Sad story...

I'm actually sort of looking into the possibility of a modern Rx8 as a daily driver, so I can turn the Z into a more serious project...

Something about a rotary just speaks to me...

Have you actually driven an RX-8? While it handles and brakes great, it has NO guts. I've never driven a more pathetic street car. The Honda S2000 feels like a big block compared to the RX-8.

I'll probably get laughed off the site for this but I have a soft spot for the '72 Pinto I had '76 when I was 16. It was an ugly yellowish green I bought off the wholesale lot at Jim Click Ford in Tucson. $700. 100,000 miles already on it. It was a base model with the 1.6 liter OHV 4 and was slow as snot. But the darn thing took 36,000 miles of my abuse with hardly a whimper and I sold it a year later for $200 more than I paid for it. Yeah, it's not the most glamorous, but the darn thing was a beauty to drift. It had tons of steering lock and oversteered like crazy. The manual rack and pinion and light weight made it oh so easy to control and I tore around on the dirt roads in the foothills of Tucson imagining I was a world famous rally car driver. I year later I had a '70 Cortina with the same 1.6 liter OHV but is much higher tuned and I would have loved to have swapped. I occasionally look for one for sale but haven't seen one like mine. 1.6L, 4 speed, no hatch back. I don't imagine it would be all that much fun now which is one reason I have the Z instead but it would be cool to have one again.

Have you actually driven an RX-8? While it handles and brakes great, it has NO guts. I've never driven a more pathetic street car. The Honda S2000 feels like a big block compared to the RX-8.

Well it's got no torque -- it's a rotary, you're supposed to rev to 9 grand before you shift again!

I'm also grossly unimpressed with the S2000. I can't fit in it comfortably (6 feet tall, 185 lbs), and quite expensive for something so impractical. Vtec is alright, but hardly useful on the street. Plus, getting -another- car with only 2 seats is not in my future.

Don't get me wrong, I love my third-gen Prelude, but new Honda does not impress me that much...

Hmmm, I have the exact opposite opinion. I am 6'-1" 190 and fit great in the S2000. I also think it's way more driveable than the RX-8. I had an RX-8 on a track and I didn't fit AT ALL. I needed 3+ more inches of headroom with my helmet. I couldn't even drive it, I was so cramped. My head was sideways and was still smashed against the roof. On the street, I don't want to have to abuse the car to keep up with old women in Buicks. I like a car that revs, I just don't want to be forced to beat the crap out of it 100% of the time. The S2000 drives just like a Civic below 6k - Not a ton of power, but enough to get around.

Hmmm, I have the exact opposite opinion. I am 6'-1" 190 and fit great in the S2000. I also think it's way more driveable than the RX-8. I had an RX-8 on a track and I didn't fit AT ALL. I needed 3+ more inches of headroom with my helmet. I couldn't even drive it, I was so cramped. My head was sideways and was still smashed against the roof. On the street, I don't want to have to abuse the car to keep up with old women in Buicks. I like a car that revs, I just don't want to be forced to beat the crap out of it 100% of the time. The S2000 drives just like a Civic below 6k - Not a ton of power, but enough to get around.

Fair enough. I'm not looking for a track car, just something fun, sexy and practical for street use.

The RX8 appeals to me because it's got that sportscar quirkiness and (IMO) beautiful style, plus the added practicality of 4 doors/seats... but hey I'm just a youngster, maybe it's just those goofy altezza lights that I love so much? :stupid:

Shelby GT 500 Cobra