FB a good daily driver?
 

Hey guys,

I've been a long time fan, and lurker. I'm about to buy my first RX7 - an '85 GS. I will be using this is my primary method of transportation to and from work, errands, etc. I am trading my large, comfy, reliable, and ultimately boring DD for this. Am I making a bad choice? I don't mind poor fuel economy, and squeaks and rattles once in a while, but is an FB the type of car that will require a full weekend of work to drive during the rest of the week? The car is in great shape, and has fairly low mileage. Anyone have input?

My main concerns spawn from the car being carb'd. Are they hard to get running in the winter?

FB's that are well maintained are phenomenal daily drivers. Just keep up on your routine maintenance and all should be well. Low miles are great, keep it in good shape and you'll get alot of miles out of her. Just a word to the wise before you get it, check for rust, EVERYWHERE. Main areas are wheel wells and behind the storage bins. Pictures of her would be great! They are very simple cars to work on so if something does go wrong, it shouldn't take much to get her going again. I've driven 1st Gens for 3 winters and never had any issue with getting them started or running in the cold. You just have to know how to use the choke right and you'll be okay. Never had any issues with snow either, the balance is great.

Toronto Canada? If so, I'll tell you, sometimes I had to resort to pouring methanol straight down the carb to get it started in a new jersey winter morning.

There is also a container that inject antifreeze into the carb. Never hooked mine up though.

The rear wheel wells are prone to rust. Mazda missed undercoating two holes between the rear wheel well sheet metal. They act like a trap for water. On mine the sheet metal rusted clear through, but the load bearing areas were intact.

That's the sub-zero start assist. Most of the time they don't work anymore. ^^If you have to poor methanol down the carb just to get it started in a measly NJ winter, you had an issue. Either your battery was weak or too small, bad grounds/not enough juice to the starter, or a crappy starter.

i live in so cal so my car never sees cold weather and has no rust. id say they are great as a dd

even mine being in its modified form is great.

the only downfall for me is my 82 gsl no longer has a/c and the lack of power steering for someone as small as i am is a bit of a bear when trying to parallel part on a hill. if i know that will be an issue i just drive my other car.

just make sure to search for rust and accident damage before buying the car.

as for a carb'd car in winter as long as it is properly tuned and you know how to use a choke and not flood your car you will be good to go.

i do not know what they do in snow sorry cant help you there but rain they are great even here in so cal

Here is the car I'm set on. I'm more concerned about the reliability rather than handling during the winter. I've driven my bmw daily in the snow.

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=774196

externally it looks ok but who knows without seeing and driving the car honestly

Yeah. It's from a member in good standing. He says it is in great condition. If the cars are well kept and regularly maintained, do they tend to be less reliable than an EFI car?

no not at all. my fb is the most reliable car at my house out of 5 cars

i drove SA/FB's daily for over 10 years, i think they are great dailies. especially when you start looking at cost per mile.

compared to most cars the rx7's just dont need any maintenance, theres no timing belt, no valve adjustment....

That's very true. The most important things to maintain on these cars are the oiling system and the cooling system. It's not uncommon to see a good 12A car run over 300k miles. The carb'd cars are also more simple than the EFI because of less electronics, sensors, etc. More crap to go wrong basically.

The big difference between the BMW that you drove in the winter is the amount of clearance you lack on the 7 underneath versus the BMW and also with the GS model you do not have a limited slip diff which may cause some issues with traction in the snow.

As far as starting in the winter. As long as the choke system is working properly and you have a good strong battery and a engine with good compression there should be no issues. It all depends on your average temperature and if the vehicle will be stored outside also.

the very simple to work on comment is true, I dropped my transmission in about an hour, took about 2.5 to replace clutch disc, scuff the glaze off flywheel and pressure plate and put back in by my self. EASY like the oven!

They do not do well in the snow, but otherwise they make quite nice daily drivers.

When my FB was running I never had any problems whatsoever in the snow in it. I actually thought it was easier to drive in the snow than my '01 Jetta when I had it.

I drove my 1st FB in the winter in the Buffalo, NY area and never had any issues with getting it started in the winter. Just like any normal car keep up on the basic maintenance and you'll be good.

As to handling in the snow, put a decent set of snow tires(like any car) and it'll be great. I had a lot of fun with my 85 in the snow. To bad we salt the roads here in WNY, my 79 will never get to see a snowy road.

My 83 gsl-se swapped fb is a pretty reliable daily driver. I haven't had any major problems from it. I just keep working here and there to get it lighter.

I never had issues in the snow either, on crappy all seasons at that. I did lower my tire pressure slighty for better traction. I never once lost control, but I tried to drive my mother-in-law's Saturn SL1 and just about slid into oncoming traffic. I was not happy

you just have to go easy on the gas in the snow but that goes for all cars but for the reliability issue I have 2 81s that are daily drivers one has been so nice to me that I'm going to restore her to original condition and if I can pull it off back to show room condition the other was messed with to much but it just keeps going and going like the energizer bunny

110 miles a day in my 84 GSL, the White One. No better way to travel (23-24 mpg).

Great daily! Have been commuting for 2 years and has outlasted all of my roommates cars. I have a 12A that has been tuned, and lightly modded, and gets close to 28 mpg on the freeway. Very comfy cruiser and road tripper.

As long as you keep up with general maintenance, oil/filter changes every 3k, along with a can of Seafoam in the tank, tuneups, cooling system changes, they make great DDs. With your cold winters, tuneups, good battery cables, a strong battery and working choke are important. The antifreeze injection system is not that important. Mazda did issue a TSB to remove them, so even they didn't feel it was that important.

Car looks very good, if there's no rust in the wheel wells and where the rear control arms mount, and the interior is in similar condition as the exterior, 2500 is a fair price. All season tires are a must in the snow and if you can install an LSD, it will be even better, but they can get squirrley in the snow/rain. I've spun the widebody around in the middle of the street, raining, just from hitting 2nd gear a little hard. Caught me off guard, my passenger thought I did it on purpose and had a big grin on his face, lol. I have 255/50/25 Goodyears in the rear.

Tall skinnier tires will do better on the snow , ice , and rain.

Mine did ok in hilly snowy new jersey.

Those are some pretty big wheels you have! :lol:

Are these cars common to find in junkyards for pilfering?

Is an LSD from the FC swappable? Or is the GSL-SE the parts car I want to find and have on stand-by?

Afaik, the FC 3rd member will not interchange. As far as what's in your local junkyards, ask in the Canadian section or PM Vipernicuis42, he's local. If you can find a full SE suspension, grab it, but the GSL lsd is better since it has a different clutch pack set up and grabs better. You can change the discs in the se lsd and make it grab like the SE one does.

Once the rest of my suspension work is finished, again, I'll be running 15X9 rims front, 15X10 rear. Need something to fill out the fenders of the widebody, lol. Eventually, (next tire purchase), I'll be running wider tires with a lower profile.