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Mazda RX-8 Gas Mileage Reports
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While I do like the Mustang's looks, I chose the RX-8 because of my prior experiences with the RX-7 (owned a 79, 83 & 86). In 35 years of driving, I have never gotten as much reaction and praise as I have with my little red rocket. I didn't buy it for looks, I bought it because it's fun to drive & makes me feel like a kid again. I now have almost 9000 miles on the car & it's been virtually trouble-free. Also, gas mileage was better than I expected -averaged 23-24 mpg on the highway, with a few tanks at 25 mpg.
Mazda needs to advertise the 8 more!!
I drove a 380 mile round trip yesterday it was almost 100% interstate with only a couple of stops. Speeds were 60mph up to 73mph, depending on which state and if we were in town or not. For the first tank, I got 21.5mpg.
For reference, in my 2005 S2000 I get 23-25mph around town and 27-29mpg on a trip - all with the top down.
They only good news is that gas has dropped here to under $2.50 per gallon for premium.
In the long term RX-8 test update in one of the car magazines, the commented on how expensive the 8 was to run in terms of always adding oil and how thirsty it was at the pump. "This is why no one else makes a rotary engine". The car is nice and fun to drive and the rotary is smooth, but I have owned 345 mph and 394hp (stock) cars that could deliver the same or better mileage and own a car with similar power and redline that gets a TON better.
Dennis
I got 23MPG averaging 85MPH.
I also believe, the RX-8 far surpasses all the competition. During the year I've own my RX-8 AT, I've driven 16K miles, where 6000 of those miles were highway. Long stretches of highway cruising needs a car to be roomy and comfortable, fun to drive, and capable of carrying the average U.S. family and all their weekend stuff.
I bought a new Mazda RX2 in 1972, and loved the car, except for the gas mileage. And, as "pathstar1" says, apex seals were a problem. I loved driving that car, and gas was cheap at the time.
I just report what I get. Driving around town there are lots of variables - do you redline, do you putt putt, etc. But on a trip where you just set the cruise and drive (straight line boredom) there is not much I could do to make it better or worse. Maybe after more miles are on my car the numbers will pick up.
I agree that the car is unique - but that is not 100% a good thing. As I said I got better MPGs in cars with a LOT more horsepower than the 8 - the rotary is just horribly inefficient.
Dennis
What does matter enormously, is having a car that pulls .93Gs through Boston's famous traffic rotary systems and winding cow path road layouts with three passengers. Makes the daily commute quite invigorating.
Sure I pay 20% to 30% more for gas, but my passengers would much rather ride in my RX-8 than any other car. They pay me for the priveledge in fact. The car is known as "Therapy car" in my commute cycle.
You must be short and have short passengers too. I love my 8 (except for the mileage, recalls, and lack of resale value) but my 6'+ sons really have trouble fitting in the car with me - and pretty much no one can ride behind me (and I am not that tall). But driving solo it is fine - and close to the thrill of the S2000. With a VooDoo knob the 6 speed in the 8 actually has shorter throws than the S gearbox - which has a very tight pattern.
Lots of cars can do close to a g in a corner, and have more power to pull out of it. My M5 could, for sure I prefer a lighter, more tossible car however - which is why have both the s and the 8. Looking at the prices on the mazdaspeed6 I have been tempted to sell the 8 and get one (Mazda has a knack for making great cars that they can't sell) - but it is a good bit heavier than the 8 so ultimately would be less fun for me to drive. Ditto the new G35 - more passenger room, more ponies, better gas mileage, fewer (likely) recalls - but may not be as much fun.
Enough of that, since this is the MPG forum - I will just state again 14-15mpg around town and 21.45 on a 95% interstate commute is lousy gas mileage for a small car. Good thing premium here is down under $2.50 a gallon :surprise:
Dennis
Mazda was aiming at a price point, that's why the auto tranny can't go over 7500. An auto-tranny that can handle 9000 RPM starts to get expensive. The Caparo T1, needs a $13,000 paddled shifted 6 speed auto tranny to handle it's 12000 RPM racing V8. Sticks are definitely going the way of the dodo bird, I think.
