Greetings-

I've been viewing this forum for a little while, but seeing as I've never had a 7, I never felt any reason to post. However, now that the opportunity has come up for me to buy one, I figure I'd ask my questions to people who know the best...

As the title says, I've never had any generation RX-7. I've never worked on one. Outside of a pair of 12A housings on display in shop class, I've never even seen a rotary engine in person. Knowing all this, I want to know if maintaining an FC turbo would be unrealistic. The one I'm looking at is a '90 with no modifications, a nice price, and 30-35k on a rebuild. It's the current owner's daily driver. The compression's good and there's no rust. It would also be my daily driver as well as seeing some autocross and track days. I'd be spending around all my disposable cash on the car, so I wouldn't have any to spend on problems for a month or so. Am I just begging for a non-running money pit? I'm not trying to get in over my head.

Another question: how hard are FC's to drive without power steering? This version has it disconnected. S5 T2's aren't exactly the lightest cars at ~3000, so how impractical is that?

The other cars I was considering were Miatas and 85-87 Corolla GT-S' (The coupes, seeing as I hate all the Initial D bullshit and price rape that goes along with the hatchbacks). Corollas aren't too reliable themselves, but they're really cheap. Miatas are really reliable, but they have a higher buy-in and higher insurance. I was also thinking of NA FC's, but I don't know of any for $2500 or less (what I'd be willing to spend on one), and I'm wanting to have whatever I'm going to get by the end of June.

Sorry for the long read, but thanks for any input or advice.

 

wtf? youre saying FC's are heavy?! rx7s have just has high if not higher insurance than Miatas. do some research... read the FAqs and stickies...

 

All i can say is i have a base model FC with small modifications and its putting up damn well for a rotary engine.

Most people say that rotary's have short lives, and need constant rebuilding... i say its all on the owner/driver. I mean, i dont know how else to say it... its a sports car and i rev/redline the hell out of mine every time i enter the freeway (which is about once a day). I can say that those engines can be stable at high speeds.

RX7 tend to be "project" cars for most people. On my part i have it because im in love with it. I totally forgot how pistons work now... haha jk... well anywho, Miatas are also sweet, i was going to put a miata tranny on my car.... but leme just say it like this.

If the car works fine... dont modify or play with it. Thats one thing i learned. Unless the car is in need for that type of mechanical attention then go ahead and do your work. Another thing is compared to pistons... rotary's sometimes can cry alot for maintanance, but in the end it all pays off. 2nd generation is atleast 20 years old now. Most cars that age wont run, or need major attention under the hood. So if you decide to get one, welcome to the club! And also, i consider this forum to be the absolute best informer for rotary, or any type of "RX".

If you have any more questions feel free to pm me, or ask some more. Have a good one!

 

oh and from what i read... turbo's need more attention. teeheehee... =)

 

They are heavy. Not in the grand scheme of cars, but when you compare them to the other two vehicles I'm thinking about, they're ******* tanks. And I've already looked into the insurance.
Thanks. That's what I've read about the NA's; that they love to be rev'd. But like I said, I don't know of any cheaper ones around here, and I don't want to pay a lot for an NA when I can get a T2 for the same price.

 

well dude, do you want power, or power with lots of maintanance. Personally, most turbo's run aftermarket turbo kits... from what ive seen if your running stock turbo its quite the attention maker. My car drives well over 120mph with no hesitation... if the NA still isnt right for you then get turbo and get yourself some more hp tagged along with bills every so often.

If you dont want to spend alot of money for a base model when you could get a turbo... and still dont wanna put up with the bills... then the RX7 isnt for you. I personally dont mind the bills... why? because i already know how my babby likes to be driven... its all in the heart yo.... haha~ im telling you dude... ok look...

here's my plan with my na... i bought my NA from a friend of mine for 4250, it already came with new rotors, breaks, calipers, rebuilt engine and tranny (15-20k on both) a k&n ram intake, new header, racingbeat downpipe... exhaust and many more small mods...

the point is... when the time comes and the car starts to fail... ill buy myself another car (spanking new one) and then convert this lil beast into a turbo.... (i hope it doesnt break down hahah) i dont care what people say about rx7's i know they dont pack as much HP, but i love driving the **** out of mine...

