RaceyBoy

Hello rx7club members, im new here but i have some questions because i might be getting a 1st gen 81 RX7 in the next year or so. I looked in the FAQ about 1st gens, and didnt find it so this is what i would like to ask...

1) Is the 1st gen (12b?) rotary engine very reliable? Or am I going to have to replace idy bitty parts every single year. I will most likely keep this thing fairly stock on the engine side, nothing major, I just want to be able to drive it everyday with out problem.

2) Since I live in Canada, and the 1st gen is Carb'd.. will it be a pita since the weather can affect the carb? (lean, too rich)

3) Is the rotary engine fairly fuel efficient? (when mostly stock)

4) Would it be better for me to just swap a 13b efi motor in if the carbs are a problem and the engine will be cheap, in good condition.

5) this gold 81 rx7 that is around the corner from me, the guy wants $1500 canadian for it, the left rear fender is just mildly rusted probably a bit more rust underneath. Should i try and talk him down, do you think that this is a reasonable price seeing as it isnt pristine, its been sitting in his driveway for 3+years.

6) Will there be any major problems from the car sitting around engine wise?

7) not sure what trim level it is, doesnt have any GSL badges on the side or anything. with this description could someone tell me what it is? (Pb, pw, ps, cruise, leather seats, PT sporty, copper colour, 5 spd)


THANKS IN ADVANCED GUYS/GALS

Buffumguy1

Welcome,
1) Been driving mine for around 10 years now, no major engine problems. I take it to red line almost every trip out.
2) Don't know about Candian weather, but I had to adjust my idle about once per year.
3) No
4) No
5) No, I think about $500 to $750 US is more fair
6) Others can answer this better than me, but maybe
7) Sounds like it might be a GSL, does it have rear disc brakes?

Good luck and plan to work on this car as you would any 25 year old car.

Modified85

The 12a engine is reliable as long as it has been maintained properly, oil changes every 3000 etc.. If you are worried about a carbed engine in the cold they had special systems to help with cold starts but I live in florida and after I took off the emissions stuff my car did not start well in the cold. If the car has been sitting for three years expect lots of problems, seals harden and then leak when you try to use them such as master cylinders, slave cylinder, brake calipers etc... I like the idea of installing the fuel injected 13b and while your at it get a turbo, its a lot of fun. The price sounds ok but if you can talk him down a bit why not.

Dom

Get it with the safety certificate so you can drive when you buy it and not have to do a bunch of repairs before you can plate it.

This is a good way to drop the price if he doesn't want to safety it or a good way to get all the neglect repairs (low tire, worn shocks, bulb out) done for you.

I paid $1200 for a pretty much rust free 85 GSL which needed front shocks (read expensive) for its safety.

RaceyBoy

ok thanks a lot guys, i believe it does have rear discs too, it has those cross like rims too, and yeah wouldnt stuff like humidity affect the carbs? and the car also has a hatch mounted spoiler (looks like a factory piece)

but im ready to do some repairs for sure

im pretty sure the guy just had the car running lately cuz its parked the other way now, but i have to wait a year or so to get it [ no license yet =( ] but hopefully it will still be there..

twinkletoes

iTrader: (17)

Make sure you check the faq page at the top. You'll get answers to a lot of your questions.

RaceyBoy

yeah i checked out one of the pages, but i'll give it a thorough look thanks!

openshot

hey wellcome. you live in niagara falls eh. well i live in st cath. i have a 83. and nick1 on here have a 85 i think. he lives in wellend. maybe we can meat up one time and talk.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

1. Some members have over 200k a very few have hit 300k k on thier original motors. It comes down to 3 basics, regular maintinance, , treating the engine right and never overheating it.

2. Carb has a choke, works quite well in cold weather.

3. Properly tuned and driven 15-19 mpg in town, 24+ on the highway.

4. No, not unless you want more power.

5. Take the bins out and look for rust. Also check the rocker panels, drip tracks and rails for the sunroof and hatch, and get underneath and check every square inch of the bottom. Look under the battery tray, under the brake and clutch master cylinders and the top edge of the windshield, under the trim. Rust is the #1 killer of 1st gens.

