great post,I agree with your statements about ricing cars out. There is a crazy trend in my city, has anyone seen anything more ugly yhtan a sunfire with a combat style body kit huge *** spoiler, but ecerything else completely stock, including the wheel covers.. Anyway i could bitch for hours.

I own an rx7 by luck actually. When I was eighteen I went out to buy my first car, I had really been interested in an accord hatchback or a rabbit gti, both around the 5000 to 6000 range. One day at a ford dealership in a small town, my Dad said why don't you take that thing for a test drive, it looks sporty. I looked and said, "isn't that a rx7, those things look expensive". Well it was actually not that expensive because it was in rough shape visually and had a pretty good oil leak. But after driving it for 2 minutes i knew i had to have one of these cars. After looking at about 6 na's and 1 tii, i decided on my beautiful 86 gxl. Bought it with 114000 km in 1997, never winter driven(still hasn't been) detailed service records and only two owners. 6000 cash and i was out. I still remember the first drive home. A week later i put in a cd player and the mods havn't stopped since. I hope to drive an rx7 for as long as i can drive, such great fun!!!!!!!!!!1

 

Three storage rooms of parts. You must really hate 'em to have destroyed that many rotaries.

 

I break them out of sheer hatred. That's the ticket.

 

What's this about 2nd gen being 88-91?
Otherwise, super post!

 

He's the rotary devil, he takes dead engines and tears them apart so they may never work again

 

I buy all I can and destroy them to keep them off the roads. I hate them that much.

 

wow Sniper, I'm holding back tears. Well put ...all of it, well put. From the (oh so wonderful) history to the definition of the (hated) rice. I hope my 1000th post will be half as good as that one.

I'd never really been an "import fan" growing up. Always into muscle cars and big trucks. I knew Z cars and the RX-7 (never really seen a Supra until TFATF) could both be very fast cars. When I got to the age of actually getting a car, I was looking for a muscle car...and a week before I got my license I stumbled onto this amazing looking little 2 door sports car at the beach. It wasnt a 67 SS, but I knew it was quick, and a good car, and Hey, only 800 dollars, I've got 800 dollars. I didnt understand the rotary, had actually never heard of it. Immediatly after I hung up with the owner, I got online to learn about these "rotors". Well, I learned...the concept anyway. I didnt come across the real mass of knowledge until I discovered this site, and what an amazing forum it is, and you guys have helped me out greatly. Thank you to all of you.

Dre, you couldn't have been more correct in the description of the feeling of the ReX, it's downright magical and fricken addicting. I plan to always own at least one RX-7 for the rest of my life.

Chris
"Zoom Zoom"

 

I found my seven by accident as well I was working at a site ajacent to a used car place.. they got one in from someone looking for rent money... 200 dollars, a clutch, and brake master cylinder later, i'm driving my new project car... every time i drive it, i enjoy it more

 

Wow. nice post. only saw 1 real error: you said that 2nd gens were sold from 1988-1991, not 1986-1991 like it really was, may be a typo, just thought I'd point it out, though. anway, in answer to your questions, I bought my RX-7 in hopes to save one of the greatest sleepers of car history from the junk yard, or from some little ricer's hands, not to mention I love the idea of the rotary engine, and I love my car. I actually thought of a new name for her today, Shadow. My Black/Black N/A ^^;; Anyway, if Lawrenceville is anywhere in southern Ga, I might have a little project for you. In a few months I should have the money to do an auto->manual conversion on it, but I personally (and I'm not afraid to admit this) have no idea where to start, let alone have the tools or knowledge to complete the job, and I'd rather not pay $800 in labor for a shop to do it (although I would be willing to pay someone to do it, but paying more for labor than for parts is outrageous, not to mention it'll be hard enough to find someone in Jax, FL that'll even consider the project). Anyway, I'd be happy to drive up to Ga one weekend or something and have it done. It'd give me a real chance to get to know my car, that nice distance driving, it'd give me real time to fuse with the car rather than trying to pay attention to tons of traffic around me. If I were to come up there, I'd do anything I could to make the job go faster and easier, but I don't really have much tranny knowledge. Anyway, if you're interested, shoot me an e-mail at jraneri@attbi.com and maybe make some speculation on how much the entire project might cost (include labor costs, but set it separately from the parts costs). Thanks!

