nnorris7413

On October 31 of this year I picked up a bone stock '93 BB/Tan RX-7 with 76k miles on it. My previous car was an '02 BMW M3 (Jet Black/Cinnamon) which I owned from '06 until a week before getting my RX-7. I bought the M3 with 12k miles on it and sold it with 75k miles. Before the M3 I had an '04 Mitsubishi Evo 8 which I modified to be a DD/autocross/weekend track car. It had ~350 AWHP and a bunch of suspension/brake mods. I owned that from '04 to '06 and put ~30k miles on it. The M3 was a phenomenal DD but I was too scared to ever track or autocross it because parts were too expensive for me to replace. The Evo was a great autocross and track car and a decent DD but it was just a little too "ricerish" (not classy enough) for me. I had never owned a RWD car before the M3 but after doing so I cannot go back to anything else. It makes the car feel like more of a driver's car.
Since acquiring the modified car bug with the Evo I had always wanted an RX-7. I thought it was the perfect platform to turn into a great DD and fun track car. I had been researching everything I could about the RX-7 for years. I almost bought one before the M3, but it just wasn't practical enough at the time. But, the opportunity arose a few months ago for me to purchase one that I fell in love with so I took the chance and went for it.... And I have been loving every minute of it.
I have always driven each of my cars rain, snow, shine, or whatever weird weather phenomenon is occurring in the Midwest at the time. I knew that the RX-7 would be no different. I had heard about the reliability issues and the mods to make it more reliable. And upon doing my research I decided that it isn't that the car is unreliable - it's that its more touchy and needy than most other cars - and many owners don't understand that, which is why they run into problems. So, I figured if I found one that was well taken care of and I took care of it myself that I could make it a perfect DD.
I had never driven an RX-7 before purchasing mine. Upon purchasing it I had to drive it about 200 miles back from where the previous owner's house was, in which time I got to play with the car and figure it out. I realized instantly that this car was more fun to drive than any other car I have driven before. I feel like I am connected to the car when I drive - something that was missing in the M3. You can tell that this car was designed to be driven, and that's exactly what I was looking for in a car. It makes me smile every time I get behind the wheel.
In the three months I have owned the car I have put about 3,000 miles on it so far. I have driven it in lots of rain and snow and a bit of sunshine. So far the car has not given me any big issues. I had the driver's door freeze one morning and when I went to pull on the handle I broke it and the door handle wouldn't work. That was an easy fix though - I just took the handle assembly apart and re-bent the metal tab and, since then, I haven't had an issue with the door. The interior plastics do feel cheap and are peeling a little bit, but I intend to do something about that in the future (maybe cover it in dry CF wrap or something). On really cold, wet days the car does not want to start after it has been sitting for a few hours, but it only requires cranking it a little more before it fires. I have not had the car not start on me once (yet). And the 3k RPM hesitation is really annoying (something I will be remedying in the future).
I take as many precautions when driving the car as I can to keep the engine happy and healthy. I let it warm up for 5-10 minutes every time before I drive it and once I do start driving it I don't take it over 2.5k RPM until it has been driven for a few miles. I take it to redline at least once every tank of gas. I don't use it for short trips (under 3 miles or so). For that I use the girlfriend's car. I never let the tank get below 1/4 full (which means filling up quite frequently since the gas mileage sucks). I am on a 2,500 mile oil change interval (which I may change to 2k). And I get the car washed and waxed every few snowstorms.
To those who aren't sure whether an RX-7 is for them then here are a few things that I have learned in the few months of owning one:

DO YOUR RESEARCH. This forum is amazing and there is always more knowledge to be obtained.

If you plan to drive the car in the rain or snow you better be a competent driver otherwise you will run into issues.

If you think you're going to be able to just hop in the car and drive/take care of it like you would a normal piston engine then you are going to be in for a big surprise when things start going wrong and breaking.

If you're looking for something that gets decent gas mileage then this car is DEFINITELY not for you (I am averaging 10-12 MPG city and 20 highway).

You are going to need money and time when things do start to break. It's almost a 20 year old car - things are going to fail no matter how well you take care of it.

I have enjoyed every second of owning this car so far. It is a blast to drive in any weather condition. And the attention you receive is quite nice too. I am slowly going to be putting money into the car to get it to where I want it. I cannot wait to unleash its potential.
The main thing that I have learned about this car is that if you take care of it, drive it well, and maintain it you will be greatly rewarded. But if you fail to do these then the car will bite your head off and you will (probably) lose the love you had for it.
Sorry for the long post - I just wanted to get my opinion out there. I hope it helps some potential owners.

adam c

iTrader: (2)

Congrats on the new purchase. It looks like you are one of the few that knows what you are getting into when buying an FD.

The FD is a huge dollar per mile car. Driving it in foul weather (when you can't truly enjoy it) is a big mistake. You should find another car to drive when the weather/roads are bad.

