Is the FD suitable for a daily driver?
 

Hello,

I've been around on these boards now for quite a while (I believe this is actually my first post but hey!) mainly reading up on the heaps of information there is, but even so i still have a question that hasnt been answered unanimously.

Basically I am looking to get an FD, but it would be a case of selling my current daily driver car and using the FD as the 'new daily driver'.

I have looked at quite a few ones over the past months and ruled out those which are highly tuned and therefore more likely to need 'high maintenance' or be less reliable (area for discussion this I know, but generally speaking) I am actually looking at one this weekend which has only done 47,000 miles. The engine has never been rebuilt however...
It has quite a few mods including a Rear Carbon Spoiler, Stainless Steel Exhaust, Boost Gauge, BLITZ I-D Boost Controller, Massive Single TD06 20G Turbo With External Waste Gate, APEXi FC ECU With Comander, HKS Front Mounted After Market Intercooler, Induction Kit, Quick Shift Gears, After Market Fibre Glass Bonnet And Wings, Full Veilside Body Kit.

I am just asking the question if you think that an FD with either those mods listed above, or one with fewer mods would be a reliable daily driver?
Any help MUCH appreciated :)

Thanks
Nick

Search...
I personally wouldn't use a FD for a DD. When if breaks, and it will...what will you drive?

RX-7's Break........alot. Its a fact of life.

The FD is perfectly fine for a daily driver however it comes with a lot of "but's". I use mine as a daily and no issues aside from checking oil between oil changes and the stock radiator cracking once (can happen to any car) which was replaced with a better aftermarket one. This is pure speculation but even though that car has low mileage, it has some heavy boost mods with a lot of miles without a rebuild. I would venture to guess within 10k miles somethings gonna go wrong if not less. Again this is a pure guess and I have no idea how the previous owner has treated the car and neither do you so just be carefull. Worst case scenario, be prepared for a $4-5k engine rebuild.

Also, if I was a possible new FD owner who wants it for a daily, I'd be looking for a twin turbo setup with light mods (ie. intake/exhaust, fuel pump, bolt on ECU like the Petit, maybe an almost fresh rebuilt street port if your lucky). My 2 cents.

thewird

The general consensus of this forum is that the 13BREW will loose reliability over 350rwhp. So if you are going for a sick single build, de-tune it (less boost) for use as a DD!

Mine is a DD and ya. No problems thus far... if you have a significant other with a vehicle or if you live walking distance to work, then just do it bud!!

thewird,

Thanks for that reply, really appreciate the help. What mods are you running on yours?
To be honest, Im not buying an FD to make it the fastest car on the planet, I am buying one because I love them, I have always loved them, so even a stock one would keep me happy (for a while ;))

How many miles do you do per day in yours?

Get a compression test on the car, to see how healthy the motor is. A Rx7 is not a reliable car.

How so?? The owners of the cars are they ones that dont make them reliable.

i would have to agree with this

The path I chose... but there's many things you can do and still have a reliable car.

rebuilt engine with street port and 3mm apex seals
upgraded Bully clutch
Walbro 255lph fuel pump
dual filter K&N intake with heat sheild
3" down pipe and Racing Beat Dual-tip exhaust
H&R sport springs
Hawk hp plus brake pads
Apex-i turbo timer
Autometer boost gauge
strut tower brace
Koyo Performance radiator (Replacing the stock rad is recommended)
Replaced AST with a Aluminum AST made by Fighters (reliability mod)
PowerFC ECU (Had Petit ECU before I decided I wanted more flexibilty, injectors etc)
Greddy PRofec B-spec II Boost Controller (not necessary for you)
DATALOGIT (not necessary for you)
PLX Devices M-300 WideBand (not necessary for you)
Mazdee's built midpipe (Removing the cat is recommended only because I broke 2 in a year)
Custom SMIC (not necessary for you, stock one is fine)

I'm planning on upgrading the stock turbo's to the BNR Stage 3 twins and upgrade injectors to either 850/1000 or 850/1200. Basically there just able to do more boost reliably and efficiently.

thewird

Mine was a daily driver, but I found that it lost reliability over 0rwhp. Usually wasn't major stuff like rebuilds, but all kinds of little things went wrong with mine. Overheating alot, Slave cyclinders, alternators, relays, vacuum hoses, intake manifold gasket, clutch fork, etc.

I would daily drive it if you lived close to work, had easy access to a towing vehicle, and have back up vehicles.

