mnbv

It has new (black) paint, hardtop, manual, 157,000 miles. Seems to be in very good condition, they have records of everything they have done. I have no idea what to look for when I go check it out. It is N/A. Is it possible to check the compresion on a rotary? Sorry if I sound new. I am looking to buy this car as a d/d, and also I was wondering if they are reliable and parts won't breck on them spontaneously(I will drive carefully). I don't want this car to turn into a money pit. What do you think would be a good price for this car? The blue book says around $2100, but they are asking much more. What do you think is fair?

mali_FC

usually these cars have electrical problems. don't get scarred it's not bad bad.
keep a spare of light cluster(the plastic cover w/relays & switches above the steering wheel), watch for your alternator(get a good battery).

don't use synthetic oil

welcome to the forum

mnbv

What are some good questions to ask when I go up to look at it? (plus my other questions I asked)
Thanks guys.

mnbv

Will I lose a lot of money if I buy this rx-7 compared to a camery or the like?

elfking

Welcome, you kind of have to think of it this way. These cars are not brand new. It sound like the previous owner has taken better care of it then most of the cars out there. Even so things will break. 16+ years of wear and tear, don't expect it to be flawless.

Same thing goes for your Camery if its new then you will have less issues with it.

How much are they asking for the car?

Somethings you might ask them is, not to run the car before you come to look at it. Pop the hood and take the radiator cap off, ask them to start it while you are looking at the radiator. If you see a ton of bubbles then that engine might need a rebuild soon. Or watch for any smoke out the back.
Black, blue or white. Condensation is ok, but extensive smoke that continues through a test drive is no good. Make sure to put the radiator cap back on! After your done looking of course..

Is the car a 5speed or automatic? Personally id stay away from any of the automatics out there unless you want to swap it.

Also take a look at where the temperature gauge likes to sit in the car. 1/4 way? 1/2 ?

Theres also a lot more info here from one of the moderators here:
http://www.aaroncake.net/RX-7/buy1.htm

If you take a look at the FAQ at the top of the page listing of peoples posts you will find more links about what to look for.

The answer is yes, you can do a compression test on a rotary. You need to modify a standard piston compression tester though.

What I listed were just a couple of things I would look for. Good luck.

tie pilot

just out of curiosity, did you know that 1987 falls into the series 4 category of 2nd gen 7's? being as the car is GXL (which means relative luxury, rather than stripped out performance) you may want a series 5 car (1989-1991).

I bought my 1990 GXL without knowing the difference between s4 and s5, and now that I've had it almost 5 months, I'm very glad that I got an s5. there's a little more power in an s5, but most of the differences are cosmetic. since it's a daily driver though, looks matter to me. you may decide that you want an s4 after all, or that you don't care either way, but it's definitely worth reading up on before you make an investment.

FYI, I got my 1990 (series 5) GXL in florida for $2,500, with 60,000 mi. on a rebuilt engine in perfect running condition and good cosmetic condition. You said they're asking "much more" than $2,100 for that s4 GXL with 157,000 miles on the motor and chassis? hmm...

mnbv

The car is really great and I am going to look at it soon. They are asking for 3750, way way too much I know. I will go in there saying $2000 cash, and not go any higher then $2400 (unless I feel like I could resell is for the same amount in a few years) I have a big list of things to look for here... lol you already posted it. If the insurence it too high, I may not consiter it. It is manual and has almost all the options. See, the thing is I mostly want this car as a fun/good looking d/d that I will also drive in the winter to school and to work/friends etc. I will be getting a motorcycle this summer for speed. I will ride the bike as much as possible, the rx-7 is just for when I need a car.

ckyguy

i got my 87 gxl here in WI for $1400, with 103k miles, but bad clutch that cost $400 to replace. what they want is rediculous.

apexme

depends where you live condition of the paint mileage tranny, the age of the people and reason for selling, what and how much they bought it for.

there are many things that determine what ppl sell a car for, depending on the condition of yours i'd have to say good job, of course in sc you can get them all day long for under 2000

mnbv

Will I have a lot of problems with this 87 gxl even if I only drive it occationaly?

tie pilot

probably not. you never know what's going to happen with ANY car, of course... but I drive my GXL all the time, even in "extreme" confitions (dirt roads) and I've had no problems with it.