Beside Boston traffic jams pretty much destroyed my shifting knee and angle after 15 years of sticking it.
I had long taken Pathstar's advise about keeping RPMs above the 3000 level via manual mode paddle shifting, because of wanting to guard against carbon build-up.
But then I realized that coasting 50% or more of my commute would keep carbon down even better. There just so happens to be a certain odd combination of routes where, although traffic is heavy, coasting is also almost continuous through out.
So rather than trying to have fun on less crowded hills and curves where coasting is just not practical, I'm commuting the slow and steady route with a massive traffic flow.
If you think "upgrades" should address fuel efficiency, time to buy a Prius.
Seriously, the cause and effect is quite clear in my case. The lower MPG started immediately with the next tank after the upgrade, and the highest MPG since then hasn't matched the lowest MPG for the month before that.
I didn't expect an upgrade to "address" MPG. I knew what I was buying, and it is worth it. I just didn't expect it to degrade MPG.
OTOH, my 2005 RX-8 AT seems to be getting slightly better MPG since the lastest PCM flash. Just got back from my annual 2000 mile trip from Boston to the mountains of NC. On one stretch I got 25.2 MPG with lots of 70-90MPH non-cruise driving on new years day.
If I took $30 from your wallet every month, I would be put in jail. Called stealing... Can you say "Class Action Law Suite". If you are thinking about buying a Mazda RX8... DON'T!
Yes, I don't like it, but yes I was expecting it. My car is also an 05 with 6mt and probably had updated firmware when I picked it up - I had asked the dealer to be sure that was up to date, pre-delivery. The cat converter recall had no affect positive or negative with the mileage.
Folks here and on the various 8 message boards report better mileage than I get. If they also have 6mt cars, then I assume the are just putting around in them. I drive mine as it was designed - like a sports car - and I am sure the mileage suffers. If I want to putt around, I can take the xB and drive it hard and still get 27mph, or the S2000 can be driven to the redline and do no worse the 23mph. I got a sports car that got bad mileage, but knew that going in. So while I complain about it, it IS my fault
Dennis
Sure city is still 15-16PMG, but here in Boston, pay back comes from roads that are such an incredible snaking jumble of cow paths. If you can stay out of traffic jams, driving in Boston is a nice balancing of G forces in all directions.
I just came back from a trip to the mountains in the S, over 30mpg on the highway (all top down) and 26-29 mpg driving around the mountains (all top down). I get 24 mpg commuting to work (mostly all top down).
My RX-8 with the latest recalls and computer flash gets 14-15 mpg commuting (same route as the S gets 24 mpg) and gets 19 mpg on highway trips - though one time I got 20.5 mpg. And highway driving is mostly set the cruise on 74 or 75 and just ride - so not much room to improve the mileage except to drive slower.
So it does not matter if you use the old or new EPA numbers, when driven as intended the 8 suck fuel like a huge v-8 (or worse). So says all the car mag tests and so say the customers who drive (the 6 speed) in a spirited manner.
In a recent C&R head to head with the 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT, the 2007 Mazda RX-8, the 2007 Nissan 350Z, and the 2008 Audi TT 2.0T guess which car "won" the test? Even though it "guzzles gas like a private jet" ?
link to story
Note on their 600 mile test the 8 returned the worst mileage at 15mpg - even lower than the 319 hp Shelby.
I love the car, like C&D I think it is a "winner", but when driven as designed the MPG just sucks
Dennis
I don't do much paddle shifting any more though, so that may help keep the RPM's down well below 2000 most of the time. I do regularly rev past 5000 and oil consumption in the city is a quart/1000miles.
Thanks for that link. I sure love my RX-8. It still turns heads, especially when four 6' adults exit with all the door open.
The fuel economy/power output ratio of the 8 isn't that great, but the rotary engine has other benefits - smaller, lighter weight, etc. Plus you can rev it a lot without worrying about reducing its life, unlike a piston engine. Rotaries are designed to rev, in fact it is good for them.
