A good conundrum to have

[FreestyleCab]

Hello.....Brett here.

I found my way to ozmps but way of my mid life crisis.

My car history has been fairly boring.

• '78 Escort Van (1 year).
• '88 Feroza (3 years from new).
• '91 B2600 4wd Spacecab (12 years from new).
• '03 Bravo 4wd FreestyleCab (4 years from new).
• '07 Triton 4wd Doublecab (current)

OK, back to the mid life crisis bit.....
I am finally in a position to buy some toys (aka - been given permission to spend by the ministry of fun and finance) and started my mid life crisis with a dual sport motorbike.
Now considering I have owned 4wds for the last 24 years I am looking to purchase my first performance 'street' car....something that can actually handle! Due to my previous ownership and love of the Mazda brand I have looked no further and I am torn between the 6 MPS and the RX-8.

I like the look of the RX-8 and the uniqueness of the rotary, but I am unsure if I can put up with the 'quirkyness' of owning a rotary....or the problems that come from purchasing one second hand!

I like the sleeper nature of the 6 MPS and would enjoy the luxury dual purpose nature of the 6, having a nice performance and comfort mix....plus AWD.

I am slowly working my way through this forum and rx8club trying to gather as much information on the 6 MPS and RX-8 as I can, but if anyone out there in ozmpsclub would like to offer any suggestions or insights regarding each model I would welcome the input.

Brett

[SarcasticOne]

Having been lucky enough to have driven both, it's an interesting decision to make

They are 2 very different cars, a well looked after rotary will give you no more problems than any other well looked after car, I know of 2 people who's rx8's I would buy without a second thought (brett and nathan). All the advice I can give you on buying a 2nd hand rx8, is get a compression test and if the owner/dealer doesn't like you taking it to redline, don't buy it

Being a turbo car, the mps isn't bullet proof either, but you are less likely to have problems from people nannying the engine...

A 6mps is more a grant tourer, and with minor mods, will give a fair few cars a scare on a straight stretch of road.

The rx8 will never go big power unless you put force induction on it, but with near perfect weight distribution, and great manual gearbox, they're more like a bigger less compromised lotus...

You'll probably find a mps more fun to drive on a day to day basis, unless you live in canberra, but for a run through your favourite set of twisty roads, rx8 would be my pick

[Reedy]

The 6 MPS is a bit too sensible for a midlife crisis car imo.

If you want to feel violent acceleration, get the MPS.
If you get more of a fizz from fast and agile cornering, go the RX-8.

[rogwick]

Welcome...what info do you need?

I won't comment on the RX-8 cause personally I don't know much about them and never driven one.
Depending on budget the MPS can be a great and quick family car or to put it simple, a beast.
Rayd (another 6MPS owner) is at 235kw atw in his 6MPS, add coilovers and you can take corners pretty quick indeed.
I've actually chased a mate around a corner on a CBR600RR (medium right) and I couldn't catch the MPS for fear of sliding into a kerb.

My advise if you want some fun but plan to keep it stock the MPS6 probably isn't for you. IMO she needs to be tweaked a bit to become a great car...it's ok out the box but nothing amazing. Some well placed coin earns that

[lucifuge]

OK, we have both a MPS6 and a Rx8 at home. They are both totally different, but awesome in their own ways. From your requirements I think you may find yourself in a bit of a bind, because you want things that they both offer but not one car has it all. To be totally frank, you would be insane if you didn't drive each one for at least an hour ON THE ROADS you intend to drive it on. It's the only way to know what is right for YOU. Preferably, the testing would be done back to back on same day, but I appreciate this would be problematic. There are some subtleties too you need to appreciate; the Rx8 requires more 'work' as the torque is manifested thru revs/gearing. The MPS6 is an easier option in that it has a lot of torque very early on. BUT, the gearbox in the Rx8 is amazing compared to the 6. So where do you place your focus? For me its the Rx8 becuase 'working' the engine with a sublime gearbox is what driving is all about, but it's personal. That case may be the opposite for you. In a sense, you've narrowed down to two excellent cars, so you wont do badly, but you do need to get the right one for you. I would strongly recommend you pay a bit more and get one from a dealer and insist on extended warranty. I bought a 2009 Rx8 maybe 1 year ago and it had 2 years factory warranty on it. I also extended e warranty an additional 5 years! cheers Brett

[Vanq]

Can't sum it up any better then it already has, other then linking you to this thread : RX8 Club Australia • Login

Put it this way, if the MPS6 came in blue, there is a very real chance our garage would have been an MPS6 and an RX-8 They are both excellent cars. I've driven both, own one. Renesis engines (especially the Series2 engine) aren't inherently unreliable, just picky when it comes to maintenance, treat them as you would a woman, and you can't go wrong

But RX-8 FTW...there is a really sexy Aurora Blue GT for sale in Adelaide if you want to go for a bit of a hike...

