Been wanting an RX7 for years, and although I can pay it with cash right now, I want to finance it. So I will find a credit union that will finance it (for personal reasons) and pay it off quick.

My main question is, is this car worth it?

https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invent...ting=297701304

He said the compression test was done approximately 300 miles ago, and I am welcome to go test drive the car in person, which is great. Only downside is the current 5th owner said since he is the 5th owner, he does not know if the rotors are completely stock. Any recommendations would be great. My only concern is, even if everything checks out, I don't want to be ripped off paying more than I should AND this isn't my ideal choice. My first is: White, Black Montego Blue, Red.


Thanks alot.

 

Looks like a nice solid car, tasteful mods that are reversible if you want a garage statute or are OCD. It’s an R model, which imo, is at least as important as color. Since you’re in CA and it’s smogged I think that would also be critical.
There’s a lengthy thread here with nearly everyone’s OPINION on valuation you might spend some time on that. You need to decide if it’s the car for you at that price. If you can’t do that then maybe you need to watch the market a little longer so you have a better sense. Just remember that cost and price are two different things.

 

Thanks. My main gripes are the low compression on the car and the high price since when it blows, which it will soon, will cost me easily 15K.

What do you reckon would be a reasonable offer. I like the car, but would love a white if I could find a nice one.

 

For a nearly stock RX7 with an asking price of $43,000, IMO there's no such thing as a reasonable offer. Maybe California is different, but an engine rebuild won't cost you $15K. Assuming you can do most of the work like pulling engine, etc and your internals are reusable. My car blew a coolant seal years ago and I spent $3K on the rebuild and that came with upgraded seals, resurfacing, porting, etc. Keep in mind that whatever you pay for an FD, expensive mods will come with ownership. Its part of the deal

It pains me that its nearly impossible to find a nice used FD for under $20K. White FD's are hard to come by, but dang, they are perty!!

 

I hear you bro, I got money to blow on this, but at the same time I'm also trying to save as much as I can, while I can haha. I am just estimating with turbo, drivetrain and trying to do a safe 350-400 HP on an engine rebuild would end up costing me to the upwards of 15K. Yeah it does hurt to see them selling for 43K.

Just to clarify that I'm reading that right, you're saying 43K is really expensive, right?

 

I don’t know...I don’t think the compression numbers are all THAT bad or indicate impending doom. Check hot starts maybe but a coolant seal failure will likely be an issue first. And only a turn-key rebuild should come anywhere near that much.

 

Expensive is relative term. My perspective is, and I may get ridiculed for saying it, a $43K RX7 + 15-$20K parts puts you in new C8 territory which comes with super performance and financing with low interest rates. A safer and just as life changing move in my book. However, a $20-$25K RX7 changes the narrative. At that price range, RX7 all day long

 

i think that's high for that mileage. Two sold on BAT for around 46k with 21k and 35k miles. But if you want an R, your choices are limited.

 

I'm not going to comment on the price as I really don't follow the market big time.

I will say that the car is super clean, looks right under the hood and in the interior, looks right outside. It's definitely a clean, cared for car.

Compression is decent. Hard to say if it's the original engine or not, it's really hard to tell unless you do a deep dive and look for minor things that indicate the engine has come out. But, that's really not a deal breaker on these cars, most FD's have had their engine replaced at least once.

All that said, if you buy an FD you have to mentally and financially be ready for a motor going on you. It's not the worst thing in the world and it isn't the most expensive thing either. A new Mazda short block is about $4500 - get that and budget another $500-1000 for incidentals (clutch, hoses, gaskets, etc) and whatever labor to do the job or none if a shop does it.

Dale

 

Looks like an excellent car but not sure financing an old car is a good idea... Guess it depends on rates and such.
Maybe wait another year and keep saving?

 

I have more than enough money right now to buy it in cash and not blink and eye, but I just want to finance it and then pay it off at the end of the year in one big payment for my own reasons. Is there a penalty for paying early for most loans? Would avoid majority of interest if I did that if there was no early payment penalty right?

I completely agree with everything you said. My only negative factor right now is I don't care as much for it being an R and red wasn't my first preference. Also hearing some mixed reviews about the pricing, BAT may be the best bet and wait til I find the perfect grail RX7 FD that I wouldnt even mind spending the same price for.

 

usually not

red is the best and fastest color though

 

The R package isn't that big of a deal, the only real big thing is no sunroof. Everything else is either bolt-ons or deleted options. But it does help with value.

You can get financing on older/classic cars, ask around at local credit unions, they usually will have a really good rate. Typically with most car loans there's no penalty for early payment but it's worth asking about.

Cast a nationwide net looking for FD's for sale. It can be worth waiting for the exact one you want. Things like color and sunroof/no sunroof are costly/very hard to fix. By the same token, trashed interiors are damn near impossible to fix.

