When do you just give up and trade the thing in...

[r0tor]

my baby just has not liked things ever since the winter set in... so as much as i love the damn thing, when do you just have to let go?

- A few months ago the rear O2 sensor took a dump.  Probably a $100 fix that I can easily do.  Haven't got around to replacing it yet and just blocked the CEL with my accessport map since the rear O2 sensro is only used in the RX8 for catalyst efficiency calcs...

- Yesterday, I was greated on my drive in to work for the first day of the new year with a CEL.  Pulled out the Accessport and found the code for a stuck secondary valve in the intake manifold.  This particualr problem was fixed by the stealership several years ago under warranty.  Mazda also has a TSB on the subject as basically the valve gets locked up with carbon.  A "simple" fix is to try and remove the upper intake manifold and spray the crap out of the valve to loosen it up.  Then real fix is to take it apart which requires a whole shit load of dissassembly and probably close to $1k in labor i'm guessing.

- The engine itself is still under the extended warranty for another year.  I checked the compression and its borderline replaceable but not sucktacular enough to get yanked for free.

-  The interior is seriously not liking this winter.  The center stack has flickered or gone out a couple times and some very annoying rattles have developed until the interior heats up.


My plan for awhile now has been to get a WRX hatch for the winter and keep the RX-8 as a nice weather toy given its resale value is rather piss-poor.  I'm now wondering if I should just give up on that as it will be way too costly in the future....

[AutobahnSHO]

ouch.
I don't remember- Did you buy the car new?

I buy my cars that are so well "broken in" that any issues like that were fixed a long time ago or the car was passed off as a lemon.

[r0tor]

yup... brand new - first rx-8 in my area in fact

[Minpin]

When it comes to a point that fixing it costs too much of a percentage of the car you (that has to be decided by you) then it's time to let it go. It really is a personal decision as well. If you are constantly having to make costly repairs, then it's in your best interest to trade it in.

[sportyaccordy]

Definitely let it go man, and don't look back. For you, a WRX wagon w/some mild mods seems to be a perfect fit (outside of the dirt cheap interior).

[r0tor]

oh joy... i noticed my rear tails at somepoint in the last month must have fogged up and now there is frost/ice inside them... these were also fixed my mazda once or twice

[JWC]

I used to tell my customers....when monthly repair costs meet or exceed a monthly car payment, trade it in.  If you're going to make car payments, you might as well make them on a new car.

[Eye of the Tiger]

I thought Mazdas were supposed to be well built.

[3.0L V6]

I thought Mazdas were supposed to be well built.

The rotary, although a lovely engine from a driver's point of view, has not had the extended engineering development that piston engines have had. A shame, 'cause it's such a cool engine.

I'd say keep it - at least until the engine warranty is up. If the engine shits the bed, you get a free one courtesy of Mazda. If the engine survives past the warranty, sell the car. You won't lose that much more on resale in the next year as opposed to selling it now and then the potential huge cost of engine replacement becomes some else's problem.

[Eye of the Tiger]

Try to blow up the engine before the warranty expires!

[saxonyron]

How many miles on this baby?  Since you've had it around 6 years but it's still under the warranty, it doesn't sound too old.  75,000 miles?  Seems like a lot of issues for a relatively young car. I'm assuming at least it's all paid for. 

As JWC says, when a car is costing you a car payment on an annual basis, it's time to bail, IMO.  For the past few years, I've been buying my cars a year or 2 old and trading them in once they get near to 100,000 miles.  I used to keep cars till they died at 180,000 or more, but life is too complicated now for me to deal with all the breakdowns and unpredictability of a high miler any more.

[TBR]

Haven't yet, and so far I think it's been the right decision. I probably should have let go of the idea that it needed to be in pristine condition sooner, but ultimately I have said a lot of money versus buying something newer.

[SVT_Power]

How many miles on this baby?  Since you've had it around 6 years but it's still under the warranty, it doesn't sound too old.  75,000 miles?  Seems like a lot of issues for a relatively young car. I'm assuming at least it's all paid for. 

As JWC says, when a car is costing you a car payment on an annual basis, it's time to bail, IMO.  For the past few years, I've been buying my cars a year or 2 old and trading them in once they get near to 100,000 miles.  I used to keep cars till they died at 180,000 or more, but life is too complicated now for me to deal with all the breakdowns and unpredictability of a high miler any more.

Mazda's offering RX8 owners an unconventional extended warranty just on the engine and he's only within that warranty range i think

[SVT_Power]

I'm probably the one to ask this question if anyone around here, but I mean I won't be buying anything new or even close to new even if I sold my current car so as the saying goes - "the devil you know beats the devil you don't"

[AutobahnSHO]

I'm probably the one to ask this question if anyone around here, but I mean I won't be buying anything new or even close to new even if I sold my current car so as the saying goes - "the devil you know beats the devil you don't"

+1

IF you like the car. I buy mine broken in, so I don't have high expectations.