holy crap, I just realized I've put 10,000 miles on my car in less than half a year. that's crazy.

mnbv

I looked at the car today and drove it. It had a bunch of door dings and a few scraches on each side. The lower window trim was cracked, but I think that I can repaint that to make it look new. It has a newer paint job that is 600$ from Macco(it is black). The paint looks good, but the dings/scraches take away from the quality. The tires were basicly gone, need to replaced soon. After starting it for the first time that day, is smoked white for about 40 seconds(it was 50* out). Exaust tips were both quite rusted. There was no power steering that I could tell, it took a lot of effort to turn. He said that the power steering has slowly gotten worse, but he thought might just need new fluid. Mechanicly, every thing was good surprisingly. There were no eletrical problems at all. Cluch is new, belts + hoses all new, shocks were new, aftermarket CD player (stock speakers). The car started easily, did not flood after the test drive. The best part was that it was never driven in winter and there is no rust. The blue book was 1800, and I am asking 2400. He wants 3500. He has full maintenence records, every thing is up to date. Does 2400$ seem fair for this 87' garage kept n/a gxl?

tie pilot

woah... he said the power steering "might just need new fluid" ???

if that's all it needs, why hasn't he tried it alerady?

that, in combination with the new cheap paint job sounds supsicious.

I don't know anything about the white smoke, maybe someone with more engine knowledge than me can chime in on that.

all the new parts are impressive, but do you want a lot of new parts or do you want a good car? I hope you don't take me the wrong way, I'm definitely not trying to dampen your spirits, but just step back from the situation and think off all the things people usually do to try to make a car "look better" when they sell it. how many of those things do you see here?

again, don't take my word for it... you've seen and driven the car, not me just be as skeptical as possible, and keep shopping in your price range!!! just for copmarison. look on autotrader under $2500 and see what shows up.

Brian S

Generally the n/a's hold up over time compared to a Turbo model. They are less prone to being beat on are basically used as a daily driver. So the engines can hold up for awhile, but still are still in the orange zone for engine failure. Thing to do is really get a compression test done, and then if you do choose to buy it make sure to do all the general maintence and such. Mainly give it an oil change, and check all fluids.

mnbv

I just am trying to bring the price down. It has definatly not been beat on, he said he puts about 6k a year on it (adult daily driven). Next thing to do is take it to a Mazda dealer for a compresion test and find an estimate on the cost to fix the door dings.

One thing I am worried about is finding someone besides the dealer to fix something when I need to. When the car needs something other then regular maintenence, will only the dealer be able to fix things (at a huge price)? I am asking this beacause I called a few car shops like goodyear and they said they wont touch a rotory. What could breck or give out (that would require work from the dealer) that I can check the next time I go see it again? How else can I talk this guy down on price?

SecondgenRX_7

Buy a haynes book and do it yourself. me and a buddy of mine rebuilt his 83 gsl's motor. its pretty easy. dealers are gonna screw you. as for the dings buy a sliding hammer and a can of body filler and have at it

Brian S

Well the things that can break on a 7 are about any moving and non moving part of the car. Like stated above, it's best to get yourself a haynes manual on the car so you know what you're doing if you decide to go in depth.

Now if something does seriously go wrong, you might be able to fix it yourself depending on your mechanical knowlage, with help from other forum gurus. I've done numerous things with my old 7 that I wouldn't have done normally with the help of forum members. The one thing with cars that you need to learn is that it's just bolts..

uRizen

iTrader: (2)

Cool, another guy from MN I haven't seen this FC in the ads, where did you find it? And what's with the retarded prices in this state when it comes to 7's? The one I"m looking at they're asking $4k for and will not budge to save their life.

mnbv

Ok, so I am trying to make a list of repairs/parts that will bring down his asking price, as he is asking a price that would be for a perfect n/a fc ($3750). Insurence is $92 a month for me.

The tires need to be replaced, very low tread-$200?
Door dings-$300-400 estimatied
Power steering does not work- around $300 at a shop to fix
Rusted exaust tips- around $100
I have yet to check the compresion, I have no idea how to do this. I may bring it into a Mazda dealer. My biggest question is------>How is the engine doing internaly, and how long will it last untill something will go wrong with it? How can I check to see if seals or something is going bad engine wise?

pyrojunkie

Ditch the power steering and don't worry about the exhaust tips and just get a cat-back.