350z or Mazda RX-8

[ZnifiedZ33]

I had an FD3S for about 12years before I bought my Z was an absoulte blast to drive but it was a complete nightmare to maintain. I had over 400rwhp power was amazing but it was a complete money pit, also I could not find a real good mechanic that I could trust. I am glad I got rid of it and got the Z as a replacement.

[NSRsheets]

Z's are definately more fun.

[BlackSmoke]

Drove both, bought the Z. RX power band is awkward, and it takes alot of reving for the old Wankel rotary motor to slap the fun on the pavement the way the Z does. Z is more fun, and gets way more compliments. Plus why would you want 4 seats, too much weight and kids shouldnt be in the car when you tearing it up.

[IndyZed]

That doesn't make sense to me. I thought oil pressure rises with RPM.. So, how does reving it before shutting down aid drainage? Why would you even want to drain it? Seems like the locking up is from lack of oil anyway. I know that the RX-8 burns oil, and you need to check and refill the level every 1800 milles. Which for some drivers would be every 2 weeks. I'm sure this rev thing is a rumor, stemming from the truth about the RX-8 burning oil.

The RX-8 was a car I too was considering on purchasing before I decided on the 350z. The Rx-8 is a lot of fun to drive, can carry four people, has a trunk, and rides excellently. But, I heard there was an issue with some of the older RX-8's Air Conditioner, many needed to be returned to the dealer for an upgrade cause they just not cooling the car down enough, I wasn't sure if they fixed that problem for the 07 car. Also, the Rex 8 had the burning oil problem, but what really did it for me was that rex had a 15 gal fuel tank, and only runs on premium unleaded, which limited the range of the rex. So I went with the Z, though it only seats 2 and it's trunk is hardly to speak of, it doesn't have oil issues, or AC issues, (just transmission and clutch and its hasn't been recalled so it might be due to driver error) and it has a large fuel tank that gives me a range of more than 430 miles and it can run on regular unleaded with no problem.

The Renesis rotary HAS to burn oil. It's designed this way. The oil lubricates the seals between the rotor and the rotor wall.

As far as reving the engine before shutdown you only need to do that if the engine is cold and you are starting the engine and running it only for a few minutes. Starting a rotary and then shutting it off immediately will flood the engine with gas.

My 8 usually burns less than 1 quart every 3 months. Other guys are burning more. Mazda does recommend redlining the engine everyday.

The rotary is a very unique engine and one of the reasons I bought one. It has its drawbacks but it also has its pluses..... lightweight, super smooth and sounds positively wicked under WOT.

[badfish25]

Hands down, Z. I am biased of course

RX-8 = underpowered, reliability issues.