Ive been debating whether or not to buy this car. Ive been chatting back and forth with the guy and it seems like a really cool car. I wanted to get your guys feedback.

Im 17 years old and currently drive a 97 Jeep wrangler all built and lifted so it will be quite a big jump for me. It will be my first Rotary which is also a leap because i know nothing about them but i think it would be a really cool opportunity. Now, about the car, its a 1993 Mazda RX-7 Touring. Its got the twin turbo setup, sun roof, leather. blah blah blah all the goodies. Now for the catches. Its kind of high mileage. Currently it sits at 125k and the guy said the engine was rebuilt at 60k. Also, the second turbo in the sequential twin turbo setup is blown, the seals are bad. I have a guy that can get me a rebuild kit for around $80-$100. Hes sellin the car to me for $8000.

I just want to now if it is worth the investment on a higher mileage Rotary and spend the money to rebuild the turbo.

Thanks for the help guys and let me know if you need anything else from me.

 

No

-Ted

 

No.

 

 

Buying an FD is a commitment. You need to do some research. These car's are VERY needy. A high mileage car is even worse. You will spend thousands to make it reliable and things will still break.

Common knowledge... buying an FD is the cheap part.

I say NO.

No offense to your age, but you need a very steady cash flow to keep these cars happy. If you have that, and are absolutely committed to buying, then go ahead. But you were warned. On a positive note, they are the absolute funnest, finest, car ever made..... it becomes an addiction... trust me

 

Ya I was leaning towards the no side as well. I researched them quite extensively when he first offered it to me and they seemed very high maintenance. However, I DO want to get one eventually. They are Amazing cars. Beautiful too.

Thanks for your input guys.

 

No problem man. I have wanted one for 10 years. Patiently waiting until the time was right. Your time will come if you are committed to it. I would highly recommend a 1st or 2nd gen to get you started in the rotary game. If you want a fun project with great power potential, a TII is a great choice.

GL OP

 

Spend more $$$$$ on a lower mileage FD and youll save more $$$$$ and headaches in the end

 

Wait 10 years......and research




LAter

 

NO

Im with the guy above but maybe not that long.

 

blown turbo = a scape goat for blown engine. Almost everyone who say...oh yeah just a blown turbo only cost like 2-300 to replace. Yeah right....once you starting tearing that **** up you'll find so much more problems and it will end up being 2-3k. And when someone say...blown turbos....I would be worry about the engine being blown too.

 

No, go buy an FC and work your way up. This isn't a Honda Civic. It takes serious commitment and mechanical knowledge. I owned an '86 GXL , a '91 A-Package coupe , a '88 GXL and an '88 TII before I decided to take the plunge into committing to an FD RX-7. Even then they are VERY different in trems of needs. I highly suggest to work your way into one, preferably one that already works. Especially since FC's are much cheaper and great cars. Do your research.

Sounds like both the turbos and engine could be junk. $8k it too high. I paid $11.5K for my modded FD with a freshly built balanced and ported engine and tons of reliability bolt-ons. Downside? Body and paint are kinda rough.

 

I was 18 when I bought my rx7...I researched them for about a year, looked for the right one for 8 months. Got a rebuilt motor, new single turbo setup for dirt cheap, but wasn't running and owner needed to get rid of it. I do have a 74 beetle as a DD though. Now I'm going to a Kan tuning session in a week...so excited

 

FD at 18.... You either have some giving parents or lucked into a great job....

 

id probably try buying a cheap FC first and toy around with that for a couple years, untill u got like a good job and stuff, cause working on the FD can get expensive. cause i got my first fc at age 17, and have been messing with them since then i am now 23 and got my first fd finally earlyer this year.


lol u gotta do the typical coming of age thing, get a na fc, beat ont hat for a while, then turbo swap it, or get a real t2, then move up and finally get the fd, the best of them all! by the end of it all you should have vast knowledge of rotarys and rx7 and be able to handle the fd and any challenge i tthrows at you

 

"I have a guy that can get me a rebuild kit for around $80-$100. Hes sellin the car to me for $8000."

This statement alone leads me to agree with the others in saying, "no".

What exactly is this "rebuild kit for $100"? You do NOT rebuild one of the turbos on these cars for this amount.
Basically...you do not 'rebuild' these turbochargers, period.

 

Unless you have another $8000 set aside (and another $8000 on top of that just in case) I say NO.

 

No..my grandpa died and I inherited his car..it was a 2000 honda accord v6, 4 door, gold with 32k miles. Sold that and bought an FD for the same amount

 

This was my thought as well... I am with the other members here. It is not that we are trying to put off the car as a bar car, or that you are not "cool" enough to own one. Truly we are trying to look out for your best interests. If you do not have a steady job that allows you to have ~$500 EXTRA cash flow a month than this is just not the car for you. A lot of months require NO cash and others get very expensive. This is the nature of owning such a high performance car. And make no mistake, the FD RX7 is a very high performance car with loads of potential.

You alread sound like you have made up your mind to not purchase the car and that is a good decision. Keep interested, keep reading to get knowledge on here and once you graduate college, go pick one up if you still wish to own one. Even then you will not be disappointed.

 

Don't buy a basketcase car that seems like a good deal. It's more expensive in the long run.

 

maybe turbo rotary owners have some Masocistic tendencies!!

 

Man i had a jeep wrangler and then got my fd on my 16th birthday, but i was not one of the kids whose parent bought him cause he wanted it. I saved and sold every bike, dirtbike, and my jeep to get it. i knew from the time i was 11 that it was my DREAM car. I researched everyday for oh about 5 years before i even thought twice about seriously getting one. Im now 20 and still have it today and everytime i get into i still feel the joy i felt the day i got it. My advise just happens to be the same as everyone else please wait, save yourself some money and heartache.

 

No, don't even think about it.

 

I agree with everyone. I started with a 91 na when I was 18, then 5 other turbo fc's (s4 & s5). Now I'm 24 and finally got my first fd because I got a steady job as an ase tech and do sidejobs for other peoples cars. Any car breaks down, leaks, etc. But the problem with these cars is there is just not enough knowledgeable techs to fix these cars. And the shops that have em charge up the ***. So u need a lot of money or u need the time, patience, and determination to work on these cars urself. I say start off with a s4 t2. If u can't master that, don't think about a fd.

 

i definitely got a lot of info from you guys. i emailed the guy and told him I just wasn't ready for the car yet.

They are amazing cars though.

I'm gonna look at some of the 2nd gens today see what I can find out there. I really wanna learn more about the Rotaries. I consider myself a pretty knowledgeable guy when it comes to piston engines (ive worked on cars with my dad my whole life basically) but really wanna expand my knowledge and get to know the rotary engines.

Thanks a lot for your help guys.

Now to get into the rotary scene you guys recommend the na FC's? what about the T2's? pros Cons? sorry if its a stupid question, like I said im new to the rotary scene lol