It started out that I was looking at an '80 for $2000 locally here in Las Vegas! I posted asking for suggestions, and on SEVERAL members suggestions, I changed my mind and started looking for an 81 + with disc brakes, LSD, and a better price.

I just so happened to find that PERFECT car here on the forums. VacuumLeek sold me a VERY good condition 1983 GSL. I think I will prefer the 12a to the 13b found in the 85's... so I'm happy about that too. The car's got 173,XXX on it but it runs marvelously! I started my drive down to Los Angelos at 5pm on Thursday night. I arrived at 9pm. The car was just AWESOME. Root Beer Brown (not as bad as your thinking), brown interior, and a little body damage. The deal went so quickly - after I saw it, I fell in love and couldnt fork over the cash fast enough.

It is in better condition than the '80 I was looking at before - AND it was more than $1000 cheaper! PLUS, as a bonus, VacuumLeek threw in 15*7 enkei mesh rims with new rear tires, AND a RB header. The car made the drive back to Vegas at 80-85mph without hesitation. I was very pleased with her.

Now that she's home, I spent the ENTIRE day with it. So far, I've spent $900 on the car, $160 in gas to get one car to LA, and two cars back. I've spent $40 to have the wheel locks taken off due to a lost key. $25 in SMOG checks (passed with flying colors). I spent $6 on a set of Idler Arm Bushings (not yet installed - got too dark). I spent $30 on a nice suede shift boot, and $20 on a new **** as the others were VERY worn looking. I spent about $50 in misc stuff at AutoZone. Sandpaper, bondo, backer, spreaders, primer, a window mount antenna so I could shave the nasty looking rubber one sticking out the back, etc... Just STUFF.

So far I'm counting $1225 or so. I still think that's a great deal.

It does need some attention, however. The tachometer is not working AT ALL. I dont know why - but I've been reading and I will be checking the Ignitor for problems. Also, the oil pressure gauge is inop. I have no idea where to start with that?

Already today, I've shaved Mazda emblems front/rear. The RX-7 on the sides were falling off, so I shaved those too. I shaved the rear antenna, and started on the fixing of some of the dents in the R/F fender and L/R quarter panel. It's obviously a work in progress. I'll post some photos for your viewing pleasure tomorrow.

It's amazing how many people just stare at the car in traffic. It's kinda cool. I'm feeling like a youngin' again suddenly. Anyway, sorry for the bable-fest. Just thought I'd unload it all really quiclkly.

~ TBH

P.S. Any suggestions on performance parts and suspension are greatly appreciated.

 

BTW, are there any 'free mods' I can perform to free up some power? The AC is not currently connected. Maybe it's me (and since I dont have a tach I cant tell) but at 4k I dont feel the 'kick' that ppl are talking about when the nikki's 2nd opens up?

 

Well thats a nice steal. I am looking forword to the pics. Actaully I think you want to get those current problems that youhave fxxed before you go changing anything. The tach could be the trailing igniter gone bad. I am not sure about the oil pressure meter.

You can do the Rats nest removal and mechanical secondaries thats almost free besides some tubing and fittings. You can also do the 2gcdif ingnition mod using a second gen igniter and ignition coil, for about $40. just llok and the 1st gen FAQ page you see tons of stuff.

And hear is a current debate about what suspension is best. https://www.rx7club.com/1st-generation-specific-1979-1985-18/rear-suspension-setup-lets-settle-522015/

Congratulations on the new 7

 

welcome to the forum...big hands eh timmy?
welcome and congrats on your 7 purchase
from one nOOb to another

 

Take good care of her, and she will serve you well. Don't be afraid to redline it, rotarys need that to keep them clean.

MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, DO NOT EVER LET IT OVERHEAT!!! I cannot stress this enough. Nothing will scrap a rotary faster than overheating will.

 

yep. dont overheat. that should be in huge letters on the fourm title

I like 12A too. I dunno much about fuel injected. I dont know much about carbs either but I know more on carbs then Fuel injected...

 

ummm about the tach problem and the oil.

take a sparkplug reader. where you can see the spark plug flashes. to check timing with you know.

hook it up to the coil while running see if you have any flashes. mine was bad. thats why mine wasent working.

 

There's really nothing "Free" that you can do to your Rex to make it attain more performance attributes. Anything out there that does costs money. Start by at least getting rid of that restrictive air filter setup and go to a more open air filter setup. Get a better carb if it doesn't have one on it already. Also, look into Tokico Illuminas adjustable shocks and struts. They are expensive, mind you, but they are good.

