Hey everyone, this is my first post on this board... i came here looking to find out info about 1st gens in general.. but more specifically i am thinking about getting one as a daily driver. how reliable are these cars?

i know that by asking this on an rx7 forum i'm going to get biased answers, but also really well informed ones. what are some of the typical problem areas to look for? do you guys prefer carbs or efi? i found one close to me, an '85 GSL-SE with 85k original miles, it looks pretty clean. how long can i expect this car to last me? how much would you say that car is worth? he's asking $4100, and by reading the post about how much everyone paid for theirs, that seems WAY expensive. Thanks in advance!

 

I have my choice between a REX, an Explorer, a Bronco and a Toyota mini van, and I choose the REX every time. It's more fun to drive. It runs crappy once in a while, but overall, it's been more reliable than the Fords (stating the obvious).

 

Oh, to ATMFQ, that sounds like a reasonable price for the top of the line first gen. You will see that that model is what everyone covets.

 

just check it out like a normal car and make sure it doesn't have too many oil leaks... in San Diego, you shouldn't have to worry about rust much... Just check it out like a normal car. FYI- if it's sluggish, it's probably not good. stock, a 12a is quick as hell.

 

I paid $4200 for my first gen, but it came with some goodies.

I drive it everyday. Well, every day that it works.

 

umm... Just to clarify for you, the SE comes with a fuel injected 13b, which is a fairly damn powerful engine. Yes, it should be a fast car.

 

Ok first things first...

I bought one almost site unseen. It had not rrun in two years and had some rust ('85 GSL - the moddel below the one looked at) Paid $650 for it, spent $600 fixing it up. Drove it for 2 years straight.

The best, and Most Reliable car I have ever owned!!

Started looking into repainting mine and repairing the flour and found that I could probably buy a nother one in better condition for less money. And I did

1984 GSL in emaculate condition.

I now drive it dayly from April untill mid October (It has never been driven in the winter, road salt kills cars).

I find they are wonderful, however they can hav the trapings of a 18-24 year old car. But they are still a kick *** car

I perfer Carbed cars, but that is just me

If you have the chance at a Nice clean GSL-SE (EFI) GO FOR IT!!!

As far as price and condition are concerned hopfuly some one will chime in with that information. I personally don't think $4100 is too much, but that is just me I would have to see the car first to give an informed opinion.

I hope some of this helps

Best of luckk

anthrax


EDIT Geez when I started this novel no one had posted yet... Damn long windedness

 

I love my car for a daily driver. I sold an LS1 Trans Am to get into my RX (4th one owned) and I've NEVER regretted it...

It takes a little more TLC at 20 yrs old, and you may need to do a little work on it now and again, but you will get what you pay for. I spent $2,500 on a GSL from a little old lady - and all I've had to do was replace the clutch cylinders (very common).

There are a lot of thrashed RX's out there, but if you can find the ones that have been taken care of, I think they're very reliable...

Good luck!

 

When I used my 83 for DD it was pretty good, but sometimes I felt cramped (I'm 6'2"). It never broke down on me on the road, and I've had it 20 years. But then, I'm the only one who's driven it.

That price for an SE is premium: the car should be almost perfect.

B

 

yeah i don't mind getting my hands dirty, i have a decent amount of tools and experience working on cars, so i don't think that would be a problem. i have a relatively modified honda that likes to go through transmissions... and i think i'm looking to get a not so modified car that is quick to begin with and relatively low miles... so from what everyone is saying it looks like i might have found what i want plus, rear drive.. finally! that's my one HUGE complaint about hondas...

oh yeah, i also found an '85.. i think GSL? with a 5 speed, non SE. the thing about this one is that is has 65k miles and its $3250 obo. which would you guys recommend? i do have some experience playing with carbs on my old 240z... but still i think efi would be less headaches.

anyway thank you for the responses! keep them coming!

