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YACT - Acura TSX vs. Mazda RX-8

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I have driven the TSX, Nice car

The Mazda has a rotary motor and is a RWD.

But I would lean towards the Acura because of its quality. I would get a standard transmission because of the car's four cylinder engine.
 
How often/how far do you drive? If you just want the fun factor, get the RX8, period. I've driven both and i just bought the 8 a couple of days ago. You can get good rates on the 04s since they run a 1500 cash back and another 1500 if you financed through Mazda. Got mine @ 28k with touring pkg & navigation. Insurance is $750/YR full coverage (i'm 26 years old). I don't know about gas yet i'm still on my 1st tank.
So far no problems. It doesn't have the HP or torque of a V6 but it's very peppy especially if you flog it to 5k+ rpms, and it wants more!
 
I was all set to buy an RX8 until the one year road tests came out. I guess the engine is not mechanically sound. Then I fell in love with the Mini S drop top, so now I'm going with that.
 
Originally posted by: spidey07
the three people I know whot got RX-8s said they were nice...just too slow.
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😕 Did they get the automatic version? The 6 speed has 40 more horsepower and will do 0-60 in 6.0s. That's not exactly slow.
 
I was all set to buy an RX8 until the one year road tests came out. I guess the engine is not mechanically sound. Then I fell in love with the Mini S drop top, so now I'm going with that.
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What year end road tests?

Engine is not 'mechinacally sound'?? Huh?

I haven't heard of any engine reliability issues that I can think of...

The RX-8 isn't a rocket, no doubt about it, but I certainly wouldn't call it slow (especially to someone who's also shopping a TSX). Most people who call an RX-8 slow just don't know how to drive a rotary. They don't have a lot of pull in the low end, but make up for it in the high end. Keep that rotary high in the RPM range where it belongs!
 
Originally posted by: Kremlar
I was all set to buy an RX8 until the one year road tests came out. I guess the engine is not mechanically sound. Then I fell in love with the Mini S drop top, so now I'm going with that.
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What year end road tests?

Engine is not 'mechinacally sound'?? Huh?

I haven't heard of any engine reliability issues that I can think of...

The RX-8 isn't a rocket, no doubt about it, but I certainly wouldn't call it slow (especially to someone who's also shopping a TSX). Most people who call an RX-8 slow just don't know how to drive a rotary. They don't have a lot of pull in the low end, but make up for it in the high end. Keep that rotary high in the RPM range where it belongs!
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A couple of the popular car mags had them (I read them both while getting a haircut a couple of months back). Problems after a year included poor fuel efficiency (one car was getting 13MPG!), leaking gaskets, problems with cold starts, exessive oil usage (you need to add 1 qt of oil every 3-4 weeks), and one car had a problem with it's fuel pump.

I want to say the magazines were Car and Driver, and Autoweek, but I can't say for sure. Consumer Reports also gives the car a less than stellar rating. The articles were enough to convince me to jump ship.
 
A couple of the popular car mags had them (I read them both while getting a haircut a couple of months back). Problems after a year included poor fuel efficiency (one car was getting 13MPG!), leaking gaskets, problems with cold starts, exessive oil usage (you need to add 1 qt of oil every 3-4 weeks), and one car had a problem with it's fuel pump.
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Poor fuel efficiency and oil useage is dependant on driving habits. Yes, if you drive the car hard, gas mileage will go down and oil useage will go up (rotaries actually use oil to lubricate the engine seals). I think that's common sense, and if you didn't know rotaries used oil, I guess you should read about the car you're buying. Some people were reporting low gas mileage during normal driving, but I believe that was fixed with an ECU upgrade (could be wrong, it was a while ago I heard that).

I haven't heard of anything specific regarding gaskets, cold starts, or fuel pump issues. I doubt any of them, depending on which gasket, were related to whether or not the engine was 'mechanically sound'.

The RX-8 was in Car and Driver's 10 Best Cars for both 2004 and 2005. Not sure about the Consumer Reports review, but I never put much weight in that magazine. Problem is most people read that magazine about products they know nothing about. Read about a product you do know about in that magazine, and you'll see just how ignorant they can be.

