Well as I most likely put this in the wrong place or did something wrong with this first post..... I'm sorry haha. I've been looking for a fun drift car that I can build and came upon a 1980 rx-7 that runs, is in great shape and has a 5 speed manual conversion done up for $1200. My question to you guys is this a good pickup?? I will have around 7-10 grand to spend on the build. Thanks in advance

 

Depends on how much you're willing to learn about 35-year-old unique technologies.

You'll find that the 79 & 80 cars have fewer options available for customizing suspension, wheels, brakes, etc., because in 1981 Mazda changed wheel bolt patterns, brake spindle dimensions, strut dimensions, etc.

Wheel bolt patterns on SA's (79 & 80) were 4x110; hard to find aftermarkets in that size, and the original 13" wheels offer limited tire choices. In 81 (the "FB" series) they switched to a more common larger bolt pattern.

An '80 will most likely have manually-adjusted rear drum brakes & an open diff unless it's been modified. In later years disc rear and LSD diffs are more easily found, & my understanding is that both are a big advantage for a drift car.

The '80 12A used a one-year-only ignition system that was more trouble-prone than the later one used in the FB's. Because it was used for only one year, parts are scarce.

The exhaust systems were also more complex, but I'd imagine that would be the first thing you'd pull out in a performance mod plan anyway.

Also, aftermarket body kits etc are more plentiful for the FB-style bodies than for the SAs.

Don't get me wrong; I love my '80, it's an awesome car... but it takes more work to modify one heavily.

Easier to start with a later-model first (or a second-gen) if you are looking to build a highly modified drift car.

 

Plus, it hurts to see an SA chopped up and destroyed!

 

welcome to the site, where in Utah are you from?

 

"....You'll find that the 79 & 80 cars have fewer options available for customizing suspension, wheels, brakes, etc., because in 1981 Mazda changed wheel bolt patterns, brake spindle dimensions, strut dimensions, etc.

Wheel bolt patterns on SA's (79 & 80) were 4x110; hard to find aftermarkets in that size, and the original 13" wheels offer limited tire choices. In 81 (the "FB" series) they switched to a more common larger bolt pattern. ...", DivinDriver


I thought my 1983 rx-7 fb model s has a 4x110 bolt pattern

 

Well, **** me for trying to be helpful, then.

 

Well what do you guys suggest I do? I mean rx7 are a sick car and one of my favorite drift builds. The guy will take 1000 for it and seems like quite the deal. Next summer would be when I really got it all torn apart and rebuilt. 10k enough to do something quite crazy or would you suggest looking for a different car?

 

In my world $10,000.00 will make a nice build out of a bucket of rust and jug of dirty motor oil. Your results may vary.

 

Divin, no, more like **** me if I order custom 4x110 15 inch rims, and my bolt pattern isn't 4x110.

so which is it, I need to know before ordering. one shop said that if I went with 4x100, they'd just be 10 mm off. GREAT !

 

All 12a cars are 4x110.

 

Mines not

 

Hmmmm. What and how?

 

I dont know, but it had LE style wheels on it when I got it 11 years ago. I thought they were 4x110 myself until 2 years ago when I found out that my GSL-SE's wheels bolted right up. My set of 13" + wheels would not fit at all. It has the SE pattern, and the PO has pictures of the car with those wheels on it in 1985 when he got it new, lol.