I'm trading in my piece of crap Ford Focus and I've been looking around, found an 84 rx7 for what i'm hoping is a good deal. for one thing it only has 51k miles on it. i started it up and i've never heard a rotary engine before but i couldn't hear anything out of the ordinary. the only thing really i could see wrong with it is the battery is dead (the owner had to bring out a battery charger to jump start it) and there was white smoke coming from the exhaust. i'm hoping it's nothing too bad, anyone had any experience with this problem?

 

The white smoke could simply be condensation because the car has been sitting. Or it could be something as bad as coolant being burned.

Ask the owner "When was the last time you topped up the coolant?" and then interpret the answer. If it is "Oh, I keep it topped up" then start to worry.

Battery could be dead from sitting, or it could be a bad battery, or a bad alternator.

 

If it's a coolant problem can't I fix it alumuseal or whatever it is?

 

no, best bet would be to move on and find another rx7 unless you feel you really want that car and wouldnt mind rebuilding it. but since its your first rx7 i would keep looking. i know your looking for a 1st gen(FB rx7) but you should look at a '86 to 88' rx7 too, from personal experience and people on the board 2nd gen rx7s are cheaper on parts and just look better ( to me at least)