Cost of RX-7
 

I am looking into buying an rx-7. I know I am young, many people may think i'm going to abuse it, modify this and that. However all i've been looking into is reliabilty mods, such as twin oil coolers, replacing vacuum hosing and religious maintenance etc. Some of the mods will increase power, I'm happy running stock power up to 350hp. I am looking to look after and run my rx-7 as a daily driver, I live on a small island and probably do 5500 miles a year.

What my big question is... How much does the car cost to run?? As in maintenance whys and common problems that need fixing. This does not include engine rebuilds. I know fuel is a high cost, but I can purchase 97 octane at £1.27 a litre so it's not to bad for me. So yeah how much will this car cost me?

Since you are young I would look into what the insurance would cost.

Kind of difficult to give numbers on what the recurring expenses of the car will be. It will be lumpy from year to year. Some big repairs one year and then not as much the next. The normal maintenance is no big deal: oil change, fuel filter, coolant change, etc.

If you find a good car to begin with, do the reliability mods, and don't push for too much HP you can have a good experience but nothing about it is inexpensive when things do come up. Having the mechanical experience and the desire to do the work yourself is the biggest component to keeping costs down.

Due to a vastly different economy and supply chain, the cost of parts and labor on your island will not be the same as other countries. Therefore, I recommend that you ask your local auto shop for an estimate based on their experience with RX-7s. Also, you will need to specify the model type and the year of production, as there are many different types of RX-7s, with some being more expensive to maintain than others.

You may also have some luck asking this question in our European forum to see if anybody knows about the economy on your island.
European Forum - RX7Club.com

With a max speed limit of 35 mph, I think that you will be OK. ;)

I agree with Evil Aviator, you need to do some local research, but some reading here might help:

https://www.rx7club.com/new-member-r...driver-991135/
https://www.rx7club.com/new-member-r...there-1011243/

Thanks
 

Insurance situation is totally fine! For when I turn 19 it will be £1000 a year fully comp which is less than what I pay for my mx5 right now... So I was buzzing with that!

Also I just found out I have a Mazda garage that has about 3 rotary mechanics. 1 mechanic is fully qualified and can re-build an engine if need although I would most likely take it to the mains land for that.

What I've gathered from the comments though is really helpful! What I'm trying to say is, if I earned £18,000 a year could a struggle with regular maintenance? Not trying to sound stupid, but just really want to know how much I could be maximum spending a year, or how much it could be through a good year. I'm up for the challenge of maintaining an rx-7 and making it for my tastes and be the car that I build up. I just hope I won't spend all my money in the year.

Good to hear the ins won't eat you up. In a good year you may have only preventive maint which is similar in cost to other cars. It won't be like owning an old Lamborghini where a tune up could cost a few thousand.

Sound like you're considering an FD if so make sure your mechanics are experienced with the FD specifically. For example if something comes up with the turbo controls it could be expensive e to diagnose and much worse if you have to pay for there time to learn the systems.

18000£ a year I don't think you will struggle with regular maintenance since it is not that much different from other cars. But the repairs can get expensive especially if you're paying someone to do the work. Of course the risk of this in the near term will be reduced if you can afford a good low mileage car. To do this you may have to have a wide search area so could be more costs there if you don't find one on the island.

To give you an idea of regular majnt spark plug set maybe $50 at the most for the parts and replace every 15000 miles. No more labor than any other car but part a little more expensive and change them more often. Fuel filter harder to get to than other cars but maybe only an hour labor on that with part cost 2x that of a car with large production volumes.

Hope that helps st least some.

This helped massively! Thank you! Now all I have to do is find a decent one in England and bring it over and wait till I'm 19! I'm pretty sure I want one! Only downside is I've never been in one but I'm sure there's no disserpointment.

Most of your maintenance is oil and filter changes and spark plugs and fuel filter once a year, oil changes at 5000 kl [3500 mile ] which you can most likely do your self

edit

ALL of that changes depending on what year RX7 you are looking into . and the availability of the car in your region.

