Customer Reviews

Best Motoring: RX-8 - Rotary Reborn

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I really anticipated this video because i love the RX7 and RX8. In this volume, they get a new RX8 and they show you it's strengths and weaknesses. I was surprised by some of it's weaknesses and for that, i consider BMI to have done quite a good job. I found the beginning to be a bit boring-- they are driving the RX8 a bit and relaying how it feels for driver comfort. But once they bring it to the Tsukuba Circuit and have it race against other cars, it picks up from there. This DVD has more than just the RX8 segments though, and is overall very entertaining, and really enjoyable to watch. I don't regret buying this product at all. These DVDs are the best for automotive enthusiasts.

Err...not quite. The overwhelming concensus in the video concerns the RX-8's torque output-there is not much to speak of. Otherwise, the viewer gets and in-depth discussion of what the RX-8 means to the sports-car segment, and how the genesis of the new rotary design allowed the engineers to sidestep the ever delicate emissions requirements. Past rotary engines were notorious for their high emissions, poor gas mileage, and excessive oil consumption...well, at least the Mazda engineers got the first part right. Takuya Kurosawa raves about the handling prowess of the RX-8, but echoes the sentiments of a lot of rotary fanatics (RX-7 fans in particular): the new car just doesn't have the sauce the outgoing RX-7 had with twin sequential turbos. Nevertheless, this is a sportscar that the enthusiast should consider just on the recommemdations of the test drivers. Takuya is a well-renowned race car driver(he is the son of Gan-San, Motoharu Kurosawa) and has the insight and input to intelligently critique a car and its shortcomings. Rest assured, if they don't like something about a car, they will let you know about it.

I rarely write reviews. This one I had to do though, to prevent RX-8 enthusiasts and admirers from buying this DVD and getting very disappointed, frustrated if not mad.
My main problem is not even the average production quality, bad English subtitling (it's all in Japanese - you can't read it or you can't watch from having to read quickly and continously) or other presentation flaws. Not even the fact that half of the program is about tuned-up nissan z-s and S2000s and has nothing to do with the RX-8.
The absoutely frustrating, amateur mistake is that the producers of this show got a stripped-down (pre-production?) version of the RX-8 and they're sending it in the ring with sport-tuned, well-equipped, racetrack-ready cars. Poor RX doesn't even have a rear spoiler (!!) not to mention the lack of other performance-improving parts. I'm not talking about turbo kits and mazdaspeed stuff but basic factory-installed parts. Fair chances? I don't think so. In the first half of the test, they speak highly of the car's handling and feel - which proves how great of a sports car the RX is, even w/o spoilers, etc. Of cousre, it isn't about high torque, it gains advantage by the special characteristics of it's unique rotary engine: extremely high RPM, light weight and small engine size resulting in perfect 50-50 weight distribution and agile handling. Many sports car enthusiasts (including the author of the previous post) don't seem to understand why torque is not needed for fast laptimes if compensated for by the above unique attributes of a Wankel Rotary. You have to change the rules, some just don't apply for a rotary. Anyways, it's really sad to see the unfair competition between a basic RX-8 and the race-ready, well tuned and equipped cars. Even the otherwise obviously slower RSX passes the otherwise categories-higher Mazda driven by the test team's noticably least experienced driver - it's like testing the newest HDTV against similar and lower models but feeding it with video from an old VHS w/ mono sound. Pretty unfair test, quite misleeding results. To see a realistic, true documentary on the capabilities of a 6-speed, at least fairly euqipped RX-8, good tests and real races, I suggest searching the net for free video files.