 

Heh no one else noticed the 1st gen typo. Rank amateurs.

 

Yo,


Great post, always good to hear from a fellow enthusiast. I'm glad you've tried to educate the newer members about the unique powerplant under the hood. I'm also glad you try and save/restore RX-7's so new people can enjoy their unique charms. Keep those rotors spinning!

It might have been a rhetorical question:

But I'll answer it anyways. My buddy had a 1986 Corolla GT-S (The famed AE86 or "Hachi") and tried to show me the joys of RWD vs. FWD. Told me about drifting, we watched Best Motoring Video Special #41 (Keiichi Tsuchiya's Hachi) about a million times. I've been driving a 1981 VW Scirocco forever, pushing the chassis and FWD layout to about as far as you can go. RWD had a certain attraction, the real sports car layout.

So I wanted a RWD Japanese car. My choices were:

1. Corolla GT-S
2. 1988 RX-7 10th AE
3. Miata
4. 1989 RX-7 GTUs

I ruled out the Miata, too much money at the time. Same with the AE, too much money, turbo complexity. That left me with the Corolla GT-S and the GTUs. Why did I want the GTUs? I remember vaguely seeing the "944 wannabe's" with all the writing on the side, but really didn't know about them. Believe it or not, Sport Compact Car helped out back in December of 1998. Top 10 Used Cars, the FC was one of them:


I've always been a fan of the Porsche 944S2, something about NA power with all the turbo goodies I guess. Anyways, it was going to be a race between the GT-S and the GTUs. Whichever one I found first, I'd get. After 3 months of looking, I finally found my GTUs. 38K miles on the clock, second woman owner, cherry condition. $5900. Road trip! Drove it back 400 miles, at times 100mph+. No problems. It's been that way the 3-4 years I've owned it. Beat the hell out of it, and no problems.

What do I think of it now? That's easy. I love it.

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...threadid=20346

That was on 9/11. I'll probably do the same thing this year.

KS
1989 GTUs "Phew, that was long winded..."

 

Felix, I'll take that housing so I can put it next to the other one IN MY ROOM.

BTW - that post I had (thanks) was describing the feeling of driving ANY RX-7 .

I called Felix a hater cuz, appearantly, to him, rotaries MUST have forced induction or they will ALWAYS be slow 16.5 sec cars

 

Yeah I'm a hater. I can't stand NA rotaries.

I guess this is why Iive owned this for two years:



I think you should check on surgery to remove whatever is up your ***.

 

Hmm, I cannt even remember what my 1000th post was about, but I sure can remember that it wasnt about the history of the RX7

I do have some objections though: RX7 is not the only car with a long history behind it. It is not the only car that has a "soul". Even the MacLaren F1 has a history (not so long anyway) and a "soul", albeit a very expensive one

There have been cars with unique features, there have been better looking cars, there have been faster/better handling cars.

What sets the RX7 apart is the fact that it, besides all reason, stood "alone" in a piston-world, with its little wankel engine, its perfect 50-50 balancing, its rather peculiar service habbits , its demanding -but also rewarding- handling, its good looks (FBs, FCs and FDs alike), and the always welcome looks and comments from everyone around you: "whats that?", "thats an RX7!", "hey look mom!!"