How much does cost matter when you know you want to drive a rx7? I am starting to want 350hp too... :-)

If you have tools, time and a place to work (and ability) then the maintenance costs aren't terrible.

Your fuel costs sound expensive to me, these cars aren't known for great gas mileage.

And if this is your only car, don't plan on being able to haul anything, give rides to passengers or fit much in the trunk

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This is true, but still want money for upgrades haha.

Fuel shouldn't be too bad since I don't drive many miles a year.

Also anyone know what the best year of rx7 is? Or well the benefits and cons of different years?

I'm still deciding whether to go for an rx7 or take the easy option and get a 350z haha

I had thought you were just considering an FD, 1993+. If you are condsidering an FC a turbo FC would be generally less repair costs than an FD and a NA (non turbo) FC less than a turbo. The difference is more in repairs and large infrequent maint. items more that regular maint. You can go a lot of trouble free miles on an NA rotary but it would not be anything performance wise near a 350Z.

If you've got 350Z like performance in mind an FD will be more to your liking or a really built out FC probably with aftermarket turbo.

I considered the 350Z also before I bought my FD but I knew if I bought one I would still want an FD anyway.

Is the Channel Islands RHD or LHD? Reason I'm asking JDM import may be a lot cheaper and newer models 1992-2002.

From what I read, a lot of future maintenance is based on how a previous owner took care of it. Whether they let the turbo and motor cool down after spirited driving, regular maintenance, etc. If it hasnt, which is usually why an FD might be cheaper, the car could be a big problem going forward. Just a thought when looking for one.

I daily drive my FD, even in winter no matter how bad it is out (SE Michigan). First of all, I'd say make sure the turbos are in good working condition and compression is good. I had to get my turbos rebuilt (2nd one was leaking oil and not coming online). That plus all my reliability mods totaled a bill of just under $4K with quality, name-brand parts. <<-- All this assuming you're getting and FD.

I think all major maintenance aside, gas and insurance is the most expensive thing for me. That with pre-mix. At 15 mpg city (driving like a granny) and 14 mpg city (heavy boosting), expect to visit the pump very often and spending 4x more time there than with other cars (doing fluid check-ups and such). And at 31 yrs old with perfect driving record, the FD still runs me $110/mo for full coverage.

For me, I can't really rest easy owning an FD, knowing something else expensive is going to break (already have another oil leak). So RX-7 ownership will also cost your sanity pretty often.

I daily drive my FD, even in winter no matter how bad it is out (SE Michigan). First of all, I'd say make sure the turbos are in good working condition and compression is good. I had to get my turbos rebuilt (2nd one was leaking oil and not coming online). That plus all my reliability mods totaled a bill of just under $4K with quality, name-brand parts. <<-- All this assuming you're getting and FD.

I think all major maintenance aside, gas and insurance is the most expensive thing for me. That with pre-mix. At 15 mpg city (driving like a granny) and 14 mpg city (heavy boosting), expect to visit the pump very often and spending 4x more time there than with other cars (doing fluid check-ups and such). And at 31 yrs old with perfect driving record, the FD still runs me $110/mo for full coverage.

For me, I can't really rest easy owning an FD, knowing something else expensive is going to break (already have another oil leak). So RX-7 ownership will also cost your sanity pretty often.

To be specific you daily drove your FD one winter. And part of that it was down for new turbos. You may not have intended it to be an endorsement for a DD, but those reading this thread and contemplating an FD to be one should have the facts. :)
Few if any could as a DD for all the reasons mentioned in those links above.

@ Sgtblue: No, definitely not endorsing DD-ing an FD year-round. Just making a relative statement for the OP since he wants to DD. For the record, it was all slow city driving through the winter. Would I recommend it? No. My all-seasons didn't hold up. If I do it again, hello blizzacks.