Hey everyone, I joined these boards last year when I first purchased one of my dream cars, the FD RX-7. I'm a sucker for 90's to early 00's JDM as well as vintage muscle, so between growing up on franchises like F&F/obsessing over car magazines any chance I could, I was always discovering new cars. Ever since I first saw the FD, I fell in love with its body lines. When I first got it, I was super excited to start working on the car and turning it into what I had already visualized, but unfortunately life prevented me from getting started until recently, so I decided to create this build thread to keep a living journal of progress with the car and as a means of keeping myself accountable.

***BACKGROUND***
I purchased this car from a seller on ebay, and boy was I in for a treat; things weren't disclosed, and I realized quickly that I had more on my hands than I expected, but it's okay as I have a solid plan for the car. I have no rotary experience, but I'm willing to learn. Have experience doing basic stuff on cars (bolt ons/general maintenance). This car will be a weekend driver/auto-x car in the future. This is also my first build so I'm excited to get it underway, and willing to take my time to do it right.

***THE GOOD***
1. The car runs.
2. The car came with the factory popups(uninstalled, but glad to have them as this is part of my vision) which were important to me.
3. Car came with the 99 style wing, which for me came down to wingless or 99 style wing for now. Not a fan of the smaller funny looking wing that came on FDs.
4. Despite being a ricer, the seller included stuff with the car that they ended up not having the time or energy to install or just didn't have a use for(door speakers, lighting, OEM suspension, OEM headlights, etc) so that was cool.
5. The car is still stock twins. Very important to me.

***THE BAD***
1. The odometer doesn't work. The display definitely needs to be replaced. Also, JDM cluster. (not the worst possible outcome, as I have plans to replace the gauges)
2. Unidentified exhaust components. It would've been nice to know the brand of the components.
3. Cruddy seats; the OG seats had a huge rip in them, with the foam exposed (I knew about this from the pictures, so not a big deal).
4. Plasti dip wheels, because rice.

***THE UGLY***
1. A HORRIBLE LEAK. Seller didn't disclose that there was a leak somewhere between the driver side door and the sunroof. Found out the hard way when I got in the car to start it and was greeted by a huge puddle in the footwell, beneath/behind the seat and dampness on the passenger side/mildew and mold galore.
2. Electrical issues; The installed radio doesn't work. The installed knockoff ricer headlights don't work. The brake lights don't work. The ricey aftermarket gauges work though. Awesome! /s
3. The headlights were wired poorly, and the bumper/fender liners/various non metal parts were secured with zipties in places, or random screws.
4. The hood latch wouldn't work, as well as the fuel door.
5. Rear hatch lift supports didn't work whatsoever.
6. Gas pedal had a bunch of play and was worn down, clutch had a lot of play also
7. The car was essentially a project that never ran it's course (or barely took off, more appropriately).

***IMMEDIATE PLANS***
1. FIND. THE. LEAK.
2. Diagnose the electrical issues
3. Get OEM headlights working

***LONG TERM PLANS***
1. Improve on the performance of the car all around in small steps (braking, grip, tq/hp/response)
2. Invest in auto-x/track days to become a better driver/comfortable with the car
3. Improve the aesthetics of the car(interior first, then exterior).

I'm here for any advice/tips any of you would like to provide(especially electrical). Thanks for checking my thread out, I'll be sure to post updates pretty often!

how the car came, with tacky headlights and weird bumper fitment


seller decided to keep the tacky diy cooling plate

These cars look mean from the front AND the back.


The OG seats aren't bad but I planned on replacing anyway.


The single din radio doesn't work at the moment, I'll have to figure out why. I plan on going double din anyway.

Seats developed mold form the leak in the car. standing water is no bueno.

Mold developed on the driver door mainly, as well as the passenger door. I got rid of all tan interior pieces as a preventative measure. Other pieces were removed and cleaned thoroughly, no signs of mold coming back on them.


Had to get rid of the seats, and door plastics.

Mentally planning out seats and other aesthetic things for the interior with this shot.

The carpet had mold too, so at this point this car is getting gutted. Previous owner left rolling papers and a lighter in the car. Priorities.

 

Awesome! Car looks great! Welcome to the club! I recently purchased an fd as well so many small stuff I gotta fix =/ where in pa r u from? I'm in the king of prussia area. Not that many around here.

