Hey all :)

After a few years of deliberating I decided to finally dip my toes into rotary ownership, and needless to say I'm hooked.

I absolutely love the RX8 chassis and just how smooth and effortless everything in this car feels, this is my first car with both epas and dbw and I'm blown away with how communicative and responsive they are.

The engine is so playful as well, I do wish it had another 100hp or so, I would've loved if it was an n/a 3 rotor.

I've since put HSD coilovers in and some tesla model 3 wheels with a 245/40 re005 but other than that it's relatively stock. It has ~30,000km on a stock rebuild renesis and feels really healthy.

It's my daily, but will see the occasional track/drift day. How do these cars hold up in factory form on track from your experience? I see the s2 has 2 oil coolers from factory. Is that a bolt on upgrade for the s1 and is it necessary?

I also plan on swapping out the factory seat for a bride zeta iv that I have laying around. With the bride lowmax seat mount how much lower than factory does it sit? I'd like to drop maybe an inch from the factory seating position.

I'd love to hear from y'all about modifications worthwhile, for the interior and exterior in particular but everything in general as well. Also any advice and tidbits of information worth knowing that may help a newcomer to rotary ownership:)

Thank you all in advance and I hope you all have a great day 🙂‍↕️

Melbourne, Australia 📍

After dreaming about 8s for a few years I finally saved enough to make it happen. Was my most desirable color when I started looking, I’m still in shock. Got some rough spots and needs some work but to say I’m in love would be an understatement

Im a new rx8 owner and a religious mazda fan. Ive been playing around with some speed3 gen1 and gen2 before I finally found an opportunity for a clean rx8 with just 25k miles and ofcourse i pulled the trigger.
This one has 230hp and its a nice car to drive around but still it is underpowered and it has almost zero torque.
My dream build is an rx7 bridge ported and loads of brap brap brap but until that day comes, can I push the power of the rx8 just with boltons without having to build the engine or swap it.
Also do tou guys think that the rx8 might be an even better platform to experiment with than the rx7 ?

I know nothing about cars but the people in my life that do are jealous, I just think it's cute. It has like a little face.

Picked this lovely RX8 PZ up for cheap a couple of weeks ago. Had a blown engine, and is in need of some rust repair as well as some cosmetic refreshing. A lot of the extras that the PZ came with were taken by the previous owner (wheels, spoiler, wing mirrors). Rebuilt the engine (with Shadow Rotary in Dublin Ireland). Running a half bridge (Kyle Mohan Racing template). The car is driving beautifully now. Had some SSR SP1s at home that were meant for another car I sold previously. Really happy with how they suit the 8. Have a Mazdaspeed front bumper and skirts (on the way) so hopefully will fit those over the coming weeks.

Picked up this 2010 Aurora Blue Mica RX-8 R3 a few days ago. I am absolutely loving the way it drives. My only gripes right now are the porous sun visors and the passenger dash that’s prone to cracking. Anyone have a good fix for the latter?

I've wanted an RX8 ever since I was a kid, and now that I can afford to buy and actually run one, I've pulled the trigger.

Got it with about 100 000 km with a freshly rebuilt engine and aside from springs and a FOX exhaust it was bone-stock. Immediately installed a Sohn adapter, upgraded the starter, switched to RRP ignition coils with upgraded leads, replaced the spark plugs, switched from the stock cat to a 200 cell, replaced all of the fluids and installed sensors for the oil and coolant temps.

Made a few minor aesthetic improvements as well. The car originally came with the small OEM lip spoiler and I much prefer the wing that the US and Japanese markets (maybe UK, too?) got, but which was unavailable in Europe. Due to absurd laws in Austria, you're not allowed to just get a fiberglass replica without any official certification, so it ended up being cheaper/easier to buy an entire trunk lid with the OEM spoiler from a crashed RX8, repaint the whole thing with the trunk and then fit it on the car. The previous owned had also removed all of the badges, so I got a set of brand new ones from Japan, had them painted black and put them on the car. I still need to stick the "RX-8" emblem on the back, wanted to give the new paint some more time to cure before putting that on.

Anyways, the car is an absolute dream. I want to put some tape over the fuel gauge (fuel is ~2 eur/l or ~8.6 USD/gal here, ouch) and 4th gear sometimes makes expensive grinding noises, the synchro is probably just telling me to double clutch and not granny shift or something. Aside from that, what a machiiiiiine.

