The Mazda RX-8 Is Dead, Long Live The MX-5 Miata

When news first reached us that Mazda RX-8 production stopped in July, there were hopes that this would just be a lull to make sure dealers didn't become overstocked with a car that... nobody actually wants to pay for with their own money.

Rewind back to 2004 when Mazda was under the belief that sports car customers were interested in two particular themes which rivals were failing to deliver: easier rear seat entry, and more notably, the smooth delivery of a rotary engine. Mazda's rear suicide doors formed only a part of the RX-8's unique styling while also aiding ingress. The 13B-MSP Wankel Renesis powerplant generated the smooth power. Job done.

There were issues from the get-go. First, the 1.3L rotary wasn't really all that powerful. Quick.... yes. And the top end was lively. But torque was resting easy in far-flung locales. Potential buyers who had already test driven a Nissan 350Z wondered why the torque wasn't at work under the hood.

From a financial standpoint, the Mazda RX-8 appeared to offer decent value, but the value card disappeared from view once the EPA's fuel economy figures ruined the party. 16 miles per gallon in the city? Only 22 mpg on the highway? The significantly torquier Nissan 350Z was rated at 18/24 mpg by the EPA back in 2004, and the V8-engined Chevrolet Corvette could do 26 mpg on the highway.

However, the Mazda RX-8 was sweet to steer, stirring to shift, and stimulating through corners. Car & Driver named it the third-best-handling car under $100,000. It had the ability to make the 350Z feel like a military-grade weapon when only a carpenter's tool was required. The interior was a pleasant place to spend time, and four adults could spend that time together. Nissan's Z was and is a two-seater.

Still, every car has its positives and negatives. So why couldn't the RX-8 manage to find buyers when automakers like Ford and Nissan and BMW continued to sell Mustangs and 370Zs and Z4s? It's really rather simple. Mazda did nothing more than tinker with the RX-8 recipe since production began more than eight years ago.

In the intervening years, BMW began offering a hardtop version of the Z4 and then introduced a pretty all-new Z4 with a retractable hardtop. BMW's work under the hood never ceased. Ford offered hi-po Shelby Mustangs in addition to the regular fleet of special editions and then, in the spring of 2009, added heaps of aggression to the styling. A year later Ford upgraded its V6 and V8 engines by adding dozens of horsepower to both. Meanwhile, Nissan, which offered both a coupe and roadster 350Z, replaced both with a more refined, more powerful, more attractive, more fuel efficient 370Z.

And what was Mazda doing? Well, in 2009, not that you would have heard unless you were listening for it, the RX-8 received structural enhancements and slight handling tweaks to make the car less twitchy. The R3 was an RX-8, only a little more aggressive in the styling and handling departments. That's about it.

Yes, news that Mazda has cancelled the RX-8 comes on the heels of the car not meeting EU emissions standards; it comes after years of declining sales; after the realization that rivals have moved the goal posts. But whose fault is that? Isn't it possible that with a little investment, the sort of investments other companies pour into their model lines every three or four or maybe five years, Mazda could have maintained the RX-8's desirability quotient?

Doesn't it seem as though the RX-8 didn't gradually die off? In other words, shouldn't we be blaming Mazda's negligence instead of the market's unwillingness to purchase an outdated product? After all, when Mazda didn't upgrade the power by 2008, it felt like the RX-8 stood no chance. Then when an all-new RX-8 - perhaps with even more power and definitely with better fuel efficiency and most assuredly with fresh styling - failed to make the rounds at auto shows in late 2009 or early 2010, didn't it seem to you as though RX-8 demand was only declining because Mazda was inflicting the RX-8 with a DNICBIWCTMM syndrome?

DNICBIWCTMM: Do Not Improve Car Because It Would Cost Too Much Money syndrome. Haven't heard of it? Just yesterday, the Dodge Dakota succumbed to the very same illness. The Mazda RX-8 didn't die. Mazda killed it by infecting it with DNICBIWCTMM

For those who don't believe in such a theory, the sales charts below display the dreadful declines in both Canada and the United States. Since, as Automotive News reports, Mazda is not surprisingly "citing falling sales and stringent emissions standards", as though they couldn't have possibly intervened. Despite the fact that The Good Car Guy called upon them to do so three years ago.

CLICK EITHER CHART FOR LARGER VIEW

The Canadian new vehicle market grew 1.6% from 2004 to 2010. For context, Mazda MX-5 Miata sales fell 35.8% in that time span. The 370Z was down 8.5% compared with the 350Z's 2004 sales performance. And the RX-8? Sales plunged 94.8% from 2004's 2118 to 2010's 111.

In the United States, the chart you see below, the overall new vehicle market fell 30.5% from 2003 to 2010. MX-5 Miata sales dropped 41.7%, the 370Z was 72.2% off the 350Z's 2003 results, and the RX-8 slid 90.8%. Compared with the RX-8's peak in 2004, 2010 sales were down 95.2%.

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