No Rotary for Me

In the last post, I mentioned about the Nissan Fairlady 350Z and how it is so cheap these days but not one to be considered in Malaysia. Next up in the list, I have the Mazda RX-8 and I am very sure, I will receive some negative criticism about this blog post. There are many fanboys out there who believe that the RX-8 is a great JDM sports car. Let us start with the current market price for a RX-8. For a 2003 RX-8, both AT and MT is selling from around RM 45,000 to RM 67,000, depending on condition and modification. When you compare to the 350Z, it is a cheaper choice but it also could sell for more than what a 350Z could get for the same year. As you know from the previous post, the predecessor of the RX-8, the RX-7 FD3S could fetch a handsome selling price from RM 75,000 and above. I think by now it is safe to conclude that JDM sports car from the 90s that achieved "Legendary" status will cost a bomb and stop decreasing in value after a certain age in Malaysia. These Legends includes the Honda NSX, the Nissan GT-R R35, Mazda RX-7 FD3S and Toyota Supra. Other models that are not as legendary but still popular, will experience similar pricing.

Rx-7 FD3S vs RX-8

The Legend 4

Any enthusiast can tell you that the RX-8 would not be facing a problem with its road tax issue like the 350Z because we all know that the RX-8 have a RENESIS 13B-MSP rotary engine and is rated 1.3 liter. The road tax is only RM 70 and it is very, very affordable. This is the main reason the RX-8 is so popular in Malaysia. You get 190 bhp (4 AT) and 250 (Type S, MT) from the engine but only pay so little in road tax. Definitely a good bargain and a good selling point. Beside this advantage over the 350Z in terms of road tax, the RX-8 also wins by having rear seats and a decent boot. The RX-8 can sit 2 more people and these 2 person could access the rear seats thanks to 2 special doors. What makes these 2 doors so special is not just because it is rare to find rear doors on a coupe but because these are not ordinary doors but are suicide doors. These suicide doors make it easier to enter the rear seats than reclining the front seats on a regular coupe and it sure hell is awesome looking (not as much as gullwing doors though). So, what is the downside of a RX-8 ? Well, the answer, ironically is actually its engine. Owners are proud of the high-revving, high power 13B engine but there are many rumors and facts regarding how high maintenance the engine is and how difficult it is to keep it in good shape. Few of them are having to drive only after a warm up, having to wait for engine to cool down before turning off ignition and the engine is thirsty for engine oil and petrol. If you ever have big issues with the engine, it is easier to get a new engine to transplant compared to having the engine fix. Malaysia do not have many experts who knows how the rotary engines fully work and that worries potential buyers. If you look in the market, there are many RX-8 for sale. It could be the engine or the difficulty in maintaining the engine that made owners sell their RX-8. Price naturally decreases when supplies are high but demands are low.

RX-8 engine bay without cover

Cross section of Rotary Engine

All doors open with rear suicide doors

The RX-8 have never appealed to me as attractive especially the front view despite the many good review on how great the design is and how much of a chick magnet it is. I could not get over the bulbous front and the huge, round front fenders that is in my opinion, too much in your face. The pre-facelift front bumper is definitely ugly and is in need of a cosmetic surgery such as the Mazdaspeed bodykit. Another thing that I dislike about the RX-8 is the attitude and the reputation of its owners in Malaysia. Most of them have too much pride about their RX-8s and cause trouble among other JDM owners online or on the road. When I was still riding in my Celica, I once raced a RX-8 which I felt was a 4 speed AT model and I was on its tail the whole time. RX-8 owners (especially AT owners) love to mention that they have 200 bhp at their disposal from a small 1.3 liter engine and definitely could outrun most of the JDMs out there. That includes the "slow" Celica and that really bugs me. They seem to forget that their RX-8 is a RWD and not much power from the engine is left after power loss during transfer to the rear wheels via the long shaft. Compare to the Celica that is FWD, I think both cars have similar whp and with similar 4 speed AT, the Celica would have a fair fight and even win. I only know one person that used to own a RX-8, an ex-gf and she only mentioned that the seats are not comfortable and it drinks petrol like it is water. I do however, remember there is one thing that I do like about the RX-8 when it first came out and that is the cluster meter of the car. It is one of the earliest if not first to have a digital speedometer and this is more convenient when the speed-cut is removed. I remember having to source for an add-on speedometer for my Celica after I removed the speed cut.

Mazdaspeed RX-8

RX-8 Cluster with Digital Speedometer

Every time I imagine myself buying a RX-8, I would always think that beside its looks, the 13B engine is the main problem. I had ideas of replacing the rotary engine with some other engines but could not narrow it down to one engine. Then, one day while looking online, I found a 2003 RX-8 completely modified with a Toyota 3 liter, 2JZ-GTE engine from a Toyota Supra (AT) for RM 63,800. I was shocked at the choice and wonder how was this transplant approved by the government ? I would never have imagine to find out that this huge, powerful engine could fit in the engine bay of a RX-8 because the original engine was quite small in size. This transplant would allow this RX-8 to be more faster and have the reliability of a Toyota. A wonderful solution to its Achilles' heel but at the same time increases its road tax by 300% and now we have a dilemma. Mazda knew about its problem and in 2009, the facelift version came out and there were some revision to the 13B engine making it a more efficient model even by a small margin and the AT receive a new 6 speed gearbox. If you think maybe you should get a 2009 model, you will be disappointed to know that not many facelift model made it into Malaysia and even if you find one, it would be quite pricey. Now you know why the Mazda RX-8 made it into my cheap but no thanks list.

Toyota's 2JZ-GTE engine in RX-8 (photo from actual online ad)