Now today after talking to him, its almost as if hes trying to force me into a situation where I'll have to sell the car or not be able to goto school or work because I'll have no transportation.

I told him I'll just buy something cheap , but then he says it'll be another money pit maintainence hog etc. But why sell my car for $1500 or whatever when it has $5000 invested into it, he just hates my car and rx7s in general, but you cant force someone to get rid of something when he has no ownership of it.

I can see his point in getting rid of it, but I will never get what I put into it so there is no point in selling it , especially when I could later on finish my project instead of having to spend another $3000-5000 just to get another rx7 that is clean and actually has an equal amount of new parts on it.

 

I guess I should clarify a little better. original distributor that has worn out springs and bushings. I have not replaced it yet. I've tried and they gave me the wrong part or tell me they can't get it. so really it is the same part that causes problems. once that part is replaced problem is gone just need to get the replacement.

the carb is along the same lines. still using the original cvcc carb that hasn't even been replaced yet. so the carb has had some issues and the basic rebuild kit won't solve it. it will need a new carb.

I should have clarified that a little better icemark. if I have replaced or fixed the parts over and over I could see what you are talking about. but I haven't yet

 

Unfortantly you seem to be unable to read what I posted, lost in your honda daze. So here it is again:

I guess if you are telling him to buy a 30 year old car to have something more reliable than a FC...

 

ah ok sorry so I was missing something it sounded as though in your last post from what I did see that you where saying that the honda was unreliable. if anything I would caution him against buying the honda. it is slow enough to be a danger on the road as well as other design flaws.

I gave up the honda to drive the rx7 because is it a joy to drive a lot more then the honda and is reliable enough to meet my needs as a daily driver.

calm down icemark :p

 

Just a thought, maybe you should consider parting it out... Rebuilt ported motors go for a bit of change... im sure with the engine and the exaust and the clutch, you could prolly make 2000 or over... i know its hard to take a loss on all that money and work, but you do that, buy a beater whatever(87 civic, cough cough) and chill, better deals will come along. you have to sometimes take a step back to move but I will tell you this, DO NOT give up a free house and board for a car... IT IS NOT WORTH IT!!! Bide your time, RX-7s are not going to up and dissapear after you sell yours. i know this because the same thing happened to me, me and my dad got into it over a car and I moved out... one of my smaller regrets but thats how it happend... id probably be a ton better off if i had stayed and kissed *** and have a nicer car... I busted my hump and nowI have a good clean 7, but I also have a JOB, WIFE, KIDS, and other things... and more times then not, the 7 gets neglected. Get prepared to have a car that you want so you can take better care of it. Good luck on eather though.

btw, im not jumping on the honda bandwagon but, i will atest that the car I owned ruled... it was an 87 hond civic and it was diehard... NEVER left me stranded. overfilled it with oil, distbutor cut itself in half, oxygen sensor missing... never missed a beat. I think people get confused about 7s is not that they are any less reliable, its that they are a bit sinsitive to mantaince. A honda you can generaly miss your oil changes, overheat it, and run what ever kinda sparkplugs you like, and she'll still last a good while... With a 7, you have to make sure youve got good, clean oil thats filled to the top, one overheat will usaly fubar the engine an 7s to my knowledge, have only liked NGK plugs. If you beat anycar, it will fall apart, but 7s are not as forgiving as other cars about on time maintance. They are Harsh Mistreses that HATE neglect... and will eventualy become a bitch if neglected... We are all married to our cars here

just my $0.02

 

rx-7s are not loud, and you certainly dont have to get a loud exhaust, however, i would try to compromise on something sporty but fun, maybe it cant be an rx-7, then so be it

for example: maybe you could sell him on a miata

 

I've driven an RX-7 just about all the way through college, and I have had no real problems except an oil cooler line bursting in spectacular fashion or a rotting out exhaust, pretty much normal wear on an older high mileage car. And I guess I'm lucky that my Dad has the sports car bug and didn't mind me driving an RX-7 around. The second gen can fit quite a lot of stuff into the "trunk" so it's practical enough for going home for the weekend or getting groceries. N/A are damn near bullet proof, just make sure to check your oil and fluids regularly, a red line a day keeps the engine builders at bay, etc. On my '87 base model the engine was original with around 170k miles and i was still getting about 24 mpg on the highway, it has almost 200k now and still runs strong.

If he still won't accept you driving an older car for the mechanical headaches, maybe you can get a new car out of it then. I don't know what you could get that's new(er) that is as unique and enjoyable as an RX-7 but you might have some leverage that way.

