Hey guys,
Im in college at the moment and joining the air national guard. Which in fact will be paying for the car and hopefully alot of college. Well i want to know if anyone is in college and owns a 3rd gen. Cause i want to know if its a dream or if it is possible to actually afford one. Im not planning on modding the thing to hell in a year but id like to do some little stuff. Some info from people would be nice---steve

 

I do the car is paid for already tho. But even so the maintainance, gas, and insurance is killing me. That plus paying for school and books doesnt leave anything in my bank account.

 

i know they require some good maintence, but with some good ol rel. mods can it work out where i can have a regualr car? lol

 

i was looking at a T2 but really want an fd for certain reasons. Or would everyone suggest something else?

 

Steve, I just bought one a few weeks ago. I'm going into my senior year at the Air Force Academy, so I'm in a similar situation. I haven't brought it out here yet, and it's still fairly new to me, so I couldn't tell you about the maintenance and all that stuff. But as long as you save a little extra cash for some reliability mods and repairs when they come up (plus gas - sheesh these things just suck it down like water), I would say it is very doable. The biggest problem I'm having is the damn insurance!

Rob

 

I'm in college and I have a 3rd gen, but I don't need it as a regular car so I'm probably not the best guide. It is very expensive to maintain and does need a lot of repairs, but I'm kind of obsessed so again... lol. Now that its summer and I have to commute to work it is a real daily driver, rush hour every day, but during school it mostly just sits around since I can walk everywhere. I'd budget about $2000 a year on repairs and maintenance if you drive it a lot and plan on having in the shop for about 14 days a year. Thats pretty reasonable. The ideal scenario would be to have two cars, one junker that you can beat on and an FD for fun. You can insure the junker as your primary car and the FD as a pleasure car, and you'll also get a multiple car discount. Then when the FD goes down for repairs you're not stuck hitching rides, and also if something major happens and you can't afford to fix it until you save up some money, you can ground the FD for awhile until you're ready. I know it sounds bleak but its best to be pessimistic about it and possibly be pleasantly surprised than the other way around.

 

I own one and have had it for a year in college. I would recommend it but definately have some rainy day money lying around in case you have problems and be willing to get greasy and install and fix things yourself. It has worked out well for me since the only shops i would trust are booked for months ahead of time. I had the air pump go, ast break, and little things that can all be fixed for less than 50 bucks each if you get the parts used and eliminate the ast. If you do it make damn sure that the engine and turbos are good and that it has a smooth shifting tranny. That's where a lot of money can go. Also the a/c is giving me trouble ( i know 2 other fd owners with shot a/c as well) and that can be a lot of money so check that out too. I am lucky enough to have a chuck of change saved up in case of any problems. So things will go wrong on this car but if you do your homework you will know what to keep and eye on and how to make it more reliable. There's no substitute for all the looks you get on a sunny day after you've spend hours washing and waxing or a late afternoon on the twisty back roads in an fd. You know you can't hold back. do it!

 

duckyip couldnt have put it any better. i'm a sophomore commuter, just got an FD in may. I'm working about 70+ hours a week right now just to get some cash in the bank, but insurance is a real bitch for fd owners our age. find a good job!

 

im 21, second fd. i definatly recomend one to a true car enthusiast, not just an "oh, that looks nice" it is a must to go find a "how to buy" on an fd, i think steve ciriani has one. do not rush into anything until youve met all your criteria. that sounds hard once youre sitting behind the wheel, but trust us all, it is just one stitch instead of nine. there are hundreds for sale, even though you dont see them much, so dont worry, yours will find you. next, learn the reliability mods from the same how to site. you can pretty much do them all yourself with a jack and tool set. and these are supercars not hondas, so DO NOT RAG THE THING OUT EVERYDAY

 

I'm in college and I have a 3rd gen, but there's no way in hell that I'm going to take my car to RPI. A member on this forum went to my school, and he had his CYM R1 egged, dinged, etc. He decided to transfer after someone(s) threw a desk through his hatch window. Right now my parents are putting my car on thier policy, which saves me about $3k a year. I suggest you talk to your parents (or anyone over 25 that you REALLY trust) about doing the same.

-Jon

 

2nd FD in my 4th year of college and I'll probably get my 3rd in my 6th year of college Honeslty though, I'm working full time w/ a good company that pays for my school and pays pretty well on top of that..... If you are working part time and like to have a social life an FD may not be good for your situation(although it can help out the social life too )... Everyone has different situations though?

