Off the bat, the RX-8 is unusual; it was designed as a sports car and drives like a sports car, but there's a real trunk, four doors and a different kind of engine. Weird or not, it still has to measure up to such coupes as the
Nissan Altima and
Mitsubishi Eclipse , but also newcomers like the
BMW 135i .
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The RX-8 is unusual; it was designed as a sports car and drives like a sports car. |
The RX-8 has been on the market since the 2003 model year, and it's showing its age. Sales seem to have been good for Mazda's four-door sport model (we'll still call it a coupe, since the rear doors are of the suicide-type) and there are quite a few on the road. Happily, Mazda is refreshing the
RX-8 for 2009, but there remains a nice limited-edition 2008 model that appeared last spring.
Happy birthday, Cosmo The 1967 Mazda Cosmo Sport was the first car the company produced with Felix Wankel's rotary engine. Mazda developed a 1.0-litre, 2-rotor engine that produced 110 horsepower.Today, the 2008 RX-8 gets a 40th Anniversary Edition model to celebrate four decades of rotary engines in Mazda vehicles. Actually, it's logically a year late, but it's a welcome package nonetheless.The 40th Anniversary RX-8 distinguishes itself with its Metropolitain Grey paint job, fender-mounted badging and exclusive 18-inch wheels. Inside, the car gets very sharp black and red leather seats and door trim. A sunroof is standard, but the navigation system isn't available, neither is the 6-speed automatic.Bilstein dampers are also part of the package, but I didn't really notice any change in the car's great handling. But you will be able to impress your neighbours saying that your RX-8 has a foam-filled suspension cross member.
Needs more torque The 1.3-litre 2-rotor RENESIS engine in the RX-8 develops 238 horsepower but just 159 lb-ft of torque. What that means is you'll have to rev the engine silly to exploit a decent amount of power. Actually, at a normal cruising pace, it's not that noticeable, but you can't speed up dramatically without downshifting. Luckily, the car checks in at only 1,389 kg (3,062 lbs), which helps.
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Today, the 2008 RX-8 gets a 40th Anniversary Edition model to celebrate four decades of rotary engines in Mazda vehicles. |