Hello to all you out there. I am looking to buy a 94' RX-7 TT it has about 120,000 miles, with about 20K on a rebuilt motor. I'm aware of how expensive one of these great machines are and how fragile they are...but i want one . It has already been repaired for the engine fire that it had. The coolant resivoir has a crack of some kind to cause it to leak. The owner says I will have to replace the pillow ball mounts on the rear wheels. Other than that those are the problems it has. He will sell it to me for $10,000 but he also said he will subtract what will have to be replace from the cost of the car. So if anyone out there can give me advice on what to do, to look for etc... anything you can think of would be really great.

 

Personally, I'd keep looking. But if you insist on having this one, I'd first find out who rebuilt the motor. Second I wouldnt pay 10 grand for a car that has had an engine fire, that many miles on the chassis and so on, even if it does have a rebuilt motor. It may take a while, but looking for the right one will result in greater satisfaction.

-Alex

 

run.

 

TT_REX .... how long have you been an enthusiast of the rotary?

 

Where are you located??

It a lot easier if you can see the car & drive it.

Im sure other people can start a list to help you.

Sometimes it's what's missing from your car that a new owner wouldn't know about.
R1's with missing front strut bars for example. 1/2 assed mods installed. butchered stereos, broken interior panels (divider & cargo cover) , missing covers/caps in the engine compartment (battery cover).

Here is a short list of things to check

1. Passenger interior door handle broken
2. Driver's door, storage compartment door broken or missing
3. Without a boost gauge you can't verify the sequential turbo operation.
4. Type/brand of tires (hopefully, a name brand with treadwear less than 280 hardness)

 

I'm not very old compared to everyone else here (18) but wanted one since ehhh 16 or so, took me over a year to find and work my *** off for one/mine. Found it in Illionios (8 hours from here each way) with only 20xxx miles on it and totally stock for 19,000. Why?!

-Alex

 

Need to get others opinion on what i should do. BTW I work with the guy... But anyway I thought that anyone that has been an enthusiast for quite a while may have a stock pile of knowledge that I could draw upon.

 

I am located in Whideby Is. Before I was looking at this Seven I saw the same year and model for sale in Bremerton. The dealer wanted 12somethin for it.

 

I bought mine with 100k on it for $8000. It had an engine fire as well. The motor and turbos were rebuilt @ 70K miles. Didn't know who really built it. I had it for 3 years now, didn't drive it a whole lot, even babied it. In those 3 years, I have spent $$$ on reliabilty mods and maintenance including oil changes every 2500 miles. 16K miles later blown motor and turbos and has been sitting in my garage for the last 3-4 months. Now I have to drop another 3-4 grand on another motor with a decent set of twins. Oh...it doesn't stop there... Then, I have to drop another 2-3 grand for paint because it's peeling.

It all depends on who rebuilt the motor.
Get a compresson check.
See if it's leaking any oil.
Smoke on start up.
Make sure turbos are boosting properly.
Interior pieces - make sure it's all intact. Those S.O.B.s are freakin expensive. Seats - Worn/Torn bolsters - $$ to repair or buy a used set
Power window switches - $$
Bose System (touring) - speakers refurbished are $75 ea.
AC System - $$ to repair
List can go on and on. Despite all things that went wrong with my car, I still won't trade it for anything else.

 

Information isnt the problem. I'm sure I can give you plenty of info on what to look for, check and what not. But you asked what you should do, so I told you, keep looking. For starters though...
-Compression check
-Check turbos, see if they have also been rebuilt, check for play.
-Find out who rebuilt the motor and make sure its a reliable company
-Do a carfax report
-Go over the whole car and try and see if any body repairs have been done and so on. You can try looking on the back edge of the doors and make sure they welds are pretty much the same on both sides (could show if the door skin has been replaced from an accident.) You can also use that to check for other things also.
-See if he has receipts of all the oil changes and proof they were done at the right intervals
-Drive it, make sure it shifts right and rides right, should idle around 750 rpms
-Check over the interior, common problems are the door pocket door thingy is broke off, pass. side door panel handle broken and what not. Just make sure the interior peices dont need to be replaced (damn expensive)
-Install a boost gauge and check the sequence
-Find out what mods have been done and make sure they have been done right and not half ***.

