Mazda launches RX-8 sports car with new engine

TOKYO March 3, 2006; Japan Today reported that Mazda Motor Corp said Thursday it began selling its red RX-8 sports car featuring a new rotary engine called Renesis at its dealerships across Japan. The four-door vehicle comes with black leather interior trim, a black leather-wrapped parking brake lever, a black leather-wrapped steering wheel, and semi-gloss finish chrome lamp bezels, all of which reinforce the strong, sporty image of the RX-8. The Type S model comes with a six-speed manual transmission and Type E a four-speed automatic transmission. The suggested retail price for the manual is 3,097,500 yen, including tax, and the automatic costs 3,034,500 yen (approx. $26,600 and $26,055 USD, respectively).