DeviantAj

Hi I just wanted to start out by introducing myself. I'm a university student at University of Toronto and am looking to get my first car, I've driven for a few years now, mainly my mom's 2003 lancer or my dad's 1995 windstar lol but want to buy my own car. I want to learn manual, and originally was looking for something pretty standard: civic or whatnot, but I've always loved the look and idea of a rearwheel drive rx7 and the fact that driving one I don't need to worry about mistaking my car for someone elses at my schools parking lot.

However, I have some problems =( . I know very little, if anything about cars. I like em, and I wish i did know somethings, but I'm planning on learning. I am considering buying a 1991 rx 7, but I live in Canada, and even though with global warming we still get a decent few months of snow. I cant afford to get a second car, and don't want to get the rx7 if it will ultimately lead me to an accident. My school is under 15 km away, and for work I could take my moms car, because I work the midnight shift on weekends, but am I asking for certain doom by looking to get an fc as a daily driver?

Also are there any major recalls or problems I should be looking for when looking for / maintaining an fc? I appreciate any comments guys and gals and look forward to being an active member of the forums!


AJ
__________________________________________________ _______________

Cars:

mom's 2003 Lancer
dad's 1995 Windstar
My 1987 150cc Bajaj LOL!

misterstyx69

iTrader: (142)

Though I store my RX7 in the winter,you could Say that My Car is a Daily Driver.I have had the same car for Two years now,and it hasn't left me stranded.If you are Thinking on Getting into an Rx7,then all I can say is that you should take Time,Each Night,and Look through the forum,and Read..and read,,and read!.I started out knowing Squat About them..I sat at my Computer and just Read what others Experienced,what type of car they had,What their problems were,how they Fixed them,What to DO,and What NOT to do!.Although I knew the mechanics of the "piston engine',that really Doesn't apply to the Rotary.But,it is still intake,compression,Power and exhaust in just another form.If you research your "material" before tinkering with the Engine,you will be Fine.Don't Just take a Wrench to it,then Wonder WTF went wrong!.Try to get a Car that is Stock and Do the Mods yourself.that way you get to know the In's and Outs of your Car,and by doing that the car will take you for the Ride of your life!..I May not Have the Fastest Car in Town,BUT my car is Running!..and with that,I wish you Good Luck.

ohayou88

iTrader: (7)

Thats pretty accurate of how most of us start off. Not knowing much, but if you've ever messed with any other kind cars before it still helps with doing the little maintence things like replacing gaskets, filters, lines, sensors etc.

As the guy above me said do alot of reading on the forum. It will help you find common problems of the cars and see if you will have time/money to fix these things and keep the car running good.

For the snow thing Im not sure because i've never driven in snow before. But I have a friend from out of state and he drove his Lexus Is300 which is RWD in the snow. Granted he had extra set of rims with snow tires on them and chains if necessary. So I guess it would be possible to drive rx7 in the snow.

VacavilleFC

this car will not lead to an accident unless you can't drive, which you say you don't even know how to drive stick, so maybe you asnwered your own question. the biggest problem your gonna have is the dent it's gonna put in your wallet, it's a 20 year old car expect to spend a good chunk of change replacing stuff and fixing stuff as it breaks. i'm not saying these cars aren't reliable i'm just saying that like any 20 year old car things will fail the more miles you put on it.

i bought my beater for 1800 over a year ago, and have about 5k into and thats just replacing worn out stuff not really any upgrades. if you just want a daily driver for college thats gonna get you to school everyday no matter what get a honda, if your wanting

Flash

iTrader: (2)

In my opinion,

I'd get a good FWD car for two reasons; it's your first manual transmission, and it's your first car period.

I drove an 87 NA FC for 3 years all year round until just last year and I was fine, but consider that I had an FWD Scirocco, a RWD Corolla and a FWD Celica GT before the FC, all of them standard having been through 4 winters before the FC.

I have a lot of winter driving experience with standard vehicles and prefer them to autos in the winter now, but as a beginner it could end up being torture for you. You never know, some new standard drivers blow their clutch in a month, let alone all the other things you need to be concerned with if you go the FC route. You don't look at a gauge once and your engine overheats and there goes your engine.

