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Just buy a used booster from Tom! I think rx7parts might have a few as well. Or post a WTB on the facebook page. An MC is even less an obstacle. You can get a 929 plug and play from chips motorsports, or get a stock 929 rebuild + ABS delete kit from FDAuto or pick up an OEM on ebay and rebuild it. (Noting of course that I myself am 2 months into replacing all my brake components and still chasing gremlins, so I understand the impulse to sell. If my car looked as good as yours I would be a lot more inspired...)
As for selling, I think the suspension/alignment issues will hurt your buyer pool as will the mileage. Compression numbers are great though and the OEM appearance is desirable. I think you need to fix the booster and MC regardless of whether you decide to sell or keep, otherwise you're killing your price. So assuming you fix that I would say you could get $27k, the price being low only because of the suspension issues. I think you could get $35k if you could get the suspension issues addressed by a shop to the point that you wouldn't have to qualify the situation. I think the mileage is going to cap you at that point. It's a soft market right now. There's a steady stream of FDs for sale on the Facebook groups, BAT, and carsandbids. Prices tend to pick up when the weather gets nice though.
Just buy a used booster from Tom! I think rx7parts might have a few as well. Or post a WTB on the facebook page. An MC is even less an obstacle. You can get a 929 plug and play from chips motorsports, or get a stock 929 rebuild + ABS delete kit from FDAuto or pick up an OEM on ebay and rebuild it. (Noting of course that I myself am 2 months into replacing all my brake components and still chasing gremlins, so I understand the impulse to sell. If my car looked as good as yours I would be a lot more inspired...)
As for selling, I think the suspension/alignment issues will hurt your buyer pool as will the mileage. Compression numbers are great though and the OEM appearance is desirable. I think you need to fix the booster and MC regardless of whether you decide to sell or keep, otherwise you're killing your price. So assuming you fix that I would say you could get $27k, the price being low only because of the suspension issues. I think you could get $35k if you could get the suspension issues addressed by a shop to the point that you wouldn't have to qualify the situation. I think the mileage is going to cap you at that point. It's a soft market right now. There's a steady stream of FDs for sale on the Facebook groups, BAT, and carsandbids. Prices tend to pick up when the weather gets nice though.
Funny, this is actually what I came here to post today.
I DID buy a brake MC and booster from a member (Jim) last week and I am installing them today/this week. And I think I am going back deeper down that rabbit trail.
Thanks.
I think this thread might now become a cleanup/rebuild thread rather than "should I sell?"
Last edited by BLKTOPTRVL; Feb 27, 2024 at 12:51 PM.
So, I thought it would be easier to get the master booster out if I remove the driver seat. This has given me an opportunity to get a better look at it's leather. (Pictures attached.)
Looking at it, As I said here or someplace else, the seat is on OK, but not good condition.
And the driver seat is far worse than the passenger - which looks practically new by comparison.
The bolsters are pretty cut up from the years of climbing over them getting into and out of the car. For now, maybe I will just find a temporary cover.
Edit: I was going to see if a local upholsterer could do an OEM look replacement, then I found this site...
They're not cut. The top surface of the leather is just cracked from use. IMO, that is the usual "vintage" leather look, which is not a bad thing. As long as it's not torn, I'd just clean/lubricate it with saddle soap. That's what I do with mine ~once/year.
They're not cut. The top surface of the leather is just cracked from use. IMO, that is the usual "vintage" leather look, which is not a bad thing. As long as it's not torn, I'd just clean/lubricate it with saddle soap. That's what I do with mine ~once/year.
Vintage wouldn't be too bad - if I didn't have all those cracks with white lines showing. Maybe I need to dye the leather? Saddle soap... I stopped using a long time ago because I felt it did more harm than good to leather. What I wish the seats actually had is a Velcro attachment point for a small strip of material that could sit atop the actual leather and be removed and replaced as necessary as it wears.
Last edited by BLKTOPTRVL; Feb 27, 2024 at 05:21 PM.
Lseats used my covers as their pattern. I have had them on my car for a couple of years. I have driven less than 1,000 miles since installed; so I can't vouch for durability.
Vintage wouldn't be too bad - if I didn't have all those cracks with white lines showing. Maybe I need to dye the leather? Saddle soap... I stopped using a long time ago because I felt it did more harm than good to leather. What I wish the seats actually had is a Velcro attachment point for a small strip of material that could sit atop the actual leather and be removed and replaced as necessary as it wears.
You probably could color the cracks - I've never tried that.
Why do you think saddle soap does more harm than good? I've not had any reason to think that and I've been using it since I got my FD and on my wife's '07 Audi.
Answered my own question below. Cheap saddle soap can, indeed, not be good.
From the web:
... as a chemist I did some quick reading on Google. Saddle soap can be highly alkaline (pH >10) and thus cause leather to degrade and crack. Better saddle soap products may contain mink oil, beeswax and lanolin. Fiebing's is apparently rich in lanolin so you may be using a very good product. I think your followup with a leather conditioner is a good step. This may alleviate any issues from the saddle soap. But in any case, do not change to a cheap saddle soap or you find the consequences (darkening and cracking) not to your liking
