Frankie4skin

Alright Now that I have your attention!!!!!

Check It

How many of you are True First Gen. Lover's

So if you had money to spend, talking enough but not enough for 3rd Gen.!!!!!!

Would it go into a First Gen. Or would you move to 2nd Gen.

Thrid is out of the Question, ok!!!!

Maybe I should put this on the 2nd Gen. Specific threads as well!!!!!!!!!!!

1985rx7

1st Gen... The 2nd is just plain ugly! IMHO.

RotaryRyan

well posting here, people will say go with 1st gen. In the 2nd gen forum theyll say to go 2nd gen(probably)

Just compare the facts. Find what you like.

I say first gen

Bob Holton

first Gen definitely

bouis

Depends on what you want to do with it.

If you like driving, go with a Turbo II and start driving.

If you like fiddling with your car, go with a first gen and make it faster and more fun than the Turbo II.

CHEF_EG_1

First gen owner 4 LIFE!


Not saying that I won't someday own a 2nd gen, and 3rd gen, and every other one of them..... but by far, I love the first gen WAY more than anything I've ever driven.

I essentially got the car for free, and have already dumped around $3000 into it. Some of the parts came from my 79, and the rest I bought.

My car needs about $14,000 more before I'm done building. (motor, body work, paint, cage, -SE suspension, 17x11", 17x9" wheels, bigger brakes, nitrous, seats, and a few extra hidden goodies )

FinalRights

The Second gen is heavy and ugly,I do like the thrid gen,but I'm a true old school enthusiest.

RacerX7fb

1st gen with 2nd gen engine

Aviator 902S

If you have money but want more get up and go just drop a 20B into an '85 GSL. Don't forget to also swap in a TII transmission and diff.

Also purchase a mint un-molested (ie: unmodified) GSL-SE to add to the collection.

peejay

The only reason I would fix my 2nd gen would be to sell if to make room for another 1st gen. Preferably an SA. I'd sell both RX-7s for an SA.

If I had the kind of money to buy a really sweet FD.... I would buy an RX-3 (any RX-3) or a 2-door '74 RX-4.

edit: Or a '72-earlier 240Z, but that would cost more than an FD for a nice example.

cheapasaurus REX

i have owned:
88 GXL
87 TII
83 GSL
85 GS
84 GSL-SE
81 GSL

Loved them all, but all honesty, if you HAVE the $, get a 1st gen with a TII motor or hell get an gsl-se nothing beats smoking ricers at the track with a near classic....definate sleeper.

Illswyn

"just" drop in a 20B?

And what will that cost?

Frankie4skin

Well

I could have replaced the Tranny couple years back But didn't have the Net!!!

result, No connections,

These TII ??????? Info please???
(2nd Gen. turbo's and Egine's)????
What Yrs??

Frankie4skin

Bye the Way

I do have a 85 GSL SE but I may Need Rebiuld??

Turbo Still Pushes her Well!!!

(Aftermarket turbo that is)

JimB

I just wish I could find a first generation convertible. Any home made out there?

peejay

Several. Easier to get a Miata.

peejay

Several. Easier to get a Miata.

cosmicbang

It would be much easier to put a rotary engine in a miata.

cheapasaurus REX

Rough 1st gen vert from ebay...auction over, no winner....not mine

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...908007459&rd=1

Aviator 902S

It's been done. And it's not cheap. Or simple.

But the question was "If you had money would you still want a 1st gen vs. upgrading to a 3rd gen." Since you now have money, cost isn't an object.

If it were me (and I had very deep pockets) I'd have the mint bone-stock SE, a GSL with the aforementioned 20B mod (as well as the SE suspension swap) and another GSL with those same mods + a very well-designed convertible conversion. (That has also been done, just not with the 20B mod as far as I know).