 

It seems like it's never ending right? Between visualizing what I want and wanting to do things a certain way, I have a nice list lol. Philly! I work not too far from there, I'll PM you later.

 

Apologies for the radio silence!

I was away at military training for the past few months but I'm back and ready to continue working on my car. Time is limited but I've continued the slow process of gutting the car out.

I'm taking a slightly different direction with this car now, which I'll be documenting as I work on it. Expect weekly updates at a minimum. Here's a few pics of more removal of the interior pieces/carpeting. I'll definitely be removing the dash, as well as cleaning up the interior carpet residue/gunk on the floor.

 

So, I've been sidelined due to an on again, off again leg injury. Pics will be coming soon!

As an update, I have partial lights on the dash(high beam/battery but no light behind the tach/oil/fuel gauges, etc.), but no interior lights/tail lights. I've been browsing electrical diagrams while I've been sidelined, so I'll be getting to the wiring issues next time I work on this build. My plan is to remove the dash completely and start looking for continuity issues along the wiring. I'm not the biggest fan of working with electrical issues, but I'm using this as a learning experience. If I have to, I'll pull the harness from the car, as there's no rush to get this thing on the road(and I'd prefer to do it right, not twice).

If anyone has any thoughts as to what the issue could be with the problems below, feel free to drop them in this thread.

1. No turn signal/hazard lights
2. No running lights
3. No brake lights

 

Hey, double check the fuses and you can find more wiring information with the manuals here: Mazda RX-7 Reference Materials

 

I've been working on and off on my car for a bit, but life has really been in the way. I moved, started grad school, changed jobs, got married....so a LOT has happened since I got this car.

Anyway, since I can't delete this thread, I figured I'd just revive it and put my updates here. I'm salty I've had this car for so long and haven't gotten to do with it what I want, but everything will happen when it's supposed to. For now, my update is:

1. Car runs, not driving due to waiting on a clutch line
2. Interior is gutted due to the previous seller never fixing a leaking sunroof/not disclosing that; luckily I was able to get a sunroof frame in the facebook group, and replaced it).
3. Brake lights are working.
4. I'm in the process of getting the headlights working; previous owner had these hideous frog eye lights. Upon investigation, the holes for the driver side popup don't line up, so will need to get some work done for that to happen.
5. Horns were rusted/not working so replaced those; wiring was non existent so working on replacing that and getting the horn working. Between the headlights and the horn, those are the only things stopping me form registering the car

Pics will be posted tomorrow.

Also, went to 1 rotary meet so far in my new home state (TX), which was ok. Some people were social so I talked for a bit and brought my evo instead of the FD. Hoping to attend more as long as I'm in the area for them. If anyone is in DFW (especially south of DFW) I could definitely use a rotary sensei or several. Moving from Philly to Tx I have to start over since I don't know anyone here. I'll be documenting everything with the RX7 on my channel as well, especially because I'm a visual person and its easier to watch a video vs remembering what I did a while ago on this car.

https://www.youtube.com/@JustDrewIt215

 

The DFW RX-7 Club meets are on the first Saturday of the month (including this coming Saturday). Attendance is sporatic but often quite good. Weather should be nice this weekend so I'm planning to attend (~7:30pm).

Unfortunately, I know of no RX events in southern DFW. However, there are plenty of occasional "cars and coffee" type meetups. Some, like the annual K&N factory meets in Grand Prarie, are very well attended.

 

Hey Carlos,

Thanks for the reminder! I came out to one meet so far since I moved here. I was supposed to go to that one but had a friend's birthday that same night. I'll be available for the February meet (weather permitting). I'll have to stay aware of the C&C style meets/occasional night meets, I have to be mroe mindful of checking the app ya'll use out here, but looking forward to meeting more of you when I attend!

 

1. Clutch line came, and I have the new CMC attached. Ended up cutting the cmc hose so that it wouldn't kink as bad (really, at all). Way cleaner look than how it was. I ended up screwing up one of my brake calipers by over-torquing a bleeder screw; I managed to get the bleeder screw out but there's still a tiny bit of the bleeder screw threads left in the caliper thread.
2. I ended up finding brake calipers on facebook and worked out a deal for a full set (despite not needing a full set)....but when they got shipped to me the box was MANGLED. The box showed up with 2 front calipers and no rears. I have no idea how it was even accepted by the shipping company, nor what the seller was thinking packaging it like that.....but either way. Super disappointing, still on the hunt for a rear brake caliper. I'll include some pics later.
3. As of now, I'm plotting on what else can be removed form the engine bay/car in general, but if I'm putting the car on a diet I also will be going on a diet....it's only fair

 

Work has been super hectic, as has school, BUT managed to make it out to the monthly meet here and saw some cool FDs. I ended up seeing one that's pretty much exactly how I picture my FD when it's done, so pretty cool to see that in person.

