Hi everybody, I'm new to this board. Is 170,000 miles on 1990 GXL NA a lot? i'm getting this from a friend. He said it is okay condition with a salvage title.

 

Original engine? If it is, then I'd pay $1000 TOPS considering that it has a salvage title. If it has a rebuilt and looks good and runs great...then $3000, considering the mileage.

If it had lower miles on the body and a clean title, then I'd pay substantially more.

 

it is a rebuilt engine, because the first one blew on him. he told me there is over 170K on it. also, there is a funny idle when you start the car. the rpm fluctuates.

thanks for the reply.

 

if this engine was to blow again, how much would a new engine be? i'm new to the board, and i was wondering how much it cost to maintain a rotary engine compared to a mr2?

 

about 1200 for your basic rebuild. around 17 or so to take it out and slap in another. i would give him like a 1,000

 

yea 1000 sounds nice...

 

An engine rebuild is about $2K from a shop, about $1K if you do it yourself and you know what you are doing, about $3K if you do it yourself and don't know what you are doing, and a running salvage yard engine with a 1-3 month warranty is about $100-150.

The rotary engine costs about the same to maintain as an average piston engine. The rotary engine has less parts to deal with, but they are more expensive than piston engine parts, so it ends up pretty much equal in the long term. Just make sure to change the oil every 3 months / 3,000 miles or sooner, as this is even more important for rotary engines.

Were it not for the salvage title, that car would Blue Book for about $2,100. Be sure to research why the car was totaled, as you don't want to drive around in a car with compromised structual integrity or with strange molds and microorganasims lurking under the carpet from flood damage. Rotary engines normally have a funny idle with a little sputtering and "missing", and the idle is supposed to be high when started cold, and then it should lower to about 750rpm and stabilize after the engine is warmed up. If it is doing something other than this, then there is a problem.

Aaron's site has a good article on what to look for when buying a used RX-7:
http://www.aaroncake.net/RX-7/