Mazda RX-8

The new Mazda RX-8 is truly a sports car like no other, with a revolutionary concept — a twin rotary engine sports car, an exterior design that is pure emotion, along with four doors and room for up to four adults. No other model bearing the five- point grille exemplifies Zoom-Zoom as clearly as this. The new Mazda RX-8 is indicative of the future of sports car technology at Mazda — sporty and functional, but never boring.

The equipment list is made up by a Bluetooth connectivity function, auxiliary jack an MP3 player, auto light and rain sensor system and a new 5-speaker 4-woofer BOSE sound system. With Bilstein dampers and a front suspension cross member filled with urethane foam, the refreshed RX-8 has an improved body shell rigidity thanks to trapezoidal strut tower bar added at the front suspension. Also, both torsional (twisting) rigidity and flexural (bending) rigidity were improved by 5.4% and 8.7% respectively.
The rear suspension geometry has been slightly reconfigured as well and the size of the upper lateral link’s joint section has been increased by 7.5 mm for better control of toe-out change at rebound. Steering feel has also been improved with an enhancement made to the main bar joint of the instrument panel for more rigidity of the steering mount area. Mazda has also redesigned the underbody airflow with a redesigned and extended floor covering. These measures, along with the above mentioned new front bumper and a floating-type rear spoiler, help reduce lift to improve drivability.

Engine wise, the same 1.3 liter Renesis powerplant (short for rotary engine genesis) is retained. It can produce 231HP at 8,200 revs and 211Nm of torque at 5,500 revs. A number of improvements were made the drivetrain system including an improved drive shaft torsional rigidity (by 30%) – which helps improve driving performance and reduce NVH and a lower differential gear ratio (from 4.444 to 4.777). Also included is a two-knock sensor system which detects and prevents knock better. The RX-8 facelift sprints from naught to 100 km/h in 6.4 seconds and goes up to a top speed of 234 km/h.

The 6 speed manual transmission (also used in the 3rd generation MX-5) has also been reworked to handle the higher torque figures. It uses specially designed 1st and 2nd gear synchronisers made of carbon and enlarged triple-cone synchronizes for 3rd and 4th gears, also made of carbon. The bearing cover is strengthened as well, and the transmission case size is slightly reduced for an improvement in internal lubrication performance. The facelifted RX-8 also has a larger fuel tank (improved from 61.8 liters to 65.4 liters).

Priced at just over $26,400 to start, the Mazda RX-8 merits serious consideration from motoring enthusiasts. Quick and incredibly agile, it’s easily the most fun to be had at that cost. Options, like our tester’s Grand Touring package’s power, heated, leather-trimmed seats; 300-watt Bose sound system; moonroof; stability control; xenon HID headlamps and “smart key” system with the credit card-sized fob that stays in your wallet are relatively inexpensive and well-executed as well. Still, that stuff’s superfluous; speed and sportiness come standard.