I'm not saying the RX-8 will be as reliable as a Honda/Acura on average, but I definitely wouldn't consider it an unreliable car. Unless you're a straight-laced Honda guy who will buy a car for gas mileage and reliability over performance and character every time, I wouldn't cross the RX-8 off your list.
 
Originally posted by: Kremlar
A couple of the popular car mags had them (I read them both while getting a haircut a couple of months back). Problems after a year included poor fuel efficiency (one car was getting 13MPG!), leaking gaskets, problems with cold starts, exessive oil usage (you need to add 1 qt of oil every 3-4 weeks), and one car had a problem with it's fuel pump.
Click to expand...

Poor fuel efficiency and oil useage is dependant on driving habits. Yes, if you drive the car hard, gas mileage will go down and oil useage will go up (rotaries actually use oil to lubricate the engine seals). I think that's common sense, and if you didn't know rotaries used oil, I guess you should read about the car you're buying. Some people were reporting low gas mileage during normal driving, but I believe that was fixed with an ECU upgrade (could be wrong, it was a while ago I heard that).

I haven't heard of anything specific regarding gaskets, cold starts, or fuel pump issues. I doubt any of them, depending on which gasket, were related to whether or not the engine was 'mechanically sound'.

The RX-8 was in Car and Driver's 10 Best Cars for both 2004 and 2005. Not sure about the Consumer Reports review, but I never put much weight in that magazine. Problem is most people read that magazine about products they know nothing about. Read about a product you do know about in that magazine, and you'll see just how ignorant they can be.

I'm not saying the RX-8 will be as reliable as a Honda/Acura on average, but I definitely wouldn't consider it an unreliable car. Unless you're a straight-laced Honda guy who will buy a car for gas mileage and reliability over performance and character every time, I wouldn't cross the RX-8 off your list.
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I just want a fun car that won't be too much of a problem. For what it's worth, the AMC Renult, and the Ford Escort and Mustang were all "Cars of the Year" before too. My Mustang GT was the biggest POS I've ever owned- I must have paid as much in repairs as I did for the car 😛

Anyway, as I said, I want something fun to drive, but solid. The Mini's fit the bill for me. I still love the styling of the RX8, but it's a new nonstandard engine design, so I'm betting there will be a lot of problems that pop up with it in the next couple of years.

 
I just want a fun car that won't be too much of a problem. For what it's worth, the AMC Renult, and the Ford Escort and Mustang were all "Cars of the Year" before too. My Mustang GT was the biggest POS I've ever owned- I must have paid as much in repairs as I did for the car
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Were they 'Cars of the Year' 2 years in a row? I'd imagine not. Two years in a row should tell you the car is good, not just at first glance.



Anyway, as I said, I want something fun to drive, but solid. The Mini's fit the bill for me. I still love the styling of the RX8, but it's a new nonstandard engine design, so I'm betting there will be a lot of problems that pop up with it in the next couple of years.
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The rotary may not be 'standard', but it's certainly not new. Mazda has been producing rotaries for decades. Non-turbo RX-7s were known for their great engine reliability. As a matter of fact, it's amazing how well they run even when they have engine problems (depending on the problem). I had an '86 RX-7 I sold at 180K miles, and it still ran well. It was using coolant in the engine towards the end (a bad engine seal), but still actually drove like a top and with plenty of power.

The 3rd generation RX-7s had less than stellar reliability, but for 2 reasons. #1 - they were all twin turbos with an overly complicated turbo and cooling system. #2 - people modified and beat the hell out of them. I just sold a '94 RX-7 that ran excellently with 87K miles on it.

Based on the track record of the 2nd generation RX-7s with no turbos, I see no reason to think the RX-8 will have any engine reliability issues in the long haul.
 
The rotary may not be 'standard', but it's certainly not new. Mazda has been producing rotaries for decades. Non-turbo RX-7s were known for their great engine reliability. As a matter of fact, it's amazing how well they run even when they have engine problems (depending on the problem). I had an '86 RX-7 I sold at 180K miles, and it still ran well. It was using coolant in the engine towards the end (a bad engine seal), but still actually drove like a top and with plenty of power.

