thematt202 Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, I currently own a 55 plate Mazda RX8 and i'm thinking of selling as even though it is a great drive, the performance just cannot justify the fuel consumption (80 miles on £20). The main disappointment with my RX8 is the lack of torque, although the car is fast, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. My questions are as follows: How "brutal" is the acceleration in the 350Z? Do you get that G-force feeling in the stomach or is it not that extreme? Also how is the fuel economy - Surely better than 80 miles on £20? Has anyone owned/driven both cars and can give me a comparison? Thanks for reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin W Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin W Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 by the way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thematt202 Posted May 22, 2009 Author Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! In which car? The 350Z or the RX8? Thanks for the welcome Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srobrien Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! For the poor people that can't afford turbos ....no not really, the power is more linear, you do go fast quickly but it's not brutal. Saying that in lower gear the torque is fantastic, there are a few guys on here converted from RX-8's and as far as I know no-one has been dissapointed. Get out there and get a test drive R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anish Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 A mate of mine has an RX8 and he feels exactly the same as you do. Although on paper there isn't a lot of difference between the RX8 and 350z, the way the power is delivered is completely different. Every time he gets in my car he always comments on how much more powerful the 350z feels and how you have to rev the nuts off the RX8 to get decent power levels. If you can sacrifice the back seats then I'd say go for a 350z. Take a test drive, what do you have to lose! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T2 Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Welcome I had a rx8 then a Boxster before my 350z and I have no regrets at all with the car, you do get a totally different feeling when accelerating in the Z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkie34 Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 As has been said above I had a new shape civic type r and I had to drive it like I was racing everybody. The Zed is a completly different animal,it will pull in any gear and will tackle motorways effortlessly.It won't punch you in the back as a turbo car will but you don't have to rev the knackers off it either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! Show off I never felt the kick in the back that I used to get with turbo cars but I have found that flooring it in 3rd can pin your passengers into their seat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin W Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! Show off I never felt the kick in the back that I used to get with turbo cars but I have found that flooring it in 3rd can pin your passengers into their seat isn't that the same thing mate! ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Hi guys, you never feel like you are being pushed into the seat. I do! Show off I never felt the kick in the back that I used to get with turbo cars but I have found that flooring it in 3rd can pin your passengers into their seat isn't that the same thing mate! ? No Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris`I Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 I never felt the kick in the back that I used to get with turbo cars but I have found that flooring it in 3rd can pin your passengers into their seat isn't that the same thing mate! ? No +1 - turn your boost up Martin, or take a ride in an Evo or similar to see what a brutal turbo is At a guess, a low boost turbo Zed wont feel much different in power delivery than a stock Zed, just it has more. It will spool quickly so very linear delivery as OEM. But bigger boost will give you more of a hit as the turbo spools up to boost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nixy Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 As has been said above I had a new shape civic type r and I had to drive it like I was racing everybody. The Zed is a completly different animal,it will pull in any gear and will tackle motorways effortlessly.It won't punch you in the back as a turbo car will but you don't have to rev the knackers off it either. What he said! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin W Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 ..At a guess,.......... Keep guessing!