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Originally posted by Davo:
Originally posted by mbTDI:
Do your two cents have a reason?
It's a fancy way of saying 'renting'. I can understand people leasing if it they absolutely need a car and it's the only way they can afford it. But if you'd be leasing to get a car you want, I'd suggest not doing it. Wait a year or two for when you can buy.
I switch cars so often that buying doesn't always make sense, leasing just fits me a bit better.
Plus, I've managed to get better deals thru leasing.
On the VW, the implicit interest rate was 30 bps less than financing, I had a payment that was ~$60 lower/month and only for 3 years (vs. 5) with a buyout option ($10k) that was about 2k less than what 3 year old TDIs with higher mileage were going for already. Sum of lease pmts +buyout was significantly less than sum of financing pmts.
On the RX8... $299/mo for 24 months (the remaining term of my VW lease), and (hopefully) much of the req'd down pmt would be waived thru college graduate rebates and s-plan pricing. The discount is so heavy its hard not to do it, and plus you have no liability remaining in the car at the end of the term... if you hate it/want something else, you're done with it... no worries about being "upside down," making repairs to sell or whatever... its much simpler!
So yes, leasing has its downsides, but it also has a number of benefits that work differently for each buyer.
Diesel owns you
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Amazingly fun to drive. Great, but very subjective, looks. Extremely comfortable seating position and top-notch interior.
But it has it's share of problems. And I'll be perfectly honest...
There's actually a stop order on RX-8 sales right now. You can buy one, but you can't probably drive it off the lot yet. Extreme undercar temperatures can melt electrical harnesses and gas tanks. Mazda is working on getting the necessary equipment out to dealers and most cars should be completed, except those that need major repair, very soon. '04s have an additional serious problem affecting control arms that's being addressed right now as well.
Airconditioning is rather weak by today's standards. If you live in a very hot climate whether it's sufficient for you or not is up to you. There's some minor mods (like heatshielding) that help.
Power not up to the levels of the competition. It's certainly not 'slow' though, and is quite a step up from a Contour. It does take a lot of effort to wring out the power though -- 7000RPM launches and revs to the limit.
Aftermarket, if you're interested in it, is decent but not exceptionaly large and certainly not cheap. NA mods have extremely minor gains, along the lines of maybe 20whp after $2500 in spending. Forced induction is the only real power option. If you're leasing that might not be a concern.
Gas mileage is a big deal. You probably won't get 20mpg under most any conditions. 15mpg is much more common. It's quite a difference from 30+mpg; particularly when it's Premium as well.
If you're willing to get used, there's a LOT of lease returns coming up right now from those who bought when the RX-8 first came out. That combined with the 2 major safety recalls announced at the same time as pushed people towards not carrying through with buying their RX-8 and lease returns are abnormally high. Financed cars also are being traded-in or sold at high rates right now.
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Originally posted by mbTDI:
lol!
Well, I now live 3 blocks from work, so I don't need the mileage as much as I did when I was routinely going back and forth between school and home (3hrs)...
Be prepared to allow the car lots of time to warm up. People who don't drive their car long distances are reporting more engine troubles than those who do and your gas mileage will absolutely suck if you don't let the car warm up. Flooding is a major issue with such short distances and, in the long-term, if you don't regularly 'wring out' the motor, carbon lock is a big concern when driving a rotary such short distances at, I presume, relatively low speeds. You literally have to drive the car fast. After a large number of engine failures Mazda sent out advisories telling customers to make sure they rev the motor up to redline often to maintain optimum performance. It was a particular problem with ATX owners which, in their nature of being ATX owners, were dawdling around in their cars leading to major engine problems.
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Originally posted by Auto-X Fil:
ATX RX-8
Effing shoot me.
Kinda like your garden variety Contour SE. Dang punch in the eye to the sports car community. 
-SAV
Troll. 1997 VW Jetta MkIII GLS 5spd
All hail my appearance on CEG!
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i've driven 2. the feeling alone was ok, but no where near good enough to overlook all of the problems sigma pointed out.
and it is not especially attractive
Last edited by my csvt; 07/27/05 02:46 AM.
00 black/tan svt, #2052 of 2150, born 2/1/00
formerly known as my csvt
"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than a sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity." -Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Originally posted by SAV:
Originally posted by Auto-X Fil:
ATX RX-8
Effing shoot me.
Kinda like your garden variety Contour SE. Dang punch in the eye to the sports car community.
-SAV
You mean there's nothing sporty about a car that can barely even break the speed limit in a 1/4-mile? 
Gotta love a 9-second 0-60 time. :P
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With the RX-8 people either like it or hate it. At least that's what I've found in terms of looks. In my opinion they are great looking cars and a true drivers car, just slightly lacking the power department as well as fuel consumption.
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Do you walk to work now? If you do I'd say go for it. No point in waiting until you are in your 50's to own a "fun" car.
"Bros before Hoes" <-- More men need this mentality.
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Originally posted by sigma:
Originally posted by SAV:
Originally posted by Auto-X Fil:
ATX RX-8
Effing shoot me.
Kinda like your garden variety Contour SE. Dang punch in the eye to the sports car community.
-SAV
You mean there's nothing sporty about a car that can barely even break the speed limit in a 1/4-mile?
Gotta love a 9-second 0-60 time. :P
I picked on one when I was driving the minivan the other day. Man, I think I was as surprised as he was. 
-SAV
Troll. 1997 VW Jetta MkIII GLS 5spd
All hail my appearance on CEG!
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