Disgruntled RX-8 Owners Will Be Compensated
The news that Mazda had configured the new RX-8's horsepower figures inaccurately couldn't have come at a worse time for the Ford Motor Company owned Japanese brand, as it is working hard to remake its sporting image.
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| Mazda's new rotary engine equipped RX-8 has less horsepower than originally stated. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
Fortunately for Mazda, the rotary engine is only available in the one model, with the rest of the lineup relying on more conventional inline 4-cylinder and V6 power. Hyundai wasn't so lucky, when it announced not too long ago wholesale reductions to the horsepower figures involving almost all the cars in its lineup.
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| The original RX-8 horsepower figures were estimates made before US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certification. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
This is also not an entirely new experience for Mazda, having overstated its revised Miata (MX-5) roadster horsepower figures in 2001.
A Mazda spokesman officially stated the RX-8 makes less power than originally advertised. Higher-powered 6-speed models produce 238-hp instead of the 247-hp original specification, a 9-hp reduction, while the lower-power engine mated to automatic transmission RX-8s is 10-hp deficient, developing only 197-hp rather than 207.
How could Mazda have made such a blunder? According to the spokesman, original horsepower figures were estimates made before US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certification, with the updated numbers the result of EPA certification.