I agree with this advice 100%, people often get too caught up with fixing what isn't broken and don't get to enjoy driving such an amazing car.

 

Thanks again for all the replies! I definitely appreciate the many opinions. I'll probably follow the path of getting a car in good condition and leaving it as it is, repairing or replacing things when needed.

I've been able to narrow it down to 2 basic price ranges. A lower price range would be cars with a repair (accident) history or higher mileage (100K + kilometers) cars, in otherwise good condition. The higher price range would be cars with no repair history and generally lower mileage, in good condition. Above that, I would be looking at cars in great condition and getting a bit out of what I would be comfortable with spending. The price difference between the 2 ranges is around $4k - $6k, depending on the specific cars you're comparing. The obvious advantages of the lower price range would be getting into a car sooner and having (more) money set aside for "just in case" sooner. The downside would be the possibility of remaining issues from the accident history or more repairs from higher use. I would definitely want to be sure that the car has been well maintained/repaired in either of those cases. If it has an accident history, I don't think I'd be comfortable without knowing the details of the damage and repairs. The advantage of the higher price range would be not worrying about those things as much, though each car can obviously have some differences, so I can't rule out the potential need for repairs just because it has been driven less. Either way, I'll still need months to save up and will continue doing my research in that time.

As far as shops go, I'm still trying to find something close to me. Most of the issues I'm having with finding something are related to my lack of language ability when it comes to searching for something like this. I'm asking some people for help on this and will hopefully have better luck with someone with higher, or even native, language ability. I'm wondering what exactly I need to be sure a shop can handle in order to feel comfortable. Of course, when it comes down to a lot of things, they aren't all that different from piston powered cars. With things like engine rebuilds, I'd probably be looking at something that involves shipping with a reputable rebuilder. Outside of direct work on the engine and something like compression testing abilities, what would be specific to these cars that I should look for in a shop? Since a rotary shop is always recommended, I can't help but feel like I must be overlooking something here.

 

Where in Japan are you I may be able to help guide you to a shop. I have dealt with several due to time attack events and just plain curiosity. Also as far as stated above please check recommendations before saying them an example would be that none of the jdm cars had 2 cats. They had one only in the mid-pipe. As far as check valves after 1996 they had a a block system that contain all valves and solenoids together. This in turn means you cannot change them separately they have to be replaced as a whole. Feel free to message more questions I have been dealing with these cars in Japan now for 7 years I do not know all but I have a lot of experience here.

 

Thanks! It's great to know someone with some "local" experience and knowledge.

I'm down in Kochi prefecture. It's pretty rural, so I'd be fairly surprised if you already know something around here, but any help finding something would be great. I've thought that Ehime or Kagawa might have a bit more to offer, but being a few hours away is not exactly close.

Edit: By the way, if you have any recommended shops for car-shopping, that would definitely be appreciated. Of course, I know of the common used car sites and have found a couple of shops that seem good and specialize in selling RX's, but more options/inventories are always nice.

 

Are you familiar with Goo-Net?

If I remember correctly there's a couple of shops that specialize in selling rotary powered vehicles. If you search for FD's you should notice a group of them being advertised in a similar manner, and probably being sold by the same dealership. Starting there would be a good choice as they would generally be more knowledgeable about the vehicle they're selling versus maybe some of the bigger shops that sell a wider array of vehicles.

If you can afford anything '99 and above, I'd advise not settling for anything older than that.

 

Goonet is not bad the only issue I have seen in Japan is a lot of auctions cars pop up these days with little to know history. I know in my area we have my tuner who has a black 1996 for ¥550,000 with a brand new mazda engine as in being installed this week, pfc, all reliability mods done and a midnight purple 1999 for double that with non sequential setup and reliability mods done. I have more parts to list just not the place for it. There is leg sport who may even trade in the 8 for and FD of course not evenly but they have around 4 FD for sale right now. In okayama there is RE Miyoshi he has 2 FD and some older newer rotary cars for sale. Those would be the closest to you at this time. If you want some help free to message me I have dealt with all these shops often due to racing in okayama. The other options is always order an auction car and have a shop go through it and maintenance it.

 

That's pretty much exactly what I've been doing. Goo-net and car sensor have a pretty good selection and I've found a couple of shops that specialize in rotary cars. One of them is really good about providing plenty of information in terms of things like aftermarket parts (rarely engine related) and things like compression numbers, etc. As far as online sellers, they seem to be pretty top notch, though it's hard to say for sure until I've actually started talks on anything.

I'd also definitely be sticking with 99 or newer. It seems there should be some decent options available in my price range and it seems worth going for it.

Thanks for the information! I'll definitely get in touch with you once I get closer to my goals for saving up. I feel like trading in the 8 plus some extra cash would be the best option for convenience and getting what I'm looking for. I'm still working out how much money I'm looking at and what condition I'd expect/like the car to have.