Japanese cars have never been known for the passion they invoke. This isn't to say they are bad cars, they certainly aren't, in fact, it usually just means they break less. But there is a certain feeling that a Japanese car usually lacks in the minds of automotive enthusiasts when compared to their counterparts from say Italy or England. Japan is known for churning out cars such as the Nissan GT-R or the Mitsubishi Evo, cars that are complete techno showcases, making people the world over stand in awe staring at something that can't be seen, a program within the car, active yaw-control, 4-way traction control, exciting sounding devices like that. The Mazda RX-8 however, is a different animal. Nothing else can compare, even to any car from the lands of passion and electrical fires. For many years this passion has been defined and quantified by an invisible substance most commonly referred to as soul', this is a completely subjective term, there are however a few cars that are undeniable full of this soul' people speak of, an old hand-built Aston Martin, an old air-cooled Porsche, and any rotary powered Mazda, such as the RX-8. This is mainly because people don't understand these things, how can an Aston, hand built by some man in England, hold together and not fall apart in some glorious fire? How can an old Porsche be so much fun to drive, when the engine is in the wrong end? And what is this funky little engine under the hood of this Mazda, and how does it make 240hp from just 1.3 liters, and more shockingly, how does such a small engine get such horrible fuel economy? It's the magic of a rotary engine, only the strangest of the strange really understand how it works, and why it works. You don't have to though, it's completely irrelevant to the sublime driving experience that goes along with a Mazda RX-8.
Driving an RX-8 is unlike driving any other car on the road, everything feels the way it should, everything gives you a connection to the road under you, and the car you're controlling. Perfect harmony, all executed at a silky smooth 9000 RPMs. This is the true magic of this car, the culmination of all it's working parts, the funky engine, the telepathic steering, the gloriously precise shifter, the forgiving yet planted suspension, all coming together to form one spectacular car. Even while standing still you can tell this is a special sort of car, from it's rearward opening back doors, to the little triangles hidden into the cars styling that give you a constant reminder of what sort of engine is under the hood. To it's perfectly form fitting bucket seats and thick leather wrapped steering wheel, it's immediately apparent that this is a serious driver's car. And that it is, this is no normal car, it is certainly not for everybody. This is not the car to buy if you are looking for a grocery getter, or a generic piece of transportation to get you efficiently and comfortably from point A to point B. It has it's little quirks, it burns oil, it's quite natural, it's simply what rotary engines do, but it is something that needs to be watched after on a regular basis, generally every other time you fill up the gas tank, which is actually quite frequently, when you combine it's abysmal gas mileage, a typical combined mileage of 18 MPG, and it's modestly sized gas tank, with a capacity of 15.9 gallons, you'll end up at the gas station rather frequently. But once you leave the fill-up station and put all of these things behind you, the car is pure bliss. But that is very important, you have to love cars enough to be able to forget all it's minor inconveniences and short-comings, which is remarkably easy to do if you are a sucker for any sort of inspiring driving dynamics. Hitting your favorite twisty road on a Sunday evening listening to the engine wind it's way up to 9000 RPMs, and not sensing a thing, in fact, Mazda included a little chime that comes in at 8500 RPMs to remind the driver it's nearly time to shift, feeling the car will itself through a turn with it's perfect weight distribution and beautifully tuned suspension, none of it's short comings matter, the fact that it burns a little bit of oil and drinks gas like the biggest SUVs on the road mean nothing. It's a small price to pay to feel true motoring genius. And if you agree with that sentiment, and if you are willing to put sheer joy in front of a bit of practicality, then this car is quite possibly for you. And if so, then I salute you, fellow car guy, and enjoy your ride in Japan's interpretation of that soul' thing the Italians have been trying for so long to perfect.
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