 

wow...this is the first time I have heard the 7 referred to as a tank.....

You should just test drive one, that should answer all of your questions. Oh and try to take a few curbs to see how the "tank" can handle them

 

How old are you?

Toyotas are well-known for being close to being bulletproof.
The 4AGE in the AE86 can take some abuse before it dies...almost like all Toyota engines, especially back in that day - i.e. 20R / 22R / 7MGTE

You do not mention what kinds of cars you're used to driving?

I went from a 90hp Honda CRX to a 182hp FC turbo.
I almost end up killing myself a few times before I got comfortable with the FC.
If you're under 25, I'd worry.


-Ted

 

I like my tank just fine . Hit the FAQs and RETed's and IceMark's pages. Once you come to the darkside you'll never go back...

Dang Ted you're quick!

 

Well when I say "handle," I don't mean as in be able to drive; I mean be able to maintain.

And I wasn't attempting to offend anyone by using "tank." I'm saying, when you're comparing a ~3000 pound car to cars that are ~2200-2300 pounds, the difference is very wide.
I'm 18.

My personal car is a hand-me-down Eclipse I've been driving until I save enough money for my own. I've also been racing karts for a while, but due to my age I've never really experimented with applying what I've learned through open-wheelers to fender vehicle racing. So I'm not sure if that really ammounts for much.

I'm not sure what you're trying to say. Toyota is known for reliability, but 4AG's aren't doing too good this day and age (Especially not for someone like me, who's looking to use one for performance and daily driving). They need constant attention (similar to a rotary I guess), or they're going to leave you stranded. I don't mean to question your knowledge, but just because it's a Toyota doesn't mean it has 2JZ or 5SF reliability; the bluetops are still 20+ years old.

 

as far as reliable nice cars go, i would reccomend a S13 240SX, they put down pretty good power and ther engines are bulletproof

 

i wouldn't pay upwards of $3k for a corolla as they all seem to be right now (at least in somewhat good condition) considering it doesn't even have triple digits of horsepower. Miatas are good cars, and they get good gas mileage, parts are cheap also. The 7 you're looking at looks like a pretty good deal and I'd probably jump on it. Mostly because I have another car for when things go wrong (and they will). Turbos suck gas as well. IF this is your first car I'd get a civic hatch. They're light, they're bulletproof, they're good on gas, cheap on insurance, and when you crash it or you get hit (which will most likely happen considering its a first car), you didn't kill a beautiful car.

 

you'll be able to handle it just not in the rain

 

If you did karts, then you have a better idea than what most 18-year old's know.
How long have you been doing karts?


I dunno.
I used to own a 185k mile Zenki AE86, and I made it sing everyday with no problems.
For a piston motor, I'm impressed.
Most piston motors are dead-tired at 100k miles!


-Ted

 

where did you get this 3000 lb crap from.... to my knowledge the FC was around 2800lbs, with the eception of the convertable model which weighed more about 3100 lbs.
mines all stock, non turbo and it gets up and flies pretty good

 

I call My vert a "fast tank"... never having driven a nonvert 7 I cant say from experience.

I think (the vert atleast) handles like a tank, I have a miata with a suspention that is pretty modified though, so anything I drive other than the miata feels like my dads 64 thunderchicken (approx +5,200LBS, soft springs and a whole lotta suspention travel).

But compared to most cars (expecially from the late 80s early 90s) the 7 handles way better.

 

LMFAO!!!!

I went from a CRX dx to an 88 TII also...

yes, I almost killed myself a few times also.

I have an 88 TII with quite a bit of miles and I have had 0 problems with it so far, this includes dyno and various spirited driving avtivites. There is just nothing like a turbo. Hell, sometimes I forget that these cars even had an NA option.

 

If you can find an S5 TII for a good price, jump on it like a pervert on a 12 year-old girl.

They're about as rare as...something really rare.

I happen to know a guy with a highly-modded AE86, and even he thinks Corollas (well, in this case, a Trueno) are slow...

