RX-8 Build Part 1
Here I am again, the beginning of another project car. In this blog post, we'll cover how I found and bought a rolling shell 2006 Mazda RX-8 Shinka Edition. The perfect candidate for a K-Swapped RX-8 or maybe an LFX Powered RX-8. Some of you know, I built my 2008 350z with really no clear direction but, I knew I wanted to track it. Even though, when I bought the Z originally I only wanted it to be a nice street car. A bit of nostalgia had kicked in because of my first Z, which I had bought after my first deployment as an "I Love Me" gift. It was a great chassis, lots of after market support, had enough power to get me into trouble on the track, and looked good enough. I was proud of myself though, the vast majority of the work I had done myself and really opted for top shelf parts. Here's the kicker though, I didn't have a clear direction on where this build was going. I really built myself into a class that I did not have the skillset nor the wallet to be in. So with much reluctance I ended up selling the Z; for a loss of course because racecar.
2006 Mazda RX-8 Shinka Edition
Now, that I am the new proud owner of a 2006 Mazda RX-8 Shinka Edition; I really don't want to go down the same path. This is definitly a rolling shell project. A clean slate if you will. I don't plan on making the same mistake as I did with the Z and have no plan. So here it is.
Photo Credit: Me.
I have no idea what the color code on this RX8 is and nor do I really care. I found this car on FB Marketplace. I messaged this guy, because he had this listed for $2000 with a blown engine. I figured I could talk him down to at least $1000. He basically told me to kick rocks; fair. So, I kept looking around and found cars that were way worse off and figured okay, well that was probably the best one in my area and thats saying something. About a month passes and he messages me and asks, would I be willing to buy the rolling shell for $1000, as he sold the motor and transmission. At that time, I had it in my mind I was going to perform the LFX Swap (More on that later....maybe). So, I didn't need the engine and trans. I was like yeah that sounds like a good deal. I go to check out the car in person.
Photo Credit: Me.
Lessons Learned
No, engine as you can see. Also, if you have a keen eye, unlike I did, you'll notice some other things missing, some fairly important things. Turns out the guy had never pulled a motor before and when he sold the engine, he sold parts of the harness that I would need. This is where, learning occurs. We tried to hook up a battery to the car, to see if we could get the dash to light up and check the mileage. Well, all of us, the guy's co-workers as well, tried to find the cable to hook up to the battery. Long story short, it went with the engine. not sure why but, whatever. That would be my first mistake with this car. But, it wasn't all a mistake because I learned what the hell that part is called, its called a charge harness. Didn't know that because I spent like 4 hours on the internet trying to figure out what that part is called.
Always check if the charge harness is there on a rolling shell RX8, learn from me! New from Mazda they're like $500!
Anyway, having that Charge Harness missing kind of worked to my advantage. He did initially say that he was firm on $1,000 but, after the whole situation of trying to hook up the battery and basically, the terminals being sold, I convinced him to drop the price to $900. I considered that a win. All the parts alone would be worth more than that; if I ever decided to part it out. Sure it would've taken forever to part it out but, that was my logic.
The Shinka Edition Difference
You may have heard Shinka thrown around if you've ever talked to an RX8 fan. Basically, its just a special edition model. Nothing like the Type-R variant of a Civic but, still special in its own way.
- Special Paint Codes 05' got Black Cherry Mica, 06' got Copper Red Mica
- Tan leather seats with suede inserts
- Shinka logo on B-Pillar
- Slightly revised suspension setup
- Foam filled subframe for added rigidity
- Heated seats, I'd love for the passenger to keep that but, I know I won't be keeping the driver side
Anyway, moving on. The interior was actually what sold me.
Photo Credit: Me.
Photo Credit: Me.
With the exception of the cracked airbag cover on the dash, the car had a really decent interior and it wasn't that God-Awful black and red leather. No offense to anyone who has the red and black; just not my thing. Depending on the direction I take the car in the future, I might try and locate some R3 seats and swap those in. Or even swapping an S2 front end on the S1 (Foreshadowing...). Incase you didn't know R3, is the like the RX-8 final edition, they had a really nice interior and seats. Factory Recaro seats for the front seats, they actually look very close to the EVO X Recaro's. Anyway, the initial thought was to keep this as a street car that is track focused and I also wanted something I could bring my kiddo with me to meets and stuff. This fit the bill. As far as the body goes, its fairly good. A few dings here and there but nothing a bit of bondo and primer can't fix. I do plan on painting the car, a white. I like the look of white cars. Not sure what shade of white though. If you have any ideas drop them in the comments below! Outside of that intial thought process, I don't want to get too ahead of myself.
Photo Credit: Me.
I'm really not sure where to take the car at this point, but I'll be sure to continue updating this blog as much as I can with whatever I decide to go with down the line. My plans for this blog are simply to craft an easy to follow narrative how-to and best practice for doing this yourself. I hope you follow along and contribute where possible!
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