Having a car go from a NEW! car to a beater would be like watching your wife go from 20-something to old woman in just a couple years..

[Tave]

Am I missing something, or have you spent $0 on a $12,000 car that needs $1000 worth of work (some of which might be fixed for free under warranty)?

[r0tor]

The engine warranty only covers the seals, rotor, and irons.... not the intake valves (which are stuck), the water pump (which will need to be replaced in a year or so), clutch, ignition (continuous problem until i put an aftermarket system on), ecu, ect ect

[MrH]

if you're going to get a WRX, you should probably sack up and get the STi.

[r0tor]

if you're going to get a WRX, you should probably sack up and get the STi.

I test drove an STi... frankly, other then the body kit I wasn't left with any sense it has something worth the $6k over the WRX

[SVT_Power]

I test drove an STi... frankly, other then the body kit I wasn't left with any sense it has something worth the $6k over the WRX

Well the DCCD is something you can't get in the WRX and I don't know if it's worth 6 grand, it's still awesome as hell. You also get 40 more hp no? Oh and doesn't the STi get wider fenders and wider rubber?

[SVT_Power]

Quick googling on differences:

HIDs on the STI
6 disc CD changer
Alcanterra
Larger/wider wheels & tires
SI-Drive
DCCD
Brembo's
5x114.3 lug pattern
6spd bulletproof trans
Widebodied design
AVLS/AVCS

Based on that, it seems like the STi is more than worth the 6 grand premium 

[CJ]

Not worth it to me, since I wouldn't buy one in the first place.

[sportyaccordy]

Well the DCCD is something you can't get in the WRX and I don't know if it's worth 6 grand, it's still awesome as hell. You also get 40 more hp no? Oh and doesn't the STi get wider fenders and wider rubber?

I hear the 09 WRX is close enough in performance that it's not worth it. A luxury WRX would cannibalize the STI

Dude I still think you should get a 9-2 Aero or something.

[MX793]

Well the DCCD is something you can't get in the WRX and I don't know if it's worth 6 grand, it's still awesome as hell. You also get 40 more hp no? Oh and doesn't the STi get wider fenders and wider rubber?

From everything I've read, DCCD is a gimmick that you'll play with a little bit when you first get the car, realize it make essentially no tangible difference on tarmac, and then just set it and forget it.

And that 40 hp comes without much of a performance advantage, worse fuel economy, and a far peakier and less user-friendly powerband.

For me, the only appeal of an STI over a regular WRX is the looks (it actually looks like a performance car) and the seats (the standard WRX seats are a joke for "sports buckets").

[S204STi]

I would buy the STI based on the 6spd, the HIDs, the seats, and the looks.  Unfortunately the WRX now gets the HIDs as an option soon, but that still leaves me with three tangible reasons to prefer it.  However on paper, and even on a track the WRX is a better deal.  The STI has too much traction to launch effectively, is peaky, all that.  But the fenders get me every time.

[SVT_Power]

Not the greatest of reasons to spend 6k, but it seems like r0tor could stretch it without hurting finances too much. I'd get the STi for the sake of getting a STi. Yeah yeah it might be just paying for the name and badge, but I would like to join the more exclusive club 

[S204STi]

Not the greatest of reasons to spend 6k, but it seems like r0tor could stretch it without hurting finances too much. I'd get the STi for the sake of getting a STi. Yeah yeah it might be just paying for the name and badge, but I would like to join the more exclusive club 

There has to be some emotion to a car purchase.

[SVT_Power]

There has to be some emotion to a car purchase.

Or 300 hp     

[r0tor]

From my test drives the STi's ponies show up really late in the game compared to the WRX.  The DCCD is ok I guess if you really want to put your AWD car into something that feels more like RWD, but in the slick stuff the best it can do it lock into the 50/50 mode that the WRX is in all the time.  The seats aren't any better in the STi as I really dont consider subaru leather any better in quality then subaru cloth.  SI-DRIVE is a complete joke as all it does is alter the throttle maps and not the boost - so it suppliments 1 linear throttle map with one map that is horrendously laggy to large throttle inputs and 1 map that is extremely jumpy to any throttle inputs.... subaru, wise the hell up and make SI-DRIVE A BOOST CONTROLLER

The fenders.. well yea those are  ... however, you also have to give up a chance to have heated seats, heated mirrors, heated wipers, and a sunroof to get them.  HID's and leather will soon be available on the WRX as well...

[S204STi]

The fenders.. well yea those are  ... however, you also have to give up a chance to have heated seats, heated mirrors, heated wipers, and a sunroof to get them.  HID's and leather will soon be available on the WRX as well...

True.  The STI isn't making any sense right now... I wonder if they're poised to give it the axe or to boost it to ZOMG levels of performance?