Just because a Corolla weighs a couple hundred pounds less than a fully-loaded FC (which is what the TII is), doesn't mean it'll get around a track faster (at least not without a lot of work).

Unless having cheap gas and insurance is your thing... in which case, go ahead and buy one of those price-inflated econoboxes (although I wanted one myself for the longest time...).

(although personally I'm only paying 50 bucks a month for my FC's insurance )

Of course, if you get a Miata, you only have about half the cargo space, and quite a bit less leg room than any FC (or the Corolla for that matter).

Also, if you're gonna get an NA FC, I'd say get the GXL (for S5 at least), since the GTU's lack of tilt steering, cruise control, four-pot brakes, and rear wiper kind of sucks (plus, fog lights look kind of cool :P).

 

Since I was around 14. I've had some local success, but I haven't pursued such any further than that simply because I think I might like fender racing better (and don't want to waste what little budget I do have).
That's one thing about the T2; I know I probably won't ever see a deal like this again.

I don't really want a Corolla for speed. Actually, the exact reasons you listed (gas and insurance) in addition to it being a cheap FR vehicle are why I want one. I'm working on my NASA license, and plan to pursue either the E30 cup, 944 cup, or the Spec Miata series. So my daily car doesn't need to be too fast; just fun to drive, and maybe a little drifting/autocross here and there.

I like Miatas because they're such capable cars, they're reliable, and if I end up in Spec Miata I think it would be an advantage to drive the same car (minus the MS suspension and Spec parts) daily. Without trying to sound like a JDM fanboy, sort of like the reason Manabu Orido was using his Ridox Supra as his daily driver ("JGTC everyday"). However, Spec Miata is polluted with huge budgets and lots of cheating these days from what I hear, so I may not pursue it (There's no point in me spending all my spare money on racing if I don't have a chance to win).

I'm kind of considering NA FC's more these days, just because they're as cheap as Corolla coupes, more reliable, and the GXL's have everything I'm looking for in a stock vehicle (minus the gas mileage).

Thanks for your opinions to those who answered.

 

the answer to your question: absolutely

i have a 87 t2 and i am sixteen with no automotive experience whatsoever

this forum and a little common sense will be all you need to maintain it (any money, of course)

 

I would say go for it. I started out with my N/A when I was 16. Picked the car up for $750. Needed paint and bodywork. I have put to much work into the car to drive it like an idiot. I have fun with it but I also no my limits. I also used to be into carts. I used to have a 1980's margay frame with a JLO 250cc snowmobile engine on it. It had the big bore kit, jetted carb, a little sprocket work, offset rear axle, and a different exhaust. During time trials on a 1/4 mile oval track it was running about 120-130 mph. I could only take about 2-3 laps tops at this speed. The tires started coming apart. Never really got into racing against other people but it was just a hobby for my dad and I when I was about 12 years old. Before that we raced lawn mowers until it became TOO dangerous. BTW sorry didnt try to steal the thread, but I would say maybe spend a little more and get a good clean Rx with little to no problems.

 

FYI no used car is perfect, save up a little bit longer so that you can have some buffer when you buy a car. Remember, insurance, registration, and 18.5 gallons of gasoline are required immediately. When I bought my car (18.5 for an NA) the clutch was slipping some and had to be replaced within the week - and to pass emissions cost me somewhere near $500 of shop time. You should definitely check and be ready to replace all fluids, filters, tires, and friction material (brakes and clutch)... From my recent experience replacing suspension you should look forward to that too.

The price you've found for a t2 is amazing! You may want to consider the following though - a T2 wil be in a higher class than a miata or a corolla for scca autox - putting you at a disadvantage. The miata will also be lighter, potentially stiffer, and get much better fuel economy - a first gen should be significantly cheaper than a t2.

My view on speed is probably different than most peoples on here - going 160mph means nothing to me as I haven't even tried to push my car past 120mph. A turbo often means that you will speed more, accelerate faster (bye bye gas), attract more attention to police, and can much more easily kill yourself.

You should also make sure that you have enough money to afford some schooling as that is more important than what car you have at 18 especially at city colleges where parking can be $500 a year. Though you did say disposable income, which makes me believe you have a solid budget plan.