6. Long term non-op vehicles have more problems than driven ones. Expect to flush the fuel system, drop, drain and clean the fuel tank. Replace the fuel pump, rubber hoses, fuel filter and have the carb rebuilt. The brake system will need flushed and I would replace the master brake cylinder and the calipers. Same for the clutch hydraulics. Cooling system should be flushed, new coolant and Mazda oem thermostat.

Engine, full tune up, plugs wires, cap and rotor. There is a good chance the carbon build up has hardened inside the engine. This will cause seal problems. Many members do not recommend the atf treatment, but sitting for 3 years, this one may be a good candidate for it. If not, use Seafoam.

Replace all fluids in the vehicle.

If the wheel wells are rusted though, or there is other rust though the body, 700-1k, if no other issues present themselves. If the radiator fliud is rusty or discolored, the oil shows water mixed in or the plugs are rusty, no more than 3-700.

Even if you pick up the car for 1k, expect to spend at least that much the 1st year to bring all of the components up to spec, not counting any internal engine work.

Also check the exhaust system. If it needs replacement, a shop will charge 500 or more, if you go Racing Beat, the price more than doubles north of the border.

The more maintinance and repair work you can do yourself, the better off you and the car will be, that's what we're here for.

Pin the owner down and find out exactly why the car was parked and why it sat for so long. Post his answer back here before commiting to the purchase. Also ask for a history of maintinance and what, if any, parts have been replaced.

RaceyBoy

thanks a lot again guys, i had a look at the car this morning, it has disc brakes (rotors rusty) the fenders are a bit corroded around the edges, the sunroof is A OK, the tail has this lip spoiler that goes all the way around the rear end over the quarters it is like screwed into them so i figured there might be some rust under the wing..eek.

i checked under the car (vaguely) and it doesnt look that bad really, i then went and had a look under the front to see no oil leaks on the driveway. I dont know if the rotaries are notorious for leaking oil or vice versa, but i thought that was a good sign. The paint is ok, but cosmetic stuff is the least of my worries.

I had a look inside, and the seats are leather, but they are bucketed seats with a separate head rest unlike some of the seats i have seen on other FBs that are like just bottom and back no head rest.

and the mileage....(in kilometers) 198,695km!!!! WOW. so i figured out that the car was mostlikely just a summer /weekend car or just was driven in the 80s. I crunched some numbers and figured that the car was driven about 8000km a year.

I told my dad about the car being for sale today and for how much and his reply was "Thats it! Thats all he's asking for the car?" he sounded pretty enthusiastic
Then i made the point that good clean ones usually go for around 3-4K usd and its a bit rough. But i'll see what he thinks about it later when i see him.

Bass

I wish that I lived closer. I'd be glad to come by and take a look at the car with you. Actually, I was just down there for the weekend. Too bad you didn't post earlier. Can you take some pics of the car and post them? As far as rust under the wing, open the hatch and lift up the carpet skirt that covers the brake/reverse/signal lights and have a look around there. While you're there, lift up the bottom carpet and have a look under the spare tire for rust. Most definately take a look under the bins for rust. When it comes to test driving it, make sure that the car is cold when you start it. Pull the choke out, and crank until it catches. DON'T use the gas pedal. I usually hold the key in the on position for 5 seconds or so to let the float bowls fill with fuel in order to cut down on cranking time. Once it's running, push the choke in and let it idle around 1.5 to 2k rpm. The engine will probably smoke out the tail pipe. If it's blue, that's fine. These engines burn oil as part of the design. If it's white...you may have coolant leaking into the combustion chambers.

Once it's up to operating temperature (the choke will pop back in on its own) do the standard test drive lookfors while driving it. Remember that there'll be very little power below 3 to 3.5k rpm- that's normal. Power is in the upper bands anyway. When you've finished driving it etc., shut the car off and let it sit for a minute or two. Then restart it without the choke or gas pedal. It should start up right away.

