hey everyone, im a new car entusiast & soon to be 86 rx7 owner, any tips for the care an rx7 needs? signs of it needing work, or any idea's of how to make it fast?

also im looking for a cheap and easy car to work on to learn more about cars, i dont want to work on the rx7 too much because im scared i'll do some irreversable damage.
thanks for the help, dont get annoyed im just trying to get as good with cars as some of the people on here.

 

check fluids daily...
upgade exhaust...
intake...
and turbo...
put coilovers...struts and sways all around...
idk...theres a bunch you can do..

what ever you do...do not start it and shut it off w/o letting it warm up...
your engine will flood...
and you will be working on your engine...

 

Rx7 is a fairly big maintainence car so far for me but it is definitely a cool car to work on. Also the people on this forum all help you along as much as they can. But just remember USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION!

 

yea, i know it'll take alot of maintenence, im not sure im interested in putting a turbo in it yet, but thanks for the reply's i appreciate it alot, im just concerned as to what im getting myself into, i don't know much if anything about engine or engine repair, but trust me i'll be looking to upgrade it, where should i look for intake and exaust upgrades, will those be easy to install myself not knowing much about cars, i have good friends who im always helping with their cars, a few 240's and one mustang to be exact, and they know quite a bit its impressive, would they be able to guide me through it? as far as struts and sways go im not even sure where to start, if you don't mind would you give me a detailed list of what exactly an upraged exaust, intake, and struts and sways would do to my car, and how much money i'd be spending.
and any information or tips on where to find these, if they're rx7 specific parts or if they're universal for cars?(sounds like a dumb question to me but i don't know the answer so i'll go ahead and ask)
thanks and i know for people who actually know what your talking about im a headache but i appreciate any help and information.

 

intake exhaust boost power and sound
struts sways helps handling and traction
PUT SOME DUBS ON IT YO!

 

Welcome, man.

Best thing you can do: buy a Haynes manual. Go through all of the routine maintainence stuff in there.

Most importantly, change all your fluids.

 

wow i'm sorry you had nothing but nubs respond, honestly you sound young, if your still in school and not working i wouldn't suggest it, these cars require ALOT of maintenance, if not things will go down hill very fast, it is not gonna be a cheap and car to work on, nor easy if you have no previous experience, honestly if you wanna learn more about cars i'd say take the automotive classes at your local community college, if you buy a older car with the intention of learning from it, it's only gonna lead to a none running car, alot of frustration and an empty wallet.

look at my VB garage, i've spent nearly 6k on my car and thats only in maintenance or very minor upgrades.

rx7's are not cars that like parts from kragen/napa/cheker, many problems people have are from using cheap parts, the thermostat is a good example, using a non mazda one almost always results in having the temp gauge creep up on you.

also if the motor decides to go can you afford 1.5-2k for a rebuilt one? most likely thats your budget for the car right?

also don't expect any of your friends knowledge of cars to transfer over to rx7's they most likely will know nothing about it at all.

 

Making an N/A RX-7 fast is not an inexpensive proposition, so you should just focus on maintenance and upkeep. If you don't know the car's pedigree, you should first complete a full maintenance and tune up. Change oil, oil filter, transmission fluid and rear end fluid. Use a good 10W-30 oil like Castrol in the crank case and good synthetics in the xmission and rear end (I'm assuming this is a 5 speed and not auto). Replace your plugs and plug wires. Use NGK plugs; get em at any auto supply store. 2 Leadings and 2 Trailings (they look different from the plugs you're used to). Change the coolant and the thermostat. Only use a Mazda tstat for the RX-7's. These cars are very sensitive to heat so keep em as cool as you can. Change the fuel filter. You probably should replace the O2 sensor too. All these things can be completed using readily available shop tools and someone without a whole lot of automotive experience. Read the posts in this forum! Read over the FAQ's and the archive posts. You'll be a rotary expert soon. Welcome to the wonderful world of rotaries.

 

buy a Haynes manual, read it

make sure the car is running right before you do any mods

make sure you have all proper tools you will need to do the following;

replace fluids for the brakes, clutch, coolant, trans, and rear diff
new belts
new brake pads - check brake rotors make sure they're up to snuff
oil and filter change
new sparks plugs and wires
new shifter bushings and boots
get a good set of UHPAS tires

save up for a new;
water pump
upgraded radiator
clutch master and slave cylinder and clutchline
brakelines

suspension upgrade

exhaust upgrade

 

Be prepared to get pissed and spend a lot of gouda.

 

http://www.cochran-racing.com/FSM/s4/index.html <---- FSM prefered over Haynes manual. And to top that, its free.

 

for you maybe, I find some of the descriptions more and pictures more usefull than the FSM
it's free to look at on your computer but it will still cost you some paper and ink to print it all out
you can still find the Haynes manual at auto parts stores

 

Yeah, your right. I have both too. I also use both of them when working on something. They both have there advantages. However, I do not regret anything I have previously stated.

