Rx8 R3 driven by Johnny Herbert

A Winning Combination: F1 winner Johnny Herbert drives the Mazda RX-8 R3

Video can be see here

Since 1991, legendary Formula One driver Johnny Herbert has had a deep affinity with Mazda. He won the Le Mans 24 Hours in a Mazda 787B. And now he’s back behind the wheel to put the stunning Mazda RX-8 R3 through its paces.

From Britain’s junior karting champion to Formula One winner - Johnny Herbert has always been a rising star in the racing world. In 1987 alone he won five Formula Three races and claimed the championship at his first attempt.

But a shunt at a Formula 3000 race at Brands Hatch led to disaster, when Johnny collided with the barriers and broke both legs. Despite the severity of his injuries, he made his Formula One debut just a few months later - finishing fourth in the 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix.

After a few years out to make a full recovery, Johnny was invited to drive for Mazda in the 1991 Le Mans 24 Hours. His win at this legendary endurance race marked an important first for Mazda. Four years later, he celebrated another impressive victory at the British Grand Prix when, after a virtually error-free drive, he finished in first place.

Since retiring from Grand Prix racing, Johnny has concentrated on sports car events. He recently won the first season of the 2008 Speedcar Series.

Mazda RX-8 R3: A true sports car

The Le Mans win was the result of years of research and development by Mazda - and this is immediately noticeable once you’re behind the wheel of the Mazda RX-8 R3.

Just like the victorious Mazda 787B, the Mazda RX-8 R3 is powered by an award-winning rotary engine, which takes you from 0 to 62mph in an electrifying 6.4 seconds. Power and performance - the true indicators of Mazda sports car pedigree - are abundant in the Mazda RX-8 R3. And don’t forget those outstanding driving dynamics and the breathtaking halding capability.

Article from mazda.co.uk

2009 Mazda RX8 R3 review by Autoblog

Autoblog.com has reviewed the 2009 Mazda RX-8 R3 edition.

Hard as it may be to believe, the word “hummer” didn’t always bring up visions of obnoxious, polarizing SUVs. In fact, there was a time not so very long ago that uttering that word evoked something entirely different, namely cars powered by Wankel rotary engines. For the past three decades, the world’s sole purveyor of rotary-powered automobiles has been Mazda. The “Zoom-Zoom” brand has always been a little different from its compatriots. Back in 1963, a young Kenichi Yamamoto was heading up the research department at Mazda and latched on to the concept developed a decade earlier by Felix Wankel.

Just as two-stroke engines were all the rage for a time in the early 1990s and fuel cells in the middle of this decade, the Wankel rotary seemed to be the next big thing in the 1960s and early ’70s. For a time it seemed every major automaker had licensed the design from Wankel and was trying to commercialize it. Some like NSU did build rotaries while General Motors and Daimler Benz built an assortment of concept cars. By the mid-’70s, all had given up except Yamamoto-san and Mazda. From the original 1967 Cosmo, Mazda has built an unbroken string of hummers culminating with the recently updated 2009 RX-8 R3. The pony-keg sized power plant isn’t the only unique element of the RX-8, which you can read all about that after the jump.

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The car that really made the rotary famous in North America was the RX-7 sports car. Unfortunately, the RX-7 made a premature exit from the U.S. market after the 1995 model year, although it hung around in Japan until 2002. With its two-seat configuration (although rear “jump seats” were offered in Japan for some weird legal reason), the RX-7 was a true sports car. Unfortunately, “sports car” is one of those terms that always seems to cause contention among the zealots in any subject area. The truly hard core will undoubtedly argue that only an open top two seater with SU carbs can be a sports car. We prefer to look at the functionality of a machine and see if the name fits.

 

When Mazda revamped its rotary design, called it the Renesis and dropped it into the RX-8 body shell with four proper seats and a corresponding number of doors, clearly the traditional definition of a sports car didn’t apply any more. If you disregard the secondary half doors that provide access to the rear passenger compartment, the RX-8 certainly has the looks to be a sports car, especially in its newly face-lifted 2009 form. The RX-8 was the first in Mazda’s lineup to get the brand’s bold-fendered look. Thanks to the diminutive engine package, the RX-8 has a relatively short hood, but its overall proportions still have the cab rearward look one expects of the genre.

 

That feeling is further enhanced for 2009 with the new R3 trim level that follows the R1 and R2 models offered back in the RX-7 days. Visually the R3 is distinguished from its siblings by a wing on the rear deck, a slightly more aggressive front splitter and lower fascia as well as rocker panel extensions. The R3 also gets xenon HID headlamps. The best enhancement by far though are the absolutely gorgeous 19 inch forged alloy wheels. Under the skin, the RX-8 R3 also gets a urethane foam filled front cross member to help maintain the relative position of the front wheels and Bilstein dampers.

Climb inside the RX-8 and this car certainly feels like a sports car. For those considering whether to opt for an R3 over one of the other trim levels, the biggest deal breaker will be immediately apparent when you sit in the car for the first time. The R3 comes standard with a set of Recaro sport seats. While we would normally never hesitate to recommend Recaros, in this case it all depends on the shape and size of your torso. Unlike most Recaros, the side bolsters on these are not adjustable. The only changes the driver can make are the longitudinal position and seat back angle. If your torso width is in the upper reaches of the population, you will feel quite confined in these seats. If your body fits, then these seats are absolutely fantastic. I just barely fit these seats and they were decidedly snug.

