Hi everyone,

I’m in the process of purchasing a 92 FD RX-7 with 23k miles. The car looks pretty stock and the auction papers from Japan has the car listed as a grade 4 (car has already been imported to the states).

The import dealer has provided a lot of pics and I was looking for advice or input on the condition of the car.

Does the underbody look like it was rusted but painted over or does it look normal?

Thanks in advance!

 

They steam cleaned that sucker haha

 

Looks like they used some kind of tire shine or silicone-based stuff on the underside to bring a sheen to the plastics and painted bits….even the inner side-walls of the tires. Maybe a little painting on the steel-casting of the differential and some strategic undercoating.

You will need an undertray/belly pan. Its missing on your car. And that’s pretty critical for proper cooling.
Battery cover is also gone.
Not certain but I only saw one set of oil lines so single rather that dual oil cooler. If that’s the case it would tend to rule out an ‘R’ model.
Is this an Auto? That trans. shield is different than my 5 spd.
If you buy it I’d plan to change ALL fluids asap.

 

appears as if, the rear subframe is painted since the cam bolts look like it

 

It has been painted underneath. There is overspray on the exhaust, on the diff, cam bolts, etc.

 

Is it safe to assume that there is probably rust underneath?

 

If this was a car that had major rust problems the exhaust would exhibit that. Stock exhausts get REALLY rusty as some of the metal is non-coated. That exhaust looks par for the course with a low mileage car.

It's possible they are covering things up, that's always the case, but the car looks solid from the underside.

Dale

 

It looks like a decent buy, keep in mind it probably sat in storage somewhere for a long time. The cooling panel is missing which was already mentioned and expect to come across some other weird things like that as you go over the car.

I'd still recommend finding the best LHD car you can instead of buying RHD. It will be easier to repair and more valuable but if you're not concerned about that buy what you like.

 

Try to get a good picture of the pinch welds that runs along the chassis if you can. (Where you lift the car up) That is a good indicator for rust. They will be warped or start to separate if there was rust. Dents are normal from jacks.



This owner started some prep work so ignore the bare metal. On this FC you can see the pinch weld separating.

 

can a JDM car even be registered in CA?

 

Like these?

 

Those pinch welds look fine; I don't see any bubbling or a big split. There is a natural split, but that's from the two pieces of sheet metal getting pinched together. It should look like two pieces of metal "staked," which I see in the picture.

This FD is fine. It looks better than mine, and I have a very small amount of rust. I say go for it.

 

Here's a better example, see how the pinch weld is starting to separate.

 

i think its theoretically possible, there is a lot of red tape though. since there are 49 other states where its easier (and cheaper), i don't know anyone who has really tried California

 

You can also run a CarVX using the VIN and get some info that way too. Highly recommend that before buying a RHD car.

 

So I got to test drive the car earlier this week and it was by far one of the best driving experiences I’ve ever had.

There were no leaks, smokes, or weird noises. Shifted into each gear without any problems and everything just felt buttery smooth.

I didn’t see my rust on the bottom, however, I did notice that the front bumper was a little off. I ran the CarVX and everything came back clean and the dealer said that it was a common issue on the FD3S chassis with the factory bumpers.

Can anyone confirm if this is true? Is there a fix or would I need to get a new bumper?

 

The OE urethane bumper covers sag/shrink with age and heat - it's normal.

 

Common? Not necessarily. Are fitment issues unknown on a 30 year old mass-produced car that may not have been carefully stored in a climate controlled garage all of its life? Absolutely not.
The fix might be to have a good collision shop adjust the fit…or insist the dealer do it.

 

Have them install a belly pan/undertray as well. They’re probably around $300 or more plus shipping. And an absolute must if you don’t want to cook the engine next summer. That would be more important to me than a misaligned bumper,

 

Any recommendations for brands? Or would the dealer be able to get something OEM?

 

Just get the OEM part, it's the best fitting piece available, it works and is super easy to install.

If you do go aftermarket, the only one I know is this piece from LRB Speed - https://lrbspeed.com/product/fd-aluminum-under-tray/

 

OEM. I think the part number is going to be
F140-56-1B0A series 6. And it should be the same for RHD and LHD. That’s really something they should put on the car for you IMO. Its a missing component. Kinda like selling it with three wheels and the donut spare.

 

F140 is for the 99+ cars

for 92-97 its FD01-56-1B0C