kamehamaha

so far everything that's been said has nothing to do with how it drives...........

i'm waiting for someone to actually drive this car and find out if/that it's a fun ass car to drive. I thought that this was a car enthusiast board. Not every car is going to be an S2000. that's why i like cars.

some think the Z4 is unattractive but they then say it drives well, and that's what counts....

let's open some minds here and try to see some of the plusses and benifit to a car before we condemn it to hell. if you drive it and still don't like it......there is nothing wrong with that as long as you don't lie to yourself.....and you will know if you are.

lig

IMO - Pluses - 4 door sportscar. Relatively lightweight. Very revvable. Minus - looks horrible.

No one here said it drives poorly. To my eyes - it's so unattractive I don't really harbor a desire to drive it.

For all I know - it's the greatest car in the world. The fact of the matter is that I don't care. It's got to please me visually as well as dynamically.

The Z4 is the same way to me... I really don't care for the looks of it. No interest in driving it at all. On the other hand - the E46 M3 pushes my buttons big time. I still like the Miata very much. I love the last gen RX-7.

It's not a Mazda or BMW thing for me - it's just a lack of appeal.

Russ

[QUOTE]Originally posted by kamehamaha
so far everything that's been said has nothing to do with how it drives
Which is why the comments are mainly directed at the asthetics

some think the Z4 is unattractive but they then say it drives well, and that's what counts.

Not hardly. Are you telling me that those folks who have $40,000 to spend on a car don't care about looks as long as they like how it drives? Do you consider enthusiasts devoid of taste so long as their car of choice drives well? How many have chosen a Vector over a Ferrari? Sportscars have ALWAYS walked a delicate line between STYLE and PERFORMANCE, otherwise, they'd all have come with 300-hp engines long before designers had their inputs or worse yet, we'd all be driving around in turbocharged Escorts.

ultimate lurker

That head on shot is uncanny.

Based on the pictures, the RX-8 doesn't look bad. Although, in all honesty, my biggest issue with the styling has always been from behind the front door back and that is hidden in these photos.

What really stands out to me in the side-by-side profile shots is the rake of the RX-8's windshield. Its quite a bit steeper than the S2000s. Certainly part of this is due to the fact it is a fixed roof design, therefore the windshield does not have to support potential rollover stresses like a roadster does. But if you note, its not that the windshield ends further back than the S2000's, but rather the bottom seems pulled forward. I would imagine that a good part of the engine actually resides under the leading edge of the windshield (ala last gen Camaro LS1).

UL

Surf2k

There was a new RX-8 at our NER Autocross on Sunday. IMO,The interior is very nice, but the exterior is a tad goofy looking. For what it's worth, his times were 2-3 seconds slower than mine in the S (and I suck), but that says more about the driver than the car.

InsaneInNC

And exactly HOW do you know this??????? Actually, we don't want to know.

airgate

Now surely Steve, you don't mean *everyone* on this board insists hating on Mazdas. Have you talked with everyone on this board?

And calling the RX-8 a 4 door S2000 is grounds to have you banned.

WRS2K

A tastefully modded RX-8 will look just as good if not better than a tastefully modded S2000.

I think a bone stock S2000 looks rather dull.

MyBad

It will take tastefull mods to make the RX8 look good. LOTS of them.

Performance means nothing if buyers are put off by the looks of the car. There are plenty of high performance cars out now that look WAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY better that this abortion.

Seriously though, this is OK if you're into the whole "Chrysler/steroid/retro" fad thing.

I gaurantee the RX8 will be dated prematurely and the S2k will be a timeless calssic!









Just my most humble opinion, of course.

Indecision

I don't know about everyone. I love the idea, just the execution is questionable. If I'm in a market for a 4 seaters I would not even bother with the RX8, especially when the G35 Coupe is just a few steps around the corner, the TSX is a walk away, the new TL is up the street and heck lets throw in the Lancer up the alley. Mazda is trying to slip the RX-8 into both markets, a daring move. That you have to give them credit for. Of course if it doesn't work then they'll pull out the RX-7 and push the RX-8 onto the sedan market. For now it seems like they're only testing the water.

If the design of the RX-8 is to target me then it's not working.