R1's did come in silver. Clogged catalytic converters are common on high mileage 3 gen's. Sometimes the pre-cat disintegrates due to prolonged, excessive heat exposure (from the turbos) and particles that the pre-cat sheds travel with the exhaust into the cat and clog it. You probably need to replace the catalytic converter, the pre-cat the O2 sensor. It also means that the turbos have coked up and need work too. All of this is can be pretty expensive, especially if you stay stock. The suspension sounds like the shocks are gone although it could be just tires.

Clearly this car needs some work and it sounds expensive. A properly sorted RX7 should bury a celica in every performance category you care to consider, mine does.

 

Well........it hasn't been TOTALED, anyways.....
Nor burned up, nor was it a "lemon".

It is still possible that it was in a substantial wreck.

Don't read TOO much into the whole carfax thing.

 

Gotcha...

As far as modifiying it goes...I'm coming from a 40,000 dollar Supra deal.

The way I figure it, a total rebuild of the car will cost 10,000 to 15,000 dollars for a nice, decent daily driver with some guts.

I don't mind paying that to rebuild the car. I've got the cash, it's not a worry. I actually WANT to rebuild the engine, if that makes sense.

I'm getting the car checked out next week by a mechanic for compression, boost, bla bla...

 

Umm..just outta curiosity..does it matter that I never took the car past 4,500 rpms...and when I did it was only for a second.

I stayed low on the RPMs the whole time..

Does the RX-7 need alotta RPMs to make it sing on the highway...

When I was on the highway..I stayed under 4,500 pretty much the whole time.

 

$10-$15K should definitely get you where you want to be, especially if you do the work yourself or work along side an experienced hand. As for the Supra... a lot of value is placed on straight line performance in this country and the Supra can certainly put a smile on your face there, but in terms of an all round package including acceleration, handling, braking, looks (inside and out) it just doesn't compare. And in a place like Tacoma where you have a few hills and curves you will get your money's worth out of every feature.

There is no car on earth that can weave through traffic like an RX7, even heavy traffic like the I5.

 

Umm... If you never took it past 4500prms you never even got into the 2nd turbo. That's where the real power is with these cars with stock twin turbos.

Go to www.scuderiaciriani.com and learn how to do a proper boost test. If the car doesn't have a boost gauge, borrow one from somebody. If the car is down on power and the compression checks out, it could be clogged cats but more likely you just need to go through the vacuum lines and get your boost pattern straightened out.

Second, if the suspension feels a little sloppy it may be time to replace the suspension bushings - by 90,000 miles the stock bushings are toast. (One sign of this is clunking sounds).

Third, there is no such thing as a silver (SSM) 1993 R1, only red (VR), black (BB) and yellow (CYM). In the US Mazda sold 83 Silver R2 models in 1994, and 16 Silver R2 models in 1995. Again, check www.scuderiaciriani.com for the differences between the models - compare them against this car to see what you are really looking at.

Finally, good luck. Throwing 10-20 grand in modifications at this car will get you one AWESOME machine.

 

Yeps...you're right..I just found out that it's a base model with R1 suspension and spoiler.

Is that possible? Could you get a base model with upgradeable features back in 1993?

Thanks for the link..I'm checking all the info out right now (there's tons of info on this car, man...this is a good thing).

I've read almost every "Why I should buy an RX-7" thread in this forum....and to be honest, I'm a mechanically inclined guy but I've never taken an engine fully apart. I've done all of the mods on my Celica (CAI, S-AFC, EGT, Nitrous) and I've done everything from changing brakes, alternators, distributors, and what not....but I've never even TOUCHED a rotary.

Thanks for all your help and opinions guys...you're being a great help in letting me know what's up.

 

You sound very well informed which is nice to see for a change. About revving, yes, rotaries love to rev and your peak power is going to occur in the 6k-7k rpm range with a redline of 8k. The fun doesn't even start until 4.5k rpm. They're not as peaky as your celica, but you still need to rev them to get the most power. That silver car sounds like a steal at $16k even if it has clogged cats and suspension problems, because I put a high premium on paint and interior personally. Nice paintjobs and new interior parts cost as much as engines. Heck, just getting a brand new factory leather seat is something like $2000, so that kind of stuff counts for a lot in my book. Also, you asked about equipping a base model with R1 options, yes this was possible to an extent. You could order dealer installed R1 front and rear spoilers (mine came equipped that way), and I'm sure the right dealer could in theory install just about any R1 part on a base model. Either way, don't get to caught up on R1/R2/PEP/Touring/Base unless you really care about originality or absolutely must have/can't have a sunroof/rear wiper, because a base model can be equipped like an R1/R2 without much work (except the sunroof/rear wiper). Good luck!

 

Thanks for the compliment, and thanks for the info...that's what I was worried about.

At 90k miles, the suspension probably SHOULD be changed, anyways.

I'm not a rich guy, but I don't have many debts (a WRX payment and rent and utilities plus no kids and both work) so I can afford to do a decent rebuild of the car.

I'd have to agree on the paint, body, and interior. I know that interior pieces can run you a heap of money, plus, the interior is what you see 98% of the time.

I'd rather run around in a decent car with decent speed, than a super fast car and an ugly *** faded interior.

I just finished watching some vids of the RX-7 in action...and it's a beautiful car.

 

Anyone know why the steering wheel would be kinda tilted to the right by about 4 inches?

Is that a normal thing as the car gets older, or does it mean it was in an accident?

