Help buying my first rx7?
 

So I'm located in Oklahoma. I'm 17 and I'm looking to get a rx7 fc as a project and drift car. Now I found two locally that are for sale. Both need some work which I really want to learn and work on these so I do not mind. One overheats. What could be the issue with that and how hard would it be to fix? The other the fuel pump doesn't kick in and the battery doesn't have enough voltage. Both I could get for under $1000 which one do you think would be best? Is the one overheating just need a new radiator?

I wouldn't bother with any rotary thats overheating/was overheated. Thats death to these engines 90% of the time.

Okay. So with the other car why wouldn't the fuel pump kick on?

How do you know the fuel pump doesn't kick in if the battery doesn't have enough voltage?

I agree on not getting the one that overheats, this is a death null for rotary's. The other one is your best option, but the question is how much work do you want to do on it? If you're not interested in digging into the engine right now, then you should at least do a compression check on it.

As for the fuel pump not kicking in...barring it's not a battery issue...check the fuses to make sure they are okay. Although remember that fuses blow for a reason.

It could be because the battery doesn't have enough voltage. Try a different battery and see if that remedies both problems.

I agree with getting the one with the bad battery. You could even be something as simple as a bad ground, but overheating i wouldn't bother with that.

Absent any supporting evidence (receipts, compression test, personally seeing the car run/drive), assume that any rotary you buy will need a rebuild.
Although not a trivial matter, rebuilding the engine pales in comparison to the cost of bodywork, so I always recommend getting the best chassis/paint you can and then dealing with the rest.

It is also useful (in a self-defense kinda way) to assume that all the major systems other than engine are (or have been) buggered by previous owners.
The dead fuel pump is an example of this...you could have electrical problems (the fuel pump electrical circuit spans the entire length of the car, from nose to tail) or the pump may just be bad.
Without some hands on testing/observing, there's no way of knowing.

Have you looked for anything other than "project cars"?
The price difference between the fully sorted, nicely presented runner and a DIY project is money that you WILL end up spending and doesn't account for your time.

I can appreciate being young, eager and poor (being two of the three myself) but your assertion that you want to learn and "don't mind" is bullshit.
You will mind, it will drive you crazy...unexpected shit will break/be missing (and being new to the car, how would you know?), POs will have made any number of questionable "repairs/mods" and mission creep will obliterate any budget you devise.
"Nickeled and dimed to death" is a cliche but one based in fact...it IS the little shit that will get you.
If you're actually serious about learning/working on FCs, spend some time studying the FSM and see what theories you come up with and what diagnostic path seems logical.

Thanks everyone for your replies. The car with the fuel pump has an amazing body with great paint.(from the pictures) my only concern is that he doesn't have a title but I can get a title 42 here in Oklahoma. It makes sense to me that the battery would be the reason for the fuel pump not working. I'm trying to contact the owner so I can go see the car. Now I do understand your statement about me "not minding." I can relate to hate the shit out of the car when stuff breaks and doesn't work. I've changed the clutch in my truck(my first major car job) and that took me two weeks and was a pain in my ass but at the end of the day I was satisfied with my work and that is what started my craving to work on a car.

if the battery was too low to run the pump the engine would not crank, period

I know that.

I'd make sure that got straightened out before going too much further.
Salvage and other weird conditional titles can be a major impediment to resale.

Okay so I've been looking and I found this rx-7. Tell me what you think as that being a fixer upper.

1991 Mazda RX-7

i'd look really really closely at the chassis rails for distortion in the engine bay

Yeah, if hear back from the seller I'm going to have him get the title himself before I buy the vehicle. I don't trust a vehicle without a title.

I'm guessing if there is distortion, don't buy?

The chassis is probably fine (the front bumper support appears intact and the rest of the car looks pretty sweet) but the front end damage will determine what you can do.
If the goal is to return to stock, it'll be a big deal.
All the sheetmetal up front is relatively flimsy, getting it back in shape to accept the headlights/motors, radiator, etc. will be a pain.
If you just throw an afremarket nose and some fixed lights (not cheap) on, you can ignore (or remove) much of the damaged inner structure.

It's hard to tell from his pics, you'd have to see it in person (and know what you're looking at) to be sure.

being that you are 17..(no offense)..I would settle yourself down a bit and think with the "Right head" when buying something of this nature...lol..
Picking the first thing that comes along will just tend to disappoint you in the long run.
Research the "quirks" and Common issues associated with the car and be prepared for that.
If you think 1000 bucks will buy you a trouble free car,then it is not the car for you..Trust me.They are on the average 25 years old,so Something will either have to be maintained or Fixed sooner or later.
Patience my little Jedi..Patience..

I understand what you are saying. But I have been looking around for over 8 months. This isn't just the first car that came up. I do not expect to buy a trouble free car for $1000. I understand I will have a lot of things to do. I have another vehicle to drive while working on this so this is why I'm not to worried about it not running. My dad who understands cars a little more than me will be helping me work on everything but we do not know much about rotaries. I understand in general how they work. I really want to learn more as I am fascinated by the engine.

How many of these cars have you seen in person?
Pictures can be incredibly deceptive.

It would be helpful (if maybe difficult) to first look at some decent examples, see what you want to end up with and what a proper example looks like.
Give yourself a baseline from which to compare all the screwed up cars you'll actually buy.

Other than the engine itself, the rest of the FC is pretty standard 80's Japanese tech (maybe a little more gung ho on the electronic whizbangs, but...), so if you're comfortable with older Hondas, Toyotas, etc., you'll be fine.

Rotary Resurrection just posted a very informative engine build thread you should read.
The takeaway would be that the mechanics of assembly are very simple, the trick is evaluating the parts and knowing how to set all the tolerances.
I personally couldn't tell a good housing from a bad one (absent something grossly obvious).

I am pretty comfortable with older Japanese cars. I drive a 93 Toyota pickup right now that I have done work on. I have seen several rx7's in person. So I know how the good ones should look.

working on 90s toyotas and seeing rx7s does not qualify you as a competent wrench.

if the chassis rails are distorted that indicates enough frame damage to make the car not worth repairing (because the suspension geometry will never be where it should)

If thats the case you could ju him down to parts car price and score some killer clean s5 parts

I might do that. I am talking to another guy about a rx-7 that kinda has a start up issue. He said that it starts up sometimes but you have to push the gas and clutch down all the way. So that kinda indicates a fuel issue to me.

he wants me to give him an offer what do you guys think?

Get an FB to start with. I got my first RX-7 when I was 18 and it was a '81 GSL. They are cheap and easy to fix and loads more fun than the FC. I understand that you want to build a drift car, but you have to learn to crawl before you can walk. For me, the FB is easier to break loose than the FC and I gained way more experience trying to keep that squirly bastard planted around bends.

I personally just hate how they look.