I'm not that into rotary engines, but I do admit its a great piece of machinery. I'm interested in buying a TII, but I'm also scared to death of buying it!!

Somehow from reading the forum I've got an impression that TII engines blow like nothing. I've looked around the for sale sections and found a ton of TII's with rebuilds just over 100k miles.

Is it me, or do these engines go out quick? I have a friend who owns a GXL and its been maintence free for 2 DAMN YEARS! NOT ONE PROBLEM! He does the oil change and this thing is still going well over 160k miles. But these TII's seem like a problem? Are they really that problematic? I asked a well known rotary shop how much it would cost to rebuild the engine on a TII, and I was quoted at $3k including labor!! OMG!

I could pretty much get the engine rebuilded, head gaskets, timing belts done for a little less than $3k on a 4cyl engine. Maybee I'm getting this wrong, but how reliable is the TII engine if I was planning on buying one w/o a rebuild already?

 

Search. This has been covered SOOOO many times.

 

Yes, but you don't need any of that with a rotary. Instead you get everything a rotary needs for close to the same price. Plus theres cheaper rebuilds. You can get a full factory rebuild for $2000 with a 2 year/24k mile warranty. But you would have to send your old motor in and drop the new one yourself. Then theres Kevin Landers on here that does rebuilds for around $1500 I believe.

 

Being your from Jersey-They are just as reliable as any other rotary. It's just that they are 12/15 years old, modified, and beat to death. My opinion is that they are not as long lasting as a piston engine, easier to rebuild, but more expensive a/c the housings. Mazda reman are about $2000. I bought my '89TII new and it lasted 'til 155,000 miles no problems at all, exceprt trans rebuild @ 85,000. Still had good compression (on tests), but under power experienced heavy detonation, cracked/stuck seal. Everything is very expensive if specific parts are needed and used ones not avaiable, but, I guess that could probably be said about most vehicles. Great cars, that's why I still have mine. No rattles, leaks, handles good, great acceleration, and still good looking.
Good Luck!

 

They will last til 150,000 miles and then........they might keep going! Rotaries rule, just buy one.

 

You cannot put a specific mileage amount in terms of longevity on anything who's past (maintenance) history is unknown.

By design, a rotary engine is not unreliable. Not even a turbo one.

But then factor in the unknowns like: maintenance, driving habits, amount and quality of modifications, daily boost pressure etc.

Also, 100k-150k miles is a lot of driving for a sports car. They are just getting old.

That being said, when purchasing an RX-7, it is always smart to factor in the cost of a possible engine rebuild. That's just the way it is

 

Rotaries just give less room for error when modding. So mod smart and don't be cheap and you shouldn't have a problem as long as maintence is kept up as well. Thats assuming your engine is good to begin with.

 

185K miles on the original motor. Running 9psi since 142K.

 

I'm not cheap about maintence, but I'm looking to blow $2-3k on rebuilds. I wish I knew enough to rebuild the ******* thing or else I'd do it.

It's either buying a TII or a Porsche 951.

 

ewwwww a 951.
Get an RX

The NA's are known to go to 150-200k without problems.
Although it's always dependant on how it was treated.
My 88 GTU had 80k on it when I buoght it and the engine blew at 102k. My 88 SE had 140k on the engine and it's now at 153k. It runs pretty damn weel. It is slower(I think lower compression) but it can take a damn good beating.

In the long run a NA will be the best daily driver but the TII just plain rocks.

I'm doing a turbo conversion and plan to have Kevin rebuild my engine once I get it.

 

First of all you need to understand that forced induction is going to take away engine life from any car and this is the only reason TII's go before N/A's. Yes rotary engines that are not turboed last an incredaibly long time, this is a known fact. Theres ppl in there that have n/a's that have way over 200k on the engine.
A TII is not going to last you as long but you are going to go a lot faster and have a hell of a lot more fun in one

 

Of course not, but it seems like these turbo'd engines blow alot faster than most cars. So I have to decide on which to choose.

 

The reason you hear about all the problems on the forums is because that is what they are here for, to discuss problems and help people find solutions. If you look at all the threads 1 in 15 or so are about how well someone's car is running. I got my GXL last year, just been screwing around with it, never drove it, but I am still amazed at all the engineering that went into this car. I am putting a turbo im rebuilding in soon as soon as I get all my stuff that is.

 

My 88 Turbo 2 has over 220,000 miles on the body, and on the motor it has very close to 200,000 miles its been running great for over 6 on this block this car runs 13'7 quarters @ 103 MPH, and is a daily driven car you can ask any one that knows me they will tell you that I use this car like if it were a taxi, basically MPO the secret for your motor to live a long healthy life is regular maintenance. I vhange mine every 2,500/3,000 miles with a Original Mazda Oil Filter, I use non-synthetic oil for cleaner burning. I also use strictly 93 Octane, which is the highest available here at the pump, and every other time I fill up the tank I add some Bean Oil into my tank off gas, to lubricate the Apex Seals, Srprings, Corner Seals, and housings, everything gets lubed up nicely. Also make sure your car runs rich, instead off lean, "of course its always better to run a little rich then lean, just in case". And make sure you have good oil pressure at all times. I recomend the RB Oil Pressure Adapter to increase Oil Pressure, also it wouldnt hurt to install a Oil Pressure gauge to monitor your Oil Pressure. And make sure your cooling system is running up to par such as radiator,hoses,water pumps,thermostat, proper flushing of your system, using the proper coolant.