Our 1988 RX7 'vert - stock (13b) 154000 mi. has started to leak oil. About a qt per tank of gas. We took it to Mazdatrix for repairs. They said, damn, this pretty much rarely happens to 2nd gen 7's - but it was a known issue with the 1st gen. It's an o'ring that requires the engine to be disassembled to replace.
Total out the door? $5K & change. My wife luvs this car & I've caught myself with a smile a few times myself. But that's twice what we paid for the car 3 yrs ago... - We don't want to trade it in - butt - as we all know - luv is blind.
Should we trade it for the Volvo C70 my wife wants us to go drive/buy or...???
Thx, Gary & Shelley

 

i live near by mazdatrix so i always do parts runs... it is more expensive but they always have everything in stock but remember you can always go somewhere else... i've asked around and rebuilds are usually 2-3 thousand... depending on what you want.. also get a second opinion ... i know Rotary reliability in santa ana is a good shop and i've heard good thing about lucky7racing in el monte... good luck

 

Thx 4 the suggestions. Today, after the heavy $$$ newz - I started looking at alternatives. Like, I found JDM Engines with a google search. Does anyone have good or bad experiences they could share about these folks? They sell complete engine replacements from what I saw in-stock. And if so, could I install a turbo replacement engine to my non-turbo 'vert and still pass kalifornia smog? http://www.jdmenginescorp.com/index....products_id=27
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Thx, Gary

 

just to a t2 swap for 2500-3000 bucks and call it a day

that is all

 

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Right smart idea!! And I'm UP for that - I'd have said YES to trix @ $3500. But 5k & change knocked my knickers straight off!!! How do you suggest I should proceed???
Thx

 

depends on what you really want... if I had the coin I would rebuild because you don't know how long those jdm motors have been sitting for and rotarys can't sit for very long... like I said search around different shops... on the west forum you should be able to find a shop...

 

joe ... call up kevin landers www.rotaryresurrection.com

he can do a full t2 swap with a new rebuild and some other goodies for around 3000-4000 dollars.

Also if you cant afford to ship your car out ... just find someone on the board and buy there stuff

 

Well I'm about 4.5k into my turbo swap, so it's probably worth it to go turbo. I did all the work, except the rebuild. I paid $1700 for a complete donor car, and yanked everything. Then I rebuilt the engine, for another $1700 or so through Rotary Resurrection. So it's about $3500 in just the engine, then you'll need an exhaust and anything else you might have received with your engine. I have no idea what labor would cost on something like that, but if you do it yourself, it'd only cost you your time. Then you would have a proper Rx-7 Cabriolet, because you can now use fancy words like that after the swap.

 

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All because it started to leak oil...;-( - I'm not a mechanic.
If I could-I would PAY to have a turbo in our 'vert. And if that was say... 4k out the door -count me in! But I'm in so. ca. & smog is a biotch to pass. So, my wife & I shopped Mitsubishi spyders last weekend 'cause I just can't see sinking 5k plus for 13b rebuild (mazdatrix estimate) into a 1988 super fun 'vert that now leaves it's mark everywhere we go. When we can buy a '04 V6 mitsu spyder for under 13 with less than 50,000 mi.

 

If you buy an engine hoist and a decent tool set you can rebuild the engine yourself with new bearings for $1500- $2000 max.

 

cmon boys, name some cali rotary builders.
Joe, were in cali you located?

Personally ive gotten a JDM T2, swaped it in and called it a day. So far i have 50k on it and its running strong. But sometimes you might not be as lucky.

 

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I'm in Buena Park/Cypress area. And a JDM T2, swap sounds awesome if it'll pas ca smog. We have AAA 100 mi. tow service - so I'm not scared to tow it a few miles to be repaired. Thx,

 

As for passing smog thats a different story.