As for why/when I wanted an RX7: when the FC first came out as a concept/possible project (around '83-'84), I was at the right age (12), and just starting to like cars! When the first reviews of the -rather expensive, so out of my league at that time- RX7 talked about an exotic car, that is now too expensive for the Greek standards, but has power, handling and looks combined, I saved every little bit of info I could find on this little beauty (along with the Countach, the Testarossa etc etc ). When I started buying my own cars, I knew that in some point in time down the road, I would own one of these cars.
When a friend of mine got a '90 TII (which was in dire need of an engine), I went for a drive and I thought: "this, I MUST have". Of course I didnt buy the exact same car. He told me that a friend of his is going to be selling his own -absolutely perfect- '92 black TII (it HAD to be black) in about a year, I just waited. When I test-drove the car, you couldnt scrape that stupid smile off my face with a sledgehammer

So, here I am.....

 

you finally came to grips with it, huh?

 

I liked this post because at my 1000th post, this is where I see myself. Buying an RX-7 has been worth every penny considering the amount of driving fun I've had, enthusiasts I've met, and the other countless joys my rotary has brought me. Cheers to your 1000th post and cheers to the next 1000.

a rotary brother,
Steve

 

Wow, all i can say is wow..... This really sold me an rx-7 right here, and makes me want my own so much more =[ first thing im doing tomorrow is getting a job and at LEAST 90% of everything i earn is going to the bank =[. So by February 13th (My birthday) of next year i can get an FC =)

 

I really appriciate the replies guys.
I typed that post over the span of a week.
I had thought I would include a few images, but alas, it was late and I forgot.

Anyhoo, the story is good engough without them.

Yes, those wrong years were certainly a typo.

I knew they were 86-91.

What was the 1st gen typo?

I never claimed that the RX-7 was the ONLY car with a long history behind it. Thats because I know that there are many more stories of unique cars.

However, they said that this engine would never work.

 

Terrific 1000th post Sniper! Truly impressed. I'm learning a few things, slowly.

 

My rx-7 story:
My first rx-7 was an '85 auto. I got it a week before my 16th b-day. I knew nothing about cars back then, knew nothing about rotary engines either. I just liked the way it looked and thought the girls would like it. (hey, I was young).

I owned a few other cars after the FB, like a 90 Eclipse Turbo, '88 MKIII Turbo, a POS 325i....

All those cars just felt wrong to me...

When I was away at school (frosh yr) I did not have a car. My dad got into a very serious accident that yr. He was hit by a drunk driver. The drunk died at the scene (ejected from the cab of his truck) while my dad spent 6 months in the hospital.

For sophtmore yr, he found my FC for me. He bought it over the phone while in the hospital...never having seen and driven the car. But, he knew a little about rx-7's from having owned a few (FB's) back in his day.

So, before even comin' home and seeing the car, it already meant a whole lot to me. But then, at first glance at the monster tach centered on the dash, I knew this car was a perfect fit for me. Its been 4 years since I've had my 1991 white n/a. I love that car. It has a ton of meaning to me...beyond its own history.

good post sniper!

 

As i quickly sip my second beer at 10am because this is night time for me (night shift) a single tear rolls down my cheek.

very well put, sniper, this embodies the spirit of the rotorhead soul.

I love my RX-7 because, well i dont know, but there isnt one single thing on my little 87 GXL that i am not proud of.

Justin

 

When I was in college, one of my summer jobs was working for my aunt at her Marina that she owned. She had a succesful business and a few cars, an SUV, a Full size pickup and a 84 GSL. She never really drove it all that much and while I was there I would get to drive it on occasion. What a great change from the pickup that I had at the time! I liked the car so much that by the end of the summer I wanted to buy it from her. Unfortunately, she just couldn't part with it.

Now, I'm out of school and when It came time to replace my truck (94 B3000) I began looking for sevens and found a great 90 GXL that needed me. After owning it for nearly a year now, I can't imagine ever giving it up.

 

That's pretty funny boosted...

...n/a's are fun cars...but the HP difference is what makes them fun...not fast

 

Very well put Sniper. My respect for you has grown ten fold. Cheers man, cheers.

 

Sniper, that was a DOPE post... i read all of it... very very impressed with how you constructed your thoughts and put them all together.