Hello Everyone!

I'm a brand new G35 Coupe owner as of 3/29/04. Whatta machine! I almost missed the opportunity to own this gem, however. I was pretty hooked on an '04 Mazda RX 8 until I found out some funky stuff about the rotary engine.

As it turns out, in order to run an RX 8, you need to run the engine for a minimum of 3-5 minutes and before you shut it down you need to rev the thing at 4000rpm and then turn it off (so much for moving the car from the driveway into the garage in a pinch). If you don't, you run the distinct possibility of flooding the engine. The cure? Flatbed the car to the nearest Mazda dealer so they can clean the plugs, etc... What a pain.

I am so excited about my G35 and i'm glad that I didn't get te RX8.

Take care.

 

congrats on the car. i too looked at the mazda Rx 8, but once i test drove the G35 coupe i knew it was the car for me. Post some pics of your baby when you get a chance!

2003 6MT Laser Red Coupe, Premium, Chrome 18's

 

bc, i'm not exactly doubting your word, but where in the world did you hear that description of running a rotary engine? oh, and by the way, welcome. i've never heard of such nonsense about any engine and i've been very close to rotaries and rotary people. source, reference, plz?

BONDg35c

 

2 of my friends with rx8... had the same issue about something flooding. I dont know what the whole detail is though.

 

I heard of this, its was a problem with the old engine. I thought Mazda would have fixed this in their new car.

Huh.... Oh, and congrats on the G!

"What if there is no tomorrow....There wasn't one today!!!" Bill Murry
'04 OB/GL Prem.Pkg./Sport.Pkg/Splash

 

Information about the flooding issue is all over the web. The Mazda dealer in my area even admitted that there is a problem. Mazda engineers are working on a firmware update or something like that to address the problem.

Get this, when I was seriously looking a the car, the Mazda service manager actually walked me through the process of starting and shutting down the engine to avoid this problem like it was no big deal. Imagine having to rev your engine to 4000rpm before turning the ignition off every time you turn off the car!

Here's a link to one of the many RX 8 forums out there. This thread relates to the stalling issue: RX8 Stalling Thread

I'll try to get some pics up this weekend.

 

I also have to admit something really stupid. Before puchasing this car, I looked very seriously at a Mercedes c230 Sport Coupe. I even put money down on it. Lucky for me I did a lot of research that night on Mercedes and their C class line. Tons of quality control issues abound throughout the entire line. When test driving the car one last time, the windshield wipers went on for no reason and I heard some funky rattling in the dash. I also noticed that the leather seats only had leather inserts and the rest was leatherette - not cool for a Mercedes. I immediately got out of the deal and said to myself, "What the heck am I doing! Get the G35, idiot!!!!" So I did and I am thrilled.

 

congrats. rx8? i never saw a wannabe sports car blow it that bad. why make it look so sporty and fast, when in reality it goes so slow. i heard in the beginning, mazda was offering to buy back the rx8's because it was much slower than they reported. dont know how true that is.

 

bc, again, not to doubt your views, but the site you referenced had about 7 posters, 4 of whom said they'd never flooded their car. plus, those that did seemed to indicate it was on Startup not shutdown.

but it is interesting that both of your potential sales and service people told you about a procedure to prevent flooding.

BONDg35c

 

Mazda RX8 is the biggest flop I've ever seen. I mean sure there was big hype and sporty styling, but .. have you seen one of these go? According to Car and Driver they had to drop clutch from !8000rpm to get a 14.6 sec quarter. I believe it too seeing several of these race at my school. For the same amount of money I would definitely get a G35 or 350Z. They have 1.3L engines.. but waste tons of gas. My friend's RSX S keeps up with them.

Black / Black 2004 GcoupeMT. Premium. Splash Guardz.

 

Yeah, it is true that they overstated their hp at first and offer buy back options. but it doesn't make the car slower becuz it still has the same 1/4 mile time and 0-60. Anyways, i think RX8 has special exterior and ok interior. (i'd pick the rx8 over the wrx) But after i know Mazda played around with the hp number i personally don't trust mazda anymore. But anyways, i'd only pick RX8 over cars in its price range like WRX. If you got extra budget and want the race car look, get the Z350 or S2k, if you want luxurious sports car, get the G35, they all look much better than the RX8.

 

good points, Mr!

BONDg35c

 

The RX-8 actually inspired me to upgrade from my old car, and my new car search started with the RX-8. However, at the time I didn't even know I could afford a G35. I still like the RX-8 but after more thinking and research, I concluded that it made a lousy daily driver. Also, I pretty much need an AT for my daily driver and AT is not really an option for that car.
All in all, I think the G is one of the most incredible cars for the money and am thrilled to own it. I'm sure you'll enjoy it too. Welcome to the club!

<font color=purple>2004 G35 Coupe Diamond Graphite/Graphite 5AT</font color=purple>
Premium, Nav., 18" Wheels, Z-Xtreme Hyper Grounding Cables,
K&N filter, Clear Corners, 350Z Aluminum Pedals,
Sony Ericsson HCB-30

 

Since I owned two RX7's in the past, a 1980 and a 1986...I can attest to the flooding problem on the older models....
the 1980 RX7 was carbureted, and the 1986 was FI.
My 1980 would develop vapor lock, flooding, and stalling under hard cornering constantly....It was susceptible to hard starting in the winter if there was any condensation in the fuel/tank/line......

My 1986 would be a problem if you touched the gas while starting cold.....if you forgot and hit the gas pedal...you had to hold the pedal to the floor and hold it while cranking to blow out the plugs/cylinders and hopefully it started....

If you let it idle for long periods of time it would again flood out and stall, and the only resolve was to pull the plugs and blow out the cylinders/rotor wells.....

I thought by now that would not be a problem any longer......
I would like to see another two door version with more horsepower....they really rev like a rocket and the power is high up in the rpm band......

The new styling is okay...but I would actually buy the older 93-95 versions before the new one.....

They say in late 2006-2007 they may re-release the two door version under the old RX7name badge....unless mazda scrapped that idea....<font color=blue>2old4this</font color=blue>


04 cpe IP/willow/5at/prem/18's/JDM clear corners/Piaa's/MTEC H4 Super White fog/highs