[FreestyleCab]

Thanks for all of the feedback.

@Reedy. With my ownership experience any car that is not a 4wd ute is a performance / mid lifer crisis car! I hop in my wifes Outlander and it feels like it is on rails compared to my lifted, over tyred Triton ute.

@Reedy & Sarcasticone. I enjoy corners more than outright acceleration. I find myself leaning more towards the RX-8 the more I think about it.

@rogwick. I'm looking to keep whatever vehicle I buy as stock as possible. I already got in trouble with the Ministry of Finance by buying a new ute for 42k and then spending another 16k on accessories...... Whatever I buy will only be getting maintenance money.

@lucifuge. I will start looking for test drives in my local area for both vehicles. Even though I feel the RX-8 is the one, I will not ignore the possibility that I might 'click' with the 6.

@Vanq. Yes I like the blue (its my second choice) but my favourite colour is the yellow! I am contemplating buying a early model yellow if I came across the right low mileage, well maintained car (low chance of that happening), The first RX-8 I saw on the road was yellow and it made such a strong impression on me I always said if ever I owned one it would have to be yellow.

For the 6 MPS I would only consider the silver/greys or red.

Brett

[Rayd]

Well me being placed in the same predicament Nov last year... My advise wont be as elaborate as what has been given already but after test driving both:

6 FTW!

even though the ride in the rx8 was smooth and comfortable, it just wasn't quick enough, especially compared to the MPS even stock Mazda should of turboed that bad boy up... Plus not as practical with 4 seats and the semi coupe/ sedan thing it's got going on lol

[Vanq]

I counter with this:

[FreestyleCab]

I counter with this:

Good counter.......

(in Homer voice)......mmmmm, yellow.


Brett ( via Tapatalk )

[RadiantKnackers]

Im a dedicated turbo nut job, so you can understand this is a complicated, and somewhat difficult admission to make.

You want a sports car in essence, well a sports car is about sublime handling and performance.

Get the RX8, it is truly a sports car.

At the end of the day, even with prodigious power and awd, the mps 6, or even the mps 3 as a 2wd, are more hot family cars.

The RX8 is purely about a blend of handling and performance, without comprimise.

[FreestyleCab]

I have been test driving quite a few cars over the last few months and I must admit I was a bit under whelmed with the rx8 ( no offense to rx8 owners ). I took a 40th anniversary edition for two test drives and I really wanted to like it but the acceleration just didn't match the looks of the vehicle, plus my arse didn't fit in the seats too well. I drove a few second gen MPS3s and liked the get up and go , despite the torque steer.... But they just felt too small. I went looking for my first MPS6 to drive and came across a good example at a local dealer a few hundred km out west from me. When I took it for a drive "it just felt right.".... Right size, right performance and right price. I pick it up tomorrow! I believe it was owned by another forum member here as I remember the seeing photos of the car in this forum. There are a few minor issues to fix but hopefully I got a good buy. Time will tell. Photos to come.


Brett ( via Tapatalk )

[blackbetty]

Congrats Brett on finding yourself an MPS6

[Caffeine Fiend]

Congrats and welcome


Sent from my iPhone using TapaTalk

[Yeldarb]

Yay, nice one! Hope it looks after you.

[MZSPD6]

Great to hear you went with MPS6! I've had mine for over 3 years and still love getting in it everyday.
Did you get the leather/Bose pack? What colour?


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-35.087826,138.546515

[Nirvandan]

Congratz and great choice!

[FreestyleCab]

Great to hear you went with MPS6! I've had mine for over 3 years and still love getting in it everyday.
Did you get the leather/Bose pack? What colour?

Yes its the luxury model in white. It is Nickows' old car minus a some of the good bits/mods he outlined in his forum post. I guess I will find out how spirited he drove it as I start to rack up the km Its far too easy to drive it in a "spirited manner".
The MPS is now my daily driver to work.