The Mazda RX-8 is a car manufactured by Mazda Motor Corporation; which first appeared in North America at the North American International Auto Show (2001). The vehicle features a 237 SAE net hp (177 kW) at 8500 rpm RENESIS Wankel rotary engine, which won International Engine of the Year and Best New Engine awards 2003 and holds the "2.5 to 3 liter" size award for 2003 and 2004. The engine redlines at 9000 rpm for the United States export version, and is at 9500 rpm for the local domestic Japanese model.
The RX-8 was also Wheels magazine's Car of the Year for 2003 and was on Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 2004 and 2005. It was nominated for the North American Car of the Year award for 2004 as well.
Mazda had originally claimed 247 hp (184 kW), but had to restate the car's power after its introduction in the United States market. However in other markets such as Japan & Australia, the peak power figure for the manual version remains at 184kw, due to the availability of higher octane fuel.
One major change in design between the RX-8 and the RX-7 is the addition of a pair of rear-hinged ('suicide') half-doors (similar to the 3rd door in the Saturn coupe), which allow easier access to the two back seats. The RX-8 has no center pillars separating the front and rear doors. The front doors are hinged at the front, and aluminum back doors are hinged at the rear. A safety lock mechanism allows the back doors to open only if the front doors are open.
Weight distribution in the RX-8 is a balanced 50/50 in the front and rear. Mazda achieved this by pushing the engine back past the front axle, achieving a Front-midships engine layout.
Mazda’s new Renesis rotary engine is smaller and lighter than prior rotaries, yet it yields more power. New to its design are a side-intake and side-exhaust. To cut down on cost, the RX-8 does not come with a turbocharger or supercharger, like the RX-7's. Mazda does, however, plan on eventually releasing a Mazdaspeed variant of the RX-8 with a different front facia (shown in the photo above), upgraded handling, and perhaps a supercharger. The engine produces 197 horsepower (147 kW) in the automatic transmission form, and 237 horsepower (177 kW) in the manual transmission form.
Mazda aggressively trimmed mass from the RX-8 concept by using aluminum and plastic for body panels and installing a carbon composite driveshaft. The dimensions of the RX-8 are virtually identical to those of the Porsche 911 Carrera.
According to Mazda, the RX-8's RENESIS engine was originally developed to potentially use either gasoline or hydrogen as fuel. Mazda does have a hydrogen-fueled RX-8 prototype it tests at its headquarters.
The car is used in the Formula Woman racing series which started in 2004. A slightly modified RX-8 was also featured in the 2003 film X2.
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