im really considering buying a '91 non-turbo for this guy and i want to know how reliable these cars really are. do the engines last long? on average how many miles do they get? do they break often? are the parts hard to find/ are they expensive? i would really like to know before buying the car thanks for your help
thanks again.
oh and how is the gas milage?

 

i want to buy it from the guy not for him. lol

 

'91 is a good year and non turbo's are more reliable than the turbo's. Reliability all depends on how you treat the car. A RX-7 is like a woman. They are all different and sometimes you will get lucky and find a reliable fun one with no problems. And sometimes you get stuck with the flakiest pile of money grubbin ****. I have a '89 N/A thats very similar to the one you are looking at and I've owned it for 2 years only replacing the alternator (the auto to 5 speed swap doesn't count) and its running strong at 127k miles. Just find a good one and take care of it and you will be very pleased.

 

I have had a similiar experience to flamin-riods, I got my 90' GTU about 6 months ago and no problems so far, and from what I've heard from other forum members, the n/a Rx-7 are very reliable, relatively of course, but none-the-less. Parts are not really hard to find...

Rx7world.com
Rotaryressurection.com
racingbeat.com

Those are all good places to find parts/perfermance upgrades etc.
Oh and I've heard of people on the forums getting 250,000+ miles out of there n/a Rx-7...
but like he said it all depends on how the person who owned it before you treated it...
make SURE he ALWAYS changed the oil on time...that is very key.

 

make sure it has NEVER been overheated.

 

RX-7's are not reliable, they are pieces of ****. The n/a 7's engines are bit better. Only cuz it doesnt get as hot under the hood. But the rest of the car will fall apart on you. The electronics are the worst. It seems that every solder joint in the car started to come apart. Fuel efficiency sucks ***** too. You dont buy an RX-7 to be reliable, have good gas mileage, and definately not because repairs are cheap. I keep my RX-7 cuz I'm in love. The car is so much fun to drive that... i cant explain it. I love working on her, fixing her when she ***** up, washing, polishing and waxing her. I like it when people stare at it, then finally ask, "What kind of car is that?" I love the smoothness when i rev the engine. If you are looking for a car that is reliable, good on gas, cheap to fix, then look someplace else. The 7 is not for you. go buy a celica or a civic. This car was built with one purpose in mind... to put a smile on the face of whoever sits behind that wheel. And it does a damn good job at it.

 

very well put! I would agree! I have had my car three years and have had it running maybe an accumulative of 6 months

 

I have an 89 GTU that I drive everyday. I've had it for just over 4 years and the only serious problem I've had with it is when the rear rotor lost an apex seal at 107K miles. I had a quality shop do the engine rebuild, street port it and replace the factory exhaust and CC with a hi-flow cat and RB catback and it has run great since the rebuild. The only thing that is a problem now is the sun roor panel and that's not a big cocern, just need to find the time and motivation to give it a good overhaul.

Buy the car because you want a unique peice of automotive engineering and you love to drive and go fast. Love it and take care of it and show it the kind of attention it demands and it will many years of pleasure and joy, yeah, just like a good woman.

 

As covered countless times (please use the search function next time), they can be very very reliable if well maintained by the previous owner, or they can be very problematic if poorly maintained, or have been modded incorrectly.

On every FC I have owned, they were 100% more reliable than any stock Honda, or stock GM when comparing the car, with the GM owner or Honda owners experiences.

But I am very picky on what I buy. I passed on countless FCs before buying my vert (mostly because of the way the kid fucked up the car with things he thought were good for power or show).

For more reliable cars, pick ones that have not been modded or owned by teenagers.

Please read the FAQ for FC sticky at the top of this section for information on common problems, and things to look for.

This thread is closed as this subject has been covered quite in depth before.