Dale

 

you might regret not buying it. in the FD world you have to just take a leap of faith. you might never find a white one/ the perfect one. car looks solid to me and you get what you pay for ......

 

For what it is worth:
In the Southeast this looks like an easy $35K for a 93 R1 assuming :
1 Never wrecked and all systems fully functional
2. Does not need paint
3 Complete .good condition interior...nothing to buy
4. Solid drive train....good running engine / trans / diff / suspension

The compression numbers compute for 70K miles....we keep a chart for all the stock original engines we test ( compression VS miles ) and the data for this one falls smack dab on the curve.
Don't know CA values but guess it is more than Southeast so $43K may be real close.

 

Tom, I would love to see a post with more information on this! That's some really interesting data!

Dale

 

You have to answer the question "is it worth it" because it's what you are willing to pay for what you want. If it's not what you want and you're not willing to pay for it, than it's not worth it. Now value is another question. That takes into account the market and what others are paying for a similar example. $43K may be a tad high for market value for that car in that condition, but negotiation may be priced in (i.e. you may be able to talk them down a couple $k). Comparables are a good gauge on value. You mentioned BAT being the "best bet". IMO prices on BAT are generally high because it's an auction format for nice examples. Plus there's the commission. Currently, there's a '95 with 55k at a current bid of $44.5k. Good luck.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1995-mazda-rx-7-12/

 

The lack of a driver airbag may be able to get the price down some. That may fail inspection in some states. I would also ask for a coolant leak test. If you are serious, you should have a mechanic go over it. 28 years and 70k miles wears down parts including rubber and suspension bits. That said, if the market is competitive there may be another buyer willing to pay asking w/o checking it out.

 

Thanks for the replies guys. I figured it'd be paying too much for something that is just about to get a blown engine. I am instead going to try to find a project RX7FD with a blown engine or close to blown engine that is overall relatively clean (not a piece of junk). My biggest hurdle now will be finding something like this.

No matter which RX7 I get, I will want to rebuild the engine *correctly* since that is the most important piece of the RX7 puzzle. Any advice or help on where I can find some RX7's in the 15-25K price range with this in mind, please let me know. Ideally would love a 94-95, but open to most years.

 

Finding cheap FD's with a blown engine but a nice car besides is a ship that's sailed. Used to be able to do that all the time, those are few and far between now. Any cheaper "project cars" will kill you in nickel and dime costs - there's a lot of FD's that some kid has trashed with busted interiors, hacked up wiring, hacked up suspension, cheap body kit glued on, etc.


For your first FD try and find one that's as nice as you can. It's good to have a clean car to start with instead of trying to figure out where in the boxes of unlabeled parts the bracket for the driver's speaker is. Seen that one too many times.

Remember, the engine is the cheap problem with these cars. A NEW Mazda crate engine is under $5000. A ratty car will cost you many times that amount.

Fortunately being in California there's a TON of RX-7's in your neck of the woods, but don't be afraid to cast a wide net and be ready to drive or transport the right car. A clean FD in the color you want and at a price you can live with isn't going to show up at the car lot down the road from you, these cars are way too rare at this point.

Dale

 

Thanks, that puts things into perspective.

I'm definitely willing to cast my net as far as possible, but would prefer if it was already registered in California. Will be looking, but I feel like looking on forums, facebook market place, car listings is still a bit limited. Think the best deals are probably bought by folks who are in the scene already, especially rotary mechanic shops.

Will definitely focus on a clean car in the color I want that is also in good condition. Still think this price is quite a bit overpriced though, and if I were even to get him down to 40k, that would be a 46-47K car with even a brand new engine (including no other work).


Thankful for all the advice, just going to keep looking and find that clean RX7 that I truly want.

 

I just heard from a fellow I met who said that you can buy a brand new fd engine from Mazda, not remanufactured for about 6k or so. No turbos tho. He ordered it from the dealership and shipped from Japan.

 

That's probably going to drive up the prices of nice FD's now, right?

 

Sorry for the double post. This car is quite expensive, but it's only got 42K miles and I do actually like the black color quite a bit. I reckon I may be able to work down the price a little bit, and the dealer might be able to finance it.

What would you guys price this car at if you were personally going to get it and it met your checkmarks?

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...8709/overview/

 

93 Touring. Nice car. Mileage catches the eye, but if it’s been sitting or not maintained it can have issues too. The interior and the mods don’t really appeal to me personally and could be hard to reverse...but if it trips your trigger get it. You said you have paying for figured out.
Honesty if you’ve been looking and taken the time to search here and read the “buying” threads in the FAQ sticky you should have some idea of value in the market and what to look for. Strictly MY PERSONAL OPINION I go for the VR R1 all day long, especially if I lived in CA, the car was in CA. AND smogged, I could see the car in person instead of traveling to Illinois. But that’s what makes the world go around.