ive got myself a 1988 Toyota Celica Alltrac Turbo and its great. however, right now its in the garage and the HG is leaking. hopefully i dont have to pull the engine out, but its starting to look like i better pull that sucker out. now if i pull that tranny off, i might as well get a new one in. (shifting real bad) and i might as well upgrade the clutch and flywheel. ive already ordered my suspension and my headgasket. long story short, its gonna be out of commision for awhile.

so right now im looking for a car. something RWD, reliable, 5spd, fast and fun. i like the late 80s look, so ive been looking at Supras, 240s, RX7s and 944s. my buddy just bought the 240sx i was looking at (he loves them more than i do, so i let him). there are no more around here... Porsche 944s are too fat for my wallet, and not practical. i found a supra, but its way rusty. its an 83, and anything newer is out of my price range. so i turn to the RX7. but the thing that scares me is the rotary. i dont want to get myself into another hole. i need a reliable car that will get me A to B, and at the same time be fun and quick.

so what do you guys think? is an RX7 a good investment? (im looking at the $2500 range) it doesnt have to be turbo, (and i'd rather it not) unless thats going to make a big difference in performance and upgradability. (ex: MR2 n/a is totally diff from MR2 Turbo) i want something with a good aftermarket support, unlike my celica. it's gotta have some suspension stuff so i can "practice" drifting techniques. gimme some advice please

(also, if you guys could, please post some links of FAQs on how to buy an RX7, what to look for, etc.)

 

Hey,

I used to be into celicas myself. Theyre good cars but the wheelbearings and axles were killing me trying to race it so I sold it after I bought the rex. My first test drive of an 89 GTU nonturbo was an eye opener, and I never wanted to drive that damn toyota again even though they were the same year. My toyota had suspension wheels, full interior with gages, racign seats and harnesses, the whole deal.

IT was no comparison to the rx7, theyre built so much better and ride so much smoother and are so much more stable at high speeds.

I say go for it you'll love it.

Keep in mind that these are all old cars...11-16 model years old. Some are on original engines most on junkyard replacements. Rotaries run good up until the point they die, and they give no warning. ONe day you'll shift form 2nd to 3rd, after the race is over, and it'll sputter and you'll be posting how you need an engine. There are no guarantees, and nothing you can check or do(maintenance) at ths point to guarantee youre getting a good engine. Ive seen many friends buy old rx;'s and drive the **** out of them for 2 or 3 years with no proiblem. Then Ive had friends buy ones that lasted a week. All in all the good outweighs the bad, but in honesty theyre not super reliable unless you get one with a good owner history and at least some kind of real low milege engine or a rebuilt engine.

FWIW I have never blown a rotary up(except bad coolant seals, similar to a bad headgasket). I drive the **** out of all mine too, at least in my opinion.

ANyhow good luck!

 

hey, the rotary is as reliable as you maintain it... and it shouldn't cost you much to do so. All the good questions could usually be found by doing a search on anything you might have questions about and also in the 2nd gen archive. I do research on things i might have questions about in both parts of the forum. It's a great car to have, and that's not to be just strictly rotary either. I've owned an '86 n/a before getting a '91 vert.
As far as performance and upgradability, there is a difference between the n/a and the t2... im sure other members can provide the information for that. Welcome to the forum by the way.

 

Yea, Right now I drive an 86 Base model, And I've had my shares of problems...
I purchased it with about 130k miles on it... and it blew on me soon after that... I was getting out of school, and I went to start it up... It turned over a couple times and a little pop came out of the exhaust which scared me.. so I stopped, and tried again.. Wouldn't start...
I had JUST gotten the car not long ago so I had a friend come help me unflood it which wasn't the problem.. We push started it and it started. .Just ran ROUGH and weak... Checked compression later.. apex seal gone..

Ever since I have rebuilt it, and broken stuff, and it's in BAD shape right now... Everything seems to be breaking on my particular rex, and I've been towed home quite a bit lately.. I am currently looking for like a Geo metro or a toyota tercel or some JUNK to get to work in... While I A: work on my rex for race only, or B: sell rex and get a TII

Basically !!!!!! Sevens OWN as sports cars... They are very competitive.. and I LOVE rotaries.. I believe they will rule over all in the future and I hope to always have a rotary car to play with, but I am very scared when driving it right now trying to get to work, cuz it's just in bad shape... Find a later (89-91) that's in good shape and jump all over it man!

my 2 G's worth..

Btw I've had a friend who had a 92 Celica GT , and that was a reliable car and fun too, but didn't compare to the rotary (talking N/A Celica VS N/A FC) never been in the alltrac however

 

hehe.. alltracs are a total different beast. its and older motor as MR2 Turbo. with the AWD, i can pull 100mph through highway tunnels rated at 35mph on stock 205 14". i ran 15.2 stock-gutted cat. (hey, it weighs 3500lbs!! hehe) i LOVE my alltrac, but im pushing it too hard. its falling into peices.

i think im gonna go look at a few RX7s tomorrow. then im gonna and look at some Tercels and Paseos. hehehe..

THANKS, AND KEEP THE ADVICE COMING GUYS!!

