mightymikee

iTrader: (4)

Hey all,

I am from the opposite side of the motorsport world; offroading. The 98 jeep has 5" lift with 33" tall tires with limited slip in the rear with 4Liter I6 under the hood.

Recently, I have been really interested in getting Rx-7 as they look wicked as h@ll and that sequencial turbo thing and this rotary engine just got me all hooked and after reading those testmonials that you guys write up on this forum... man, I just wanna go out, get one and drive it. I am seriously thinking about getting one within 5-6 months.

Now I have checked out the newbie section of this forum and read up on most of the articles. But some of the thing that was NOT mentioned was the actual $$$ figures in maintainance and some others.. such as the price of overhaulling of the engine which any owner of a seven will eventually have to face(that was like the impression I got from the reading).

How much does an average 7 owner spend a year to maintain the vehicle? What usually breaks? costs? and it seems the 7 ranges from 12k to whatever.. Is 15k budget reasonable to get started? I want something under 60k miles. I am planning on keeping the vehicle stock for a long time as they tend to be more reliable when in stock form(except for the reliability mod).

Is 7 reliable to drive everyday and/or drive on highway for a long time like 500miles at a time or more?

I am planning on keeping my jeep as the daily driver but yet if 7 is reliable enough it will see the road more often. The jeep is very reliable just that getting 13mpg on the highway 12mpg on the city.... it is really painful to see the gas gauge go down so fast.. That brings another question, what kind of milege does stock rx7 get?

I am pretty skilled with hand tools and I do most/all of the maintainance job + other mods on my jeep. If it doesn't require hexsaw, reciprocating saw and sledge hammer I think I can tackle it.

I just wanted to know beforehand what I am getting myself into. This JEEP(just empty every pocket) thing is not really helping me establishing my savings account but money is meant to be spent and I think I can enjoy it much better with a good sport car.


sorry for any mistyped words and hodgepodge of questions embedded within p.graphs.

TIA.

TwinTurboRX-7

if you want a cheap car do us a favor and dont abuse a FD. they arent cheap. maitnance for rotaries comes about every 70-80k miles for a rebuild and that will cost about 2-3k... the rx-7 doesnt get better than your jeep so yeah but its hella fast, and picks up girls like no other car....

dclin

iTrader: (4)

Simple maintenance is not any more then pretty much any other hi-performance vehicle. It's the repairs that kills you. If you're very handy with tools, are willing to spend the effort to learn, and have a bit of common sense (it's not as common as one would think), then cost of ownership may not be too bad.

I got 13-14mpg avg with stock twin turbos, though have not gotten around to see what it is with my single turbo conversion. I recommend an FD as a secondary vehicle (meaning you should have another vehicle to fall back on). It's lots of fun, but it requires alot of thought and care.

mightymikee

iTrader: (4)

I don't know where you get the idea that I wanted a cheap car and that I was going to abuse an FD. hmmm.. I sense a lot of hostility..

2-3K for the engine rebuild is not bad at all for every 70k miles for a weekend car. I actually like to hear that. I wonder how long it would take me to wreck up that much milege just driving over the weekend.

Anywho, I get the idea it is not a cheap car that is why I started the thread, to get some input, I don't see the need to discourage the new potential owner/enthusiasist to the hobby, I bet you(twinturborx7) started sometime and was a new comer.

thanks dclin.

