I'm still working towards the car that I've wanted since I was 7, but my dad always says that a certain amount of miles and he wont go for me buying it. So I was wondering, what's the average life span of one of the non turbo second gen engines? And how costly/time consuming is a rebuild?

 

I think this question has been asked thousands of times here but search a bit around this forum and i think you will find all your answers.

But in general bare in mind that these engines are 20 to 25 years old. All those tales about that they have to be rebuild after bla bla bla miles or so.......maybe yes, but that goes for piston engenis too. There are numerous examples here of rotary engines with very high milages. If a rotary is maintained well they are capable of going on for a long time.

If you are really interested in a RX-7 and you find one then try to take somebody with you who knowes his or hers way around these cars and do a compression test what will give you a good impression of how the engine is. Bad compression will mean an expensive rebuild, good compression (and the rest of the general maintanance) and it can go on for years of fun

Now first you have to try to talk your father in it, or do it like me and just buy one and deal with dad later

Marc

 

An NA engine that has been taken care of and has not overheated can easily go 150k miles +. IIRC there is one guy over 200k, maybe 250k with his in the 2nd Gen Forum.

 

Thanks for all the feedback, helps me out a ton. I apologize if I was beating a dead horse lol

 

There is no way to know how long the engine will last, because it mainly depends on how much abuse it has suffered over the past 25 years. But most certainly, the rest of the car will be worn out before the engine dies. If the car starts easily, doesn't smoke and makes good power, then the engine is likely in great shape. NA 13Bs last a long time. Turbo 13Bs typically blow when people start playing with the boost.

If it's your money I don't see why you dad has anything to do with it. Unless there is some info we are missing like you're about to spend ALL your money on it or something.

 

It's that right now I dont have all the cash and I'm relying on him for floating me some cash and he needed more info

 

I'd say a stock 13b WELL taken car of, should last at LEAST get 100K miles. Also depends on mod's and how it was maintained/driven by the previous owner.

 

I'm sure you don't want to hear this, but take it from a guy who has been around the block a few times regarding old cars...Don't buy a 20+ year old car, any 20+ year old car, if you have to borrow money to do so. Because immediately after you purchase the car, you'll need to put another few thousand into it to replace the worn out suspension, bushings, brakes, hoses, belts, door/trunk seals, tires, transmission/diff seals, parking brake cable, tie rods, ball joints, bearings, etc. etc.

And that's best case scenario if the thing actually runs, hasn't been sitting for years, isn't a huge hack job (you'd be amazed at what "fixes" a vehicle accumulates after 20 years), etc.

 

My 2nd gen hit 160k+ before I sold it & a friend of mine drove his into the 190k range.

 

There is no question that good RX7's that have been maintained properly, not abused excessively and driven regularly can go a long ways. Unless you know the owner, it can be very difficult to know if a car meets that criteria. I think that an RX7 makes a great second car, and a good primary car for someone who is willing to work on it. I don't think I could recommend one as a daily driver for someone who doesn't intend to become competent working on it.