 

The ST165 with about #500 more weight is a serious difference.&nbsp An FC turbo will smoke the ST165 is you match mods for both cars.&nbsp The NA will give you a slightly better balance of power delivery and reliability.&nbsp The ST165 gets very expensive to fix and mod after a certain point - trying to find parts for your ST165 is getting to be a bear (unless you go after SW20's for their 3S-GTE parts), but FC parts are a bit more plentiful.

You'll lose the AWD, but I'd say driver's skill can make up 95% of the AWD advantage.



-Ted

 

My daily driver is an '89 GTU. It has been the most fun daily driver yet. The only vehicle that I have owned that was more reliable had a slant 6 engine. My GTU has been heavily modified without any loss to reliability. If a 7 is maintained, they are incredibly reliable.....just don't flood them.<evil grin>

 

better know your way around under the hood and be comfortable with a wrench in your hand if you buy an RX7

 

If you want reliablity I would go with a non-turbo. I bought my '87 for $800 body was in good shape (except for paint) and the exhaust system needed to be replaced (this happens on the NA's because they just don't produce as much heat as the turbos to kill moisture in the pipes, hence rust). the engine has over 175k miles on it and still runs like new it has plenty of compression and pulls like hell.

So don't worry about the reliablity of a NA rotary engine, they'r elike the energizer-******'-bunny. I've heard of 1st gen 12A's that are still running after 440k miles without every having to rebuild the engine. Plus the price can't be beat, you could easily find a base, sport, or GTU for around $1000 - $2500. I think the GTUs is a little more (because there aren't as many around).

 

it all depends on how fast u want the daily drive to be and how much time u want to spend under the hood. most mechanics dotn know anythign about rotaries, and if u dont know much about them yourself u will have to pay someone good money to get it fixed. so if u want to get it i saw start learining now. and as far as t2 and NA go, they are the same car except one is faster. my NA with full exhaust and open air box is runnig low 15's, its good enouf for me, and even with stock suspenshion it handles very good, but u will most likely have to replace the shocks and since u are there might as well get some stiffer springs...this was good enouf for me...

 

I'm very hardcore about people NOT buying rotary-powered cars unless they are willing to learn about the engines.

Too many of these cars are allowed to turn to crap and then go to rot in a junkyard somewhere because the people who owned them didn't take the initiative to learn what they should have.

I don't have an RX-7 yet, but I will be buying an FC later this year when my financial situation better allows it. I have been trying to learn all I can about these cars right now, so that when I have my own I'll have a general idea of what I'm doing with it as I continue to learn.

If you're interested in rotaries, research! Read this forum, read books about RX-7s and the rotary engine in general, talk to people who have the cars and know what they're doing, run searches online and look through people's websites about the cars.

If these cars still intrigue you, go for it! They're truly wonderful machines.

 

i will sell you mine its in the thread right now listed under 13b motor for sell it has full suspension package and a few other mods im asking 1500 obo

 

$2500 will get you a decent shape 2nd gen I guess. If you are particular about your car (good paint, excellent engine condition) and want everything working, you probably will pay $4-5k.

The GTU is the most sporty NA model. It's got upgraded suspension, brakes, better wheels among many other things. The early 90 models have the cleaner look which is what I would consider.

NA is the better choice for reliability and that will keep the cost reasonably low. If you are on budget, the base model will do too.

I'm not sure if you want to keep 2 sports cars though. Insurance may be high still. If I were you, I would either sell the Celica or get it fixed before I move to the RX7. That's the logical side of my brain talking.

 

In have driven a lot of FR American "Sports Cars," and hands down the RX-7 is the best handling, best performing, best looking car I have ever encountered. And if you want to sell your Celica, or know someone who is selling an Alltrac, I might just be your man.

 

i am kinda jealous
celica turbo 4wd, i always wanna get a ride in those cars, but they are soo damn rare, i have seen like 5 times only in my life only

 

i must also say, i hate to see rx7 in a bad shape which i do more then ones in good condition. i rather not have this happen...TAKE CARE OF YOUR CARS damn it!

 

Lots of em in Hawaii...
The later ST185 is about as rare as a Turbo II back in Hawaii.
My comment was always..."uh, another import car with a hole in it's hood..."

Those things are just too heavy with a very delicate drivetrain.&nbsp I knew a guy who had an ST185 that was gung ho at the drag strip.&nbsp Best time was a 13.00 on a healthy shot of NOS.&nbsp The ended up gernading it's entire drivetrain one night, and he gave up due to sheer cost of fixing that thing...



-Ted

 

well when you think of the sheer physics of it, you're going to throw 200lb/ft of torque at a drivetrain that grips like hell to the pavement. SOMETHING HAS TO GIVE. the wheels will slip little if none, so the tranny has to take the beating. i dont get the reason why people think they can do 5000rpm drops on AWD systems, then say those trannys are weak. on RWD systems, as soon as there is too much power, the tires will break loose so the tranny isnt stressed as much. sheer physics and logics.

anyways, rico, i wouldnt sell my alltrac for anything less than another alltrac or a large lump sum of cash.. hehe.. like i said, it handles like a dream (or it will again soon), its smooth, comfortable, and quick. i do know there are a few for sale around the states.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gt4-4sale/

check out that group. the guy there wrote a back-end to search autotrader.com for celica alltracs, then he posts them on the group. there will be a lot of alltracs being sold because they're getting old and nobody wants to touch them any more. good time to pick one up.