i'm seriously considering of buying a FC3s Turbo II. and i just want to know in more detail of what i'm gettin into. i been reading a lot lately on this forum and came to conclusions of these pros and cons:

Pros: turbo, RWD, rotary engine, great handling, 5spd, love the look

Cons: takes up a lot of oil, high maintenance, hard to find a mechanic for the rotary.

that's all i can think of right now. but i'm sure there's plenty more. can anyone add on to these list; either pros or cons?

also to all you FC turbo owners, what are your feedbacks on the car.

 

alot of the myths you here about rotary engines NA/Turbo are true!!! but most can be avoided by simply maintaining your car.... for more info on that check the faqs section (best tool on the site)

 

most of your pros and cons are right on.


and if you mod it read up on the mods before you do them and do them properly with the correct fuel mods to support them.

it is amazing how easy it is to free up some power in a T2 though...


my feedback: i love the car, but if you own it you better learn how to fix it!

 

imo... if you cant afford to do the maintainence.... dont get a sports car...........

 

couldnt have said it better... this car is only for those financially who want to learn and repair/work on them themselves.... otherwise you cant afford the car

good luck whatever you do

 

Well, I can't complain about your choices for the Pros, but the Cons I can find some problems with.

1) Takes up a lot of oil? This is somewhat true, but you can disable the OMP and run premix. That's about a quart or so of 2-stroke per fill up. Depending on how well your OMP was working this could save you oil or make you burn more, so it all really depends. And my RX7 takes up like 1/8 of the oil my old car used to need (try 1 quart every 2-3 days) so I'm far from complaining.

2) High maintenance? The same could be said of all cars. But, rotaries aren't high maintenance, they're just higher maintenence if you don't know how to do simple things like oil changes and tune-ups. And don't you dare say rotaries are weak. They're just picky. No unforgivable screwing with the A/F ratio.

3) Hard to find a mechanic? Hah. You live in So Cal. There's like eleventy-billion rotary whatevers out there. And if you still can't manage to find any place, I know of at least 30 people on this forum who are from that area. And that's just the 2nd gen forum. You try finding a rotary shop around Chicago (but not in it) that's not an hour or more drive for me. That's a challenge my friend. You learn to become your own mechanic out here.

But now that I'm thinking about it, the sheer potential of the TII has got to be a pro. Practically everything you do will make the car that little bit faster and funner.

If you have any questions feel free to PM me.

 

This reminds me of the questions I get about tube verses solid state guitar amps...
Yes tube amps require more "maintenence" but most people think they sound better.
Depends on what you want to do with the car, drive it everyday or take it out only on the weekends and run the hell out of it. As far as oil goes, it's getting to the point where putting oil in is cheaper that putting gas in them...esp a turbo running prem gas. As far as what you're getting into.... fun and spending money.

 

Cons :
weak plastic dash trim pieces
wiper switch will need to be rebuilt
fan/heater controller will need to be rebuilt
antena doesn't go all the way down
Pros:
JDM parts are cheap
great support on the forum
A Turbo 2 is fast and not that hard to make faster

T2's are getting rarer all the time

 

wipe the grease off the antenna when it is in the up position.

T2's getting rarer? i think the opposite is true, most people are more willing to condemn a n/a than i T2 i would think but that is just my thinking, i have never seen a T2 in a wrecking yard here(here being the state capital city of california locally) yet more and more people are doing turbo into n/a swaps daily it seems.

 

ahh... Got some good myths there don’t you???

Most rotary engines use less oil per mile than a pre '96 GM V8 and as far as high maintenance... well that is BS. There is actually less maintenance on a rotary than even a Honda. No valves to adjust, no timing chain to replace, etc.

The high maintenance myth was started by people that didn't understand that a car with 100K + miles or 10 years on it will need parts replaced or fixed. Any car with the same mileage and/or years, will require more maintenance time than a car with less than 5 years and 45K miles on it.

 

yea, i'm definately leaning toward the FC TII or the 10th AE. my other choices are the mr2 turbo or the old supra turbo. but from the looks of it....FC3S!!!

also one quick question, how often does the FC need to change their oil. i know it depends but...just an estimate. i read sumwher that it was every 3k miles. i just wanted to confirm. thanks

 

Needs to change, or suggested change???

Oil in a FC needs to be changed every 7500 miles according to Mazda.

But it is generally recommended for oil in a rotary to be changed every 3000-5000 miles, and when ever the engine has been flooded.

 

Fuel consumption, no reclining seats( im 6 feet2). Engine is actually pretty easy 2 work on. But remember the youngest 2 gen you can get is 14 years old. so some components (usually the small engine related ones or some leaks) are show age even if the car has low miles.

I just my TII febrary, and i only changed hoses,lines and fluids. and gettin a turbo car means more heat and more stress. So simply take care of it like its your baby and dont wait for things to break if you can, than can lead to more $$$ to repair.

the more you take care of it the better all a round it will be. dont ANY cut corners

 

Don't all FCs have reclining seats? Mine certainly does and it's doesn't have the higher-end leather trim package.

Bottom line is that a FC is going to take more effort than say a '99 Honda Civic, etc.

 

IMO... you cant really maintain it well, u should look at who had it before you, its mattersmore how well they maintained it while puttting the 130k miles it has on it(mine did), if it was maintained poorly even if u baby it now, ur still gonna have SOME trouble...

as for oil i am burning it off so much i add double the oil compasity before i get to the next time to change, but i am change oil soon, who it will help.. i dont think 10w30 was wise for florida/alabama line no that i think about it...

 

All FCs came with reclining front seats from the factory. Some (Verts and GXL models) also even came with driver'seat seat angle/ front cushion height adjustements.

If you do not have reclining seats, and your seats are stock, then your seats are broken.

And I am also 6'2" and have no problems fitting in the stock vert seats with the top up. And the verts have an inch less head room than sunroof equipped models.

 

I'm 6'3 and fit good in my sunroof equipped 88 GTU, with a helmet on at the track i have to lean back and have the sunroof open. And you better learn how to do your own work or you'll be paying out the wazoo for repairs/misc, your in socal though there's alot of nice people to help you take things apart, find parts, etc