'93 or '94 Which one to buy?
 

Hey Guys, I've been looking into getting a 3rd Gen RX7 and have found two of them pretty close to eachother. One of them is a '93 Touring Black & Tan with 69k miles for $15,000 and the other is '94 with 69.5k for $16,500..

The first car has a down pipe, cat-back exhaust, boost gauge and lowered springs.

The second car is pretty much stock..

The mods that are down to the first car are, in my opinion, what I would end up doing to a stock car anyways..so now are there any distinct advantages with the '94 over the '93 that I should pay attention to, or should I just look at the lower price and go with the '93??

One running change I seem to notice with the Black & Tan's is that the '93 had the door panels also tan while the '94 has black door panels..

Please advice, thank you..

93 vs 94
 

Take the 94. The 93's have several well documented quality issues that were addressed and fixed for the 94, such as the paint. Also, he has done two modifications that increase airflow and boost, without doing anything to increase fuel delivery. This car is likely running quite lean and may be ready to blow.

There are half (or less) as many 94's out there as there are 93's.

Take a look at the build date on the 93. Most of the issues were fixed before 94. It's not like it was "BAM" 94s came out and everything changed. It was a slow process. Many people can't seem to grasp this concept and gripe about 93s. And even if it was an early 93 it might still be a better buy. Take a look at the car and pay close attention to issues that early 93s have. Not all 93s experience the problems and many have been fixed up. My advice is to ask each owner/seller for records. A good owner will normally keep good records. Second have them inspected by a reputable Rx-7 specialty shop. They will be able to spot things that will be problems down the road. As for the mods creating a lean condition that is going to make the car "blow", well that depends on the car's boost levels. Stock boost with those mods is ok. Even if it isn't detonation happens once and if it hasn't happened yet then there is no damage and the lean condition can be cured.

Go for the 93. The 94 is too expensive.

Thanx for the input guys. The '93 was bought and put through a RX-7 speciality shop shortly after. I will ask for the records and also for the make of the car..

The owner of the '93 has only had the car for 1 year in which time he has put on 8k miles doing basically highway driving. Not sure how the previous owner dealt with the car. I've asked when the mods were done to see if I can put a timeline to things..

Tyson, could you ellaborate on the other quality issues beyond peeling paint? Is there some location that lists these things that I can look up??

The $1500 difference isn't that big, and I will indeed pay the higher price for the '94 if that is a better deal..

Another advantage of the 94 over the 93 is that in 94 Mazda added subframe connectors to the RX-7 to help control wheelhop.

TSB lists
 

I will look more when I get home, but here is one list of the Technical Service Bulletins that have been posted for third generation RX-7's.
RX-7 Club

The paint does not actually peel, it chips easily.

go for the 94,
it has a passenger air bag
interior that wont peel, no worries about recalls.
and you can get a car loan for it if you need one(loan agencies
wont give you a loan for anything before 94, unless you find it
at a dealership).

thats why I want a 94.

these cars are all so old that any quality issues are either not going to break or have been fixed.

mike

Thanx for all the comments guys..I think I'll refocus my search for this and other '94's..but please keep any and all other comments coming..

can you explain these subframe connectors to me? Im not sure exactly what you are talking about.

this is getting to be my most popular post... just behind coolant issues.

quoting someone from a long time ago:

Just to pass my knowledge on from being a former Mazda Service manager this is some of the stuff that's different as the years went by, this will apply to all RX7's not just R1,R2's, touring,PEP,base, etc.

1. 94-95 Instrument cluster is different due to the fact of having no small indication lines between numbers
2. 94-95 Have smaller rear swaybars.
3. 94-95 Have different dash panels in the way that they're not painted and won't peel like the 93's
4. 94-95 Have 2 additional braces under the rear subframe to minimize the rear subframe from flexing under load(Mostly to try and prevent axle hop)
5. 94-95 Have dual airbags.
6. The EGR system on the 94-95 is different.
7. The 93's were the only ones that came with chrome colored intake manifold nuts.
8. The 93's intake elbow on the throttle body was grey colored, not black like the 94-95.
9. Touring didn't exist in 95 it was replaced by the PEP package, even though the PEP package was introduced earlier in 94.
10. Only Tourings came with glass sunroofs.
11. Only 93 offered a CYM(Competition Yellow Mica) on R1 models
12. There was no white RX7 in 93, only 94-95.
13. R1 and R2's only came in Yellow, Red, Black, and Silver.
14. 95 RX7's used R134 A/C refrigerant, not R12 like the 93-94.
15. 95 RX7's also used a lighter ABS system than the 93-94.
That's all I can think of right now that some people don't know about if I think of anything else I'll let you guys know.


I believe I have a few more at home.

lenny: everything to do with the updates on the '94 suspension are either there to address customer complaints of too stiff suspension on the '93's or to eliminate wheel hop. I don't know how detailed of an answer you're looking for, but these would be to help prevent wheel hop.

Cypher: Go with a '94, or even better yet, a '95. The only reason to get a '93 is because it fits in your budget. (not a very good reason) or it's a CYM.

go with the 94 for quality issues and resale value. plus my mechanic said they changed some part of the back of the chassis (might be subframe connectors) to make it better. the gas tank was baffled better after 93 too he said.

Buy the best car you can afford within reason.

It does not matter if it is a 93 or 94 even a 95, there are many RX7's that have been neglected, unless you get the car cheap AND have a hook up for cheap parts and service the car yourself you don't want a "fixer".

I've have 7 1993s, two parts cars and all the rest were nice running driving cars, I've seen beat-up 94s that would be worse than a 93 and I've seen bad 93s also. All or at least most of the issues that plauged early 93's were fixed before the 94 model year started. Even if the factory didn't fix them many problems have been fixed under warranty or by previous owners.

The problems that Mazda fixed were for the most part minor annoyances, not major reliability issues (peeling interiors, peeling paint on center caps, quickly wearing clutch material, squeaky hoods, clunking suspensions) all this can be pretty much detected on a test drive, some things such as the clutch most certainly have been replaced by now. There were 9000+ 93s, ~3500 94s and 500 or so 95's.

The engine and turbos last just as long on a 93 as a 94, 94's have the same turbo control system as 93s.

Mazda DID change TWO small brackets on the rear subframe in 94, I have one of these 94 subframes at home. The part is a bolt on basically and I can't imagine that bracket being a criteria for buying a 94 over a 93.

Jeff

If someone wants to post it somewhere I can send a pic of this infamous rear subframe part added to the 94s. It isn't that big of deal, really...

Wow..thanx for all that great information..I'm not a CYM fan..I'm looking for a Black & Tan or Red & Tan..so I think I will definetly look for 94+..as far as the budget goes..I think I can handle it..

Now if I can just find some cars in the Northeast, I'd be in great shape..:)

94 and up for sure... If only for the fact that the doors don't go "PONG" when you shut them! :rolleyes:

let's see, early 93s = chipping dash and exterior paint; only one airbag; doors that go "PONG"; exhaust manifolds that crack easily; gauges don't look as nice...

94 = less cluttered gauge faces; no chipping dash or paint; glove box even shuts and opens better; exhaust manifolds don't seem to crack nearly as often; dual airbags for the honey;all around build quality improved greatly; and finally the all-time best reason, doors do NOT go "PONG" when shut! ;)

Have to agree 94 has a much better sound when closing the door, I love the glass sunroof (only available on the 94) 93-95's had the metal ones, glove box is a deffinate improvement, and the only parts that are tan are the carpet and seats. 93's had tan plastics as well which scuff up terribly.

GO FOR THE 94 YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THAT PASSENGER SIDE AIRBAG COULD COME IN HANDY!