- When it comes down to
automotive enthusiasts making mistakes, you can pretty much... probably just look back and
recollect on your lung... young life, like that
one time you took off your oil cap after driving 45 minutes because you wanted to check something out. 'Cause apparently, that's what
you do, or stomping on it. You know, the car, the
accelerator 'cause the car is chugging along and you
thought just sending it would somehow fix your timing issue or maybe you just decided to purchase someone else's halfway finished build. It's a little too real that one. Either way, we make
mistakes because either we don't know any better
or because we're just willing to risk it for the biscuit. All right, I'm Alex;
@ALEX.FI on Instagram, and today, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to be talking about a platform that is by definition
either a purchase you made by complete accident before researching or you said to yourself
I'm willing to take that calculated risk and I'm
not that bad at math, okay. We're bringing you the triangle
heavy, the need for speed exclusive, the talk of the 2000s: The Mazda RX-8. (footsteps) (cars honking) (techno hip hop) And if you're just
jumping into this channel for the first time ever or you're a tease that's just scared of
commitment, just press the damn subscribe button so we can keep making banging videos like this, and if you're looking for
aftermarket wheels, tires, or suspensions, be sure to check out www.fitmentindustries.com,
where we have it all. Either for your newly acquired
Mazda RX-8 or otherwise, because seriously, that's what we do. It's why there's 9,000 pounds of wheels on the wall behind me,
or maybe you just want to pick up on of these
cool dad hats, brother. They're on the website; look at that! The Dorito RX-8 was a car that had all the recipes for success. It was the next generation
of the RX lineup for Mazda, who had recently inherited
quite a bit of... money by Ford. Like, a lot of it and really,
to make the history short, this gave Mazda this thing
they were looking for. This little bit of tough time acquiring in the old USA style thing. It's currency. They wanted it, they got it from Ford and Mazda began to see the
resurgence of the important Tudor modifications seeming
again to explode in the late 90s from the friends down the road like Nissan, Toyota, Mitsubishi. You see, at the time,
Mazda really only had the Miata in their little line up, which although it was a happy little guy, wasn't really what they
wanted to solely focus on for their sports car market segment. So Mazda brought a
little bit of sugar from the previous generation
RX-7, little bit of spice from the Mazda Cosmo, and a little bit of everything nice from the
prototype variant of the RX-7 from 1995 to now to come
up with a good old RX-8. The car had to fight to be made. The world was moving to
SUVs and although it jumped to nickname from prototype, it survived. At one point it was even
called the Gokiburi-sha. That's terrible, but
it means cockroach car. Don't tell your friends that one, okay, but it's something that you need to know. When the car finally reached
the point of production, Mazda made the requirement that the successor needed to be four doors. So the designers, they made it so. It featured these little unique suicide doors that made
it have four seats. It featured the design cues
from Ikuo Maeda, the son of Matasaburo Maeda, the lead
designer of the original RX-7. I'm so bad with names and I'm sorry. It's the accent and it's
the fact that I just... I'm trying, okay. The car had 50-50 weight distribution, plastic exterior pieces to
save weight and/or money, and the iconic Wankel
rotary engine that made its successor such a prominent
car in the automotive scene. It featured carbon fiber goodies to keep the drive shaft
rotational mass low and had a sophisticated
suspension system that had a combination of a double
wishbone and multi-link. And guess what? It worked. When the first generation
came out, the world paused. What is this, said you, okay? What's a Wankel, all right?