Forgot to answer your question. I put about 20,000 km /year on the car. I did some tracking this year and next year I plan to do some more.

thewird

I would just make sure you don't live TOO close to work. My mechanic told me of a rebuild he did for a lady who lived only 2 or 3 miles from work and her 2nd gen engine took a dump at around 36,000 miles. When he took it apart, the buildup looked like it had been driven 200,000 miles.

Apparently she never had an Italian tuneup...it never got up fast enough to burn off the carbon. I'm lucky enough to live about 25 min from work giving me enough time to warm up properly and cool off properly, with about 5-10 minutes in the middle where there are no stoplights and a speed limit of 55 mph (where everyone drives about 75mph).

Since I just bought my FD I have not yet installed any mods, but very soon I'm going to do a stage 1 upgrade. My mech has some good recommendations and a list of upgrades and the order in which to do them. He worked on a Peter Farrell Supercars race team and heavily favors using PFS parts. His website is www.rxforyour7.com and is worth checking out for some good info.

Why not get a cheap easy on the gas compact car for daily driving. Then use the FD for that "special purpose" you've got in mind. That way you've covered in case something happens.

Its a small investment, but will save your ass when the FD needs maintenance, which it does probably more than an average car.

I use to DD my car for 2 years straight, and the only thing that went OUT on me was my clutch, which took out my tranny. Rented a rental for a couple of days, but it was fine. I stopped DD my car for a few months, and now I'm back at it. I live about a good 10 minutes from work, and I even drive her on the weekend to blow some carbons out. I don't granny her on the street either, but she's healthy as can be at 83,xxx miles. I bought her at 59,xxx with no mods.

Just as Charlies7 said above, it all depends on the owner!

maybe you should just spend a couple grand on a DD. you'll save money in gas and parts. just picked me up a honda fit for a DD :)

$1,000 civic ftw :icon_tup: :icon_tup: :icon_tup:

thewird

Dang, I like the honda fit! That thing is strangely fun to drive! I want a NA FC for a DD haha!

Well, if you're looking for unanimous answers you're in the wrong place.

Run a search for "daily" or "DD*" and you'll get plenty of opinions. They will be all over the place, and it's up to you to decide how to proceed. There are literally dozens of similar threads with the same question and many more responses.

That said, the reliability of an FD depends greatly on how well done previous maintenance and mods were done.

Figure the price of fuel at 12-18mi/gal (some math for you). Fuel's more expensive for you than us in the US, and an FD can be punishing here. Get an insurance price check too.

Dave

i do 100 miles a day on mine and no problems now for five months. put an engine in it when i bought the car at 77k. only mods on it are air cleaners, full exhaust, bov, pettit reworked turbos, larger innercooler. i just put a pfc in today and hoping that will benifit the engine for the better. i keep the boost at 12.

I got an 07 fit in Aug for a DD. Best decision I've made for the FD. It's a little underpowered but you can't beat 38mpg.

The RX7 is ok to use as a daily driver, BUT you have to realize what kind of a car you are driving. As long as the engine is low mileage, and you dont mod it too much, and you are willing to work on your own car for the most part when things break down, you should be fine. I drive my FD daily, and have had many problems from brake leaks, to coolant leaks, engine hesitation, not starting. etc.... but its an old car, what can you expect? just take care of it, treat it right and keep in mind your driving a 15 year old high performance sports car, thats all

I've DD'd mine off and on for almost a year now. Complete all of the reliability mods and IMHO it will serve you as well as any other 14 year old car.

They don't take abuse, they don't take mistreatment, they don't take stupidity. Stay away from those three things and it should serve you well. Keep up on the oil too, it seems every time i tank up with gas i'm topping off the oil.

Budget money for repairs just in case though.

Like charles said, its all about the owner/previous owner that will determine how well your car will run for DD purposes.

BUTTTT our cars have their hiccups, moreso that most cars on the road, THAT you guys cant deny. One day the car will be on, feels like the greatest day in the world. Then the next day, you may not have gauge cluster lighting. Or for some reason your idle will get f'ed up. Its just how it is.

If you're mechanically inclined, then thats a plus. If not, then i suggest getting a cheap pos beater thats reliable and have your FD for a weekend warrior. Its better like that anyway.

i dailly drive my FD and i wish i didnt have to honestly, but its like any other car just treat it right, but upkeep is more than a regular car, and u have to check on it all the time. my FD isnt a bad daily driver, i wouldnt recommend it, but its not bad. if u really want an FD for a DD go for it man, i love it. and another good thing about daily driving it, u get lots of compliments everywhere u go. but ur also scared all the time when u gotta leave it by itself. but a car with those kinda mods as ur looking at, would be a HORRIBLE DD, get something a lot more simplified. as like mine. mine has a 13k bluprinted engine with a large streetport, 3 inch from turbo back pettit's turn key terror intake kit, and a fluidyne radiator. and another thing if your going to DD ur FD uprgrade ur cooling system before anything else, make sure everything is top notch... good luck hunting, hope i helped ya a little bit

The car you are looking at is not even remotely for daily driving. And it will absolutely cost the earth to operate and maintain. It is a recreational sports car in every sense of the term.