And, to speak for the F.I. crowd, it's just as good as the 12A in my opinion. My 13B LOVES to run on the roads. And is very rev happy, especially after the new intake setup, O2 sensor, and SeaFoam in the gas tank.

And, welcome to the crowd. Be sure to post pictures once you get them.

 

you can test the oil pressure sender. Do this by grounding the wire from the sending unit and see if the gauge reads max. If it does, then the sender is bad and the gauge is ok. If nothing happens, then the gauge could be faulty. You can do this check with the water temp as well.

 

be prepared to get slobber on your car, lots of looks, and about a million Puerto Ricans asking if you wanna sell it and then start teliing you the stories of theirs in the past.LOL! Congrats Bro.-Erik<(another droolin' Puerto Rican)

 

crazy peurto ricans and their crazy fast rotaries!!!!

lol jk

I think they have the fastest rx7's

 

dude im in vegas! you officially rock for being in vegas....check out vegasrotar.com or the other way around but its somethin like that....i didnt feel that jolt until i upgraded exhaust, ignition and a little bit of intake(nothing major at all just a diff. lid) i never did the mech. secondaries mod but it feel like i did, my car doesnt bog at low rpm but there is a flat spot until 3500-4000 rpm..........if you have money you might want to join in on the rota wheel group buy going on right now, wheels are nearly impossible to find for our cars and this company might make some for us cheap(bcuz its a group buy) congrats bud and make sure you hit up that site and vegasdrift.com

 

HOLY CRAP! Look at all the responses! Very Cool.. anyway, thanks a ton guys. I'm really excited about this car, and the backup on the forums doesnt hurt anything either.

I think I'm going to remove the rats nest next weekend, try the mech secondaries mod, and remove the AC cuz it doesnt work anyway. That should free up some rotating mass power loss.

I've got some decent rims for the 7 already. They need some cleaning up and CENTER CAPS... MAN DO THEY NEED CAPS. :/

Where might I find a better intake setup? I've seen some guys run NO filter - just an open carb. Bad idea? I'll throw the headers on this week too since I just passed smog. How loud will this thing be straight piped? I'm guessing it'll be insane? Should I just run the header to the stock exhaust for now or no?

 

LMAO at the drooling Puerta Ricans. Arrepentido, mi español no es muy bein.. Pero su derecho. He tenido a VARIOS tipos mexicanos me dan los pulgares arriba ya. Lol

 

Triple consecutive post for the newbie...

I cant find vegasrotary.com, rotaryvegas.com, or any variance at all of the two words. Oh well.

 

search it on google that's the only way i can get on, sorry dude

 

MY view is the Aussies may beat them. There, 11 second gen 1s street cars are normal.

If you want an example of what they do to RX-7s look, at www.daltonautomotive.com, they have a great video giving you the incabin experience of a 7.90@166mph 1/4 mile. While its not a gen1, the video is great fun.

 

Hmm, weird that the tach doesn't work and the car runs. I thought 83-85 models would not run with no trailing ignition due to the fuel pump relay not working without a signal from the trailing ignitor. Or maybe that's 84-85. Or maybe the fuel pump relay is bypassed in your car.

 

it you the same timmybighands from the OC forums?

oh and btw: welcome, and be happy, and keep it runing. It sucks to have one and it be non-drivable, as like mine, I have never drivin mine... and it drives me crazy!

 

Yeah, the TBH name is shared by our entire family. OCForums, RX7club, nopistons, v6p, e30tech, here... I guess it's well known.

You really need to get your car running man - it's a BLAST to drive. I bought this one as a project, but so far I've driven it every day and my 'nice' car is just sitting. Lol.

BTW, cdrad51 - do you have any more info about this trailing ign/fuel pump thing? I'm really stumped on my gauges here.

 

Just a suggestion, If you need to pass emmisions don't remove the rats nest. You won't see any real gains from it anyway.

 

Well, now that I remember, I think the fuel pump relay does apply only to 84/85. But the tach not working still indicates trailing ignition might not be working. If you have a timing light, just connect it to the cable that goes to the top front spark plug and check for signal. If you don't have a timing light, another way is swap ignitors. If when cranking the tach moves and the car hardly starts or doesn't start, the trailing ignitor (now in the leading position) is bad. Replace.

On the oil pressure, do what IanS says. Also, check visually that the cable that goes to the oil pressure sender is connected. If connected, check that is not totally dirty/corroded. Clean as needed. If that still doesn't resolve it, the oil pressure sender needs to be replaced.