2MuCh7_NYC

Hi....im new to this forum.

I am love the RX7 as well as the rotary engine.

I am interested in getting a 1st gen. RX7 as my first car.
Do you think this would be a good idea?

I want to get a 1st gen. because they are very cheap. I am 16 and dont have alot of cash at the moment. How much work will i need to put into keeping a 1st gen drivable and how difficult is the rotary engine to rebuild?
I was thinking that this would be a good way to learn aobut cars and how to work on them.

i plan on drag racing it and maybe some autocross.....someday ...but right now i jus want the car to drive.

what do you guys suggest as a CHEAP first car if u dont like the idea of a first gen.?


thanks alot
-chris

White84SE

My first car was an '82 GSL.. got it when I was 16 (has it been over two years already? ) Also first car I really drove that was a stick. Bought the car for $900, and aside from a set of brake pads, a starter, and an alternator, I had to do no unusual maintenance to the car. I put 19,000 miles on the car in a year before I sold it for $600. Just remember to check the oil level religiously and to not be afraid to wind the engine up, and they seem to last forever. God, I miss that car... LOL

--Danny

SilverRocket

The first gen is a fantastic choice as a first car!!!

Getting an Rx-7 is a revelation; it's like the Matrix, when Morpheus shows Neo how everything he previously believed was a lie. Suddenly you see everything differently, and your friend's Honda with an exhaust tip and 10 stickers just doesn't seem too cool anymore.

I was 16 as well when I got my 82, now I'm 21 and I love it more than ever.

I also have a Honda Civic I drive in the winter - trust me, the rex is a completely different world. It's not just transportation, it's pure excitement, definitely an addiction, and you'll soon find yourself waxing or working on your rotary rocket every night instead of causing **** and what not.

You seem to have just the right attitude - if you're willing to learn a lot and work on the car yourself, it won't cost you too much to keep your rex on the road (provided you get one in good shape in the first place).

Nothing else in the price range will remotely compare to a first gen in terms of handling and fun factor. Not to mention the pleasure of driving something totally unique.

There are a great deal of knowledgeable and helpful people on this board, who will be able to help you with 90% of problems you might enconter. Some of these guys have owned 4 or 5 different first gens over the years. You know a car with this kind of passionate following has to be good!!!

For learning to work on cars, the 12A car is a solid choice. There is a whole lot of room under the hood to work with. Just get yourself a Haynes manual and you're good to go. A carburated model is easier to work on obviously, and can easily be made as fast as the GSL-SE's. Most will tell you an SE with the bigger 13B motor is the best iteration. However, if simplicity is what you want, I say a GS or S model with a few effective modifications is just the ticket (no power steering, air conditioning, leather, power windows, etc. = much lighter and faster).

I recommend you browse through this board a while, you'll get a good idea what the first gen is all about.

Rx-7's are the ****, you're about to be enlightened!!

Pittdp

I got my 83 rx7 in 91 and it is almost complete. It had 113,00 when I first bought it and now have 223,000. I love this car so much and am never getting ride of it.

speckamp

I absolutly LOVE my -SE. It's not the fastest car out there, but shoot, she talks to me like no other car I've ever driven has. Nothing makes me smile more than winding out 2nd gear only to be rewarded with a little tail wiggle into 3rd and a nice firm POP from the exhaust. Even with *** tires she seems to turn like a go-cart.

You can find 1st gens for pretty cheap... the motors are pretty bullet proof, they love redline, and damnit, they've got SOUL.

heh, now...I just have to get my winter car on the road cuz damn it's getting cold and I don't have heat in the REX!

RX-7-8593

My first car was an 84 gs.I got it when i was 17 for $200 ithad a perfect body and interior but a blown engine. The engine blew because the guy i got it from drove it with no water in it and pulled the fuse out to keep the low coolent buzzer from going off. A reman engine set me back $650 and 200 to install it. I loved that car and drove the hell out of it for 2 years then I sold it for $2300 to buy a 3rd gen. You cant go wrong with the 1st gen its easy to work on parts are cheap and its fun to drive and the gas milage is not that bad if you keep your foot out of it. Now ive had my 3rd gen for 2 years and about 4months ago I bought another 1st gen to put a turbo II engine in. I still wish i would have not sold the first one I really miss that car.

2MuCh7_NYC

thanks for all the advice.......

many people on this forum i have seen say that they don't use their 1st gen as their winter car. Whats the reason for this? Is it jus the fact that it has no heat or do rotaries not run well in the winter???
Will it be able to survive in a winter in NYC?

I've never actually heard how a 1st gen sounds. does it sound anything close to how a ricer civic sounds? Are there ways to keep the noise down yet have free flowing exhaust system?
Do they make exhaust cut-outs for rx7s?

now.....what would you say would have to be done to get a 1st gen into the 12s and still be a daily driver? Think this is possible?
Any way to do it without a turbo?

btw......are there any ZAINO freaks on this board? that stuff is the greatest.

-chris

speckamp

there's an mp3 of my car with a stock exhaust on my website. please note that there's a rather large (silver dollar sized) hole in the exhaust in front of the muffler, so with a solid exhaust it would be much quieter. They don't sound like any hondas I've ever heard.

My car has no heat because I have it bypassed (my heater core is **** and dumps coolant on the floor), but the heat worked GREAT when it was hooked up. *I* don't use it as a winter car because I'm keeping mine as sorta a collecter's item, and the upstate NY winters would eat at my car which at the moment has NO rust on it (other than the body pannels that are getting replaced). With a set of all season tires I can't imagine it being a bad winter car. The rotaries might be a little cranky starting, but no more so than any other 17-22 year old car in the winter.

12's w/o turbo? uh, not real likely.