Considering all the factors compounding against you, I would get an FC later and make it easy on yourself.

Just my two cents.

capn

+1

you will most likely crash your first car as well so you dont want it to be a real good car. My suggestion, get a SLOW fwd car something thats <100hp just so you know you cant really break anything and so you can be appreciative of better cars.

JinZemog

FC guys can normally fix their own cars. If you are just starting to learn, the FC is not for you. It will "nickel and dime you" to death.
The lightweight rear-drive combo is not the best for Canadian winters either. Get a nice older subaru, they are still a lot of fun.

imloggedin

i agree 100%

no one just learning about cars should have an rx7 for a daily driver.

MaczPayne

iTrader: (5)

<off topic> BTW, Global Warming is a farce. </off topic>

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

The FC is my first car. It is my daily driver. I learned/am-learning to work on cars on it. And I did crash it (slick road), and immediately got another (thankfully first one was $380 at auction; looked bad, ran great). But I got pretty lucky, as I got ones in good shape. The FC hasn't given me any real trouble. Heck it's given me less trouble than my family members have had with their cars (2 Hondas, 1 Buick).

There are buyer's guides in the FAQ. I used this one the 2nd time around:
http://www.rx7.voodoobox.net/infofaq/bguide/bguide.html

1st time around I used a mechanic buddy and a cell phone. "Engine sounds good", he said... especially with the loud exhaust leak I had to patch up, heh.

Also have a mechanic check it out before you buy. You'll pay much more in the long run and face tons of headaches if you buy cheap garbage. Only reason I got a good cheap one at auction was b/c at tow auctions people don't have a hidden reason for selling, and b/c it looked like a P.O.S.

Oh yeah, for snow driving, I hear an FC with snow tires can out-handle an SUV no problem. But spend some time learning the difference between driving a fwd and rwd car. Fwd cars are more friendly to inexperienced drivers and their bad habits.

Zero2188

Get some snow tires, some chains, and drive very conservatively and you should be fine. As for it being a beginner car, buy a Haynes book and be very diligent in your work and you should be fine. And the automatic seatbelts have a recall that lasts as long as your car is on the road.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

^ +1 Haynes manual. Chapter 1. It's great for basic maintenance.

danamezjohn

Well having a FC as a first car is fine as a daily driver.
just have 2 sets of wheels. One with some meaty snow tires and the other set with regular street tires, And for the winter just carry a set of chains.

And what said [QUOTE]Zero2188-buy a Haynes book and be very diligent in your work and you should be fine...[/QUOTE



If you have a family mechanic it is wise to bring the car to him to make a full diagnostic test. thats what I did I brought it to a good friend of mine that works at a porches /Mazda dealer.


but yeah man good luck and glad to hear another rotary head is out there.

capn

I rest my case

cody205

I have had my FC for a long time now and have never crashed it, started out knowing nothing about rx7s OR cars period, and have still managed to get my car running beautifully and keep it that way. I am 17, this is my first car, i learned how to drive it in downtown san antonio in rush hour traffic, never having driven a standard before. i havent burned out the clutch either. i guess i just may be the lucky one who learned correctly the first time around and the one who puts his car above anything and everything, but im pretty sure there is alot of people who have had rx7's as their first cars and not crashed them. My dad had a yellow 85 rx7 as his first car, then moved up to an rx8 and now has an rx8 and a 20B powered FD. he has never had an accident in his life. The only other vehicle he had driven on a daily basis was my moms minivan. Hence the reason he bought an FD!

capn

Thats completely relative, legally you could have only drove that car for about a year. Which is not that long at all. Maybe if say you were 27 and the FC was still your first car you might have a valid point. But I still stand by my comment that you always get rid/crash your first car and although the 2nd gen is a nice disposable sports car, I still think it is a very poor choice for beginners.

Because one way or another you will most likely want to go fast and you think "I Have a sports car it can do that!" yet you suddenly realize that although the rx7 is a sports car, you are not a race car driver and physics gets the best of you.

Taiwanese

Again, I think it rests a lot on yourself.