curlybillbrosie

From my own experience, it aint all that bad, especially if you want to keep it basically stock with just reliability mods. Ive had my car since it was new and I havent had any problems whatsoever with it. Granted, I only put about 5000 miles a year on it and most of that is normal driving. I dont redline the car every single time i get in it, but basic maintenance costs have been about the same as any other car. I have spent about $6000 in the last two years on it but only about $550 of that is normal maintenance including the the clutch that is sitting in my living room waiting to be installed when the stock one starts to give. The rest have been performance modifications.
As far as mileage goes, the stock mileage is 17 city, 25 highway for a manual transmission. Im not sure why so many other people are reporting much lower mileage but I took a 4 hour trip to orlando a couple weeks ago and set the cruise control at 65 for a couple hours just to see what i could get and im quite certain i was getting somewhere between 25-28 miles per gallon. I have exhaust and intake mods that make the car a little more efficient but so does everyone else here. I think the main reason for all this is that most FD owners do not go 65 on the highway. At this point I would have no qualms about taking it on a long road trip.
One thing you should be aware of though is that the FD does not take neglect well. Basic maintenance does not really cost much more than any other car but it has to be done. I think if you buy a well running FD and treat it well it will give you plenty of satisfaction.

RHS

Another Jeeper(you on the JU board?). Already owning a Jeep, you know how to do basic things, lots of tinkering and upkeep. I bought my FD for a toy, not daily driver, lots of Jeep guys are into the FD believe it or not. I guess you cover both extremes that way Just read as much as you can about the car, they are really not that difficult to own and work own. It remindes me of owning my old CJ, your always messing with something on it. Good luck on your search.

1st to 3rd

I agree with that 100%. Being into offroading, you're already accustomed to pulling regular maintance, and having the skills to do the work yourself. Those are the two keys to affordable ownership a FD. Good luck on your search. Remember, these cars are 10 years old and the previous owners may have not been so nice to her. Once piece of advice, if you get a FD, be careful switching between it and your Jeep. I skidded through a couple stop lights in my truck after driving the RX for a while.
15k is enough to get you started...for now. Much like your Jeep, you'll be modding and sinking money into it in no time.
I think the farthest from home my car has been is 300 miles. I wouldn't hesitate do drive it farther, but I don't like racking up the miles, that and my other car is more comfortable. I get 15-17 around town and close to 25 on the open road. MPG is very dependant on how you drive. BTW, there are a couple guys that do the One Lap of America every year in a FD. 2k miles and like 10 races in one week. So ya, it can be done reliably.

nycrx7

Mitymikee,

don't worry about the hostility - we're not a hostile bunch... more or less. But we do often get people who come here - after having watched F&F or now... I guess after 2F&2F... anyways, you can hopefully understand some of the sense of hostility.

These cars need to be taken care of... simple as that.

If they are.. most of them will be just fine. Mine has 62k miles on it... and though its only been through a few thousand with me, it has always been perfectly fine. Any problems that it has had, were from my own doing - like when I installed a GT FMIC and accidentally put it way too close to the radiator. Ofcourse the car started losing coolant. But like I said, my fault.

Anyways, if you are planning to keep it stock, the gas mileage (18-25 as described earlier), maintenance costs, etc are minimal. And yes, engines dont go poof on their own everyday. Mine has 62k miles on it, and still gets good compression *knock on wood*.

Welcome to the boards - it looks liek you've done a ton of research already - so hope to see you in a seven soon. Just make sure you buy a seven that is atleast in decent shape, and perform the reliability mods as soon as possible afterwards. A seven is like a pretty girl - you take care of her, and she takes care of you

CYM TKT

iTrader: (4)

I got my FD in 99 with 28k miles on it.. the only problems I have had with it have been the turbo control system (stupid vaccuum lines, and the occasional solenoid going bad), and I had to change a leaky water pump.. other than that I had no problems with mine until the engine finally blew last year. it blew at about 65k miles I think it was partially my fault though, so I dont blame it on the car.. the car is also pretty heavily modded, so far from stock. in this form the best MPG I got on the highway was about 22 MPG. around town the way I drive was about 12 MPG lol.

keynote22

88 mitsu 2 door climbing biotch!!!!! dont bother rolling me over cause im skoping that hill from a better angle

looking for a defender


16k is what I planned to spend. I looked for a year before finding one all stock for 12k. It only needed an oil pan gasket. exterior great, interior super except drivers bolster.

right away I did the reliability mods (dp, koyo rad, boost gauge, ast removal) and fixed the various leaks for about 1.5k. Then I swapped the suspension for another 1.5kish. plus wheels for 2k.

with these mods and as a newbie drag racer I ran a crappy 14.1 in the 1/4. But, I miss shifted everytime.

