Have you ever had this experience? A tone invades the cabin of your car. It's coming from the engine but it sounds like a choir of aliens. But, wait! It t is so integral to your existence you become one with the universe? No? Well, then, I guess you have not heard the engine of a Mazda RX8. That is a sound that makes you whole.
I step into the Mazda RX8. The car is flawless. It's roomy in the cabin. The seats are very comfortable on a couple of long rides--and, to boot, they are heated. I did get all my stuff into the trunk though it was a bit of a squeeze. I let a friend drive it and he was so taken with the car, he convinced himself that it was a family car. "No," I heard him say, "this could be a family car." That's how bad this car gets to you.
It is rear wheel drive, equipped with a 1.3 liter Rotary engine that doles out 232 horsepower and 159 lb.-ft. of torque. The engine is paired with a 6-speed manual transmission, and power assist 4-wheel ventilated disc brakes.
My car was tarted up with a sparkling red called Velocity Red MC that complimented the 18-inch aluminum wheels quite nicely. There was only one choice for the interior color of this car--black leather. I would not term this vehicle a family car, but it has suicide doors and those two back seats will fit adults okay. Anyway, if you're the owner of this car, you're really not going to worry that much about the comfort of back seat passengers.
I like the way the eyebrow headlamps work within the fluid design of the car, but at night in the country on those deer-infested roads, I yearned for more light to spot them. It's just fun to have an open moon roof in a car like RX-8 on a beautiful night.
The only thing that I didn't care for is that gas mileage isn't great--16 city/22 highway and since it requires premium fuel and I could not stop driving the car, I spent a few pesos on gasoline over the weekend.
My vehicle was a 2011 and as optioned it cost $33,055 including destination.
I returned the car Sunday night, as I usually do, and I wept. I owned a Miata and when people ask me what my favorite vehicle is, I always say that Miata. With all its flaws--not that many--it was to me the car most in sync with my motor personality. I will add the RX8 to my conversations from here on out.
What was Ford thinking when it divorced itself from Mazda? This company makes such great cars.