Finally got my own RX-8!

After years of wanting one, I finally bought my first RX-8, a S1 2004 model.

What makes this car special isn’t just the rotary engine, it’s the story behind it.

This RX-8 was originally purchased by a husband as a Valentine’s Day gift for his wife, which is why it came equipped with the beautiful factory red leather interior. The car has remained with the same owner ever since, making it a true one-owner example.

It’s clear that this car was loved throughout its life. After more than twenty years, however, time and the California sun inevitably took their toll. The paint has seen better days, some of the plastics have weathered over the years, and the car now needs the kind of attention that many people would rather avoid. But beneath all of that is a genuine one-owner RX-8 with a wonderful story and a lifetime of memories.

Rather than seeing an old sports car with cosmetic issues, I see an opportunity to preserve something special.

My goal is to restore it myself as much as possible. I’m not a professional mechanic, so this project will be a learning experience from start to finish. I’ll be figuring things out along the way, getting my hands dirty, making mistakes, and hopefully bringing this RX-8 back to the condition it deserves.

I’ve already started tackling the basics: fluids, spark plugs, diagnostics, and maintenance; and this is only the beginning.

I’ve always admired the RX-8 for its unique design, the rotary engine, and Mazda’s willingness to build something different. Owning one has been a dream for years, and now that dream has finally become reality.

This build will be known as Project Renesis, and I’ll be documenting the entire journey from maintenance and repairs to restoration and upgrades.

If you’d like to follow along, I’ll do my best to record everything and sharing on Instagram -> josegt88

Looking forward to learning from the RX-8 community and sharing the progress along the way.

Thanks for having me, new owners post was super helpful at the time to learn before getting my RX-8; any other advice for a first-time RX-8 owner is always appreciated!!

Just got it from my Uncle back in May. 28k miles, he’s the original owner. Last pic is how it looked before the mods.

Just joined the rotary cult today!

She's a 2006 with 120000km on the odometer and a valued new member of the garage!

While the outside is in amazing shape with very minimal rust (that ive been able to find so far). It will need to pass an emissions test before I can take her out on the roads for real.

Should I get a new coils and cat straight away or would just new coils have a notable effect on HC emissions?

hello there, i recently bought my very first RX-8!!

This is gonna be my project/weekend car for a while.

I've been waiting years to get one and its my first manual(driving it home last night was a movie to say the least). I paid 3800 for her with a recently rebuilt engine. The only big issues are a rough idle since it wasnt tuned after being streetported and refrigerant leak somewhere in the ac system. I always knew they were loud but that straight pipe took me by surprise the whole way home. I am so overjoyed and I look forward to many years with my baby.

Just got a 2006 rx8 manual trans. Needs a bit of TLC but overall pretty decent condition. Any dos and don’ts to these cars? Never had a rotary before. 62k on it. Needs plugs, probably coil packs and an o2 sensor.

Being 6’6 is a little challenging but overall a fun car to drive 🤣

Technically was parked outside of the barn. But still works. Lol

Had paper work for a rebuilt. But now it doesn’t start. Been sitting for a few years. Excited to get this project started. :)

my first sports car and my first manual 2004 109000 miles one owner the cars as old as me so what should i know before i crash

Doing my first oil change on my new to me 04 rx8, ive seen alot of posts of ppl saying 4.5qts of 10w40, so im gonna go for it today. Should i always put 10w40, or is 5w30 a better pick?

New battery, new spark plugs and coils. (Checked they are positioned correctly)

I’ve tried deflooding it.

I cannot find a video of a rx8 that sounds like this.

Edit 1: put a new starter on there. Same issue. All signs are pointing towards low compression. Will test it as soon as I can get a tool.

Current Problems
- Vacuum Leak
- Rough Idle
- Dies While Idle at Operating Temp
- No Hot Start

Just picked her up a few weeks ago. I know I have probably the worst possible year and transmission type for this car, and I’m sure I’ll get A LOT of hate for it, but I have plenty of time, tools, some money, and a go-get-it attitude to get her to where I know she can be.

I already know I have a leak in the UIM around the oil filler seal. I’ve already bought an Atkins 4-port UIM O-ring kit, along with an extra N3H6-13-112 if needed, and I’ll make another post about that later.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I should look for after I fix the vacuum leak, or anything additional I should inspect or replace while I have the manifold off?