2nd Generation Specific (1986-1992) 1986-1992 Discussion including performance modifications and technical support sections.

What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old May 6, 2010 | 05:39 AM
  #1  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
Question What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?

My car wont start i am not sure if the engine is blown, but let's say it is how much can expect to get if i were to sell my car as is .My car is a 1988 turbo 2 it has leather interior and antilock brakes ,it is stock no modifications of any kind . Thx
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 06:03 AM
  #2  
Go48's Avatar
Rotary Freak
Tenured Member 15 Years
iTrader: (7)
 
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,608
Likes: 3
From: Mont Alto, PA
IMO, it depends completely on the condition of the rest of the car. Assuming it is in near mint condition--i.e., good paint, no rust, all other mechanicals in good condition--you may get around $2-3K AT MOST from an enthusiast. Most non-enthusiast, potential purchasers will not buy a car with a blown engine. If the condition is only fair or poor, expect to get less than $1K. Of course, this is only one opinion.
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 06:11 AM
  #3  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
Thx for the quick reply go48 , i would say it is in very good overall shape. I will post some pic's of the car later on to see what u or anyone else thinks,i might be selling it i have no mechanic skills.
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 07:01 AM
  #4  
clokker's Avatar
Cake or Death?
Tenured Member 10 Years
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 10,249
Likes: 64
From: Mile High
Originally Posted by redturbo
My car wont start i am not sure if the engine is blown, but let's say it is how much can expect to get if i were to sell my car as is...
This situation presents you, the seller, with two problematic options.

As it sits now, you're not selling a car, you're selling a rolling chassis.
Regardless of condition, the market for such a thing is miniscule...you either need someone who is planning a swap and doesn't care about the motor/transmission or an enthusiast who is not scared of a motor in unknown shape.

Far easier to sell would be a car with a freshly rebuilt motor but that would require you to shoulder the financial burden of the rebuild until the car was sold...and even then you'd have to hope to recoup your costs.
Again, you'd have a fairly small pool of potential buyers.

Although there should be no shame attached to having little mechanical ability, it does make things more difficult when dealing with a niche market car.
I'd think you're best bet would be to find a rotary specialist and buy a diagnostic so you can get some sort of idea what's going on.
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 08:58 AM
  #5  
arghx's Avatar
rotorhead
Tenured Member: 20 Years
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
iTrader: (3)
 
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 16,205
Likes: 461
From: cold
if it's got a blown motor and you can't easily/inexpensively rebuild yourself it you'd be better off just selling the rolling chassis. if it's in good shape it might go to a rotary enthusiast, if it's in bad shape it will likely have its soul ripped out
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 12:15 PM
  #6  
Spectrum24x's Avatar
Coolant Leak
Tenured Member 10 Years
 
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 490
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, TX
The best financial decision might be to part it out, as stated before if its in poor condition you can expect under 1k... However you could sell the blown motor by itself for about 400, the complete drivetrain for around 1k if its in good condition, any salvagable interiror parts I.E. leather seats could go for about 200, then when its stripped, you could still sell the naked rolling chassis to an enthusiast for about 400 bucks...
If your up to the challenge that's gonna be the best profit...

If you do this btw, i call dibs on the drivetrain and leather seats =)
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 12:37 PM
  #7  
Spectrum24x's Avatar
Coolant Leak
Tenured Member 10 Years
 
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 490
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, TX
.
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 12:52 PM
  #8  
hurleysurf24's Avatar
wtf rotary wtf
Tenured Member 15 Years
iTrader: (3)
 
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 2,756
Likes: 1
From: Who knows
Under 1000 if its not mint.
Reply
Old May 6, 2010 | 02:42 PM
  #9  
st1llet0's Avatar
Senior Member
Tenured Member 10 Years
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 667
Likes: 0
From: KCMO
Originally Posted by hurleysurf24
Under 1000 if its not mint.
It depends on how long you can wait.
I blew the engine in my 89 GTU, with crappy, dirty interior, flaking white paint, and a crushed drivers fender for $1000 in a week, but it did come with brand new falkens on stock wheels.

