I am new to rotaries but have been a fan of them for a while. I hav read about alot of problems ( shifter problems, low compression,....) from alot of different places and I am not sure if these occur alot or just somthing that happens 2 or 3 times in the cars life. I know this is a sports car and requires maintenance as does any car but, I am not a person to dump 4 or 5K into a car in acouple of months, unless its mods but still. If someone could help me out it would be greatly appreciated.

 

Are you looking to daily drive one?

My advice is this: unless you really like working on a car all the damn time, spend that extra grand or two on a clean car. Most people here wouldn't pay more than like $2000 for an n/a and maybe $3000 for a Turbo II. I say you go on Autotrader and be willing to pay that or more than that for a car with lower mileage or really well taken care of. People buy shitty neglected cars or they halfass their projects and then complain about the nightmares of owning a rotary.

That being said, even some of the nicer cars are going to need regular wrenching.

 

Thanks for the advice I will check it out!

 

I agree with Arghx.

An RX7 is a good car but you can't think of it as a regular car like a Civic or a Corolla. You have to take care of the rotary and do certain maintanence. If you neglect one thing like your cooling system, you can really mess things up.

 

Yep, they are right. Maintenance should be at the top of the list. Once they are taken care of, these cars can almost run forever.

 

Thanks, when I find one I plan on taking care of it.

 

The newest 2nd gen RX-7 is already 15 years old, so remember that these cars are old. Many have been abused and hacked.

The key to having an reliable RX-7 is to start with a car in good condition. Don't buy the first car you find. Wait until you can either find or afford one that has few problems and has not been abused.

The FAQ has how to buy guides for both NA and turbo models which cover common problems.