 

I have a 85 GS with 39K original miles and the car is Mint. I drive it from May to Oct. The only problem with the non SE is if you want to change the stock rims - not many for that bolt pattern. You have a better selection with the SE. Otherwise I love my 85 GS.

Ordered a 2004 RX-8, went to the dealer yesterday for a test drive on my new RX-8, I told the sales person it's nice but not a fun as my 85 RX-7. I refused the RX-8.

 

WHile the SE's are the most desireable model (bigger engine, more power off the bat, bigger brakes, more aftermarket wheel choices) They are EFI. I am biased towards carbs. The mechanical simplicty of carbs makes it a very reliable choice. But, having said that I cant say anything bad about the SE. Ive heard of them going many miles and be reliable.

However, since your in CA, you cant do alot to bump up your power and still pass smog right? Well the SE already has the 12A cars beat in the hp department. 135 vs 105. No subtitute for cubic inches as they say. SO I'd reccomend the SE for your situation.

 

Carl, i belive the saying is "There's no replacement for displacement."

Geezee man, get with it.

Seeing how your in california. i would have to agree with carl and stick with the -se's efi for emmissons reasons.
Maybe its just me, but the price sounds a little high. But if you've got the cash, ide say go for it!

Good luck. and yes, cars are good.

 

SE's are really nice, I wish I could have found one.

 

As bad as some may think it is I drive my 84 RX-7 GSL-SE for Pizza Delivery 6 days a week! I love it and I have never had a problem with this car!

 

I love my 1st gen and its been my daily driver for almost 2 years now. I even liked it better than driving my friends 3000gt vr4, and my car is 10 times slower than that.

 

I bought my 1985 GSL-SE last year for $3800 in San Diego. (95k miles). I've been using it as a DD for over twelve months with very few problems. You will need to check/replace the fuel pulsation damper - it tends to die in these cars risking a serious engine fire.

Very reliable cars, which are fun to drive.

 

I have only driven RX-7's for the last four years. Aside from problems that would happen to any car that is twenty plus years old, I have nothing but good things to say about RX-7's as daily drivers. If pressed, they even handle winter without a hitch.

 

It's crazy as a daily driver, but I do it anyways. Whenever it's not raining, then I'm driving it. Gets kind of expensive though filling it up all the time and premixing with MMO, but I love it.

 

Phiber, how many miles you got on it? Nice wheels

Jon

edit: was gonna post something, but had to run, l8rs

 

I have a choice of cars, too. It's close between the Miata and the RX7, but I usually take the 7 because it's more comfortable, has more power, and doesn't give up much in handling. It's more expensive to drive, though. I really notice that. But the flexibility of the rotary means you can blow through traffic, 30 to 60, without reaching for the shifter.

Rear wheel drive, yes, definitely the way to go. Also, a very easy car to work on. The mechanics are simple. You can fix almost anything in a weekend. You can't burn a valve or throw a rod or blow a head gasket. Parts are still plentiful. Great car.

 

I drive an 85 GS almost every day as my primary vehicle except when I need a back seat or there is salt on the road. It is my 6th 1st gen 12a, and is in very good condition - not perfect, but the nicest one I see around my parts on a regular basis. It has fairly mild mods (RB exhaust, Eibach springs, Suspension Techniques bars, LSD, etc.) so far. It has 154k on it, with a rebuilt motor at 119k.

Most people have given you the upside; I will start with the downside (and probably generate discussion), and then go to the upside. Here's my $.02:

Never forget you are in a car that was designed in the mid to late '70's, and with parts that trace back before then. While for it's day, it was a tremendous value and fairly advanced, it is almost 3rd world basic by today's standards. Some of the ergonomics we take for granted aren't there, and what were quick 0 - 60 times in 1985 are run of the mill for most economy cars today. Also, standards for noise, stereo, seats, etc. have risen considerably, so the car can seem crude at times. I would like to have at least one cupholder!

