I am currently in the process of looking for an RX-7, I have always loved this car and now that I am 19 and working and all that I would love to get one. There are 2 cars, one has 106k on the car but only 10k on new turbos, the other has 80k on both the turbos and the engine. Now I have read there are some reliability issues, especially heat. So far I have been told to get a 3mm rebuild kit, and possibly a bigger intercooler along with a bigger radiator. Now will this improve reliability or just cooling? I really do love this car, but if it will end up just ripping a hole in my wallet i would like to wait until after i graduate from college. I know this is an RX-7 site but would there be another car for similar price, power, and performance?

 

wait till you graduate from college, this car will not only burn a hole in your wallet but will burn your wallet and you pants off...

 

3mm rebuild kit is not one of the first steps. Don't worry about that. When you get into the kind of power (and budget) to justify 3mms, you won't have to wait long for your next chance to install them.

Bigger intercooler is fine, but again not quite top priority. Radiator is a good idea. Downpipe is also good.

Unfortunately it will rip a hole in your wallet. If this will be your only car it could become very difficult.

Dave

 

Read the newb stickies at the top of this forum. They'll give you all the information you need.

I'd recommend waiting. You may find a better example somewhere else later anyway.

 

Well, the guy I was looking at it, has an HKS downpipe, Greddy Exhaust, and then APEXi intercooler, the only thing not on there is the radiator. I dont really plan on driving it all out too often, I just love the looks of it and the performance even at lower speeds.

 

make sure to test drive it and check for the boost pattern and also the 3000 rpm hesitation

 

FDs are so good at destroying bank accounts and credit ratings, they should put it on their resume. Wait until after you graduate.

No. Having said all that above, I love my FD and will not trade it for anything .

 

Well I am kind of hesitant, it seems if i dont treat this car like delicate glass it will fall apart or something will go wrong. That being said, if I dont drive it very hard would it still have problems. I hate seeing all the negatives when I like this car so much

 

There are plenty of FDs out there that run fine and have been as been reliable as any other car. The reason that everyone is cautioning you is that you need to remember that this is a 10-year-old sports car, and most of the examples out there have been driven as such. Too many people come onto this board and just see all the big dyno numbers and other chest-pounding, and overlook all the pitfalls in the mad rush to own one.

Like I said, you need to read all of the newbie stickies and links at the top of this forum so that you have an understanding of what it takes to own one of these cars. It's obvious from your lack of knowledge about the car that you need to do more research. They're not made of glass. But they're not resistant to neglect and/or ham-fisted modification either. And I have to say that there's a lot of cars out there suffering from both...

 

^Well put.

 

Well I actually found a specialty rotary mechanic to look at the cars I am interested in buying. So far I have read that I should make sure the clutch is in good shape and the tranny, because people like to run them extremely hard. Also the boost pressure to stay at 10psi then slightly drop to 8psi, and the last thing I read was to check for 3000 rpm hesitation. Now with that, is there anything else I should ask for him to look at, I do want to push the car sometimes but not to an extreme.

 

http://www.scuderiaciriani.com/rx7/buying.html

As a teenager, you might also want to check on insurance costs. Also, it should be a 10-8-10 boost pattern on stock turbos/motor. Continue to read. I can't remember if the link above is in the stickies list on this forum, but it's a good place to start and the site has several links too. Educate yourself on these cars. My recommendation is to look for low mileage and unmodified, except for "reliablity mods". You'll learn what these are from the links. This will mean a higher price, but likely a better car to start with for someone on a learning curve. Both of the cars you cited above might be values, it just depends on their price, and your budget, talent and ambition.

 

I called my insurance agent and somehow, even with the make, model, year, horsepower, 2 door, and turbos my insurance wont go up a dime. I think i am either lucky or there is a mistake

 

Get them to send you the quote in writing. I've had the "mis-quote" problem before so always get it in writing.

 

Well I went to my insurance and she looked it up right in front of me and printed out the copy and it WONT go up a dime. This made me extremely happy.

Ohh before I forget, tomorrow I am going to see this guy selling his with 82k on both engine and turbos for $12,500 (is that too much). I was going to add some reliability mods and just a quick rundown, what is the ease to add a downpipe, radiator, and then exhaust. I am pretty decent with tools but not a guru under the hood.

 

If you can properly run a search, you have the intelligence to install these parts.

Do you have what it takes?

Dave

 

Well I can do a search, I think I will have to dig down deep to have what it takes

 

Good. We've all been through that little initiation.

Dave

 

I am so anxious to get my hands on this car. I test drove it and just tore the crap out of the highway. Ive never gelt 7500 rpms before and ill tell you for a first time...its INTENSE. I didnt want to get out of the car.

 

Just let it have a long easy warmup and cooldown and have fun.

Oh, and don't kill any bystanders or race, k?

Dave

 

I know not to race, my friend raced his civic (got wasted) but also got pulled over and got a suspended liscense. If i do some high revving driving would 5 mins of cooldown be enough for the turbos

 

1-2 min is enough...

 

Hm, if you love the car so much I don't think it would matter much that it's a pithole for money. I didn't have enough money nor the knowledge to handle an fd yet so I got an fc to learn on. Eventually, I'll get my fd. Good luck!

 

Blinded by the excitement of owning a FD. I remember those days very well, kind of like yesterday. I just wish she ran. Damn she ran when I bought her but she dont now. Soon tho it just take a little bit of time and alot of money.

Not to scare you off. Its real hard to scare some one away from buying a FD.

You asked for advice so they gave it you. "wait till you graduate". The best advice for you.

I love my FD and wouldnt trade it for nothing. I will own it till the day I die. I will probably be buired in it, or maybe have it creamated with me. It is a great car. Just keep in mind that it is a expensive car to maintain. And with the miles that you are looking at you are due for a rebuild ($2500 to $5000). Also dont think that after a rebuild you are not going to see problems for a while. My 18k motor blew a o-ring, that means a rebuild, even tho it would be a cheap rebuild but still a rebuild.

With that I would like to welcome you to the board. You have some exciting times ahead of you. You can find ANYTHING you need to know here about the FD. So enjoy, and partake in the pride of a deminishing group that never started with a large number to begin with

 

Yep, 1-2 min is a good number for cooldown, but a good 5 min for warmup. It takes that long to get the coolant circulating and everything evenly warmed on a cold block.

Dave