For those relegated to the back seat, accommodations are also tight but better than you’ll find in most compact coupes. Leg and head room are passable for anyone up to about six feet tall. Anything more and you’ll be hunched over. Mazda wasn’t the first to use the rear hinged half doors to ease access to the back, Saturn added them to its coupe in 1999 and they are common trucks as well. Like the others, the latches on the Mazda rear doors are on the front edge meaning you have to open the front doors first.

The feature that attracted so many engineers to Wankel’s unusual design was the ability to make large amounts of power from a tiny package. In a piston engine, you get one power pulse out of every four strokes or two crankshaft rotations for each cylinder. In a rotary, there are three power pulses per rotation for each rotor. Unfortunately, the reality of actually manufacturing these little wonders proved more difficult than expected. Sealing the rotors was problematic and Wankels typically suffered from both high fuel and oil consumption. Ultimately every automaker except Mazda abandoned the concept. The latest Renesis rotaries seem to have improved the oil consumption issue although they still have a big thirst for gasoline.

The current RX-8 is rated at 16 mpg city and 22 highway. That’s not spectacular for a 1.3L engine, but then how many naturally aspirated engines that size crank out 232 hp? The downside of rotaries is a comparatively weak torque curve. The absence of valves and pistons that have to change direction allows this rotary to rev like mad up to a 9,000 rpm redline. Combine that with a slick shifting 6-speed gearbox and you have a recipe for some serious sports car fun.

The RX-8 certainly isn’t a drag racer by any means and doesn’t have a lot of grunt off the line. But once it’s rolling, the presence of those back seats begin to fade away and this is undoubtedly a sports car. With an engine that spins up as fast as a Wankel, plus weak torque characteristics, a lot of shifting is inevitable. Helping to facilitate that is a gearbox with a smooth mechanism and short throws. Making the most of the gearbox requires a proper arrangement of foot pedals and here the RX-8 shines. The pedals are perfectly positioned for fast driving on a tightly wound road. The firm brake pedal is at just the right height to allow easy heel-and-toe down shifts and the clutch pedal take up and travel work beautifully.

The relative absence of torque means you don’t feel the punch in the back that you get when you squeeze the go pedal of a Mustang or Corvette. Instead, speed just builds insistently as the engine winds up and you begin to understand why they called these things “hummers”. The sound of a Wankel is also like nothing else on the road. Instead of the roar and rumble of a big V8, the pitch of the Wankel just builds in direct proportion to the revs with a precision, mechanical sound.

When the time comes to change direction, the RX-8’s steering mechanism is definitely up to the task. The effort is a bit on the light side, but there’s no slop and adjustments to the wheel angle are perfectly matched by the direction of the car. The double wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension do a wonderful job of keeping the rubber on the road. The car’s structure feels solid over uneven pavement and despite the relatively narrow 225/40R19 tires, grip was plentiful. The combination of the suspension, steering and relatively low weight of less than 3,100 lbs. yields a responsive and nimble sports car. The one dynamic issue was the stability/traction control system. When the slip control activates at the limits, it jerks the car back into position too aggressively. Turning the stability control off and repeating the same maneuver, the back end slides away progressively and simply backing off the throttle brings it back in line.

The bottom line is that even with two extra seats compared to the old RX-7, the latest “hummer” from Japan is truly a sports car. The rear seats are just a bonus for those times when you need to bring along a couple of extra friends. Now that the days of the big SUV are coming to an end, it’s time for the “Zoom-Zoom” brand to reclaim its nick-name. If only Mazda would offer some adjustable Recaros that allow drivers to fit the car to their bodies, the RX-8 would be almost perfect.

Photos Copyright ©2008 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

2009 Mazda RX-8 R3 - CNET review

CNET tested the 2009 Mazda RX8 R3 Edition on the road

Mazda Rx-8 R3 review

There is a version of this 5-year old sports car..The latest rx8 continues with an updated version of it’s signature rotary engine which uses twin spinning rotors, instead of pistons to provide the same as performance from a capacity of just 1.3 litre. The result is an engine that offers different power outputs according to which gearbox you choose. The standard 6 gears manual develops 170kw power at an incredible 8200 revs per minute, while the all new 6 speed AT, pumping out 158 kw at lower revs.

The downside of this car is the V8 style consumption, you will have to drive at lower revs to achive the 12litres /100km which the mazda can manage, and that won’t be easy because you really have to rev the car to make it go.

Never mind, because a number of suspension changes means that the Rx8 R3 has even greater steering and corner capabilities than before making it a TRUE DRIVER’S CAR.

Fans can spot the changes by the larger front end intake, bigger head lights, re-styled tail lights, different rear spoiler, btw which i dont like, better exhausts and new 19″ forged alloys. Inside you will find improved front seats, a revised instrument panel, more standard equipment, an upgraded stereo system with ipod plugin, paddle shifts for the automatic gearbox version.

This is a sports car and family runabout all into one.

Fifth Gear review - Nissan 350z vs mazda RX8 R3

Fifth gear tested the new Nissan 350z versus the 2009 brand new Mazda RX8 R3 version. The R3 is a special edition of the RX8 with 19″ forged wheels, Recaro seats, rear spoiler and a special bodykit.

Mazda Rx8 R3 : 231 BHP 1.3l rotary engine
Nissan 350Z: 309 BHP 3.5l conventional non-turbo engine

Despide the fact that the 350Z has almost 80 more BHP, it finishes with just 1.8s ahead of the mazda. In my opinion the rx8 r3 could have even won, if the track had more tight bends, so that the difference in power of the nissan to count for nothing.

It’s too bad that the mazda engineers havent added more power to the new 2009 version of the rx8, because Nissan has continously increased the power of the 350z during the last years, but i guess this issue can be solved with a turbo kit, air intake and new exhaust.