Just add this to the great advice that has already been given in this thread. It would definately be to your advantage to take a "rotorhead" with you. But failing that, posting pics of the car would help us see what you're looking at.

RaceyBoy

thanks again for the tips guys, tomorrow when i go out for my walk i'll bring my camera. here's a quick pic of the car. the paint is a little rough, but thats nothing.

oh and lol, just dawned on me, the car is sitting on the driveway, in this picture its on the street.. so it must run!

shepski

heh, my '79 had 60,000 km on it when i got it. alot more now

Nicholas P.

iTrader: (1)

raceyboy, get some tail light pictures and everything : )

RaceyBoy

gladly, tomorrow morning when i go for my stroll, but why tailight pictures?

oh and it has a "Mazda RX-7" badge on the rear hatch glass too, right at the bottom.

mar3

iTrader: (8)

One thing you definitely need to check if it's been a non-runner for any length of time...(he may have pushed the car into the street, after all...)...open the hood and look at the top of the engine next to the distributor area. You'll see 12A cast into the top of one of the housings. Do you see ANY oil leaks or puddling of oil in this area? If it does start, then clean the area with a rag and see if any oil starts to collect in that area.

If you can see this area collecting oil as it runs, then you need to know that the infamous dowel pin oil leak can only be cured with an engine rebuild...

RaceyBoy

ok thanks again for the tips guys!

RaceyBoy

Bump guys, gonna have pictures soon, but i cant update the title for some reason..

RaceyBoy

alright, well the pictures are uploaded to photobucket, you dont have to log in to view its on public view setting, heres a the link and a teaser pic =D
RaceyBoy's RX-7 Picture Album

Bass

I can see how you'd be tempted...but the rust and it's locations scare me to be quite honest. These cars rely on the integrity of its panels etc... as there is no frame. It's gonna be quite expensive repairing all of that rust. And that's just the rust that's plainly visible. It's definately a goldmine for parts, but the body is suspect. Mind you, this is only based on what I can see with the photos. There are other 7s out there that can be had for a good price. In fact, there was an '84 I believe that someone was selling in the Cdn for sale forum just a few weeks ago that was a steal. When I bought my first seven back in 1995, I really had to pressure myself not to buy the first one that I test drove because of the rust that it had. I went through 5 of them before committing to a purchase.

RaceyBoy

yeah but it doesnt look to bad from the outside, just some minor stuff, but those rocker panels are kinda ugly.. i dont know,i might call him later to see if it runs but if it doesnt its not worth it, but if we did get the thing, it would most likely end up being a track day car.. if i could talk him down quite a lot (say 700 canadian) because of me havin to safety it and replace everything, repair the rust then it might be worth it, but you would have to do a lot of metal work right? no short cut with bondo on these things

t_g_farrell

iTrader: (1)

It looks like a rust bucket to me. I bet the storage areas are all rusted to crap as well once you get inside. I don't think this car is worth saving at any price. You could spend just as much and get a clean, rust free car that has some mechanical issues which are always much cheaper and easier to fix. It could be great parts car if you can find another FB with a clean chassis you could create a whole car from both and sell the remaining parts to fund the effort.

Or drive down to ohio and buy this one :-)

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=428332

RaceyBoy

oh, and i have no clue where these "storage bins" are, send me in the right direction please? and i think you guys are totally right about the whole rust bucket thing, i might be on a small budget, but i didnt take a good look at the car before really, but thanks anyways guys. i'll keep you posted

mar3

iTrader: (8)

RUN AWAY!! RUN AWAY!!

novaboy009

I saved my beater '84 from worse than that. You non-rust belt people get too nervous about a little flakey stuff. Just get lots of sheet metal stock, a good pair of tin snips, one of those hand metal presses and a decent welder. It'll be cheaper than doing one without an engine or with significant mechanical problems. Just a lot more work.

Kev