The Mazda RX-8 is a sports car manufactured by Mazda between 2002 and 2012. It was first shown in 2001 at the North American International Auto Show. It is the successor to the RX-7 and, like its predecessors in the RX range, it is powered by a rotary Wankel engine. The RX-8 began North American sales in the 2003 model year.
Mazda announced on August 23, 2011, that the RX-8 was to be discontinued citing the 2012 model as the last line of production. The RX-8 was removed from the European market in 2010 after the car failed to meet emissions standards.
Engine | |
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Layout / number of cylinders | 8 |
Displacement | 4,806 cm³ |
Power | 520 hp |
at rpm | 6,000 1/min |
Max. torque (lb.-ft.) | 516.3 (567.9 in conjunction with Sport Chrono Package) |
at rpm | 2,250-4,500 1/min |
Fuel consumption | |
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City | 13.8 l/100km |
Highway | 8.3 l/100km |
Combined | 11.3 l/100km |
Performance | |
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Top speed | 305 kph |
Acceleration from 0 - 100 kph with Sport Chrono Paket | 4.0 s |
In-gear acceleration (80 - 120 kph) | 2.7 s |
Transmission | |
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Layout | all-wheel drive |
7-speed PDK |
Body | |
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Length | 5,165 mm |
Width | 1,931 mm |
Height | 1,425 mm |
Wheelbase | 3,070 mm |
Unladen weight (DIN) | 2,070 kg |
Permissible gross weight | 2,560 kg |
The RX-8 was designed as a front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, four-door, four-seater quad coupé. The car has near 50:50 front-rear weight distribution and a low polar moment of inertia, achieved by mounting the engine behind the front axle and the fuel tank ahead of the rear axle. The front suspension uses double wishbones and the rear is multi-link. Weight is trimmed through the use of materials such as aluminum and plastic for several body panels. The rest of the body is steel, except for the plastic front and rear bumpers. The manual gearbox model uses a carbon fiber composite driveshaft to reduce the rotational mass (momentum of inertia) connected to the engine. At the heart of the Mazda RX-8 is its high-revving, 1.3-liter rotary engine.[1] Power is sent to the rear wheels through a torque-sensing conical limited-slip differential for improved handling. While underpowered in comparison to the final RX-7[citation needed], the RX-8 is considered its successor as Mazda's rotary engine sports sedan. Its layout and clever engineering, along with typical Mazda suspension tuning have endowed it with excellent driving dynamics which have garnered much praise and numerous awards. It has also proved popular in Japan among car enthusiasts as well as aftermarket equipment manufacturers and professional tuners.
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