mx5

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/comparison/...39/article.html

SpeedxRacer

Im actually surprised. Thumbs up to the rx-8

BeatRed

If it wasnt for the 'saturn' doors on the rx-8... i'd actually like it.

PedalFaster

You can't see the back doors from the driver's seat.

Steve

raceboy

"All-out speed and handling is one thing, but putting it all together into a package that's as refined as it is fast is another. For those who are willing to give up a fair amount of comfort in the name of performance, there are few cars that can match the Z. If, however, your performance tastes are less demanding, the Nissan's bumpy ride and stark interior put it a notch below the Mazda on the desirability chart."

That about sums it up. The agenda here as it s so many times in comparo tests is to make one car win regardless of the results of the tests. These are sportscars and the Nissan STOMPS the RX8. End of story. Might have something to do with the fact that Nissan is raking in the $$$ and Mazda is a starving division of Ford. Gotta keep Ford happy I guess to keep bringing in those ad $$!

Habiib

Although the numbers suck for both cars, this was a pretty good comparo. I find it funny that when comparing the Z to the RX-8, the Z is looked at as the "Pure Sports Car", while the RX-8 is the comfortable cruiser. However, when comparing the Z to the S2000, the Z is the cruiser, and the S2000 is the pure sports car. So is it safe to say that had this been a Z and S2000 comparision test, that Edmunds would have picked the Z to be the winner?

Off Topic:
Does anyone agree that Nissan should have not given the Z a linear powerband? There is no excitement in having that in a sports car IMO. The Z would have been "special" had Nissan applied its Neo-VVL to the VQ and then decided to use it to power the Z.

PedalFaster

According to that test, the Mazda handles better and is plain more fun to drive than the 350Z. I won't debate whether or not that's true since I haven't driven either car, but if they came to those conclusions, how could they credibly not say that the RX-8 is the superior sports car?

Sports cars aren't just about numbers. A breathed-on Camaro will slaughter either the 350Z or the RX-8, but that doesn't make it a sports car, let alone a superior one. A Maybach can dust off a Mazda Miata in a straight line without even realizing it was racing, but it's still no sports car.

Sounds like it. I haven't driven a 350Z yet, but I used to have a BMW Z3 2.8, which had a ruler-flat torque band, and let me tell you, it was boring as all hell to rev. There wasn't much additional speed or excitement to be had by winding out that motor, so there really wasn't much point. If the 350Z's the same way, then I can see why people would complain.

Steve

80s Boy

The only thing missing from that test was an S2000!!

SoCalS2K

finally

it's not all about hp & tq

Mark_is300

I drove both, and preferred the RX-8 too.