Who's rotary, all right? Why are Dorito chips so
popular all of a sudden? What's a MySpace? The first generation RX-8 came in a few limited models, either a four
port or six port RENESIS, which is either kept to
around 190 and 240 horsepower, there were automatic
and manual transmissions that were available for the car depending on the trim and the power. Over the next few years,
the RX-8 would see about 9,000,000 different trims, depending on what country
you watch Cartoon Network in because honestly, Mazda just ... If you had a pulse, they would make a special edition car for you and truly the car was everywhere, and it was received pretty well. People praised the driving quality, the balance, the high
revving nature of the car, while also being spacious
enough for more than one and a half people that you
could only fit in the Miata. There was a wee bit of an
issue between 2004 and 2008 where the Mazda had to suffer from the warranty extension program, not that that's a big deal whatsoever, but we'll get into it. It's not a big deal everyone! Just let's keep her moving okay. We're not gonna talk about it right now. In 2008 the RX-8 would receive a makeover with some decent changes to itself to keep people interested
in the triangle happy car. Had better headlights,
more rigidity, okay, added an oil port to the Wankel, and it changed last year to overall make it quicker, more responsive, and better connected to the ground. Unfortunately, we really
wouldn't see the RX-8 stay alive too much longer, because
it didn't meet the emission standards of
Europe in 2010, all right. Little bit of a shortstop that one. Shortly after, Mazda would call it quits for the Japanese models and USA as well. The second generation was
still a banger, all right, but the interest in the model
would inevitably leave it to be less desirable than
their happy little counterpart. The one that used to have the (zerbert). Doesn't help when your car doesn't meet a massive requirement to
sell in an entire continent, but you know what? It's a Wankel, all right. Everyone only seems to
remember giving the RX-8 a bad rep for its reliability, but during it's heyday, it earned quite a few trophies to put up in its garage, including Japanese Car of the Year, Australia Wheels Car of the Year. It ran and won Singapore's
Car of the Year, US Best Sports Car, UK Best Sports Car, Top Ten List from Car and Driver, Third Best Handling Car
for Less Than $100,000, and even a few others, but
we're done with telling you that information because we're done
telling history, all right. We're here to give you spark notes, we're here not to give you the whole exam. That's enough to get
you a solid B+ on your next automotive history test
and we're okay with that, because you got to get through college. We're here to talk
about you wanting to own one of these Pythagorean
theorem looking cars, okay. So you want a Mazda RX8, well
put down the internet thread about you arguing about LS
swaps and let's just jump in. The RX-8 is a tough kid,
okay, not every parent is gonna be able to handle
it and you need to know if you're really, truly ready. There's an individual,
his name was A Cursed Axe on the internet, probably put
it best to review is own RX-8 and he said, "Because in the
hands of the most people, even the most skilled
auto-enthusiast, an RX-8 is like a metal Dorito whirling time bomb just waiting to blow up someone's wallet, time, and general love of automobiles." I really couldn't say it better than that. The RX-8 is truly a nimble car. It makes even the most avid
enthusiast feel like a pro. It's decent to work on
and it gets the job done. As stated before by many people, it's one of the best cars and
worst cars to probably own. The motors have a tendency to explode, coil packs just don't like to
live, the catalytic converter constantly tries to strangle the motor, the wiring was done by
a 70s Dodson engineer, and the transmissions
refuse to keep all their gears for more than 70,000 miles, and these are just really the big items. There's a barrage of tiny
little quirks and features that are really kind of make
the RX-8 a difficult car, that more than likely
keep it off the road, and more likely in your garage, and at the end of the day it's
not really where you want it. But that does not mean that
can't or shouldn't own one. You see RX-7 and RX-8
owners are a special breed. They're like that kid that gets hit with the ball and just goes "Yes! Yes!" (child screaming yes) You know that one that I'm talking about? They just love abuse. They thrive off of it,
they enjoy the struggle, the toughness of it. They're just like film photographers. They love to do it
because it's hard, okay, but the reward can sometimes
sort of be worth it. Half the reward to be honest
is just telling everyone that you drive a rotary, but
that's besides the point. When the cars do behave,
they're fantastic. They look pretty good, they feel great, they rev 2,000,000 RPMS, they look fantastic with BBSs or WORK Wheels. Put them on some Pollos,
which is pretty much what everybody runs on these and some Tane oil-overs and you're set. If you want to get them from www.fitmentindustries.com, that'd help. And some aesthetic stuff to pretty much make it pull everything together and you got a good looking Wankel car. But just like those disclaimers you hear in the medical commercials that apparently only seem to air in
the USA, the Mazda RX-8 should probably require an asterisk on every single Craigslist ad you see. Mazda RX-8s are not a
substitute for a daily driver. Mazda RX-8 can and my cause
additional side effects such as losing 10 millimeters,
frequent heartache, migraines, nausea, anger,
and potential sadness. Mazda RX-8 should only be
used two times per week, and during normal business hours. Taking Mazda RX-8s outside
the recommended time frame may result in late night
phone calls and towing fees. Do not take Mazda RX-8
if you're pregnant or may become pregnant as Mazda RX-8s
may cause additional stress. If you cannot operate your
Mazda RX-8 after two attempts, call a doctor and inform
them the motor is flooded, as that always seems to be the case. In all honesty, RX-8s are just
like any other unique car. Be nice to it, love it,
and when you do modify it, especially with those wheels,
tires, and suspension from your boys at www.fitmentindustries.com,
you can at least be disappointed when it's
sitting in your garage for the third month straight,
but it looks damn good. It looks neat. - For the two years I've had my RX-8, I've never had a single
problem with it, until now. - It's honesty a good car, it's just one of those difficult ones, and if you do end up picking one up, I bless your heart and I
wish you the best of luck. What do you think about Mazda RX-8s? Were we a little mean or was it a little bit of a fair trade? Drop your thoughts below and don't forget to let us know what car you'd
like to see us cover next. If you have an aftermarket Mazda RX-8, add it to our gallery at
www.fitmentindustries.com/add and don't forget to subscribe. I'm Alex from Fitment Industries
and we will see you later. Peace!