Now Im doing puter, intake, and intercooler for 3k. 75ish miles on the motor so I figure it will die soon.


I didnt have to do any of these mods as the car ran great. I just want more power There are a few stockers than run autocross every weekend here and you should see how they push their cars to the limit.


fwiw you can find a modded rx for your pricing. I wanted a stocker so I could do it all myself. I wanted silver 94 but they are more difficult to find. My red 93 has all the issues associated with the first year production....but it's still fun and gets a lot of compliments.

gl

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...light=comp+ssr

mightymikee

iTrader: (4)

Thanks guys for the input.

RHS, yes I am a member of JU since May 2000 w/ nn of Michael_K. I own a 98 TJ. I see you got a ZJ.

At any rate, I guess picking a well maintained FD to begin with would be the most important thing. It is time to start saving!!

Thanks again for the input and keep it coming!

CCarlisi

THere are a couple things that will determine your cost of ownership:
(1) mileage. in recent years my maintance costs have gone up dramatically. I would say 65,000 was the turning point for my car. This year I have spent around $3000 on repairs and my motor just died so that figure will be going up significantly. Last year it was around $1000. From 97, when I bought the car, to 2001 I probably spent less than $1000 total. Keep in mind I do most of the labor myself. To put that in perspective someone on the Ferrari forum quoted the average Fcar ownership cost at $3000 a year. Of course I imagine if ferrari owners drove their cars on a regular basis that cost would skyrocket. Even so, I think it's clear the FD is an expensive car to own.

(2) how **** you want to be. There has always been SOMETHING wrong with my car. I've learned to let some stuff slide. eg: my sunroof makes a knocking noise under certain conditions. One of these days I will fix it, but I'm not getting too stressed out about it. If you get hung up on little things you will spend EVERY weekend burning through paychecks chasing something down. That is no way to live.

In closing I'll leave you with this thought
It's a cheap car to buy because it's expensive to maintain. Maintance is the cost you should be most concerned about! They all break no matter how they are driven, cared for ect. If you can afford to spend a grand or more on maintance a year I won't discourage you from getting one. It's a great car in most respects.

nycrx7

well put CCarlisi. Though mine hasn't been too expensive to maintain... yet... *knock on wood*

If you like working on cars... a slgihtly beaten up one with a couple of problems for significantly less might not be a bad idea

Kiflin

mightymikee:

I am also a Jeep driver turned Fd driver, except I kept my jeep and my fd. The only thing that I have had a real problem adjusting to is the difference in the length of the shifter.

As for prices, these guys are right. The rx7 may be appealing because it is a car close to 260 rwhp and costs less than a new honda civic, but do not let prices decieve you. Rx7's are so cheap because the owners probably did not take care of the vehicle and are trying to get rid of it...

If you are going to buy a stock rx7, you will need to put in ATLEAST 650$ in reliability modifications into it. Were talking a fanmod, temp gauge, boost gauge, intake, radiator, sparkplugs, oil and the typicals. And this is just to keep her running cool and safe. After this you start moving into the expensives such as intercoolers, ecu's, turbo kits, the whole 9 yards.

A rx7 is like having a kid. A kid costs a minimum of 485 dollars a month (baby), requires as much attention as you can give it, but if you treat is nicely anf fair, it will live a long healthy life.

SyderJL

haha, I went from a lifted '87 YJ w/ 33's to my FD. . . . . it was quite a change to say the least. I still have the YJ though
Good Luck and I hope you have deep pockets!
Justus

fedupfd3

iTrader: (1)

If you buy one find some one on the forum that is knows their 7's and is near you to go and check it out also do not make the same mistake alot of people do buy buying mods that look or sound cool on other cars you will spend alot of money you do not need to alot of 7 owners have pretty much the same setups as far as mods go do your research