Looking to buy a RX-7 for a good price and Need some advice on pricing for a 1994 Red FD RX-7 that I am looking at. I have a price in mind that I want to pay for an FD RX-7 and hoping to find one that fits the bill!

Here is the information:

-42k original miles
-No major accidents, exterior is pretty good
-all bolt on engine mods (Exhaust + FMIC)
-Other than those two engine mods, pretty much stock on the engine part.
-Rollbar drilled in
-Car has no maintenance records/receipts between 1995-2000 from original owner
-Car has no maintenance records/receipts between 2000-2014 from 2nd owner, Car was given to new owner end of 2014. Car was kept in the family.
-After car was passed onto new owner in 2014, car was given a minor tune up - Oil Change, Spark Plugs and Misc Wiring.
-Car is garage kept.
-Car runs great.

Wanted to see what is a fair offer to make considering there has been no maintenance records for about 20 years. Appreciate the help!

 

Is the compression good? Black or tan interior? Sunroof? Bose? Red is the most common color for an rx7. Black interior, no sunroof, and no Bose seems to be more sought after. If it's a red on black r2 with 42k and everything is in order I would say 19-20k. If it's a red on tan PEP with Bose and a sunroof, 17-18k.

Things I look for that stand out for overall condition:

Does the map pocket lid work? Is it broken?
Is the OEM battery box there with cover?
Does he have the factory inter cooler and exhaust? What kind of exhaust is it? Watermelon shooter with nonstock replacement would detract from value IMO same with the FMIC
If it has leather interior, is the drivers bolster ripped?
Glass or steel sunroof? Glass may add value while steel may detract.
If it has Bose, does it have the stock head unit and does everything work? If everything works with the Bose, it may add value.

I know Fritz is gonna chime in here. He's the king of pricing low mileage FDs.

 

Thank You! This is very helpful.

The car is ways away from where I am at (Chicago). Gathering as much information and asking as much questions as I can before I fly there and take a look at the car and schedule a compression test + bring it to a mechanic out there to take a look. Far as I can tell, she doesn't know much about the car since it was passed down to her.

This has been a great resource so far: Buying a Used RX-7

-Black Interior. Driver seat is leather whereas passenger side is cloth.
-Steel Sun Roof (no leaks)
-Picture shows steel sunroof.
-PFS Exhaust and FMIC
-Battery cover looks pretty OEM from pictures.
-Not sure on headunit/sound system. But, asking to find out more.

 

If I'm buying a keeper and I always am LOL the most important things to me are:

Low mileage

Original paint/always garaged (not just garaged now)/no paint work EVER

Original interior in good shape (you don't want panels that have been fussed with/removed) so stereos, alarms etc.... are not things I want.

Original engine and very few to no bolt on mods. The more mods the more things have been jacked with and put back on wrong/damaged etc... and the more likely the car was driven hard.

Excellent maintenance. This isn't a car that needs it documented because it won't run properly if it's not maintained LOL However make sure you know what running properly is Things like checking the oil, opening the lid to the fill neck and peering in, checking the dip stick in the reservoir for crud etc... will also give you a good idea of maintenance along with any exhaust, oil or coolant leaks. This car leaks like a sieve from front to back so jack the car up and look for all sorts of leaks. Drive it around for 20 mins minimum and run it fairly hard then come back and let it idle for 10 mins and check for leaks, low coolant lights etc...etc...

If this was a lifetime garaged bone stock car with 42k miles and no paint work or rust that was really well cared for it's worth 20k plus otherwise the value could be 10k or below despite the low mileage. It may have low compression, accident history etc....

There are all sorts of issues even low mileage FDs can have so do your research on this forum. There are two cars right now I know of for sale that recently replaced the OMP and that's always a bad sign because you never know how much damage was done before the code appeared or the owner fixed it etc...etc... The pitfalls of any used car are great but when it comes to 20 year old turbo sports car they become VAST as the sea

So in short the best way for you to determine the value is to determine how nice this car is. As is I don't have the faintest idea based on the info provided.

Just because the owner says it drives great doesn't mean anything unless that owner really knows these cars well. Pictures usually don't show you much accept what color the car is unless it's in really bad shape.

Read here and on line about test driving and what to look for. If it doesn't have a boost gauge get one and bring it with you along with a long silicone hose so you can hook it to the manifold and check vac and boost etc....

The susp on this car is like a race car so there are ball joints all over it that wear out so be sure there is no clunking, vibrations, weird steering blah blah. This car drives like none other if it's in good shape and drives like an old buck wagon if things are loose and worn out. Or in other words it's extremely responsive with no PLAY anywhere other than a small amount of flex in the drive line from the rubber fluid filled motor mounts and diff mounts.

The most important thing is don't buy a 10k FD that needs 10k in maint, paint, repairs etc...... Spend 20k plus and get a nice car. Good luck

PS Sure deals come up where a family member passes away and leaves a mint condition car to their 70 year old mother who knows nothing about the car and when that happens make sure you have 20k ready to wire immediately because that car won't be on the market more than 2 days