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M13KYF Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 the Z can be stealthy quick without you realising Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin W Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 the Z can be stealthy quick without you realising +2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry3167 Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 The Z is a powerful car, with very graceful acceleration, not brutal, punchy, has its own VTEC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc350z Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 The zed is a deceptively fast car... acceleration feels sorta sluggish.. then you look at the speedo and realise you are actually going pretty quickly.. High seating position feels like it hides a lot .. It's not bang or bust quick like a BM M car or a scooby wrx sti where it feels like you are being forced down the crease at the back of the seat from 800 revs up... but it is rapid.. I have driven a 2004 rx8 (the 220 ish bhp one) and to be honest it felt gutless.. no torque.. unless it was screaming like a stabbed hoodie.. then it felt quick.. but hard work and it, like you said, seemed to hit the drink like David Hasslehoff in an Airport.. I seemed to spend all my time compensating for no torque by fishing round the gearbox and pushing the loud pedal through the floor.... I have a 2007 facelift and had an "acceleration test" Ahem.. against a mate in a stock 2004 wrx scooby (the dog ugly one) ..... it got away up to about 70 (probably got 5 car lengths on me) then it seemed more or less the same up to an undisclosed speed .. word of warning though.. the 20 quid = 80 miles.. hmmm.. i get an average of about 25 during normal sane times of work and back.. but when i hit the loud pedal too much i have run my average down to sub 20.... reckon that would equate to - at 20mpg - 4.55 litres = 1 gallon... 1 litre - 1.01gbp (4.60gbp per gallon)... so 20 quid = 4.35 gallons.. at 20 to a gallon = 87 miles at 25 mpg 4.55 litres = 1 gallon... 1 litre - 1.01gbp (4.60gbp per gallon)... so 20 quid = 4.35 gallons.. at 25 to a gallon = 109 miles So whilst not fantastic.. better than the Rex.. In my opinion.... A few things better in the Rex - 4 seats... if you need em.. The upgraded stereo.. s'nice.. interior trim quality is about twice as good in the Rex the driving position A few things better in the Zed - the sound the handling (it feels more planted than the rex) the oil consumption the fuel economy the ease of use... i found the rex hard work.. even just for the hour or so i borrowed one the rarity.. i see lots more rex's around and about than zeds.. You should go give one a blast... if you do . you'll buy it.... i did and i like it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronzee Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Welcome to the forum. Have you taken a 350 for blast yet?? If not try and you'll understand what the others have said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALT Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 I test drove a 350Z and an RX8 on the same day (in that order). There was no comparison. The RX8 had to be in a low gear before it did anything. The 350Z will pull from low in the rev range and you get a steady increase in acceleration up to the red line. I was upgrading from a Honda Prelude 2.2vti, which was a great car, but I wanted something that I didn’t have to rev the nuts off to make progress, and the 350Z fitted the bill. I drove a Mazda 3 MPS a few days before. The turbo does give a kick in the back, but it delivers the power in a very tight rev range. So the power kicks in and it feels great for a second, but then the turbo gives up and the last 500 rpm feels lifeless. So you end up changing up at about 5500rpm, which makes it feel like driving a diesel. I’m very happy with the 350Z. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris`I Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 ..At a guess,.......... Keep guessing!! Eh? Do you mean to say now that you do get the shove when the turbo spools?? Last I hear you were running 390BHP, so that is low boost. Low boost should have no discernable turbo rush, as it spools from such low revs. Yes you will have a lot more shove than an OEM Zed but the power should be delivered nice and linerally, not in one lump around 3k revs as an Evo does. If you are getting that hit high up the rev range, then maybe you need it to be remapped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndySpak Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Hi, I had an RX-8 for 18 months and changed it for the Zed I've had for the last 20 months. In my opinion the drive in the Zed is leaps and bounds ahead of the RX-8. Sure the RX-8 has fantastic steering and is very agile on a twisty piece of road but the Zed can match it (although to me the Zed does feel a little heavier). Where the Zed excels itself is with its engine. The flexibility that the Zed's torque gives you is streets apart from what you'll be used to in the RX-8. If you aren't pushing hard, you can drive everywhere in 6th gear and forget about the gearbox, its that good. You do not get explosive acceleration but if you jump straight out of your RX-8 and get into a Zed you should notice a significant increase in drivability. The fuel economy is slightly better than the RX-8, my on board computer tels me I am getting an average of 26.5mpg. This includes a fair bit of motorway driving but I am also very heavy footed when I'm not on the motorway so its a fair reflection of all-round usage. I agree with most of the plus/minus points that manc350z wrote however some of my thoughts are: The driving position for me is much better in the Zed The steering is sharper in the RX-8 and its more nimble however the handling, especially if you like sideways action, is better in the Zed Overall, I rate the Zed much higher than I do the RX-8 but I like them both. If you change, you will almost certainly like the Zed, unless you really are after back breaking acceleration, in which case you'll need to get a Scooby or an Evo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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