2011 Mazda RX-8: More Zoom Zoom than any other Mazda

Before getting to the car, a quick side note about language. In Mazdaspeak, "Zoom Zoom" refers to inspired sport driving. This term is used by Mazda worldwide, except in Quebec, where they say "Vroom Vroom." Interesting? Perhaps. But you’re probably more interested in knowing just how the Zoom and Vroom apply to the RX-8. So with no futher ado...

The Mazda RX-8 is an agile lightweight with a peppy little engine. In fact, it offers more Zoom Zoom than any other Mazda. Let me tell you why.

• Also: The Mazda RX-9 Could be Unveiled at the 2019 Tokyo Auto Show
• Also: Mazda Canada Celebrates its 50th Anniversary

Unique design

A sport coupe with four doors and four seats is a fairly unusual design, but Mazda’s not afraid of shaking things up a little. Generally speaking, sports cars are two-seaters – like, for example, the RX-7. But in a move to combine the best of both worlds, Mazda gave the RX-8 two seats in back that are separated by a central beam. They opted for suicide doors to maximize access to the rear seats. As a result, they’re easy to get into, but challenging to hoist yourself out of. In fact, they raised the vehicle threshold to enhance its rigidity, which means you have to lift your leg up before swinging it out of the car.

The front seats are easily accessible, but since the car is low, getting in means hunching and twisting. Once you’ve taken your seat, you’ll find there’s plenty of legroom and the seats are comfortable. It’s worth noting that the sides are abundantly bolstered, providing you with excellent lateral support on corners. In the middle of the instrument cluster is a central gauge indicating rpm while a small digital window displays your speed. The numbers aren’t big, but they’re large enough to be easily readable.

Both the steering wheel and shifter are bound in leather. The knob on the shifter has a triangular decal signalling the presence of a rotary engine. Meanwhile, the hand brake is shaped like a handle – another bold style choice. And like any self-respecting sports car, the pedals are aluminum. Several different parts are shaped like a triangle, as the stylists wanted to establish a clear reference to the vehicle’s Wankel engine, which has a triangular rotor.

Once you close the doors, you find yourself in a fairly small space, but even tall folks can fit inside. In most vehicles, I have to slide the driver’s seat all the way back, but in the RX-8 I actually had to move it forward – that’s how much legroom there is. It’s not quite so pleasant for the passenger, as there is a bump in the floor on the left side. Like all Mazdas, the quality of the materials and finish is superb.

Zoom Zoom Galore

This car’s defining characteristic is not its unique looks or the fact that it has four doors. It’s actually the 1.3-litre rotary engine, which is paired with a six-speed manual transmission. This engine’s displacement may be low, but its power is impressive for an engine of this size. In fact, the version that comes with a manual transmission produces 232 horsepower at 8,500 rpm and 159 horsepower in torque at 5,500 rpm. It may not be uber powerful, but given that this vehicle weighs just 1410 kg, it can run from 0-100 km/h in 6.1 seconds. Now, that’s nothing to sneeze at!

To get this kind of speed, you have to master the shifter and be flat-out aggressive in your driving. The power comes when revs are high whereas the torque is pretty low. This means you’ve got to put in a little elbow grease if you want to take this little Japanese car to the summits of sport driving. Obviously, in your everyday driving there’s no need to send the rev counter that high.

Despite everything, playing with the shifter turned out to be a lot of fun. The distance between the gears is short, while the steering is quick, precise and gets a good amount of assistance. In short, this car is both fun and sporty.

But everything is not rosy in this picture. The rotary engine guzzles a shocking amount of oil and gas for its size. Mazda claims its fuel consumption is 12.8 L/100 km in the city and 9.2 L on the highway. But I wasn’t able to get anything better than 14 L/100 km. You should also know that some people have reported trouble starting the car in winter, though it seems as though they’ve made some improvements in this area in recent years.

One thing is for sure: this car is made for a very specific kind of client who has a strong appreciation for rotary engines. The Mazda RX-8 sells for nearly $45,000, which may seem like a lot to people who’d rather drive a big V8. Interest in the RX-8 is on the decline and many are saying that its days are numbered. If that’s the case, it’s a shame. But in the meantime, this sports car offers a certain finesse that sets it apart from the crowd. It won’t please the masses, but I know there are drivers out there who like what it has to offer.