 

there's nothing that can deter me from an rx7, cost, maintenence, im ready for what im getting myself into. it's gunna be saweet... mostly

 

ATTA BOY!

 

the other nice thing for the OP, since he is in TN, there is local rotary builder for him to go to when the time comes

 

A few issues I've had with my S4 are:
-Oil Metering Pump lines break/leak
-Oil Cooler hoses need rebuilding/replacement
-Front Wheel Bearings needed to be repacked until I read the How To from Mazdatrix.com.
-just about anything made of plastic from the interior can and WILL break

Helpful sites:
-this forum, remember to research the FAQ's and Stickys because the answer to many questions have already been asked and answered thoroughly
-www.mazdatrix.com (has some how-to articles)
-www.aaroncake.net (very helpful information for us newbies)
-www.rotaryressurection.com (also very good information for us newbies)

 

Check the fuel pulsation damper for fuel leaks, don't want to burn that baby down, consider replacing with a new stock unit or the banjo bolt mod.

Like the other guys have said, start with a full tune up, all new fluids ( trans and diff too), new belts and hoses, check for vac leaks and any thing obviously broken or damaged.

Then since it's an NA I'd stick to basic stuff like 2.5" exhaust and suspension, get it to be a safe reliable car rather than a shoddy "fast" car.

Good luck and be sure to post pics of the RX7 when you get it.

 

aleight sofar i know im getting myself into, waiting for the engine to warm up before driving on cold days... taking time to check my fluids often(most likely daily) speding money on fluid often, spending money on struts, sways, suspension... spending money on belts and more or less inexpensive(in small amounts) parts for my 7, like spark plugs... but what about big cost, i know its fast no matter what and thats good enough for me im 16 i make terrible desicsions and i know it, but im 16 thts what im here for, i just don't want to end up wrapped around a telephone pole, my life... ahaha... my rx7's life, too important... so what are some higher cost things im looking at buying in general owning an 86?
again, can't say it enough... THANKS

 

From what i've understood, unless you blow up something, the small costs just accumulate to a higher sum. so don't blow up anything and you should just have to deal with somewhat higher maintenance costs.
good luck though. i didn't even know what an rx7 was when i was 16. (5yrs. 10 mts. ago.)

 

Problems I've encountered having owned 2 S4's:
-Trim/interior peices are fragile/brittle so be careful removing them... i suggest to leave them as be
-I've never been in an FC where the sport suspension button does more than beep
-Antenna's needed replacing
-black smoke on startup sometimes
-power windows love getting stuck
-cupholders are the most useless things ever
-wanting s5 exterior peices
-cars you would think inferior to yours giving you a run for your money

thing to know:
-not suggested starter car
-goes through gas pretty quick
-keep your cats on if you're dd-ing it, mid/straightpipes get annoying/old pretty quick
-you'll want a haynes manual
-parts are usualy expensive compared to piston engine vehicles (spark plugs for example)
-try to stay away from opting for cheap parts to save money
-mazda dealerships are NOT your friend, try and find a rotary specialist locally

 

well, its definatly going to be my starter car. i don't really consider driving my moms taurus around as my first car, nor would i like to in any way shape or form. the 7 im getting is in good shape, 53kmiles, good interior, engine runs just fine, no problem on the idle when cold... i think it won't give me too much trouble if i don't give it too much trouble aka try not to outdo myself by adding stuff to the engine, i think the most i'll do until i learn more is put in a badass sound system, struts and sways(i liked that idea), maybe nicer rims and newer tires... but as far as engine work goes im scared(for lack of a better word) that (in my opinion) i'll ruin one of the few legendary cars left from the 2nd generation, they don't seem to be as well preserved as some other popular cars i've looked at. so in my way of thinking, if the car runs fine now... and im not working on any components that would deter from that, if i drive like a sane individual, it should stay running fine with regular maintenence and upkeep. only problem... my girlfriend might hate me finally having a job,,, and having no money to spend on her chops, she'll deal, i have a new baby anyway lol

 

my bought my rx7 knowing basically nothing (except my brother worked at a roatry shop a few years back). All i had was a Haynes manual and Rx7 club. Ive seen that you learn a lot of things from them breaking themselves. Ive been crusing down the road and had heater hoses blow out. Then id have to get new ones. You will be fine...! couple of things to do:
*If upgrading do one thing at a time...therefore if you do one thing and your car runs like **** you know what the problem is..
*dont weld on your car... (i blew a EGI main relay welding exhaust)
*Dont spend all your $$money$$ on aftermarket parts...because something will break and you will have to park it...
*if you run your 7 hard dont immideately turn it off...
*DO NOT SHORT START IT!!!

thats all i can think of...mostly because of past experiences...
*most of all...find parts car...i.e. Junk yard...craigslist...

 

hmm, another thing, do rx7's need the higher octane gas? or are they fine with regular unleaded??? and if it does what are the effects of running regular gas?

 

they run better on lower octane gas