But why stop there if you're pulling down over $1 million annually? Why not also start a collection of one example of every rotary-powered vehicle ever produced? Then you wouldn't have to go to the rotary museum in Germany.

stilettoman

iTrader: (1)

I have a lot to say about this. I could afford a new Porshe if I wanted, or a pair of 3rd gen cars. Instead I have two 1984 GSLs, one with a modified rotary and one with a 300 hp Ford V8. I started rebuilding wrecked RX7s in 1982, and I have had a A LOT of them. I decided years ago not to waste my time with anything but the 1984/85 cars. They have much nicer interior, instruments and controls, better seats and interiors and numerous other minor improvements compared to the 79-83 cars.

The 2nd gen cars are much more complex, heavier, though the suspension is definitely more sophisticated. I feel claustrophobic in them. The visibility and awareness of the cars extremities is not as good. I have worked on them more than I would like, rebuilt several wrecked ones, never had the slightest desire to own one.

My feeling about the 3rd gen cars was summed up by a very knowledgeable friend who retired recently after working for Mazda USA for more than 30 years:"It is an awesome car, but you definitely don't want to own one after the warranty period." I have friends who work on them for a living, and they say it is like being a Jaguar mechanic - you only need about six customers to make a pretty good living! Also, I am 6ft 3in tall, and they just weren't made for me.

The Miata is a cute little car and has a lot going for it, but I was not comfortable driving it on the freeway with all those full sized cars. Even a 1st gen rX7 is considerably more substantial. I decide that building a convertible made more sense than putting a rotary in the Miata. I made two convertibles, shown at
rx7.org select Feature Car, then scroll down to September 1997.
The red car is still in the Seattle area and is driven regularly. The silver car went to the Bay area several years agoand I lost track of it. I am no doubt prejudiced, but I think this car makes one of the best looking convertibles ever.

Would someone tell me how to post photos here? I am new to this forum.

thestilettoman@msn.com

genrex

In my experience, there's always been a weakness in the 1st-gen handling. I have an '84 GSL-SE with stock sway bars and KYB gas shocks (similar to Tokico blues, I guess). When I'm going downhill on an off-camber curve at 40+ mph, the rear end always feels like it wants to come around. If you know what I mean, you know it's not a good feeling.

I wonder if the 2nd-gens do that, too.

p.s. - Welcome to the forum, stilettoman!

stilettoman

iTrader: (1)

There are certainly better handling cars than a 1st gen rX7, and the 2nd gen car is one of them. The situation you describe can largely be compensated by doing what I did. I am using the 2nd gen convertible BBS 15 inch alloys, which required adapting the 2nd gen hubs and brakes. This is a major modification, but you can buy 15 inch wheels without doing all that. I am running 205/50 front tires and 225/50 rears. This was done because I have 300 hp V8 and need the traction for power, but it also gives me much better cornering grip in the rear.

Differential tire size has been a common way to improve handling for the past 35 years on Italian cars.

genrex

Thanks, that's a great idea!

I like a subtle big-and-small look..

stilettoman

iTrader: (1)

Genrex - You can obviously run differential tire sizes on your 14 inch heels, but there are more tire choices in 15s. These days, all the really trick tires are 16s or larger.

Another factor is differential rim width. 6 1/2 will fit nicely in the front, but the offset really has to be right. 7 inch will fit in the rear. If you are buying wheels, differential rim width also helps bias the traction to the rear. I think my BBS wheels are 6 1/2 front and rear.

I would post some photos, but can't figure out how. The moderater told me I need 100 posts before I can have a custom avatar. That is ridiculous. I belong to forums related to a custom motorcycle I am building, a forum for rotary pickups (My son drives a rotary pickup, with an extended cab, which I built about ten years ago), and another forum related to an airplane I am building. On all of those forums, I have been treated as an equal since day 1, and they seem to appreciate my experience and my comments. I have been tinkering with cars since long before most members of this forum were born, and driven sports cars regularly since 1961. I have won my share of trophies driving in competition. I think I have some useful ideas to share here, but I can't even figure out how to post a photo here. The instructions in the FAQ do not seem to apply. I must say the other forums are more user friendly. And as for the avatar, I may not live long enough to post 100 messages - I am too busy working on my projects.

E-mail me directly and I will send you photos if you like.

thestilettoman@msn.com