Well, we found a black rx7 with only 24k miles on it.
We have read what all to look for when purchasing an rx7 and followed the suggestions to a T.
We have several other questions. This car has been garaged for ~2 years. The oil hasn't been changed since 2000 and has only been driven ~3k miles since then.
It is also leaking coolant. The car has had all of the required services performed.

What we are looking for, is any suggestions on how to get the car back on the road without damaging it.

Of course the oil needs to be changed, and find the reason for the coolant leak, but could someone suggest a course of action?

Thanks

 

Fix the damn coolant leak. Do you know the general area that it is coming from?

 

oil change(air filter,etc), coolant flush, root cause leak, then run it for a week or so, then compression test and monitor turbo performance... then you will know what you have on your hands...

 

Really good advice. Don't even think of buying it until you know what's going on inside the engine.

I would draw up an agreement with the seller that you will buy it and deposit the funds with an escrow company. You split the cost of the escrow company handling the transaction up front. Temporarily insure it with a zero dollar deductible to full used blue book value (hopefully you will buy it for MUCH less) with the seller as additional insured. You have one week and/or 500 miles to decide if you want to keep it and have it inspected to your satisfaction by a competent ROTARY mechanic.

Did I say ROTARY mechanic??

At the end of the week or 500 miles, the seller agrees that you can either complete the transaction - he gets his money from the escrow company- or return it to him and you walk away - with your money refunded back from the escrow company. You have complete control over the decision. If you find something that can easily be fixed, but expensive in regard to parts or labor (and what's not expensive on this car?) you have some additional "wiggle room" to go back and renegotiate the sales price. It's win, win.

Sure, you are out of pocket for the one week of insurance and the mechanic, but they have let you drive the car for a week and put on an additional 500 miles as well as taken the car off the market.

If they are motivated sellers (and you would have to assume they are since it's been sitting for 2 years gathering dust) I think it's a very reasonable way to procede with the sale.

Good luck! It's really a fun car - I've had mine for 10 years and really can't imagine selling it.

 

If there is only 24K miles on the whole car (not just the engine), then I wouldn't be too worried about it. I bought my car with a similar situation. The car had 35K miles on it and I bought it from a guy who had only had it for about 6 months, but the previous owner had stored it for 2 or 3 years. Turned out it the second turbo wasn't coming in, but the guy I got it from was none the wiser. It was only a matter of replacing a check valve and one solenoid, but it took me a while to find it.

If I were you I would look the car over again once more and see if maybe the radiator is leaking where the plastic and metal pieces come together. If you can't find the leak then have the car towed to your place. Once you have it home you can start taking a closer look at it. I really doubt there will be much problems though if there is only 24K on the odometer. Just my two cents.

- Cody

 

With the low mileage and long term storage you should do what the others have said but you should also flush the brake fluid.

An expensive part about buying a "fixer" FD is fixing the body/paint and interior. If this car had 24K miles and was in good shape with a seized motor it would still be easier and cheaper to fix up than some of the beaters people think they can make nice for cheap.

Jeff

 

Coolant leak is probably most likely the water pump seal. Make sure you take care of this first.

Tim

 

Don't forget to drain and replace the gas in the tank. It has a tendency to go bad after a while and it's not something you want running through the engine when it's not been run for a while.

 

Thanks for the help guys!!

Well we did buy the car ( I just didn't know it yet) So far we have changed the oil, cleaned it up and determined that the coolant leak was just because it had been over filled.

We did have alot of gas smell in the oil, but I did some searches here and learned that that was normal.

We just put some cheap oil in it to run for about 200 miles, then we are going to change it again at another short interval. The oil that came out of it was VERY thin.

Now, the only problem is...either this car is REALLY fast, or the speedometer is off. 5th gear at 70 mph is at like 2K... is that right?

We also have a really weird squeak coming from the front right of the car, kinda like a quiet mouse sound...haven't been able to locate it yet. Only happens when the struts are having to move alot. Any suggestions?

I think the tires might have developed a flat spot in them from sitting so long. They are 96 Yokohoma AVS sports, and they make a loud pulsing sound that increases with speed.

We are going to have the car check out at Clean and Fast here in Raleigh, any opinions on this place?

Any other suggestions before we "break" this car in?

Thanks
Aaron and Matt Caudle

 

Personally I wouldn't trust that Clean and Fast place any farther than I could throw them (so to speak). I had a friend who bought a car from them for 16K. He never told me he was interested in getting a car until he bought this one. The car was supposed to have a rebuilt motor, but had a really bad oil leak. Go figure. Not to mention the fact that the car was completely ragged out. I have seen better cars go for 10K. He really got ripped off and I've been a little ticked off at them since then. The bad part is that they won't even fix his oil leak problem. So maybe I'm not the best person to ask their opinion about this place.


You may want to try talking to other FD owners in NC. There is a whole club down there. You should probably go ahead and change all the fluids (transmission, differential, oil, antifreeze, brake fluid, power steering, etc.) and you should also change the fuel filter. You never know when the last owner changed all of these and besides they should probably be changed since it has been setting for 2 years.

- Cody

 

yeah...get a downpipe and the other reliability mods asap.

just cuz its low miles doesnt mean that the engine and turbos would not have issues. never buy an rx without a compression test first. period.

one overheat is all it takes..


good luck with it

post some pics


j

 

The little mouse you have under the hood is a very common problem for '93 models. It is the hood bumpers squeeking. It can be fixed by placing a rubber washer under the stock rubber hood bumpers. Do a search and you will find something on it.

FYI- It is very common for the rear hatch hinges to squeek too.

Welcome to rotary ownership!

Jeff