KevinK2

Congrat's. For allseason in Illinois, get snows on 2nd set of wheels. If tail swings out too much when accelerating onto a perpindicular road, add 1/2 can of GM friction modifier to diff.

To get baseline on engine health, have a rotary compression check done.

.

nnorris7413

I've got snows on right now and the car is very controllable. I actually really do enjoy driving it in snow because it handles it very well.
Before getting the 7 I was looking into getting a second car, but I live in an apartment so I would have to get a second parking space and after adding everything up it just didn't make sense. When the conditions get too bad or when I have to haul lots of stuff I just use my girlfriend's RX300.

capt. bill1

This is how I and others have taken care of the peeling soft to the touch covering on the interior parts: https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/painted-bits-733066/

nnorris7413

That looks really good. The peeling on my car really is not bad yet - it's just starting. I'm hoping I have a few months before I need to do anything about it.

James Paventi

iTrader: (34)

It's good to read a post about a new owner who knows he's getting into.

This car will definitely reward someone who takes the time to learn before just doing.

Enjoy and welcome!

MazdaSpeedDan

iTrader: (4)

October of this year has not occured yet, so please tell me where this time machine is because I would like to use it, thanks!

Narfle

iTrader: (16)

Congrats! Nice to see a fresh perspective.

nnorris7413

Haha good point. I'm still not used to the whole 2012 thing. I'm gonna go edit that right now otherwise it will annoy me until I do.

Edit: maybe not, I didn't realize I couldn't edit an original post. I guess I'm just going to have to live with it.

adam c

iTrader: (2)

There are many discussions on this board about the current (and future) values of our cars. If you don't mind, how much did you pay for it, how long did you look, and how many did you look at before buying this one.

Thanks

nnorris7413

I have been looking for years. I would get the RX-7 bug off and on every few months or so. I finally decided to give in to it when I found one that I actually loved. I looked at about 8 of them in person and test drove 5 before buying mine. And I paid 13k for it. Unlike the M3 (which depreciated almost in half in my time of ownership) I hope (and believe) that this car will hold its value.

wolf_9782

welcome to the FD brotherhood! i enjoyed reading your review, it was a great post and took me back to the days when i was busting my *** to buy my own FD.

adam c

iTrader: (2)

Thanks for the info. Sounds like you made a good choice. Your car will likely hold its value ........ unless you drive it every day, and put a bunch of miles on it.

prew

iTrader: (9)

I think it will too. I paid about the same for mine 10 years ago now, stock as well.

Also, I really liked your post and it seems like you are going into FD ownership with the right attitude.

Btw - post some pics!

CrispyRX7

iTrader: (139)

Posts like this always make me smile.

Welcome to the RX7 community. But beware of the obsession to modify....it's a downward financial spiral Rewarding but costly

Regards,
Crispy

r1fdtres

iTrader: (3)

Bienvenido

Good to read ur story....

Flybye

And to believe I almost traded in the FD for a new M3 like yours.

Dang good thing I didn't. Welcome.

Fritz Flynn

iTrader: (263)

He's already a car guy so look the f...k out because this car is sooo much fun to mod.

These cars will hold there value better than most BUT it will also burn 100 dollar bills each time you fire it up because you'll love it so much you'll want to buy it more and more jewelry and each power adder makes such a big difference you'll become addicted to the go fast goodies which will make you love it more and more and you'll buy more and more jewelry and this just continues until you've spent all your saving, lost your house, your family etc....

I predict this car is a single turbo by 2014 lol.

Have fun with it you've picked the most fun car on the planet to own

technomentor

iTrader: (18)

Welcome to the FD owner club.

Yep. Figure $300-$1000 per mod (if you buy new) and they add up quick. Always amazes me when I see the threads with all the parts just purchased when people are modding their cars. They might as well lay $100 bills on the table.

Nevertheless, there is something about owning and driving an FD that makes it special.

whiteweazel21

iTrader: (2)

Congrats on the purchase. I think it will hold it's value as long as you don't put too much into it, once the ball gets rolling there's no coming back I'm already approaching the point of no return and I just bought mine a year ago (stock 40k miles)... fairly unlucky IMO but it's worth it, really does put a smile on your face when you get in.

Sgtblue

iTrader: (16)

Welcome. Glad you finally found a good one.
Apparently others too. Alot of you long-time board members chimed it on this...and some have pretty low post-counts for their years.

nnorris7413

Thanks for the kind words guys. I know that once I start modding it there is no turning back. That's how it was for me with my Evo. I just kept dumping money into that thing... but it was so rewarding every time I did. I only have a few crappy Iphone pics of the car, but I will post them in a few minutes.

nnorris7413

A few crappy pics as promised:

wstrohm

You could easily go nuts trying to find the cause of the 3K miss, based on what I have read on this forum. Our '94 had it too, but what finally cured it (almost) was following Mazda's tech bulletin which I posted in post #42 of this forum thread. You might want to read the other posts regarding ground points also.

Have you ever driven a turbocharged Miata?