I'm sure theres a few other things that have slipped my mind but I'm sure others will chime in soon. All that info and much much more can be found by using the search also.

-Alex

 

i cant even add to that list but i can tell you this i bought my car last january, 4 days after i bought it the engine popped. so a year later i am getting my car back finally. listen to these guys, i didnt. so now i am 20,000 in the hole but wouldnt trade my car after all the **** i went through!

 

Struth you guys get cheap RX-7s over in the USA.

I paid Aus $28000 for mine from a dealer, and that was pretty good going by the price of other dealer and private seller vehicles. I've probably only seen one or two cheaper than that. Most want over Aus $30000.

What does Aus $28000 work out to be? About US$21000?

I thought I did quite well (considering the dealer fixed a number of things on the car, and provided a three year unlimited km warranty through a third party provider) but It looks like I paid a lot relatively to you guys. Then again, the car IS in pretty sweet condition.

What price for an FD? I would have paid more if I had to

 

Sorry pressed submit too early.

What I meant to say was consider getting a professional mechanical check. It doesn't have to be a rotary specialist. Obviously it would be better, but it doesnt have to be. Before I purchased mine I took it to a local place that specialises in vehicle inspections. For Aus $235 (pocket change compared to the price I paid for the car, and the price I could pay for repairs if it turns out to be a lemon) they went over the car completely and I was handed a complete report documenting all things, even minor ones.

First of all it's good for knowing what condition the car is in. It also provides you with bargaining power (if anything is wrong). And even if your a mechanic yourself, it is cheap insurance against you overlooking something.

 

I think before you buy a Rx-7, you should consider something with front wheel drive. At your age that much torque and power combined with your hormones could be lethal. I had three spin outs in wet weather without too much effort, sports cars with rear wheel drive and alot of torque can be lethal, so think about a civic for a starter car. Then after two years consider something with more power. I have driven alot of different cars and my civic crx si is my favorite for overall driving in all kinds of conditions.

 

I don't think it's his first car, or atleast he didnt state it was?!?!

-Alex

 

Actually I guess I meant starter sports car. From own history I think men should start out driving smaller not so quick cars and not too new and work their way up the food chain. The Rx-7 I think is probably one of the most dangerous sports cars in the wrong hands, but anything with rear wheel drive and globs of torque is potentially lethal. I drive a 300ZX now and I feel alot safer but its just not the same, owning a Rx-7 is alot like having a relationship with a girl with alot of issues, but she's so hot and no other girl ever makes you feel like her when you're with her, no other girl can ever bring the same emotions inside of you, and you suffer all the little slights and quirks, you give her everything and more and then one day you wake up and the feeling is gone. The 300ZX has been like a great rebound car, steady, never complains, you don't have to worry about hot days or cold nights, she's just there ready to go. Your heart does'nt race but your wallet is much heavier and you suddenly realize that you don't see your mechanic as much anymore and life does'nt quite feel the same but you live on.

 

Any car in the wrong hands can be dangerous. Once you learn what your cars' limitation are, I think you drive it like it should be driven. I'm not saying FD is the safest but you pay to play.

 

Yeh this would be my first import car, currently i own an '85 chevy blazer. im also looking into getting a 1996 EK9 (Civic HB). which i think i will do cause i tested the Seven today and was not pleased with it. going between 40- 60mph there was wind noise coming from the driver window with it rolled up. The rear end clunks sometimes which i think has to do with the pillow *****. Also either the over temp. lite or e brake lite came on when the owner was driving it. if it is over temp. that was just after an hour session with it not even going past 70mph during the run. but im also aware that the e brake liter is notorius for coming on during driving. I seriously thank you guys .

 

yeh the owner rebuilt the motor himself. him and i have the ability to go to Atsugi, Japan once or twice a year. he has shown me the various items he bought from japan.

 

Def. a good choice. The car would probably have nothings but problems if you was to take it over. Just hold out a bit and the right one will come around.

-Alex

 

Can you afford two RX-7s?

I've spent more than the car ($13k++)on mods and a new engine yadda yadda and Ive only owned the car 9 months !

 

the question is... is it a manual?

10k is pretty cheap for a 94