Anyway, uploaded another video/brain dump of another update for the car re: finding brake calipers via facebook.

Slow is better than no is what I keep telling myself. Additionally, Carlos made a great point about time. Once everything is good to go with the brakes, I'll be driving it around again, and I can't wait!

 

Work has been super hectic, as has school, BUT managed to make it out to the monthly meet here and saw some cool FDs. I ended up seeing one that's pretty much exactly how I picture my FD when it's done, so pretty cool to see that in person.

Anyway, uploaded another video/brain dump of another update for the car re: finding brake calipers via facebook. Slow is better than no. Once everything is good to go with the brakes, I'll be driving it around again, and I can't wait!

1. Troubleshoot/connect new horns
2. Get Headlights working
3. Go over headlight mounts (more previous owner files)
4. Continuous cleaning of interior

 

***EDIT***: The one part that was backordered when I originally ordered my parts from Turblown has a 6 week lead time

Well, it’s been a while ya’ll. I’ve touched the car a bit: updated throttle cable, cluster fixed (though the odometer stopped working after being fixed so I’ll try again with another person), and the inside continues to be cleaned up/stripped. I exercise the car occasionally (stock twins are still fun)…

However, my build has effectively been halted for at least a year! I ordered a bunch of stuff from Turblown in Fall 2024, and here I am still waiting on parts from my order. Communication was decent in the beginning but it’s been a perpetual cycle of bits of communication -> a timeline of a few weeks provided (or no timeline provided but being notified that he’s working through a backlog) -> patiently waiting -> reaching out again about the rest of my order.

Out of all the parts I’m waiting on, only one mentioned being on back order (it called out a timeline of 8 weeks I believe, and it’s been WAY longer than 8 weeks); the rest were assumed in stock because nothing said otherwise on the site.

It’s been super demoralizing tbh, since I’ve been continuing to pop up at my local RX7 meetups and I get to see everyone else’s cars running….but here I am waiting for parts still.

It’s also been rough seeing people order parts after me and get their stuff, seeing Turblown continue to post on social media, send new parts for testing overseas and yet I still wait. I hope future customers don’t fall into the same pit I’m in. I don’t get how new parts can even be thought of with this gigantic backlog of customers owed parts.

I’ve been trying to be patient because I think the product quality will be good/will result in a great car, but knowing what I know now I would’ve just ordered from a supplier that physically had the parts in hand vs essentially giving an interest free loan.

Here’s to hoping I get my complete order before Fall 2026.

 

I feel for you. These cars are so hard to own and everything that is needed to support them will test both your patience and resilience. Stay on top of the vendors as much as feels appropriate to you. You paid them, taking your correspondence until your products are delivered is part of the job. At least that's how I view it. Don't get me wrong, though, I have tons of respect for Turblown and appreciate how this community benefits from their work. But even the good guys can always do better and need touch points now and again.

You're local to me so I'm subscribing to this. Hope that the stars will align for you this year.

 

Thanks for the kind words cloud. I’m hoping they align too. I’ll keep coming out to the DFW meets at cheddars though, just really frustrating having comments/messages go unanswered or the timelines given continue to be meaningless.

 

Update: Was able to talk to Elliot today, he mentioned he was severely delayed due to more business opportunities. So hoping for the best moving forward

 

While I wait for the rest of my order from Turblown, I decided to get more active with the FD RX7.

I recently took my car in to get checked out by a local member of the community who came highly recommended form one of the OG's here in DFW. The vehicle history showed front end damage on the driver side due to theft, so my front end was never perfect/straight, and the portion to mount the headlights was a little funky/redneck rigged. I got tired of dealing with this and decided to keep the car's progress moving forward as much as possible.

I went to his shop and got to talk to him a bit, then came back and dropped the car off for surgery. I at least wanted some of the other problems I couldn't handle at home addressed since the car is sitll waiting on parts to do a complete overhaul. Chris was super knowledgeable/informative about different aspects of what may need to be repaired. We got to talk for a bit about paint/body stuff, rotary stuff, and how things continue to change over the years. Here are pics of what he caught as he went to repair the front end of my car.

