RX-8/MX-3 to be released at detroit

mattster03 · Post by **mattster03** » November 8th, 2005, 3:44 pm

sorry if this is super old news, i don't visit this forum all that often, but another forum that i'm on posted this alerting information.

Two's company and three is… very exciting news from Mazda. The Japanese firm has revealed it will add to its sportscar range with the addition of a third model to sit alongside the RX-8 and MX-5.

The car will be unveiled at January's Detroit Motor Show, and though it will be styled and badged as a concept, insiders say the two-seater hints very strongly at a production model that will go on sale around 2008. We've been told it's a mini RX-8 with a hint of MX-3, but crucially won't use the former car's rotary engine.

It will be designed and developed by Mazda North America, based inIrvine, Calif. The center's director of design, Franz von Holzhausen, said, "It's an exciting continuation of the Mazda DNA. We will offer a product that's relevant to what people want, and enters us into an arena that we have not been in before."

The designer emphasized that the car would be aimed at North American buyers. However, he admitted it has been designed so that it is "conceptually possible" for it to made right-hand-drive for fans in countries such as Britain and Japan. -Richard Yarrow

http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_Ne ... A9566.html

sounds like an awesome car, and i'd be the first to buy one out of college

.

Post by **Custommx3** » November 8th, 2005, 4:07 pm

nice find!

mattster03 · Post by **mattster03** » November 8th, 2005, 4:30 pm

so it hasn't been posted about here yet? sounds to me like it's going to be a LOT like an RX-7, but they don't want to say that because i piston powered RX-7 would be sacriligious. i would like to see mazda put a 300hp engine in this bad boy... break away from it's stigma of underpowering cars. maybe compete with the 350z and S2000? either way, i am very excited to be at the auto show and see it first hand. don't let me down mazda!

atlantamx3 · Post by **atlantamx3** » November 8th, 2005, 8:41 pm

SWEET!

I cant wait to see it!

Neil · Post by **Neil** » November 8th, 2005, 11:15 pm

I hope that its more MX-3 than RX-8... Wonder what engine they'll put in it and if it'll be FWD or RWD.

Very exciting.

I just hope that it looks nothing like this Mazda Concept car.

Oh please oh please do not look anything like this!!!

Juans_93_MX3 · Post by **Juans_93_MX3** » November 8th, 2005, 11:30 pm

KLZE engine?

Hint of MX-3? Mini RX-8?
Sounds more like the next gen MX3
What exactly is the hint of MX3? The hatch-back w/ spoiler?
The hint cant be that the car is going to be small like the MX3.
It cant be the Mx-3 headlights, one of the Miatas of a certain year use similar headlights except they are much better looking.

IT HAS TO BE A REDISGENED HATCH THAT RESEMBLES THE MX3!

I am intrested

ovendenk · Post by **ovendenk** » November 8th, 2005, 11:46 pm

there's also this rotary mx-3 look a like concept. check out the side shot and compare the interior to the mx-3 concept sketch.

http://www.mx-3.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.ph ... ight=senku

jschrauwen · Post by **jschrauwen** » November 9th, 2005, 2:48 am

It would follow suit to be called MX* and probably called an MX4, since it won't be a rotary. I can see them aiming at the Civic hatchback crowd with a psuedo 4 seater hatchback too. Don't think we'll see the return of the large glassed hatch area though. The ragtop area is already covered by the Miata, so I can't see that. Don't believe we'll see the return of a small V6 either but rather a beefy 4 and perhaps they may snag the Mazdaspeed 6 powerplant as an option. I wouldn't be surprised to see a variant to some degree of that concept car. Would be interesting if they decided to resurrect the MX3 badge again. I guess that would mean to modify this forum to include 1st and 2nd gen MX3's .... cool ... I like that.

Neil · Post by **Neil** » November 9th, 2005, 3:13 am

jschrauwen wrote:It would follow suit to be called MX* and probably called an MX4, since it won't be a rotary. I can see them aiming at the Civic hatchback crowd with a psuedo 4 seater hatchback too. Don't think we'll see the return of the large glassed hatch area though. The ragtop area is already covered by the Miata, so I can't see that. Don't believe we'll see the return of a small V6 either but rather a beefy 4 and perhaps they may snag the Mazdaspeed 6 powerplant as an option. I wouldn't be surprised to see a variant to some degree of that concept car. Would be interesting if they decided to resurrect the MX3 badge again. I guess that would mean to modify this forum to include 1st and 2nd gen MX3's .... cool ... I like that.

If they brought back the MX-3 badge (which i pray they one day do) there would be many happy campers on this board. As long as they didnt change the car and kill it like a lot of newer cars. We can all hope but i think the fact that they say its part rx-8/mx-3 means its going to be a new badged car and not a re-birth. Although for our sake i hope im wrong and its a new MX-3! (even though i know it wont be)

mattster03 · Post by **mattster03** » November 9th, 2005, 11:42 am

i too pray that it doesn't look like the mazda concepts that we've seen lately. i really think that by mentioning that it will resemble the MX-3, that's code for "it will look like the 3rd gen RX-7" because really the MX-3 and RX-7 are very similar cars. but they just don't want to say RX-7 becasue then people are going to be offended that it's piston powered. i bet, that the name/badge will involve a "7" not a "3". however, i really like the fact that mazda still thinks that the design of the MX-3 is still great and worth putting back into production. i am anxiously awaiting the detroit auto show in january.

as i said before, i really hope mazda won't let me down engine-wise... it would be neat to see this car compete with 350Z's and S2000's, though chances are since it will be "between" the RX-8 and miata it will be low-mid 200 hp.... maybe the 200hp engine found in the 6? all speculations, of course.

PATDIESEL · Post by **PATDIESEL** » November 9th, 2005, 2:23 pm

My bet is on a 2.0L Four banger, 2 door, sedan or Maybe hatch, 150-160 HP range, badged Mazda 4 or 5. Doubt it will be as powerful as the RX-8 or as powerful as the MS6. Entry level sports coupe, since the Mazda 3 really doesn't fit that catagory (more of a grocery getter) (I also bet that if I'm right and this ends up to be a sports coupe the 3 owners will be pissed that the focus on performance parts will shift away from them)

Also just a note, has anyone seen Mazda's new silver and black steering wheel (a replacement for the stock Miata one) Looks just like the three spoke MX one...
Maybe someone could pull the pic off and post it here,
http://accessories.mazdausa.com/accesso ... gWheel.jpg

Nd4SpdSe · Post by **Nd4SpdSe** » November 10th, 2005, 7:59 am

What I wanna know is if it's gonna be RWD or FWD...the first thing i though of when they said Rx-8/Mx-3 was RWD Mx-3.

The thing is, what Mazda is missing from their line up is a FWD, 2-door sports coupe, and a RWD, 2-door sports car, all their cars besides for the Miata are 4-door's, and they've got the 4 door hatches covered in the Mazda3 and Mazda6 lineups, as well as the Mazda5, so another 4-door hatch would be stupid