The car you're looking at for a DD is a no.

I would recommend a freshly rebuilt car (with the following):
aluminum radiator
aluminum ast
new coolant lines (11) and spring clamps
a nice downpipe/hi-flow cat
rats nest vacuum hose job
add some grounds
coolant flush
oil change
new oil/gas/air filters
new spark plugs
new spark plug wires
rear end oil change
tranny fluid change
grease all the suspension components
new brake pads
new brake fluid
new belts
new thermostat
new pressure caps
new fuel pulsation damper
fire extinguisher in the trunk

((((((OPTIONAL)))))))) (dependent on the parts condition)
new fuel pump
new fuel lines
clean the fuel injectors
new battery
new water pump
brake lines
clutch line
wiring harness(es)

((((((Check)))))))
tires
clutch
clutch fork
bushings
alignment
etc etc

Stay stock until this is all done. Then just keep her running cool and keep up maintenance on a ahead of schedule time. This is solely a mechanical diagram, the rest is up to you. I know I have forgotten some extra stuff but this should help.

Thanks for all the help guys.

I guess the car I mentioned above really isnt suitable for a DD after-all, I will keep my eyes peeled for something less tuned and with similar mods to those ledgebmx mentions (thanks for that :))

Unfortunately I cant really afford to run two cars, so the FD would simply have to be a daily driver, that being said, I dont live too far from work and it would have plenty of chance to get warmed up and then cooled again before being parked in the work car-park.

So it seems the general consensus is that an FD is suitable for a DD as long as it is meticulously looked after and cared for (which it certainly would be) and as long as it is not modded too heavily and has all the reliability mods and cooling protection?

Again, thanks for all the help :)

Nick

Choose wisely where you park your FD, avoid parking next to Vans, or beatup cars. I got several dings by others opening their doors, some jerks do it on purpose. Usually pick the end parking spaces

They are reliable as long as the owner takes care of it. But since they are old cars, stuff sometimes break. I don't think these things are any less reliable than other high end sports cars from early 90's.

Since you are in the UK, you probably can get newer cars than we can in NA. For a DD, I would go for one that is as new and as stock as possible.

Yeah, the problem is that these cars have a bad reputation for being high maintenance and having the car look so damn awesome can give you a big problem in deciding what to do. I just went ahead and bought one. Just like everybody is saying, get it and keep a close eye on it. Treat it like a gold and diamond money drain. Have fun with it.

ive had my FD for about 3 years now and its been a DD. It's had its problems but i still wouldn't not want it to be my DD. But before this past summer (Feb) I decided to get a rebuild and go single. So right now I still have a lil CRX and cannot wait to ditch it. I miss my FD and think it is the coolest DD ever. Who cares about gas and broken parts. You buy the car to enjoy it. So enjoy it all the time as a DD.

BTW, does anyone wanna buy this CRX Si from me soon...$2k.

having an fd as a daily driver mainly depends on the milage and how it was previously treated. i have known of people having very few problems that are running stock fd's with 50k miles and less.

Treat your motor well and itll treat you well

i use mine as a dd, and just about every day im thinkin it wasnt a good idea. Right now i got an oil leak and blown struts, and some little things that are eating away at me that havent started until about 2 weeks after i owned it... and rigt now im only 19 working 35-40 hours, trying to go to school, gf eating every ounce of my spare time draining my wallet, and im too far in the hole right now to do anything about it. And now its winter.


I love my fd but... fuck...

Hell yes you can use it as a DD. I do to mine. Mine just has reliability mods, gauges, suspension/braking stuff and an exhaust. I keep the boost around 10psi. Don't go pushing for too much power. Just do your maintainance religiously and you'll be fine. Alos, never boost on cold engine or let it overheat. Just remember it's a ~15yr old car and things are gonna be breaking because of that.

The car you're looking at may be unreliable with all those mods, though.

I DD my FD

.. but eventually, i'll get another car to take the DD job. keep the FD away from hazardous dumbasses on the streets.

FD's are perfect DD's. reliable like a honda, fit more golf bags than an x5 and prius's shiver at the sight of the ungodly gas mileage i get.

boo ya.