 

I also go to college and own an FD. I paid it off the day I bought it but now I don't work so I don't have any cash to mod it at the moment. I used to be scared leaving it in the parking lot but my parents gave me an Explorer for X-mas so I drive that to school.

 

i'm in collage with an FD also, the only problem i run into everyday is driving the FD with the intention to go to school but ending up driving/enjoying my FD arround town and forgetting about class.

 

Yep, 21 here, senior at University of IL. '93 VR. I paid for the car and everything that goes with it, and I rent a garage down at school for it. I've got a '95 Escort as a daily driver. As someone else said, I also frequently skip class to go driving for a couple hours. Other than that "problem" it's all good.
~Tom

 

I have a '94 RX-7, plus a '98 Lexus SC 400 as my daily driver. I'm probably the exception rather than the rule. I saved for about a year then took out a loan to buy the RX-7. Paid it off within a year, saved for another year, and bought the Lexus...there were a couple raises in the meantime.

So, it is do-able, but I control my spending VERY well (I don't go out and run up a $50 bar tab 3 nights a week, no wasting money on hoochies, etc), and invest shrewdly. An investment I would strongly recommend would be an aftermarket warranty...mine has yielded a 200% ROI thus far, and that doesn't include engine and turbos yet. This way, you can budget for oil changes and such, and not have to worry about any huge expenses which may crop up.

 

college student here and own a 3rd gen !! Well two more payments and she's all mine If you don't plan on many upgrades you should be OK, but make sure you do all the check ups consistently......When I first got my FD I too said I was only going to do little mods and 3 years later, look what happened You can always go a little faster, and look a little better Currently Single turbo searching $$$$$$

 

Lol, nice post rx7 to jock. I am in the same boat. IN school and no money, but i love the 7 and love to do performance work. It is expensive as hell, but the rewards are pretty nice. I am a slave for the summer but the car feels good. I am knocking on wood and hoping though that nothing goes wrong. Goodluck with the car u will love it. As i always say; speed is the most potent legal drug.

 

i'm in college now and I'm picking up and FD this week if all goes well. i honestly don't think it's the best idea for me because I have tons of other expenses right now, but I just love the car. you just have to remember that you can't go out and blow all your money on beer and girls, like I have a habit of doing.

it's just one more responsibility to take care of. if you're a responsible person then you can do it easily. if not, the bank will be coming for your car. good luck to all those college FD owners out there.

 

i own a FD and im in h.s. but i work my *** off.......to pay the insurance........its under my moms name.......and im listed as a secondary driver..

dont flame on me please..........but my moms and dads bought the Fd..........but i have to pay for everything else............damn thing is expensive to upkeep


but hey its worth it..........sometimes i just get out and look back at her and im like **** yea

 

I have had my FD since I was a senior in high school and now I am a senior in College. It is hard at times since I like to tinker and modify the car, but is doable. i do most of the work on my car and get help from friends that are in the import scene as well.
On a side note I saw a lot of people from florida. wondering if any of you guys go to USF? also Is that you rajeev? havent seen you around campus lately.

Shawn
'93 SSM Base

 

oh to be young and have parents....that's the life...

 

i'm 20 and in college. i'm an exception. had my FD two years drove it 3000miles broken. now after $30k including car should be back and a little bit faster. i did invest in a few FC's in the mean time so i had something to drive while my FD was broken. i bought my FD with a broken coolant seal unknowingly, previous owner block welded it long enough to show signs a week later... all parts,car,insurance are in my name and paid by me

 

Told you....

 

Originally posted by oneflytrini
i own a FD and im in h.s. but i work my *** off.......to pay the insurance........its under my moms name.......and im listed as a secondary driver..

dont flame on me please..........but my moms and dads bought the Fd..........but i have to pay for everything else............damn thing is expensive to upkeep
We've both got the same deal. I've only been flamed once, and I was kinda asking for it. I figure **** anyone who judges me based on such information.


but hey its worth it..........sometimes i just get out and look back at her and im like **** yea
Me too. Sometimes I even do a little dance. I always park in places where I can watch people walk by and check out my car. As they walk by I'm just thinking to myself, "......0wn3d...........0wn3d.0wn3d...0wn3d........ ....0wn3d...."