I'm not (yet) an RX-7 owner, but I'm looking for an FD for my (now somewhat-past) mid-life crisis car. Growing up in Southern California, my first car was a 1977 Toyota Celica GT Liftback (which I bought in '83) and I'd watch with some envy as FBs would blow past me and handle better on interesting roads.

So I apologize in advance for the newbie questions :-).

 

Hi, welcome aboard!

While I'm not sure I'll be out again for a bit, if you look in the regional forums, there are a number of FD owners in the DC area. In times past, there have been regular appearances the Friday night meet in Sterling (Chick fil-A, Dulles Crossing). Good luck!

 

Welcome! I am relatively new to Northern Virginia myself (we moved here 6 months ago). There are a ton of very helpful and knowledgeable FD owners here. 😊

There have been a few FDs at the Dulles Landing Cars and Coffee the last few weekends. They are every Sunday 7 - 9 AM.

 

What, were you stopped?

 

Welcome! No worries on any newbie questions. It's all good. I wish you the best of luck in finding the right 7 for you! Keep us updated on what you end up getting!

 

Welcome to forum

 

Yep.

Sometimes a friend and I will hit lunch on Church St. in Vienna during the week with our FD's.

 

Was at Church Street today for lunch! If/when I get my FD, can I join you? I'll even buy the first round :-).

 

I was actually there too- at Church St. Pizza around 12, just not in my FD today.

I'm sure we can arrange something!

 

Ok, now I'm a new owner as well:

1994 R2 (Red/Black)
54,000 miles
Stock (except for radio)
Near-mint condition (seriously. Amazingly pristine)
Purchased today; will be delivered next week.

 

Wow that was quick!! That's an extremely beautiful unmolested R2!!! Wow that's beautiful! Do you know any of the car's history?

 

I do!

Purchased new in Charlotte, NC in early 1995; one owner 1995-2019. The first owner sold to a car buddy due to declining health after retiring to Florida. Buddy had it closed-trailered to his garage, kept it for a few months, fixed a few things (e.g. replaced curb-rashed front lip) and then decided he didn't want to keep it. Cue me :-).

First owner was meticulous -- service records, oil changes, pre-mix. Even left a note in the car for his friend to make sure to open the glove box latch before closing it so it doesn't break :-). AC has been converted to r134.

Was garage kept, floor mats kept in the hatch and never used. Seat covers since new. Other than two minor scuffs on the interior plastic, everything looks new. I spent two hours in and around the car yesterday, after a pre-purchase inspection at the local Mazda dealership, trying to find a reason not to buy it. I couldn't.

The only thing that really gave me any pause was the compression test:

Front: 1) 6.4 2) 6.4 3) 6.4
Rear: 1) 6.9 2) 6.9 3) 6.7 @250 RPMs

Engine was hot and elevation was 965 feet.

Readings seem nice and even but lower than I would have liked to see. Raced through some forum posts in the parking lot at the bank before getting the check to try and make sure I wasn't making a mistake. No problems with hot starting the car.

The original owner was 85 and on oxygen when he sold. I'm thinking/hoping that lack of driving or particularly high-revs may be the cause? But I'm a complete newbie at this stuff, so I only know what I can find online (dangerous, I know). I'm happy to redline it to blow some carbon out if necessary :-).

I'm going to keep the aftermarket radio in, but at some point would like to purchase a stock head unit with CD. The Kenwood has bluetooth (and a hands-free mic was unobtrusively installed/easily removed).

If anyone knows of a head unit for sale out there ..... :-)

 

Nice score. If that's the original motor, 640 kPa is not bad. You are also showing less that 20% difference between the front and rear rotors which is good.

Are you planing any mods?

 

You made a smart decision in buying that car. It honestly sounds like a dream FD to me and inwould not have hesitated to buy the car. Personally I would leave it all stock and as original as possible. It's a true time capsule that should be enjoyed for many years to come!

 

Only minimum necessary reliability mods.

 

That's an excellent plan. I would do the same to a car so original and pure!

 

"Reliability" mods can be a slippery slope. If you don't track it, stock is very reliable IMO. I had no troubles with my 100% stock FD for 15 or so years until i started tracking it. Of course, it then blew a coolant seal. If you don't thrash it, you only need to keep on top of fluid changes and items that wear or degrade over time such as rubber bits and solenoid valves. If you don't have a PFC, it's good to have an aftermarket water temp gauge and boost gauge to keep tabs on your engine. You should also replace the fuel filter if that hasn't been done (to your knowledge) as well as the fuel pulsation damper.

 

Congrats on your new FD R2!

 

What a beautiful FD! I would be too scared to drive it because it's so pretty. Hopefully we'll see this car as pristine as ever decades down the road for younger generations to enjoy

 

Thanks, Tom. Very helpful. I'm currently trying to compile a "complete" list of what's recommended for minimum replacements for maximum reliability :-). It also has the original AST, so that's got to go as well (so I've read). I'm not planning to do anything other than joyride it in nice weather.

 

Me thinks my first RX-7 deserves my first vanity plate. I'll bet that many, if not most of y'all are too young to remember Mazda's first U.S. commercial (and first brand tag line) way back in 1973 (I was six) for the RX-3.

Mazda goes mmmmmmmmm.