Planning to buy an RX7 - doing my research!
 

i actually found this site simply by typing in random URLs and i'm pretty glad i found it! i checked out the classifieds and read a bit in this forum to get gleam some knowledge but i still have a lot of questions that i'd like answered more directly.

i'm looking to purchase a third gen FD3S rx-7 and i've looked through some easy classifieds like those here, autotrader, and ebay. i've also talked to anyone who knew anything about rx-7s simply to get an idea of what to expect from an rx-7 and the purchasing experience that accompanies it. here are some concerns:

what's the differences between the model years 93, 94, 95? it seems like 93s are the easiest to find whereas 95s are nonexistent. i've read in the classifieds here that the yellow color is the hardest to find and that some people hate montego blue (heh). i've heard that 93s have major mechanical problems and trim issues (peeling?). thus some people have suggested only seeking 94s and above. what do you guys think? are 93s that bad? what should i look out for?

i already understand the faily unreliable nature of the rotary and i imagine that if/once i get my rx7 i'll be on here asking you all again on how to bolster the engine for more reliability. many of you in the classifieds are very skeptical about any high mileage car (30k and up) without a new engine or compression tests. what advice can you give about the engine?

overall, if you were me, what would you look for and why? what are good prices? what should i look for and what should i avoid? of course, stay realistic and let me knoe what is within acceptable range. i'd very much like to keep the budget below $20,000 for the car itself. the lower the better. i think i've seen some of your cars in autotrader and ebay. what do you think of cars on ebay and autotrader? do any of you knoe any good rx-7s you could point me towards?

thanks for any help you guys can provide. :)

try going back a few pages or doing a search (top right hand corner) to find the answer to some of your questions. they have been answered 100x over the past year....but to answer a few of your questions i would go for a 94 personally because they tend to have few mechanical issues. unless the 93 has been kept in very good condition or has had a new engine installed recently.

i don't know where you got the 30k number but that's not very many miles for cars that are between 5 and 8 years old already. i would guess the average fd has at least 60k miles now. they are not exactly new cars.

for between 16-18k i'm sure you can get a nice one in the bay area. it will take a while to look though. try the usual places that you've tried, classifieds, and also thepartstrader.com.

if you haven't been to http://www.rx7turboturbo.com/robrobinette give that site a cruise. it has a lot of good info as well as http://www.scuderiaciriani.com. good luck. if i still lived in berkeley i'd give you a ride but oh well.

Steve Cirian's site (scuderiaciriani) was where i learned most about the FD (alas, college budget restricts me to matchbox-sized RX-7s). personally i'd go with the newest low-mileage one i could afford, but it all comes down to vehicle condition. make sure the oil was changed REGULARLY (not "usually about 3-5000 miles or so, if i remember corectly" or other semi-suspicious comment), and ask about all services and aftermarket parts on it. i'll leave the rest to actual FD owners...

i read the other thread by that 19 year old who eventually concluded he'd aim for a 300zx or an mr2 (which is a very nice alternative).

i'm curious, how much do you guys pay for your insurance coverage? the more details the better both about your plan and what kind of driver you are in their eyes (age, history, etc.). how much do insurance companies bite some of you younger owners?

i pay a fairly expensive sum for my current car even thoe its not a sports car (four door sedan). it is, however, a 99 and thus fairly new so that may be a reason. how much do you guys pay?

btw, thanks for the links to those websites. they're absolutely awesome and i'm learning a lot about the engine itself. :)

Welcome Neokai...you know who this is...

anyways..when you are ready to look at one...let me know...gotta help a fellow b5'er out .. Scuderia's site is very informitive...ready 100% of it.

Johnny
94 Silver FD
01 B5