by Frank de Leeuw van Weenen March 10, 2008 11:24 AM
Filed Under: Japanese, Mazda
On sale now in Japan
The facelifted Mazda RX-8 was revealed at the Tokyo Auto Salon back in early January before it showed its bonnet at the Detroit Auto Show. Back then Mazda refrained from releasing official specifications, which we can now bring to your attention. The freshened RX-8 has gone on sale in Japan today.
The current first generation Mazda RX-8 has been on the roads since 2003 and with this facelift it will grace the tarmac in primarely Japan and the US for a few more years before it will be replaced. The four seater will see an entirely new model added to its range, the Type RS. The Type RS joins the base model RX-8, Type E and Type S by offering an even more powerful engine combined with a new body kit.
The entire range is graced with larger air-intakes in the front bumper, the side air-vents now have a turn indicator and the rear lights contain LED lamps. The aluminium wheels come in three new designs and have been upgraded to 17 inches on the base model and Type E, the Type S has 18 inch wheels while the new Type RS sits on 19 inch rims.
Inside, the base model and Type S are adorned with densely woven black seat covers, the Type E models come equipped with leather seat covers in black, red or beige. The tachometer also received an update with silver markings and white illumination.
Under the hood Mazda upgraded the water and oil pumps improving the performance on the RENESIS rotary engine. The revised gear ratios on the manual transmission allows for a more responsive acceleration at lower RPM. Mazda also redesigned the body structure, increased local rigidity and improved aerodynamics.
New Mazda RX-8 Type RS offers enhanced driving performance and bolder styling
Mazda Motor Corporation has announced the launch of the freshened Mazda RX-8. The updated four-door, four-seat rotary-powered sports car is available from today at all Mazda and Mazda Anfini dealerships throughout Japan.*1
The four-seat RX-8 sports car debuted in Japan in May 2003, powered by Mazda’s lightweight, compact and powerful rotary engine. The freshened version evolves and refines the high performance and sporty styling core elements of the RX-8, and features enhanced quality and packaging. The newly released Type RS grade offers exceptional driving pleasure with better performance and bolder styling.
The exterior design features fresh new styling and improved quality, with larger air intakes in the front bumper, side marker lamps integrated with the headlight units, side air vents integrated with the turn indicators, and rear combination lights that contain LED lamps. Three new designs for the aluminum wheels all reflect rotor-shaped motifs, and the 16-inch wheels (on the Type E and RX-8 base grade) have been upgraded to 17 inches. With the addition of new exterior colors such as the high quality Diamond Grey Metallic, eight colors are now available.
Interior quality has been improved through densely woven black fabric seat covers in the Type S and RX-8 base grade, finely-perforated genuine leather seat covers in the Type E (available in black, red or beige) and a new tachometer with silver markings and white illumination. The packaging has been further refined with the addition of power adjustable seats with a memory function,*2 an electric folding driver’s seat*3 and a GPS navigation system fully integrated into the center panel.*4
The RX-8 now offers even better driving dynamics. New water and oil pumps, among other changes, improve the rotary engine’s performance and provide a better acceleration feel. Revised gear ratios in the six-speed manual transmission provide more responsive acceleration at lower engine speeds. Through a redesign of the body structure, increased local rigidity and improved aerodynamics provide greater sports car performance.
The new Type RS grade comes with exclusive aero parts, 19-inch forged aluminum wheels, RECARO bucket seats, Bilstein dampers and other equipment to emphasize the sporty appeal of the freshened RX-8 model range. To highlight its pedigree as a true driver’s car, the RX-8 Type RS also boasts more aggressive styling.
Manufacturer’s suggested retail prices vary from 2,600,000 to 3,150,000 yen (including consumption tax). The sales target volume for the new RX-8 model range is 270 units a month.
*1: The five-speed manual transmission RX-8 will go on sale in June 2008.
*2: Standard equipment on the Type E (with leather seats).
*3: Standard equipment on the Type E (with leather seats). The Type S and base grade seats are manually adjustable.
*4: Available as a factory-installed option on the Type E, Type S and Type RS grades.
It would be a better car if it got rid of the rotor engine in my humble opinion... It sounds like an electric saw, for god's sake! I adore the car, I hate the engine.
I'll have to disagree, Kepe... I know a few people who chose a different car over an RX-8 just because of the whiney engine. Maybe it does make it special, one thing it fails to do is make it a better car, I'm afraid.
Never been a big fan...they're amazing cars in their own right, with their handling abilities, but I always thought they looked like a hunchback or like they had a tumor...Would have been so good looking as a two-seater without cancer
currently the only in-production rotary model, true high reving machines. not an appealing facelift, would pick an alternative rotary if there is one around.
Many Improvements and it look WAY BETTER in the flesh, pics do not do this car any justice. The Rotary IS what makes this car so special and yes it is an engineered masterpiece. Unfortunately High Fuel Costs are going to see an end of an era in my opinion with this type of gasoline rotary, and many banger engines (V8,V6). It is just not marketable any longer. Look at the UK the GOVERNMENT there have added a road tax ($1000.00) a year (2009) for cars like the RX-8 and all sports cars. These cars just will not sell in Europe.
