Well, I have been reading up on some RX-7s lately. And I never relized they had the power they do. I currently drive a 1995 Eagle Talon awd turbo, a fun car witch has good potiential. I am been trying to learn some about rotaries and how they work, but I am still lost on them, it will just take a lot of time reading about them.

I have been thinking about looking into getting a 3G RX-7. Depending on price, daily driving relability, etc.

The reasons I do not like my car:

Everything rattles (panels, etc)
Its about to fall apart (they must be cheaply made)
They have pretty weak trannys. I know launching hard is hard on a tranny, but the dsm ones are weak.

I heard a rx7 for the first time a few weeks ago, and it sounded crazy, and it looked very nice, considering it was pretty much stock. And I think I feel in love, after reading some times on this board with the money put into the car, i was amazed in what a small engine could do.

Here are some of my questions: About a 3G RX-7

Will it last if I treat it good? Good maintainence?
What Kind of times could I run and still be reliable and have it as a daily driver?
What models are there? Colors? Etc...
Are they made well? Does stuff on the break easy and rattle?
What should I watch out for?
I heard they have heating problems from turbo, what can fix this problem?
How much would a nice shaped 3G cost me?
Is it hard to work on the rotary engine, compared to a 4 cy?

I basically need to know anything that I can, I know you will tell me to get one, which I might, I just need to know all of the bad things about them (all cars have bad things with them).

Any information would be of great help.

Thanks,
Steve (A guy interested in a rotary)

 

read:

www.rotaryengineillustrated.com

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...threadid=68640

good luck yo.

 

for more rotary knowledge visit:

no pistons.com
www.howstuffworks.com

First off they are expensive and you have to have a lot of patence. If you can get by that then they are very fun and very fast. You have to get by all the negative "opinions" to find out that they are not that unreliable. Yes the engine typically goes out @ 70k-100k but for a high performance vehicle its not so bad.

 

Read my sig!

 

How much would I be looking to spend? For say an early 3G.

 

RX-7s are prone to rattle. There is a lot of plastic in that puppy. However, if that drives you nuts, I wouldn't recommend one. But, seeing how your going to treat one right and be thorough in your ownership, gauging from your post, I'll recommend that you get one.

Funny that you should ask about performance. Well, all your woes in that category are taken car of. You will have a mid-13 to 14-second car stock. So if that says anything about putting up with a few rattles I don't know what does. It is easy with a few thousand dollars of investment to squeeze out 12s or even 11s. Not to forget, if you ever want to autocross, you have a very capable weapon at your grasp.

Go to the search feature and look up these things:

reliability mods (heating problems, and upgrade paths)
maintenance (very key issue)
production numbers (for the colors and such)

This is a link I recommend www.iluvmyrx7.com. Look under 3rd gen links. Its gives you a categorized listing.

It is not hard to work on the engine. You’re just having to play a different ball game all together. The piston is no longer in the picture, thereby simplifying things a bit.

Garrett

 

for an FD (3rd gen rx) in at least decent somewhat stock condition, expect to spend 15K+. 20k is not out of the question for a low mileage FD in good shape. Advice i've heard others say is buy one in good shape, and with lower miles as opposed to looking for options or colors you want. There is very little difference between the models, and they are easy to turn into the model that you want. Color can be changed if it pleases its owner. But a low mileage FD in good condition is the best bet no matter what.
FD's are known to have some reliability problems, but they are easily fixed (most of the time) if you know what they are. Rotaries are in their very nature more reliable tham piston engines, there are a lot fewer moving parts (for instance, the entire valve system) and one directional motion (spinning as opposed to accelerating down, stopping, acellerating up) yeilds much less vibration and friction, etc.
People have run 11's as daliy drivers, (dont be a rikki for one)
The car isn't made as well as it could have been. Mazda attempted to cut costs in some places, so some things tend to not last as long as they should. Air Seperation tank is a good example of this.
Watch out for boost problems on a test drive. If the engine boosts correctly (pattern should be 10-8-10. i.e. 10psi on the first turbo, 8 psi on the changeover, and 10 psi at the second turbo. 2800, 4500 rpm is the start of the first turbo spool, and the second turbo coming fully online, respectively.
They do have a massive amount of heat coming from the turbo. A downpipe, is the easiest way to reduce heat, but there are other ways. It's not as if the car will overheat if the cooling system functions properly. But colder air is denser, and more air means more power
I have never worked on the engine itself, that question is better left alone
Sorry about the long post, but i hope this helps.
Jeff

 

steve..i use to live in mobile. i was one of the very few asian people there...haha do they still have those two malls across the street from eachother?

 

If you treat it right, yes, it should last. Maintenance is expensive ... but, most high performance cars have expensive maintenance histories.

Definitely do some more searching on this forum. There are TONS of threads about 1/4 mile times on streetable cars.
3 models: Base, Touring, R1/R2
Colors: Vintage Red, Chaste White, Montego Blue, Brillant Black, Competition Yellow Mica ('93 R1 only), Silver (I forget what the descriptive name is).

I think they're well made. There are cheap OEM parts; but that's a manufacturing issue ... in other words, you'll have to replace them and when you do, it's in your best interests to go with a higher quality aftermarket part. You also have to remember that you're looking at a car that's almost 10-years-old. It's going to have squeaks and rattles ... and the RX-7 is not known for its quiet, comfortable ride quality. It's a race car .. I mean, c'mon.

