MAZDA RX8

Along with its cousin the much loved MX5, the RX8 is all about looks. That isn't to say that there are other things going for it such as performance and roadholding, but it is in the looks department that it has a hand full of aces. Both inside and out you will find that this just oozes muscle and yet isn't just about brute force, but does have style as well. This is a four door sports coupe that is all about making a statement.

We might as well start talking about the doors, since this is indeed a major talking point. At first glance you might think it was just two doors, since there are only two handles and no central pillar, but closer inspection reveals that these are what Mazda calls freestyle. The rear doors are hinged at the back of the car, and can only be opened when the front doors are open, there is an internal handle, though its actually on the concealed frame of the door. It's not all about doors, because this model has a hungry looking front end that literally eats up the road. From inside you can see the twin bulges of the light housings and a broad expanse of bonnet which houses the hungry Renesis engine. There is also a small grille behind the front wheel arch as well. The rear features a compact boot with a small spoiler.

Inside there are two very distinctive sorts seats, a small sports style five speed gear knob and a centre consol that runs through into the rear seats making four distinctive seats. The dash has defined ovals for the instruments whilst the spped comes up digitally in a small inset in one of the housings.

That engine comes in two formats. I drove the twin-rotor rotary engine entry level which produces 192ps at 7,000rpm, with maximum torque of 220Nm achieved at 5,000rpm. Theres a steady whine from the engine, even when standing still and thats added to with a sporty roar when moving. so it isn't the quietest of rides, but it is quick with 0-62mph in 7.2 seconds. The consumption for such an engine isn't too daunting with 26.7mpg for the combined mode.

At £21,400 on the road, this is an affordable sports coupe. It has a low ride and great cornering and road holding and that engine just wants to pull away, but there is no problem with handling this torque and it wont fishtail you all over the road.