The last car I checked..the steering wheel wasn't straight up with the car..it was close to the way it would look for a leaning curve.

?

 

No, there WEREN'T R1's in silver... It probably just has an R model spoiler on it.

Wade

 

NO THAT IS NOT NORMAL. This fact, coupled with the fact that the car has been repainted, makes me extremely suspicious. Do you know how to check for body damage/repairs? If not, I'd have the car checked by a body shop. If this car has frame damage, you should be RUNNING away from it.

 

That's what I though...I will definetly have it checked.

What do I need to look for?

 

when you take it somewhere to check for frame damage, the key thing you need to look for is clamp marks where they clameped the car and stretched it back to its original shape. hope everything works out for you

 

This website has good instructions on how to go about checking for frame and body damage:

http://ntsrv2000.educ.ualberta.ca/ne...c/exterior.htm

 

Thanks guys...I've got an appointment set up for tomorrow.

 

Alright guys, here's the scoop:

I had the RX-7 I'm interested in taken to Doug Lynwood Mazda today...

The compression was considered low. The engine was considered marginal. There's a slight oil leak in the oil pan. The front right of the car needs new bushings (explains the klunk I was hearing).

All the brakes need replacing and the car need 4 new tires.

What'cha think? The interior and exterior of the car is immaculate(i.e., it looks brank f'ing new). But the engine has 90k on it and is still on it's first clutch.

Before anyone replies, keep in mind that an engine and tranny rebuild is expected by the middle of next year.

Should I pick it up? I kinda think it's worth it simply because of the beautiful condition of the car plus the $1000 dollar alarm system, and two month old $4,000 dollar sound system in the car already (MP3/CD/Multiple).

Well?

Your comments are appreciated.

 

The bottom line is really whether you think it's worth the money. I don't think it's the deal of the century, but it's also not a complete ripoff. You obviously seem to understand the cost of an engine, turbos, and tranny work, so you're not going into this blind. I'm like you, in that I would prefer to have a car that's in great cosmetic shape, but maybe not perfect mechanically. I suck at any of the cosmetic work, and it's not something I enjoy. Mechanical stuff, on the other hand...

I say if it's what you want, and you can afford it, buy it.

Good luck with your decision.

 

Well you did find the engine and stuff, so don't be surprised if it is worse then you though. Turbo Housings can crack from use at 90K, the engine with low vacume, its toast probably. It will run but stall at the most inoportune moment and not restart.

If you got it up on a rack and checked the frame and did the drive through water test to make sure that the rear tires follow the front, and nothing welded or shiney on the bottom, new paint or something obviously hiding something rusted through, you are getting a major project car even if all this is still right.

Engine, brakes, possibly turbos, so long as you understand the cost, this ain't cheap. Hell the vacume lines on my car cost about 400 to replace everything with OEM items (stay away from Silicone!!!!). And if it gets too much, you can always part it out and make your money back!!

What color are the seats??

Just wanted to add, its not the big stuff with these cars that cost so damn much, its all the little things. If it were just an engine to replace, that is one thing but it never is. You got hoses, tubes, wires, and a huge gammut of other crap that gets roasted by the extremely high operating temp of the motor that you find when replacing the engine. I personally throught that it would never end. Just be ready for it!!

 

Are we done comparing a FWD wanna-be race car with the FD?
Can we delete this thread, now?

 

Why, is he allergic to silicone

 

Well..if it says anything about how the car looks...my wife absolutely drooled when she saw it.

I got these images of hot babes falling over the hood of my car begging for a ride.

I asked the rep at the Mazda dealership to inspect for any frame damage or possible accidents. He said if it did get into a wreck, whoever put it back together did an awesome job cuz he couldn't find anything.

Oh..and where'd you get the 10k notion? It'll be 15 to 16k for the car...he hasn't decided on a price...and with the problems mentioned, he'll definetly have to drop it.

The problem is the alarm system and the speaker setup..there's some pretty major dough invested in the car's interior, so what he lost in problems with car he made up with in price...

Espescially since the bank went by KBB and it came up to 15,500.

Either way, it's a beautiful car..I can't wait to see it in my driveway.

I can't wait till I rebuild the damn engine, too. :p

 

Umm..are you sure you're in the right thread?

And what the hell happened to "Make sure to replace your lines with Silicone" that's in all of the FAQs that you guys have posted?

Oh..and the seats are black leather with this type of strange mesh that makes your *** stick to them like they're glue.

 

R1s did not come in silver. I've got a sales brochure, I was over the age of 21 when the FD came out.

NO SILVER R1s in the US.

If you do the R+R, a motor rebuild along with standard hoses, belts, clutch, plugs, injection cleaning and rebuild, gaskets, turbo rebuild will run about $3-5K. $3K is pretty optimistic on a higher mileage car. Motor mounts run $159/ea from Mazdacomp or about $275/ea from the dealer. Oil pan leaks ruin motor mounts. Just one example.

Jeff

 

Funny...I'm planning on 6,500 for the engine rebuild....so 3k is good news if slightly optimistic.

Anyways, is that too much? I'm also considering another 3k for tranny rebuild if necessary.

As I said earlier, I also talked to Pineapple Racing, and he gave me a quote of about 5,500 for rebuild, install, and re-install, although Cork would be the ones doing the removal and installation.

I've already did a build up plan for the car...starting with the reliability mods (i.e., radiator, oil cooler, bla bla)...It came up to 12,000k.