The 3rd generation RX-7s had less than stellar reliability, but for 2 reasons. #1 - they were all twin turbos with an overly complicated turbo and cooling system. #2 - people modified and beat the hell out of them. I just sold a '94 RX-7 that ran excellently with 87K miles on it.

Based on the track record of the 2nd generation RX-7s with no turbos, I see no reason to think the RX-8 will have any engine reliability issues in the long haul.
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I'm pretty sure the this is a brand new engine design.
 
Originally posted by: Kremlar
A couple of the popular car mags had them (I read them both while getting a haircut a couple of months back). Problems after a year included poor fuel efficiency (one car was getting 13MPG!), leaking gaskets, problems with cold starts, exessive oil usage (you need to add 1 qt of oil every 3-4 weeks), and one car had a problem with it's fuel pump.
Click to expand...

Poor fuel efficiency and oil useage is dependant on driving habits. Yes, if you drive the car hard, gas mileage will go down and oil useage will go up (rotaries actually use oil to lubricate the engine seals). I think that's common sense, and if you didn't know rotaries used oil, I guess you should read about the car you're buying. Some people were reporting low gas mileage during normal driving, but I believe that was fixed with an ECU upgrade (could be wrong, it was a while ago I heard that).
Click to expand...

That's common sense, drive hard and mileage goes down, but 13 mpg????
(I've personally read some get below 10 mpg :Q)

I'm sorry but that's just inexcusable.
We're not talking about some V12 torque monster here. This is a 1.3 liter (debatable as to whether it is 1.3, 2.6 or 3.9) lightweight sports car - not a lot of weight to be pulled around.

I could get myself a GTO w/6.0L V8 with some actual torque and decent handling, drive it hard and still get better gas mileage.
 
Originally posted by: psteng19
Originally posted by: Kremlar
A couple of the popular car mags had them (I read them both while getting a haircut a couple of months back). Problems after a year included poor fuel efficiency (one car was getting 13MPG!), leaking gaskets, problems with cold starts, exessive oil usage (you need to add 1 qt of oil every 3-4 weeks), and one car had a problem with it's fuel pump.
Click to expand...

Poor fuel efficiency and oil useage is dependant on driving habits. Yes, if you drive the car hard, gas mileage will go down and oil useage will go up (rotaries actually use oil to lubricate the engine seals). I think that's common sense, and if you didn't know rotaries used oil, I guess you should read about the car you're buying. Some people were reporting low gas mileage during normal driving, but I believe that was fixed with an ECU upgrade (could be wrong, it was a while ago I heard that).
Click to expand...

That's common sense, drive hard and mileage goes down, but 13 mpg????
(I've personally read some get below 10 mpg :Q)

I'm sorry but that's just inexcusable.
We're not talking about some V12 torque monster here. This is a 1.3 liter (debatable as to whether it is 1.3, 2.6 or 3.9) lightweight sports car - not a lot of weight to be pulled around.

I could get myself a GTO w/6.0L V8 with some actual torque and decent handling, drive it hard and still get better gas mileage.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm getting a convertible Mini (I want to put the conversion kit on it too), so for the same price, I'll get 30mpg, same handling, and better build quality.

 
Some people do get 10-13mpg but if you check rx8club.com they get better as the car rake more miles and after the M flash. In addition, you can actually run 87 octane gas on this car, as i was advised by my service manager, same advice i saw on that by many people. It gets better milage on some cases, and drives better according to their butt-dyno 🙂

I'm not sure if a mini is more reliable though, it's a BMW after all and i read on one of the magazine/online reviews somewhere that "you had better live close to a BMW dealer if you own this car".
 
Depends on your needs. How imporant is 4 doors to you?

For me I need a 4 door, so my choices... are between Audi and Volvo

I really wanted a S4, but very hard to find a 00-02 in the condition I desire. I believe the newer A4's use much of S4 technology, so probably will be looking into that. I guess the main thing I'd be looking for is the awd + 2.7t engine.

Then the Volvo a distant second if I want to spend less money and get their s40/s70 turbo cars.