--matt

jimmyv13

I run mine all year round. I used to live in Buffalo and the RX handled the winter there.
I bought a winter car this year, but I just can't seem to want to drive a '92 Probe instead of Rexy. I had envisioned doing some major work on it this winter, maybe getting a bridge port, different carb setup, DLIDFIS, mariah front clip and side skirts. All that takes a lot of time and I'd rather it be off the road in the winter than in the summer. But, winter really hasn't started, and I prolly won't get her in the garage until the flakes start flying.
It is a little harder to start in the winter. Get some good winter tires and it won't be too bad. Be sure to go out after the first good snow and find a huge Wal-Mart parking lot and do some spins and stuff so you can learn the limitations of the car.
Does NY still have tough emissions? When I lived in Buffalo, they were pretty strict. The only reason mine passed was 'cause my uncle ran a garage and he'd throw a sticker on it for me. Pretty risky though.

BTW WTF is Zaino?

Pittdp

I live in Texas and the only problem I have ever had is the car starting kinda sluggishly when the temp is under 40. Other than that I will drive anyday of the year as long as there is now rain or snow. I will use my new p5 for that.

CraigG

I think one big reason that people dont drive their 7s in the winter is because of the salt. Rust seems to spread like wildfire on these things. Any little bit needs to be put into its place, and I took the extra step and undercoated my car.yeah it adds weight but it makes it last longer... As long as it dosent hit a tree, but thats another story. Another thing is that the car and the rear end especially weigh close to nothing. It is a fine car in a responsible amount of snow if you have good tires, some sandbags in the back, and a steady knowlage of how to drive... They are easy to get around, and under most conditions just as easy to recover... They do float away though in heavy rain. I can drive the snot out of that car, played in the winter just to get used to it, but there was no bringing it back when it hydroplaned... Be careful and responsible and you wont have much trouble.

CraigG

The only way to get a daily driven 12a into the 12s is to turn it into one hell of a juice hog, after you do everything else... Nos... Ewww...

2MuCh7_NYC

never heard of Zaino car polish??? Zaino is the best car polish and car care products you can get. This **** is great

when (or IF) I get my rx7....zaino will be my first MOD (in ricer talk that is)

Im surprised the ZAINO craze hasnt hit this bored yet. Almost all the car boards I go to worship this stuff- (ls1.com <------especially them, supraforum.com, acura-tl.com)
anyways...... go to www.zainobros.com to get yur ZAINO today.

ok...now i've heard stories from my uncle(who is a mechanic) that says that when u push these cars too hard they have a tendency to blow. He said the weakest part of the car are the engine seals.
Now are there any stronger seals or what? What do u guys do for this?
If I was to use NOS...say a 100 shot....what would I have to do to get a 1st gen strong enough for it??
Will the engine just blow after a few runs on NOS in its stock form?Or maybe after thge first run?

SilverRocket

The rotary will not blow up as long as you don't do anything stupid like running it lean, or not injecting oil into it. Rotaries blow up because people don't know how to take care of them, or because they aren't tuned properly.

Hey dude, no offense but... have you ever actually driven or been in a 12 second car, or even a 15 second car??

Remember, unless they have a turbo (and most of them don't), 99% of the ricer cars you see around are 15-16 second cars.

A real 12 second car is freakin crazy, that's like 300 horsepower to the wheels at least. For that you need a huge turbo and a motor built specifically for the purpose. This is not stuff you can do in your garage after school, or cheaply, unless you are a real pro.

Let me tell you, when you're 16 years old, 100 horsepower in a 2300 pound sports car is way more than enough to get into loads of trouble. Even a stock first gen is a lot to handle for someone who doesn't really know how to drive yet (again no offense).

I've been driving mine for 6 years, and I still haven't come close to mastering the handling potential of the car. I learn more about it every time I drive it.

I would imagine that adding 100 shot of NOS is pretty much suicide for your motor if you don't address all the fuel and other tuning issues impeccably. You would really need to know what you're doing. One good ping will easily blow up a rotary.

You have to decide what you want out of your car. All the decisions you make are a compromise. A 12 second first gen is possible, but costs a lot of money, and takes a long time to set up right. You might blow a couple motors just tuning the car properly.

If you want a daily driver and you don't have any money, I think you may find that the stock car with a few mods is pretty satisfying. Learn to work on the car, learn to drive the car, learn to love the car. Trust me, you don't need a 400 hp car to have a lot of fun.

Again, no offense, I just think you should try should try driving one for a while before you decide you need a million horsepower.

speckamp

the Zaino craze hit the 3rd gen guys a bit, I believe. Nos is all about tuning. if you hit the button, and it leans out the mixture real hard then yeah, you're gonna cough the motor the first run. If you've got it tuned right, and you hit the button then you'll be alright. NOS can be used safely and effectivly but it's all about the tuning.

It'd be much easier, and probably cheaper to go turbo if you have your heart set on "the 12's" in this car. Or *crash of thunder* swap in a *wind howls, women wail in background* boinger.

--matt

smnc

Yeah, Zaino Bros is good stuff. More work than a comercial product like NuFinish, but it's worlds better.

Anyway, a Turbo is a better way to go than NOS. Much easier on the car and easier to get right.

It's the Apex seals that are the most likely part of the engine to let go, but they're actually quite durable. Take car of the car and you should have no problems.

2MuCh7_NYC

I've been in one 12 second car- a 98 Trans Am WS6- havent driven it though. I am aware that most ricers are 15-16 sec. cars...............i dont want to be no stinkin ricer

I really do not plan on gettin my car(if i ever get one) into the 12s but I wanted to see if it was possible if I wanted to do it in the future. I wasnt sure how much work or what would be needed to get a 1st gen into the 12s....now i know.

I am looking forward to learning all I can from my 1st gen.