Watch out for high mileage ones that have not yet rebuilt/replaced the engine and turbos. It may seem like a real good deal at first, but once you get tagged with a engine/turbo rebuild/replace ... you'll wish that you had bought one with all that done already.

I don't know that you can FIX the heat issues with the turbos. You can alleviate some of the inherent problems by upgrading parts and opening up the engine bay.

I'd say to find one with around 80K miles, a rebuilt/reman/new engine and turbos .. you're looking at about $15-18K. They can be had for the $10K neighborhood ... but revisit the part about what to watch out for. IMO, it's worth waiting around for the right one to open up.

I don't think they're that hard to work on. It's all new in terms of learning; so take your time, do your research, and be patient. Good luck.

 

I've seen some FD's for sale for 12gs that loooked beautiful!! They were involved in accidents and salvage title, but hey it it doesnt bother me if its a salvage because everythings been fixed!! Just make sure its fixed the right way.

 

I found a 94 Twin turbo for $8500. It doesnt list the milage or color or anything. Think something is wrong with it?

How much would it cost to rebuild the engine on one? Do you buy a new rotor? Can you upgrade the rotar? (like upgrading pistons?)

How much do upgrades cost? Where is a good site that sells a lot of stuff for the 3G such as turbos, etc...

Do they make automatics? (I dont want one) Are they 5 speed?

Can you tell me what the differnce between the 3 models are?

What interior colors are there?

Thanks a bunch guys.

Oh, and what does FD mean?

 

$8500 bucks sounds like a "mechanic's special". The motor most likley needs a rebuild. I'll let someone else comment on costs and recommendations, since my new motor was doen by the dealer and paid for by the Extended Warranty.

~The Mazda Dealer is NOT where you want to go for work on your car...None of them know **** about 3rd gens. If you are able to get on with low miles, i Highly recommend that you spend the $$$ for an extended warranty. Mine saved me aroud $11k in repair work over the years.

As for mods, you can buy them all right here on the forum in the Parts section. There are many stages of modification for the FD and people tend to buy and sell parts as they continue up the horspower chain.

You can save a ton of $$$ buying used parts. Just do lots of research and use commons sense when dealing with people on the internet. Don't get ripped off, by being too trusting.

3 Rotor!!! nirvana...
Street-ported Single Turbo
Stock motor with all the bolt-ons
Stock

 

FD refers the the 3rd gen's it is the first two letters of the VIN number, FC is for the 2nd gen I think.

for stuff: www.rx7store.net (that is the one for this club) they have good prices. also http://www.phase2motortrend.com seems to have decent prices but I have never purchased from them.
Upgrade costs...all depends on what you want:
Intercooler $1300 range
ECU $1300
Exhaust $400~$1200
gauges, bov, suspension, wheels, tires, down pipe (dp), high flow cat or midpipe (mp), intakes, boost controllers ($15 for manual up to couple hundred), clutch, flywheel, porting, apex seals (tip of the rotors), fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator (fpr), injectors...the list goes on...

They do make automatics...
R1: tighter suspension, dual oil coolers...no sun roof or bose sound system, no cruise control
Touring: has curise control, bose sound ....not sure what else

Interior colors...Tan and black...(that I know of) but many people paint the interior panels (like me, see pic below)

Hope that helps a little
Also, as a warning, some people on this forum get pissy if you post a question that many other people have already asked, so try out the search button

 

I am just gonna find a 93 or 94 that either needs a new engine or is about to need a rebuild and then send it to pineapple or if i find a good builder in the bay area. I think i would either save some money or be around the same price if i found one with low miles. And i will also have exactly what i want.

 

However, it can be better to go with a cheap one that needs the rebuild. That way you get a new motor with warranty, a very good asset with the REX. You could go for an expensive one and find it needs a rebuild.

As for price I just had mine done this week and it was $3100 US dollars ($6200 australian). That was for a full engine and turbo rebuild.

 

Is it hard to work on the internals of the rotary?

It couldnt be as hard as working on a car with pistons could it? I self tought my self how to work on a piston engine just from reading and getting some guides on them.
Could I not do the same for the rotary?

 

all i have to say is that my FD is SOLID... NO ratteling

maybe is because the first person that owned it was a WOMAN... not to be sexist but a man would have killed the car and pushed it hard every day....

those are my 2 cents

SAM_

 

If you love vacuum lines you will love working on the FD. Quite a rats nest of lines and solenoids. The good news is that there is lots of literature out there on how to service the car. I am in Michigan and there is only 1 mechanic in a 100 mile radius that I would even consider taking my car to. A lot of FD owners are self taught about the engine not by choice but by necessity. However, if you are going to work on it yourself, it is not a daily driver. Making even minor repairs can take time.

 

Yea they take time, and the correct tools! Some 'simple' jobs can go really quickly or take a week (if you break something it could take longer)

 

What sig?

You forgot to turn it on.
But it probably says something like

"3rd gen Rx7 is fast but my supra is faster and more reliable. Previous 3rd gen owner."

 

Oooops.

Nothing about the Supra... just stating the commonly heard stuff so you guys don't have to re-type it.

(It's a joke)