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In all honesty is a fd ok for a daily driver?

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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 12:43 PM
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Exclamation In all honesty is a fd ok for a daily driver?

I'm in college and I have a job, having a car that will constantly break on me is out of the question. I will fix it up with all the reliabilty mods and will eventually go single ( nothing big, xs to4e or gt 35/40). I live near marvelspeed so I will go to them for a rebuild. I don't think there is a car that looks as good as the 7, I would really enjoy to have this car. I hated to do it but I was going to dsm. I was looking into buying a awd talon turbo they are not costly to make fast so thats what I was going to do. all in all I would like to have the rx7 more so if anyone could give me some advise and or post what your DAILY driver has, and if it reliable or not thank you>
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 12:46 PM
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You pick the 2 worst cars for daily driving...... Go single keep the boost down and dyno tune it with a healthy fuel ratio on the FD. It should last then.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 12:49 PM
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get a really cheap beater car...

FD is not meant for daily driving.. and if you do drive it daily.. just make sure it isnt 5 minute bank trips
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:22 PM
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if you have the money to mod the fd...why not get a beater??? i had my fd as a daily driver for about 1.5 yrs. i then bought a beater (89 prelude) best money i spent...my insurance only went up $16 a month....and it feels so nice to beat the **** out of a car after being so retarded about my fd....
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:23 PM
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Arrow

Check this thread, it's pretty much the same discussion:

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...hreadid=115425
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:28 PM
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I've had my FD for 6 years as a daily driver. It sure makes the commutes more bearable. Since, I actually like being in my car.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:41 PM
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Originally posted by SERIES7
Been getting around 275-295 miles per gallon, which is awesome for the FD
Wow! You must be using the new fuel cell powered rotary engine!

I think in the long run you'll be more cost-effective if you find a cheap "beater" car, saving the wear and tear from your 7.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:44 PM
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The car is made to be driven, I've daily driven my car and raced it (strip, auto x, ect...) and haven't had any problems just keep the car happy.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 01:52 PM
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Originally posted by the_glass_man
The car is made to be driven, I've daily driven my car and raced it (strip, auto x, ect...) and haven't had any problems just keep the car happy.
I agree with you, but making random trips to the grocery store, bank, dentist, doesn't really bring you the same satisfaction as going all out at the track/road course. It's just more time/resource/energy intensive to maintain when you use it everyday for non-performance applications on top of your track sessions.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:09 PM
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From: SOUTH LOUISIANA
I don't think I could bring myself to use my FD everyday. I just wouldn't like to see that odometer go up. GET A BEATER.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:25 PM
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I too use my FD as my daily driver, I commute from Ventura to Santa Barbara (85mi r/t) and the only drawback is the 25k mi/year at an 18mpg average consumption of $1.85/gal Premium gasoline.

Last edited by maxpesce; Oct 14, 2002 at 02:40 PM.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:27 PM
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Woah premium at 93 octane cost 1.45 the other day when I filled up. I love Texas .
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:40 PM
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In CA we get 91 octane and pay dearly for the privlage, partly because of the 7.25% sales tax and the #.09/gal STATE excise tax
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:41 PM
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91 octane permium gas here is around $1.39-$1.49
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:44 PM
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I'm in college and the FD is my only ride. It's definitely worth it.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 02:58 PM
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From: Tejas
i used my fd for a daily driver for three years...and raced it

went thru two motors and a couple sets of turbos....tires..you name it...if ya dont got the cash to maintain it then it is not a good daily driver.

most guys i know with 3rd gens have their car down at least a couple days a month for repairs and sometimes more during the bad months here and there.

get a beater...or a truck and use it for grocery shopping and other crap thats a waste of miles on the fd.


j
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 03:22 PM
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After driving my FD everyday for 2 years, i'm finally ready for a beater. I think it is the smart thing to do. I drive alot(30,000 a year), and I am just not able to keep up with the repairs. It has 110,000 miles, and stuff is just starting to wear out. I don't mind, but I have to have a reliable car. if I had it to do over again, I would absolutely have a daily driver. Boston roads are the worst in the country, and I feel bad driving it everyday.
Just my 2 cents.
Jim
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 03:29 PM
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How could you not get satisfation with an fd by using it as a daily driver? imo. So if I drive it daily and race it the motor will definately blow up? thats basicly what my understanding is. I thought if I took the engine to marvelspeed and had don build it for me, go single, and have chris at rp put in and tune haltech I would be ok. I thought if you did everything right there would be no problem in driving it everday.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 03:48 PM
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There are definitely people that have had success driving everyday. I did alright, but i'm just at the point where it makes sense for me to have another car. It depends on how many miles you do as well. If you go single, it greatly increases reliability, so it's a good bet that you'll be fine. I plan on going single for just that reason. I did not mean to rain on your parade. I drove my car everyday for over 2 years, and stomped anyone who messed with me as well. I was always looking for another victim to waste in a public place. I enjoy putting fear into other people that are supposed to have fast cars. I was basically a nice guy, with a mean streak. What can I say, I was picked on as a kid.
If I drove my car a little nicer, and had someone help me with what mods to do first, I probably would have done better than I did. Also, if I had started going to KD Rotary when I first bought the car, rather than trusting talented(but unproven) people, I most certainly would have had better luck.
I love my 7. I enjoy driving it everyday. I'm totally used to it. When I drive other cars, they feel like pieces of crap, and they always feel slow. I just bought a questionable car I guess. If you have proven 7 mechanics in your area, you will be golden.
Good luck
Jim
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:00 PM
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It seems to me that if you mod the car correctly and maintain it well it will be fine (JMO). Like the glass man said, it's meant to be driven.
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:12 PM
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I spent $xx,xxx in mods on my FD and the HELL if it's gonna stay in the garage.

A car is meant to be driven....I have too many friends with show/race cars that only see the light of day when there is an event or special occasion.

I'm different...and well another reason why my car got stolen....but for the 4 years I had the car I enjoyed the crap out of it.

I put 114k miles on it, drove it everyday everywhere....I still don't regret it.

Single T04S, FULL (real) KnightSports kit.....damn was it fun just to drive and feel people staring.

Chris
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:22 PM
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damn skippy Rotaryknight, I agree. All my friends have hondas, there good **** to. the thing is they have all spent over 10k and run mid 14's. I'm willing to spend every penny I have to make my car run faster, but If I spend over 10k on a car I might as well do it on a car that I want! why have a 14 sec civic with 10k invested when I can have a 7 with 10k invested? I have no problem with the od meter going up, I'm just concered with reliabilty
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:22 PM
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The car is meant to be driven ..

Use it and enjoy it, just look after it ..
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:28 PM
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From: Tejas
yeah...the car was meant to be driven...

too bad its over engineered and comes with a shitty intercooler...an underachieving radiator...turbos that bake the entire system and a motor that is prone to heat damage.



gotta love it


j
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Old Oct 14, 2002 | 04:51 PM
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greedy 2 row FMIC, Fluidine radiator, gt35/40 single kit. I think that will fix the problem there, yes I understand that cost about 7k, but a well investment, imo. would you rather buy a viper for around 50k or buy a 7 invest 15k in it and whoop the **** out of a viper?
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