Hmm choices... 😀

TSX is like an Accord, I wouldn't pay that much for one. Much better cars for less in my opinion. But than the RX8 is unique, but wouldn't be my first choice either. Quality inside is crap compared to other nicer cars, small seats in the back, styling iffy.

Sounds like you want a sporty car but than you mention a TSX, which confuses me. If 30k is your budget you can get some nice cars from 00-03 range. Heck you may even perfer a RX7 to the RX8. Or if you get lucky find a nice Supra in you're area.

But then it all depends what you want to use your car for.
 
Originally posted by: AMDSoldier
Originally posted by: KEV1N
Accord Coupe! V6 baby!
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hahaha lol

sorry just couldn't help myself there 😀

Honda's v6 sucks lol, I won't even get into that...
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Honda's V6 is as competitive as anything else in it's class.

 
Just wanted to clarify some issues and misinformation.

Fuel economy
Sucks. Expect aruond 15-18 mpg in the city, worse if you drive the car like you should. 1.3L displacement aside, rotaries gulp fuel. But it's worth it when you rev to 9K and enjoy it.

Cold start issue
Rotaries have been plagued by an issue where if they do not fully heat up before they are shut off, the chambers tend to flood and prevent the car from restarting. This was a major issue as the RX-8 was introduced, but as of the M flash, which is required via recall on all RX-8s, fuel economy is improved and the cold start issue has been eliminated by timing and fuel ratio corrections. The cold start issue, though a problem earlier, is no longer an issue.

Oil consumption
As stated previously, rotary engines consume oil. Your oil change interval is still 3,000 miles, so there's no added maintenance if the car is driven within normal bounds.

The engine
Is still a fundamental 13B Mazda rotary that has been in use for decades. The ports have been moved to the side for numerous reasons, but the basics of the engine itself have been unchanged for years. It's a new engine, yes, but then again, not entirely.

Hope this clears up things for some people: there are no fundamental engine issues with the Mazda rotary beyond its fundamental strengths and flaws. Reliability on my 8 ( one of the first produced) has been superb.
 
If performance is the end-all-be-all trait for you, go with the Mazda. I heard good things about the rotary engine and gave it a try. I didn't care much for the interior or the noise levels, but the engine was fun and the handling responsive. The rear-wheel drive is awesome for nice weather, but for anything else you need to watch it. If all-weather handling concerns you, check out Subarus line or wait another year for Acura to roll out AWD on everything. Not sure where Mazda rates in terms of reliability, but I know it's not as good as Acura.
The TSX, while no Corvette, still isn't anything to sneeze at (providing you go with the 6spd.) Interior is very nice, the ride is quiet (very important for me), overall quality is impressive, and the front wheel drive handles rain and snow a hell of a lot better than rear wheel drive. As far as exterior aesthetics go, I like them both but prefer the refined, subdued look of the TSX. To me, stylish "bad boy" excesses smack of penis compensation and the "please notice me, PLEASE!" feel that unfortunetly seems to be in vogue these days. If you go TSX, definetly get the Nav system, never having to screw with maps or get lost is just awesome.


my $0.02 ...


 
the tsx is very polished.

the rx8 interior looks plasticy and el cheapo, and the car looks kinda funny. and it gets like 15mpg from what i've read. which is horrible. sitting in the back ofmy coworkers rx8 basically sucked ass too

granted its not as fast, but well depending on where you live (like in LA or something) well i am not sure you could fully take advantage of the rx8's handling and speed to really make up for it having much less luxury and mpg.
 
Originally posted by: sygyzy
PKPunk - Can you *please* turn on your private messages?
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I didn't know you had to turn on private messages, I looked around the pm section and didn't see a option to turn it on.

Edit nevermind, found the option, go ahead and pm me
 
Acura's offerings are very slick from 04 and on. The RX-8 for some reason looks cheap on the street, and long term tests have been unkind. Another vote for TSX.
 
I would go with the TSX. I am not impressed with the long term reliability of a Mazda. In addition, if you ever have any issues with the Renesis engine, you have very limited options as to who can work on the engine.
 
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