Front driver's side: Rust found under the battery tray. The driver's side had the collision but this rust seems to be a mix of leaky battery/improper repair by the previous owner

Passenger side had mild rust under whatever the previous owner sprayed

Front driver's side headlight bucket had rust underneath where the metal met/was welded. This side had the collision

Area under the battery tray rust

 

What the cleaned up areas ended up looking like:

Front passenger post repair

Front driver post repait

Front crossmember post repair

More of the front passenger


Mocked up front end

 

Video of events:

 

Continued progress with the FD; I managed to find some time and install JP3's shorty throttle cable and fan relocation brackets.

My OEM throttle cable has seen better days. Adding to the previous owner files, the OEM throttle cable couldn't be secured in the factory location due to a broken plastic mounting piece. Not the end of the world, and a worthy excuse to upgrade to JP3's solution (plus this also aligns with my goal of a cleaner/simple engine bay wherever possible). I ran into a snag when installing due to the Throttle body on the car being modified, but was able to snag an OEM throttle body from someone in the fb group; super reputable, great communication and he looked out in a major way. What a lifesaver! Wrapped up the install, prior to dropping the car off for surgery, but never documented here (so it didn't actually happen....at least thats how the internet works).

Fan relocation bracket went smooth, simple couple of bolts and I like the mounting position; realized that my fan relay connector has seen better days and looks to have melted/burnt up a bit. Not sure why but I would like to chase that gremlin down.

Anyway, I recorded the install. Video can be found

 

Got my car back from the rust repair work done above. Car looks way better up front! I've started addressing some of the smaller issues: Tail light inconsistencies, and redoing the wiring for the horns because of the previous owner. I still need to diagnose the headlight popup functionality (unsure if its the motor, the switch I'm missing, or wiring in between) because the headlights don't pop up when I turn the lights on form the stalk. I do get power to the headlights though.

Still waiting on parts from Turblown that I ordered in Fall 2024. I just checked my records, and 27 weeks ago, Elliot responded to me and let me know that the UIM and downpipe would be leaving "today" as they were boxed. Still haven't received the downpipe as of May 20th 2026. He also commented that a week after those left, he would be shipping the turbo; I still haven't received that either as of May 20th 2026. No word on the other pieces missing.

Elliot has mentioned how his company has taken on additional work in defense in addition to automotive pursuits, which is troubling because he is already having trouble keeping up with demand/fulfilling orders placed years ago. I am continuing to enjoy the car as it sits with stock twins, but I've been waiting to upgrade my car for a long time with no updates unless I reach out, and my money has been tied up because I paid for these parts but still haven't received everything.

I'm super disappointed in how all this is happening; I checked the website and some of the parts that haven't been delivered after a year and a half are STILL available for purchase. Some are appropriately marked as sold out. I've been trying my best to be patient and understanding, but this interest free loan for no return has been rough to deal with. I purchased a bunch of other parts to go with the stuff I expected to receive from turblown and now its just a **** ton of parts just collecting dust in my house. A bunch of money tied up is frustrating, especially when I had so much time to tear into the car and the major pieces aren't delivered in the 6 week lead time, 40 day lead time. That alone threw my plans off big time with building this car.

I planned and saved for years to bring my vision for this car to life, so my frustration continues to grow.

If anyone on here is close to Elliot, PLEASE help him be accountable and catch up on all of these back orders. This isn't good business, and there's a simple way to correct these horror stories of customers not receiving their parts for a year, 2 years, 3 years, etc.

 

Sorry to hear this brother, I'm 2 months deep in waiting for my order to ship, which was "arrived and awaiting assembly". It's super frustrating on my part, but yours must be even worse. We need to hold these vendors accountable, over a year waiting is totally unacceptable. It's not 2021 anymore, you can't claim production shortages or any of that other nonsense.

 

Thanks Kyle. Hoping we can both get our orders ASAP. My thing is, don't put a lead time if you aren't going to stick to it, and if something comes up make an announcement. It's radio silence unless I initiate, but I see turblown promoting stuff/posting/getting tagged on new products/deliveries on social media. He needs to hire someone to help him clean up the backlog. I would even do it, I've done auditing/reporting at my day job! I agree with you on accountability, which is why I want to draw awareness to these terrible delays.