As for revving, there seems to be a quicker and smoother rise right up to the 7500 red line beep. It took at least a year before the full auto mode would reach red line to set off the beeper. It was a huge surprise the day it happened.
As for the 350Z's ride, I use to drive a consultant back to his hotel from work here in Boston. He owned a fully tricked out 350Z back in Arizona where he lived. Of my RX-8 AT he was very impressed with the rides ability to handle Boston's horrible streets. He concluded one would never be able to drive a 350Z in Boston without getting a severe back ache. He also said that he'd taken his 350Z on the track and averaged only 6MPG.
I keep the tires at 40 psi but that doesn't explain why my mpg numbers are so much higher than the EPA numbers. I do avoid tailgating so in bumper-to-bumper highway traffic I am leaving a deacceleration cushion space ahead of my car whereas most drivers seem to be constantly riding their brakes. I am sure this practice helps alot since I am using the paddle shifters to slow down and I think the fuel computer shuts off the fuel injection during engine braking. Also, the AT drops into 6th between 40 & 45 mph and is geared so 60 mph is right at 2000 rpm.
I also use 1oz of Marvel Mystery Oil per gallon of fuel to help keep the engine innards clean but I doubt on such a new engine this will affect efficiency enough to notice.
So I am very happy with my RX-8's fuel economy numbers. I just wish Mazda could get those EPA numbers closer to my reality.
My RX-8 AT is mostly driven in city in manual mode in 2nd gear. 3rd and 4th would be dropping RPM's in down to 1200 where carbon build up is noticeable. I keep the RPM 2500-3500 in 2nd which covers all the city speeds up to 45MPH.
I saw a piece about an engine additive that kept rotor housing shiny sparkling inside.
I wish the 6 speed manual's top gear was also such that 60 mph was 2000 rpm! In the 6 speed manual's case, it's 3000 rpm, so now I understand why the AT gets so much better mileage. My best recorded figure, to date, is 22.6 mpg. I'm working on trying to first get to the EPA published 24 mpg highway, and then I'll see what I can do to better it. I have heard of some manual RX-8s getting 27 highway; but I'm not yet clear on how it's being done.
Thanx!
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20 mile commute - 10 freeway, 10 city.
Was getting 16 to 17.5 (if staying in the right lane etc.)
Post Sep 08 reflash - dropped to 14.8 to 15.5 tops.
Agree, when you run this thing it drinks.
So I'm in an argument with a Prius guy at work over the famous Top Gear BMW M3 vs Prius MPG episode where the Beamer got 19 MPG and the Prius got 17 MPG going around racing track.
My point to my friend at work is that my RX-8 AT, when driven at 85-95MPH in hard Boston Mass Pike commuter traffic where lots of paddle shifting and lane changing is required to stay moving, I've been achieving 20 MPG.
My friend contends that his Prius beats my 20MPG, but he can't produce any data from anywhere other than straight cruise control drives at high speed that show 25MPG over the 85-95MPH.
I'm pointing at the Top Gear shows results of 17MPG that the Prius got, as evidence that when you drive a Prius close to it's performance limits, that MPG drops below 20MPG.
Anyone got any racing or hard driving commuter data to point to? My MPG experience with my 2005 RX-8 AT is definitely a solid 20MPG when doing the fast hard driving 40 mile run from my place in western Mass into Boston, which takes me down 495 and then east onto the Mass Pike. Traffic moves out during my typical segments of the run. I go through two tolls where it's a freak'n drag race off the line most times and I get off at exit 17 before reaching the heaviest Boston traffic.
I live in Canada and I own a 2004 Mazda six speed. I drive to kelowna twice a week which is around 120km (62 miles). My gas mileage is horrible, I am getting 19 liters (just over 5 galons) to 100km (74.5 miles) or 350km (218.5) to a tank. I dont think the car should be this bad on gas. What do you guys think? Plus when i go up hills the car smells terrible, not like suffer but like oil and gas mix. My engine light turned on for a week but turned off. Any suggestions