At the moment I'm still looking to purchase my first FC, and I'm seventeen and will be entering college/university in two months (I've been driving for nearly two years now). I have had previous experience driving manual transmission cars, as several of my friends have had crappy ones that I've practiced on (beat up Dodges and Saturns), not to mention a beautiful '06 Nissan Sentra Spec-V, and not to brag or anything, every friend has told me that I've done fantastic, even on my first and second tries.

I'm quite used to driving RWD in the winter, as I drive a '99 Nissan Pathfinder at the moment as my daily driver; it does have 4WD, but I rarely turn that on, so I'm used to controlling oversteer, getting unstuck, and all that. I've also never crashed (a guy did hit me once), so I think that my driving and performance record is near pristine.

The cost is definitely going to be a problem, I must admit. I'm looking to spend no more than around $2500 on the car itself, and luckily my parents will pay my car insurance for the time being. However, I need something I can work on every now and then, and I still need a car for college that won't burn a hole in my wallet with 13 miles per gallon, and I absolutely refuse to buy another Civic/Accord/Corolla/Camry (we've had countless numbers of those).

Oh, never been pulled over or ticketed either. I'm a safe driver and I'd like to stay that way.

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

Hey I wasn't going fast. Seriously 10 minutes later an SUV crashed behind me (no traffic wasn't blocked or anything). 1st rain of the season. Cop said they get a lot of crashes on that turn. Police report must have said something good, b/c I have nothing bad on my record and my insurance cost has gone down over time. Just a combo of bad road conditions, old tires, poor shocks, etc.

capn

I tout myself as a "safe" driver too but you know what? **** HAPPENS! I have recieved tickets before because I sometimes like to push my car or something out of my control, NO ONE is immune to wanting to push thier car a little.

I think this thread needs a lot of:




Because it seems everyone in here is a perfect driver and just seems to have a spotless record...at 17! Just so you know everyone has a spotless record at 17.

SO start knockin on that wood.

Taiwanese

Well, I don't think I noted in my post that I would never receive a ticket in my life, or anything of that sort. I've only stated what has happened to be now-- I'm almost eighteen and after two years of driving, (and that's constant permit driving and then license), barely doing 5-10 over the speed limit, using all turn signals, and obeying the rules of the road, have I gotten into more than the accident I explained or been pulled over and ticketed.

I'm merely alluding to my self-confidence and satisfaction when it comes to driving; if I were a reckless driver, I wouldn't trust myself to buy and drive an FC and I would stick to an old Civic that gives me reliability and efficiency.

capn

Dont get me wrong, I am not attacking you or otheres in here but I am merely making a generalization of the comments I have seen over the years. If you wanted driving tips and ask experiences from people who have just recieved thier learners permit you are going to get a lot of these "I am a great driver" type comments.

Because:

1. Who wants to sound like a shitty driver to a bunch of dudes they barely know?
2. people always like to hype themselves and tote thier "great" driving record.
3. it increases the E-pen

I would say GO for the FC if you have a reliable daily driver that doesnt eat you out of house and home. Because reality of it is these cars are 20+ years old or as young as 16 years old, for a car thats OLD. For beginners its probably a good descion from a price and disposable car standpoint, but when your first car is older then you and you want to learn how the car works, thats well and good. But with a car this old and god knows how many owners you are going to have one helluva steep learnging curve.

Don't take my words as gospel or anything but I am just a firm believer that these older cars when not in pristine condition throw a lot of curve ***** and can/are discouraging to new drivers.

Taiwanese

Well, assuming you're older than me, I'm sure you've been in the same boat as I have-- or something close. And I'm sure you remember people telling you the same things you're telling us-- all the time. :P

I hear it from my parents, my older friends, random strangers on the Internet, everything. I'm not denying your advice or ignoring it, I just don't want to feel like I'm talking to my dad again.

I've specifically stated how long I've been driving, and anyone with half a mind would reason that good driving in two years of experience is obviously not as amazing as good driving in twelve. I'm providing the facts and my personal experiences and it's up to the reader to put two and two together; I don't feel the need to explain myself when the facts are right there.

capn

Well with RX7club, that is the problem.

TehMonkay

iTrader: (-1)

I got my FC when i was 18, as a first car, actually, tommorow is the day i bought it. Last year. Though it was my 5th car. I havent wrecked either of my RX-7s and i've always been able to afford them.