Hows it going, my name is Kris. Im kinda new to rotary, and new to this site. I currently ride a bike as my main source of transportation, and I need to get a car for the rainy days, or days I just don't want to ride. I figure I would come ask the guys who love the car,my commute is 80 miles a day, is the RX7 reliable enough to handle that commute? I also am considering racing next year, probably some solo races, obviously thats why I chose the rx7, its rumored to be almost perfectly balanced. So what do you guys think.

Kris

 

rumored? son, it is almost perfectly balanced...50.2/49.8 if i'm not mistaken...hahaha rotarys can handle daily driving, they are quite reliable if taken care of properly. i wouldn't race it though unless you're pretty sure that you're a good driver and have money (start saving up) to fix whatever part you do wind up breaking. also what kind of engine did you have in mind? na? turbo? i'd just like to say if you do end up buying the 2nd gen....welcome to the club!


now, is that 80 miles to and from or 80 miles from your house and 80 miles back?

 

now the taking care of part involves changing your oil every at least 3000-5000 miles. changing spark plugs when you get the car....you know just make sure the car does work properly or near properly before actually buying it.

 

Its 40 miles each way. I was considering the NA, because I figured the turbo would be higher maintenance. Are the parts expensive to replace?

 

Also I was thinking about buying a 2nd gen with good body cond and a shot motor, and then picking up a good rebuilt motor to drop in it. How costly is that?

 

2nd gens with dead motors could go for 1-1.5k. the motors i'm not pretty sure...check with rx7store.net they have high quality rebuilds. the parts aren't really expensive just really hard to come by. but if you go to the right stores you can pretty much get bargain prices for some parts. hehehe if you're gonna race it, go turbo but there're plenty of people in here with NA rx7s that can pretty much kick a turbo to the curve...obviously it has to be modded to do that :p

 

lol, cool. Hey, thanks for the info, much appreciated

 

Let me clarify what he said. If you want to get new parts from mazda they will shaft like you wont believe. The good part is that you can find them at junkyards or online for almost nothing.
Also, what type of racing are you planning on, Autocross or solo track events? If you're planning on autocross you should get a N/A. They are generally smoother to drive and have better response on such a small course. If you're planning on track events either one will work. My N/A was regularly raced on the track and did quite well. One thing you should know in advance is that you will always want more power out of an N/A. They can be fast, but not as fast as a Turbo can be.

 

thanks sideways...extra help is always appreciated hehehe.

 

It's as reliable as any other 18-year old car. A lot depends on the condition, and how well you maintain it.

Try and find a non-turbo RX-7 as close to stock as possible. Each racing class has a list of approved modifications. If the car has even one of the modifications in a higher list, then you need to compete in that class, and obviously the faster times will come from those who have cars with ALL the allowed modifications of that class. While it is fine to race in any class, it may prove frustrating if you are constantly being beat because of your lack of funds rather than your lack of skill.

About $300-$800 for the car, and about $2,000-$3,000 for the engine. Other costs may include tax and transfer fees, new tires, new brakes, etc., which could add $50 to $5,000 to the total price.

 

you can pick up used decent N/A running engine on these forums for about $300-$1000, a Turbo engine would run about $600-$1200 used depending on condition and miles. rebuild parts alone start at about $600 not including labor, even a cheap rebuild runs about $1800 parts/labor that i have seen. i am rebuilding mine at the moment and i'm into it about $1200 parts alone but i am doing some minor long term modifications where the other mods will come in time.