I was looking on autotrader and I saw this ad and its only 12 miles from my house:

1988 MAZDA RX7 runs but needs motor, se 5spd, $900

It says it needs engine, but maybe ATF tick will fix it. Even if it doesnt it will still be worth it even if I spend extra $$ for engine. I can maybe bargin down to $500. It says it runs, but needs new motor, what can this mean? What type of problems can it have?

 

Oh yea, I was also wondering what the SE rx7s came with. Do you guys think its worth $900 if its in decent condition with bad motor?

 

se? thats n/a right?

if its in good condition id buy it, try to talk him down, id expect to pay like 750 maby 600 if your lucky

 

My Se has no power options exept for the moonroof. It has cruise, 14 inch wheels, cassette player, open diff(ugh), single piston brake calipers (ugh). If every thing is in good condition I would give him $750. If it runs and needs a new engine, it probably either has really low compression, or it has a blown rotor. If you have any other ???s just ask. Hope I helped

 

Standard: were the 14 phone dial wheels, single piston brakes, open diff, 146HP 13B engine, power mirrors, diversity antenna, non tinted glass, speed sensitive power steering, AM/FM cassette with 4 speakers, rear storge bins (except on 2+2 cars) and a theft system.

Factory Options were rear seats, an automatic tranny, air conditioning, sunroof.

Dealer installed options were an EQ, and cruise control.

 

Yes, don't pay any more than $500. The SE has the "worst" of everything as far as performance goes. Granted, I really liked my SE, and maybe you don't care about the smaller brakes and wheels or lack of LSD (I didn't care), but you can get an NA with the better parts for about the same price if you look long enough.

If the ad says that it runs but needs new motor, it usually means that the apex seals are shot, but a call to the owner is the only way to know for sure. If it does in fact need a new motor, you are looking at about $2,000 for a rebuild, which wouldn't be all that bad a deal if the rest of the car is in good shape.

 

I called him and he said that he got an engine from a shop that was a j-spec used engine. He installed it and he said it runs, but something I didnt really understand him. He said its straight body, good interior, and moon roof.

I thougth that all NA rx7s dont have LSD. Is that true or do only the SE ones dont have it?

Im thinking that hes j-spec engine doesnt run or runs bad because its been sitting for a while before he got it. If I do the ATF trick it will probably run like new right? He said he will even give me the old engine which has 185k miles. Which means that how many miles the car has.

Lets say I get this car up and running how much could I sell it for later on? I will get my money back wont I?

Is there a lot of upgrades I would have to do to get it as good as the other rx7s with bigger brakes and wheels? Could someone name all the stuff that the SE doesnt have the the rest of the NA 7s have?

Thanx

 

couple things:

1) He installed a J-spec engine? dude, They don't have NA's in Japan! There is no such thing as a J-spec NA engine. This sounds fishy to me...

2) Some NA's have LSDs = GXLs, 86-88 GTU, 89-91 GTUs, and most Sport models.

SE models are good daily drivers, but not much else. Don't expect to get any money back out of this car if you try to sell it.

 

Right, but the guy could have tried to install a J-spec turbo engine in his NA car. I know of many ignorant people who think that this is easy, and that the NA ECU and/or AFM will work. If that is the case, then you would just need to spend about $1,500-2,000 on an aftermarket EMS and some various other parts, and you would have a really nice car. I guess another option would be to source J-spec parts, but that wouldn't be as much fun. The SE drivetrain will handle the J-spec engine if you keep the power down to 200-230hp. The extra engine would be a plus, as you could rebuild it at your leisure, or even sell it for some extra cash.

I agree that it sounds fishy, though. Do you have a rotary-smart friend who can look at the car with you?

Here is a link to some brochures:
http://briefcase.yahoo.com/bc/mcgumr...ase.yahoo.com/

 

I am not exactly sure he might have said he got it from japanese auto shop or something. He sounded like he was sleeping even though it was 4pm.

Still do you guys think I could fix the engine by doing the ATF trick?

I asked him how many miles are on the engine he just put in and he said he doesnt know.

So I should go there and check it out, show him all the defects of it tell him new engine is $2k plus installion(even though I can do it myself), then say i'll give $500 for it, since its in pretty bad condition.

 

No. Plan on spending $2K for a new engine, but if it turns out to be a simple fix, then that would be nice. Remember, there could also be other problems that you, or even the owner, doesn't know about.