$100 79' project car
 

i got a project car i paid $100 for
having trouble uploading pics
once i get the pics working i will post them(that is the car in my sigy and avi though)
I am working on restoring my 79' and would gladly accept any help mainly need parts. i want to restore to factory specs i need seats(current seats r out of an 85', stock rims, carpet, dash, and other interior parts that commonly need replacement.
right now i still need to check the motor right now i dont know much about rotory motors but im learning.

Any amount paid for an RX-7 is always worth it.

Good luck, though! Keep us updated!!

+10000000000

I`ve seen people pay much more for rx-7`s that where in way rougher shape. Nice find, even if the motor is dead. :bigthumb:

nice find

Looks good to me! Keep us updated!

Great to see another SA pop up on the site!:icon_tup:

i like your sig good stuff

Really depends on cost of getting the car to where you want it vs paying for the SA that is already "there". If you have the up-front $$, paying $3-4K for a clean, ready-to-go-SA will save you BIG time in the long run! The big killer is cost of de-rusting and repainting! Never mind the cost of an engine... If you can do these things yourself, then your OK, but if a shop has to do it, a better car will cost you less. And the problem with well-beaten (thus: beater) cars is there is usually so MUCH stuff that needs done - can be like death-by-a-thousand-cuts. A nice low mileage (60K+) RX that's lead a good life usually means most everything: trim, body, paint, mechanicals - are pretty much ready to go.

I don't like to sh!t on anyones' dream, but I was there myself with my first SA. New Paint (also red like yours) and body work (engine was rebuilt) was going to set me back $3500! Bought a sweet ebay 80SA with 64K miles, excellent paint, etc for $4K

PLUS: I could put in the key and start driving it TODAY - not 3 years from now (maybe) by the time I got all of the original one together to my liking. STILL have the first one sitting in yard "undergoing" s-l-o-o-o-w restoration ;p

Either way - welcome and we look forward to hearing your adventures.
'Luck
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

Another thought too-
based on your pics, looks to be a base "S" model (now, don't get pissed at me Rich!). Are you going to kick yourself for investing a lot of time and effort in a non-sunroofed (VERY nice feature to have!!), non-5-speed, Non-alloy wheeled (etc. etc) car. Probably the least desirable RX7 made (IMHO) - unless your a Track Star looking for a light racing body. If you truly want an SA RX7, hunt down a GS model!!
What you DO have is an excellent PARTS car, very handy for any RX7 owner - I have 3+ boxed away in my garage!
Stu Aull
Alaska

^i think sunroofs are over rated

nice car, worth restoring imo, obviously much cheaper if you do everything yourself

hey stu , stop bragging and tell me those Limited Edition parts you have hidden in that parts warehouse of yours :rlaugh:

nice to you back form the sunny south

sorry about the thread jack ..... welcome to another SA`owner , mine was (is) a fixer-upper , but don't regret it , it smokes in the morning and various electircal things need fixing ,but i drive it around and never left me stranded.

"hey stu , stop bragging and tell me those Limited Edition parts you have hidden in that parts warehouse of yours "

Yeah, but you have the WHOLE LTD CAR - lucky bastid :D
I'll reserve any opinions about whether Crosen91 should restore the car till I see more pix ;)
Just want to point out possible alternatives, maybe step back and think it thru a bit. Still LOTS of clean SAs out there if you are patient. Frankly would LOVE to see another restored SA on the street!
Either way, lots of great folks here to help out-
Stu Aull
80GS
(with various 79 Ltd bits kicking around)
Alaska

Easy way to tell if it's an S or a GS. S model is 4 Speed manual, GS is 5 Speed manual. Hey Stu, I own two S models and love them to death. Purely simple. Who needs all that heavy accesory crap! Although I do have AC because I hate driving in the heat and I love driving LOL

HA! Like to think of a sunroof as "adding Lightness" (to misquote Colin Chapman) - bet the extra cog in the tranny and missing roof panel make it lighter than yer S with the ac bits!!
;)
Stu

cool fiend ill give you 100.01 for it call me im just joken :)

I dunno Stu, 2350 as she sits. IIRC the GS was 2450 or in the neighborhood. The 5 Speed trans is a decent amount heavier than the 4 Speed box. The roof on the sunroof models is strengthened to not flex so who knows how much weight difference that could be vs a non sunroof model. Sunroofs are nice but windows work just fine and so does the AC!! Ha

fix it fix it fix it

i got the car as a project/starter
and 7 aull i dont give a rats ass about sun roofs there a luxuary and they are not needed in any car, i dont need the alloy wheels, and im perfectly happy with my 4-speed.
im restoring it to factory specs minus the paint and interior color

Ok, that's quite nice. If you have some $$$, fisrt thing to do, I would try to get it running. Then, I would try to get it to be drivable. After that, the fun stuff would begin, like doing a DIY paintjob (check the $30 paintjob thread) Rebuilding the motor, doing the brakes, suspension, and making the car solid.

Truth be told, I almost bought a $200 non running FB just now, but what I'm really after is a GTU's FC in as good condition as possible.

if you check his profile you'd see he is only sixteen looks to me like he's doing it right he bought a beat up rx7 and is trying to fix it so it's not smashed teaching himself how to work on theese cars so that when he has the money for a nice one he knows how to work on it not scew it up and if your trying to restore theese for money your not a true 7 fan and in a losing buisness you can't sell them for what you have invested give the kid a brake try just helping for a change not beating him down I thought that was what this site was for

Go for it Crosen, read up on her and don't be guided by others opinions, do it your way and when its done you'll have a beautiful sports car that YOU restored.

Lots of info and gurus in here, read and search often.

Oh, hell yeah man, I hear ya!

PS: Well, I'm "only 17" myself! :p

But then again, I have been around cars since I was six or seven, and know my mig welder from my torque wrench, so I guess It's not a very good comparison.... but I bet the guy's got potential!

The trick is, that even when you think you know a lot, you still really dont! I learn new stuff all the time, and having a passion, it helps get stuff done! Anyway, I will be rooting for you dude, so good luck!

Some more tips:

After it's drivable, and you have it registered, and insured, you can try to do some simple stuff. I bet you WILL need new tires, brake rotors/pads, brake lines, and fluid, as well as needing to flush out the old transmission juice in there.

Here is where you can have some fun: Even through the bolt pattern IS kind of whacky, if you research into it, you could find some good used wheels, and get some sportier tires from tire rack. Call around to all the "Wheel and tire" shops in town, to get the best estimate for tire mount and balance. The best I got was $50, if I bring my own tires in (tirerack.com is your friend, trust me!)

Some of the shops tried to rip me off selling me firestone tires + install for $470... Which is $#!@!!!

You probably need to save as much $$$ as possible, so tires like Sumimoto HTR200 should work for you for the time being. (The 205/60 HR size comes in at $49, and that's the biggest size for 14" rims, so yours will most likely be cheaper! =])

As for brakes, you could get EBC pads, and some Stainless Steel braided lines, since the current ones will most likely need replacement anyways. Then, go for Ford brake fluid. (Search on this, there is this one specific one that is as good as Motul for 1/3 the price)

The rotors, you might get lucky with, and only need to resurface. If your school has an auto-tech program, they will likely have a rotor grinding machine. Ask the shop teacher if he can help you!

Don’t skimp on your brakes, because the engine makes you go fast, but brakes make you live!

Anyway, that should help, but just search around, and check the 1st gen section often for help, a lot of the guys here are goldmines as far as info goes!

Asterisk thanks for the help
its needed