 

88 gxl DD about to be turbo'd 6 port =) and not so DDish

 

Miata's are pretty awesome. Much better handling and quicker than a N/A RX-7. Extremely reliable. Great gas mileage. Only $20k, which is decent for a new car. Not much trunk space, though. Then again, maybe this forum can convice him that a N/A RX-7 is reliable enough to keep.

The price on '7s has shot up lately. Don't sell your '7 for less than $5k if it's in good shape. Subtract $1k if it's not. Subtract $1k if you're in a hurry to sell. Subtract $1k if you can't find someone who appreciates the performance upgrades (or better yet swap the stock stuff back in). Subtract $500 if it's at around 200k miles. Add $1k if it's an S5.

 

I've pretty much been in your situation before wtfdidusay82. I sold my Z (that my step dad loved) for an FC that my step dad was unsure about simply because I got bored with the Z and wanted something more modern. I didn't know jack about RX7's at the time I even expected it to get better mileage then my Z lmao...

In retrospect it was a bad decision because that FC was a POS I just couldn't recognize it. The FC broke down as I was driving it home from the bay area. I had to tow it to Sacramento, pay for a new clutch and repaired flywheel, sleep at a motel... I didn't even have the guts to call my step dad and tell him because I was so upset at myself. Then by the time I drove it up to Chico from Sac the tires were completely ruined because the allignment was so bad. All in all that FC put me an additional $1500 in debt before it was even driveable. It was entirely my fault of course for not being a smarter buyer. That was a tough learning experience.

For the first year or so the car made me completely broke. My step dad decided to buy a beater subaru for me to use so I'd stop borrowing so much money for gas and parts. It was tough to admit that I made the wrong choice with the FC but he's a car nut too and he at least understood my love of sports cars. As for the Roo it had a bad tranny and didn't last 2 months. Sadly after a year or so my FC was totalled at a complete loss. But I will say this. Had I still been driving the Z at the time I might have been seriously injured in that accident. Gotta love those reinforced B-pillars on the FC. I'd bet they are better then a Civic too as far as that's concerned.

But that really isn't the point. After the FC was totalled I was without a car and I was pretty bummed. Despite how much of a pain and financial burden it was on both of us my step dad felt sorry for me and loaned me the money to buy another FC. Now clearly it might seem strange that I'd want another one after taking such a loss on the first one. But I didn't hold a grudge against the car. It was a love-hate relationship but its the love the counts. Owning an RX7 is a great learning experience and a challenge. If you can manage to take care of it it's something to take pride in.

The 2nd FC happened to be the cleanest one I've ever seen and it was being sold locally I got a bargain at 2800. Since then I've invested about 8k into it and hundreds of hours of labor and I'm very happy with it. I realize its an investment I'll never recoup if I try and sell it. I was irresponsible then buying the first FC, I am irresponsible now investing so much in my current one but I would have invested just as much into the Z had I kept it. I am car crazy that will never change.

The reason my step dad and I are such good friends and have such a good relationship is because I was willing to work hard to support my car hobby. If I borrowed anything from him I'd slave away 16 hour days at his woodshop until I'd paid it off. I didn't complain I was grateful. Dont risk the relationship with your parents (even if there are somethings you dont respect about them) over a car. If you want the RX7 that bad tell your dad you're willing to work extra hard to keep it or at least promise to dedicate yourself to excelling in school. Give them something to be proud of then they might tollerate your hobby.

 

Mine has been a daily driver its whole life and has had no problems outside of normal maintenence.

 

Drive the **** out of my 'vert everyday, regular maintenence all the time, no problems.

 

I DD a 92 Prelude during my engine swap, and it has had issues GALORE which has led to several body modifications (my foot + quarter panel = DOH). My vert is WAAAAYYYYYYY more reliable that the ol' Prelude.
Aside from the starter falling off the tranny the DAY after I bought it(previous owner was a complete MORON), and the fuel filter clogging, my RX-7 ran like a CHAMP up until I pulled the engine.

 

Well my story is kinda long. My first car was a mazda 323 and I loved it for the fact is was wheels to get me around...that and I had a good sound system in it...but my dream car is the FC. I sold my 323 for my 7 and I love it and there are only a few problems (that have is due to age) on the car (well alside from the engine I killed) but I won't trade it for the world. I'm right now trying to get funds to buy anorther 323 for the winter so I can have my 7 for the summer. And that is what i think you should try to go that kind of a deal.