I was wondering, the guy says the car is stock, 169k mi, oil and oil filters changed regularly and stuff, runs great, just sitting in the garage under the cover and stuff, right? but no major replacements have been done. so, my question is, at 169k, what are the things that (even with proper maintenance) will tend to wear out and/or need replacement? ie, what will i be looking at on top of the cost of the car, such as the radiator, hoses, transmission, clutch, engine maybe even...? those sorts of things...? (include cost of repair, if possible... if it's simple, then i can do it, but beyond that... i'm a newbie to repairing the car myself, and i want to learn, but you can't just go in and replace a transmission as ur first job, i can't at least, you kno?)

thanks in advance for any help



~Jeremy

 

With that mileage Id have to think either a) its already on its 2nd or 3rd motor, or b) it'll definitely be due for one soon...sure, some FC's have seen 200k on the original motor, but those are also 1 or 2 owner cars. The rest of them are on at least their 3rd engine.

Other than that, yuou can get all the hoses from mazda for about $80-100, and new dayco belts for about $60. IT'd be time for a clutch, and youd want to change tranny and diff fluid as well. ON the test drive do some hard shifting form 1-2 and 2-3 to check the synchro's health. Other than those things, not much really wears out...maybe oil cooler lines, those things usually leak a little but theyre about $150 each to replace. The best option here is to locate a hydraulic hose shop and have yours remanufactured for less than $100/set.

It really depends on the type of miles and the number and type of owners. I have seen near mint 86 models that are 2nd owners with 180k run like new cars, and I have seen 91 models with 62k blown up and dirty as hell on like their 20th owner, and everythign in between. IF it looks clean, drives well, adn the owner seems to have taken care of it, its probably a decent car.

 

If it's been sitting there for a long time, rotaries aren't happy doing that, and the oil (I think) and coolant (I think) seals can be unhappy.. at least that's what I heard. But that would be from quite a few months to some years of sitting.

 

cool, it's the 2nd owner, the first was hid daughter, and he said it just got a tune-up and runs great... i'm gonna go in for a test drive either tomorrow or tuesday, i stil have to talk to the guy. I forgot to get the vin# to run a carfax, but the guy said that it's the 2nd owner, in immac. condition. approx how much are rebuilds for n/a fc's? are most of them around 1000 like the ones that u do (in ur sig)? is that the general price range? what about after installation?

 

$1000 is a standard rebuild of an 86-88 NA motor without porting or special requests. See my page http://hypntyz.rx7life.com/rebuildpage.htm for details.

Installation will add about $800 onto that price, plus any delivery/pickup that is requred.

 

before you buy it is a good idea to have a compression check done on the rotors...sepecially if it has been sitting up a while. if u are serious about buying a seven then go ahead and buy a haynes manual. it will tell acceptable tolerances for compression and just about anything else you need to know. i have an 88 se and had the engine rebuilt at 136k because it sat up for a year before i bought it. the rebuild cost me $1800 but i now have 210k and still runs great. most likely you will be needing a new clutch.....driveshaft and windshield wiper switch.

 

cool, so what's a good offering price for a n/a 87 gxl 5 speed w/ ac, ps, pw, pb...?

 

anyone?

 

1500

 

really good shape as much as $2200, moderate shape $1500, poor shape $1200-1000.

 

i guess that could be a reason why the guy hasn't sold the car yet... i guess i'm going to have to talk to him and see. He's asking 2800, i think i'm going to go check it out today, take a look at how it looks and test drive it. thanks for all the help

 

Just thought I'd add...I have an '89TII, I'm theoriginal owner, and car is immaculate with 156,000miles. The engine is being replaced @ KD Rotary as I'm sending this...It's plain worn out. Compression even, but less than 85 lbs. Has a sticking or broken seal. Original clutch lasted 145,000. Trans (syncros) replaced at 85,000 and are now going to be replaced again by KD.
Money can mount up very quickly.
Take it for a ride and get a compression test done. Check exhaust...another expensive item.
Good Luck,
Don

 

thanks

 

hey, um, can i get a compression check at any auto mechanic? or do i need to go to the mazda dealership? or a rotary shop? it's in seal beach, CA, btw...

 

There's Mazdatrix in Signal Hill, CA. www.mazdatrix.com

or, Rotary Reliability in Santa Ana. 714-839-8018

Good luck.

 

2800 seems really high for an N/A FC, especially one with that high of mileage

 

WOW was all i could say when i saw the car... i was looking at the aaroncake.net guide to buying a n/a fc, and well, this was the first car i looked at, so i didn't really remember to check everything, but the car had a new paint job done by the guy's friend... like a NICE paint-job, not one of those cheaper maaco ones or whatever... there was no rust on the body everywhere i looked. there were no dings, dents or anything!!! has not been in any accidents, doors & locks are fine, engine bay looks decent, didn't get a chance to check compression yet, i was going to see if i could have gotten one done either by the guy or i'll go w/ him to get one. started and jumped right to 3000 rpm without a hitch, idle was smooth... smooooth... i liked.... hehehe, didn't smoke after the initial startup... it was just clear exhaust, after driving for around 10 min, heat stayed at about 1/4 way up the gauge, the interior is in good shape, all the electricals seemed to work fine, ie the windshield wipers, the headlights, the windows, sunroof, mirrors, etc, etc... the guy isn't willing to go less than 2700... i was going to offer that to the guy, but after talking to my dad for a LONG time, one of those father-son, i'm just watching out for you, you might want to be more financially secure and not have to worry about studying when you buy ur own car, especially an 87 type of chats... i decided that while i feel that an fc would be a great for me to drive and learn about rotaries from, i have to get my priorities straight, in terms of finishing out my 3rd and 4th year at ucla with good grades and hopefully a part time job during the year so hopefully, i can find an fc in this condition next year, when i'm more ready to bear the financial burden that comes with a car... in otherwords, i need to finish school and not spend money on the car to the point where i'm broke, or to the point where i'm spending money i don't have (i'm working now, but i don't have a consistent job during the school year or anything). well, i guess that's the end of me daydreaming about driving around in an rx7 for this summer will keep looking anyhoo

 

oh, and btw, even though i ended up not gettin gthe car, i wanted to thank all ya guys for all the info, tips and advice

 

Wow, that's very admirable. Wait a minute...your dad straight up told you NO didnt he?

 

no, i have the money to buy the car and more just by myself, but really, he's right... lately my grades have been slipping, and i really do need to get on track