The car is also somewhat rough on poor pavement (lots of it here in Ohio). It can oversteer and get a driver in trouble if they are inexperienced or ignorant. The steering is slow, and manual steering requires extra effort in slow manuevers. The recirculating ball mechanism becomes vague on center if not maintenanced.

Insurance on the car is another thing. Most companies only insure them for book value, so it doesn't take much for them to want to total out a car for a minor accident.

It can also be difficult to find a good mechanic who can diagnose issues and do proper repairs when needed. Generally you don't find parts in stock at your local store. And I agree with others' comments regarding being mindful you are driving a 20 year old car - anything can and will go bad at a moments notice. Simple things like rubber seals or plastic interior parts that can be hard to find or expensive.

Now, go back to what I said originally - I drive it almost every day, and have put 11k miles on it since its purchase last October. My other vehicles are an Inifiniti J30 and a GMC Yukon SLT, both very nice in their own right. The car is great to drive, and nothing is better than taking the long way home after a tough day or even a drive during lunch. I have had a total of 33 cars over the the years, and the 1st gen RX7 remains my favorite.

If you are the least bit mechanically inclined, you can maintain and improve it yourself. It is not particularly hard to find performance parts at a fair price (particularly used parts). When they are maintained, they are dead reliable. I have never experienced a failure per se; the only problems tend to be related to pure abuse (I also have a 1st gen race car) or an item that should have been maintenanced (hoses).

I take pride in pointing out to others at local autocrosses I have less than $3k in the car - this usually happens after their riced out Honda or whatever gets waxed by a car that pretty much appears stock, and that they have probably never seen up close before.

This board is a great source of information, and people have been very helpful.

I also think that nice ones will continue to appreciate, so get one now. Similar to 1st gen Datsun Z's, you could buy them a dime a dozen in the late '80's, early '90's. Now nice Z cars are going for $12k - $15k. I expect our cars (particularly the SE's) to be similiarly priced in a a few more years. I get at least a couple inquiries a month about selling my car as a lot of folks that had one 20 years ago are hitting that mid life crisis stage (me, I just never grew up).

For the price being asked, the car should be near perfect. I would suggest having it checked by a mechanic knowledgable with 1st gen's.

Best of luck!

Rich

 

Hey I thought I bought all the clean SEs in San Diego... purchased three to be exact, each one for around $2000.
At only 85K miles that car is only a baby
My first SE had 116K miles on it back in '92...over the course of 8 years of daily driving, occasional autocrossing and some drag racing.. I logged on over another 100K miles on that car before it got smacked by an F-250
I transfered that same engine into my 2nd SE and summed up around 282,000 miles on it before I found another used engine to replace it. Hows that for reliability?
A well tuned and kept SE I say will last a good while, not as good gas mileage as a Honduh, but much much more rewarding to drive

 

I've got an '84 GSL-SE and I love it. I agree with everything said above. My biggest complaint is the a/c. It has been over 100 degrees here for the past few days and the car just won't cool down to a comfortable level. My main car is a little Honda Civic and its a/c is fantastic. The other thing you'll notice about the RX-7 is that gas mileage is not very good when you are trying to be good to it. Since it is a fun little car, it will be even worse since you will always have your foot buried in the throttle. My engine is ported so I only get about 16-17 mpg. I also drive it pretty hard. Just for comparision my Honda gets 30 mpg in the city in the summer! When I had a 2nd gen, I could sometimes get 20 mpg in the city but that was driving it very very slowly. A 12A should do a little better than the 13B but since I don't have one I can't verify this. It is a very addictive little car. It may not be very refined and the technology may be old but there is just something about it that makes it irresistable.

 

mine was a great daily driver until i did the suspension work... now its just too harsh for the incredibly horrid condition of the roads here. (they're REALLY bad).

then after it was broken into at the parking lot of my job i started to reconsider... and then it was stolen from the parking lot of my job 2 weeks later.

so i bought an old volvo for $100, and i've been fine since.