As regards durability, Mazda worked hard to exorcise the demon of rotor tip wear using high tech materials and their engineers obviously had a clear understanding of the thermodynamics at work in the engine. The result was an engine that can rev to 9,000rpm without ever feeling strained. It settles to a hum at idle but then just zings straight up to the redline with turbine-like smoothness.
How much could I expect to pay?
What should I look out for?
Check the wheels for signs of kerbing and also take a look at the back end for signs of parking damage. The RX-8 isn’t fitted with a rear wiper and the high tail often renders delicate manoeuvres mere guesswork.
Are parts expensive?
What is a RX8 like to drive?
Fuel consumption still isn’t what you’d describe as stellar, although it’s certainly a good deal less thirsty than the RX-7. Expect to average 25.6mpg in the 189bhp version and 24.3mpg for the 228bhp car. In reality, it will require a very disciplined right foot to return such figures over the course of an ownership spell as the RX-8 is one of those cars with an infectious nature that tempts you into frequent right boot to the bulkhead progress.