It's all about how long you want to sit on it.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 02:22 PM
  #10  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
here are some pics pf the car,in one of the pics u will see wires on the floor and the plate that covers the radio and the baskets are not in the car my brother was in process of installing a stereo for me and was looking to get the rear wiper working and also the radio antenna .The car ran great drove it home 1 day parked the went to start it 2 days later it would not start.I will post it on craig list for 1,500 see if any one is interested.
Attached Thumbnails What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-001.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-002.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-004.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-005.jpg  
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 02:32 PM
  #11  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
couple more pics

A few pic's
Attached Thumbnails What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-012.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-008.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-009.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-010.jpg   What is my car worth when a rebuild is required?-picture-011.jpg  

Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 02:36 PM
  #12  
BASTARD's Avatar
®
Tenured Member: 20 Years
iTrader: (4)
 
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 2,282
Likes: 3
From: NorCal
Originally Posted by redturbo
The car ran great drove it home 1 day parked the went to start it 2 days later it would not start..
put some plugs in it and fire it up
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 02:43 PM
  #13  
jimmy_trader's Avatar
Aloha Icemark, Play Well.
Tenured Member 10 Years
iTrader: (4)
 
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 133
Likes: 0
From: Tropical Rainforest - Puna, Hawaii
What makes you think the engine is blown?
You might want to consider checking a few simple things before you sell it.
Otherwise somebody might show up with $1500 and $20 worth of spark plugs and drive away with your "blown engine."
At least get a compression test done before you write it off; It might just be flooded.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 02:44 PM
  #14  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
redturbo

If anybody here is interested or has any questions let me know, the car is located in Queens ,NY.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 03:40 PM
  #15  
need RX7's Avatar
Listen to King Diamond.
Tenured Member: 15 Years
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
iTrader: (4)
 
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 2,859
Likes: 13
From: Sterling Heights, MI
You could probably get 1k for that car with a blown engine. Looks likes it's in pretty good shape.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 03:58 PM
  #16  
farberio's Avatar
NASA-MW ST4
Tenured Member: 20 Years
iTrader: (7)
 
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 3,800
Likes: 3
From: Norcal, Bay Area
try to deflood it first. It is a clean car, wish you were closer.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 05:06 PM
  #17  
DBookatay's Avatar
Why? Why?? WHY???
Tenured Member 15 Years
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 342
Likes: 0
From: Danbury, CT
I'll give you $800 cash as it sits....
I'm in CT and can be there tomorrow with a tow truck and take it off your hands@
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 07:49 PM
  #18  
barnett87rx7's Avatar
lite rotary = easy push
Tenured Member 10 Years
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,385
Likes: 0
From: Whitby
only worth what someone is willing to pay you for it
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 07:53 PM
  #19  
Hypertek's Avatar
Slowpoke
Tenured Member 05 Years
iTrader: (3)
 
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,273
Likes: 6
From: Socal
get it running.. non-running rx7s arent worth a dime because of how the rotary engine has a bad reputation to people who dont know about them.
Reply
Old May 7, 2010 | 08:49 PM
  #20  
RTRx7's Avatar
Rammer Jammer
Tenured Member 15 Years
iTrader: (2)
 
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 750
Likes: 1
From: Atlanta, GA
Originally Posted by Go48
IMO, it depends completely on the condition of the rest of the car. Assuming it is in near mint condition--i.e., good paint, no rust, all other mechanicals in good condition--you may get around $2-3K AT MOST from an enthusiast. Most non-enthusiast, potential purchasers will not buy a car with a blown engine. If the condition is only fair or poor, expect to get less than $1K. Of course, this is only one opinion.
An enthusiast would know better than to pay that much for a car that will require a $2500 rebuild. When you buy something, you don't give the seller the offering price of a best case scenario. You start by assuming the worse and they meet you in the middle.

There are plenty of half done turbo IIs on this board going for more than 2k. They have been on here for months, and they will sit here until the sellers decide to meet someone at a fair price for a rolling shell.

Like clokker said, an experienced buyer is aware of the market value of an rx7 that doesn't run. No one cares how much you put into it or how little you would have to do to get it running. All that matters is the last fact, it's not running.
Reply
Old May 26, 2010 | 01:59 PM
  #21  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
Thx for your advice,jimmy trader and faberio and this site i was able to get the car running with my brothers help..The car was really flooded and the spark plugs still need to be replaced my brother just cleaned them of with some fine sand paper for now.one question i want to replace the plugs , are the plugs for the turbo rx7 and naturally aspirated rx7 the same.For any noobs like me i downloaded a pdf file on unflooding that i found online there were 2 methods easy way remove fuse, and the harder way removing the plugs witch was the one that worked for my car.
Reply
Old May 26, 2010 | 02:11 PM
  #22  
redturbo's Avatar
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Tenured Member 05 Years
 
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
From: ny
THX jimmy for the advice my engine is fine was flooded like u said.
Reply
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
cam_7779
2nd Generation Specific (1986-1992)
9
Aug 18, 2015 07:48 AM
rx7brandon
General Rotary Tech Support
3
Aug 16, 2015 10:55 AM
ncds_fc
New Member RX-7 Technical
1
Aug 15, 2015 10:06 AM




All times are GMT -5. The time now is 08:47 PM.