Morning guys and girls, For the past 2 years I have owned an MR2 turbo, which at the time of buying was fast enough for me, soon got bored though and did a few simple mods to help her along the way, now she runs an Apexi ecu, afm removed, hks exhaust, filter and bov, boost wound upto 1.2bar and a few other toys on her, I have gone as far as I can without spending but money on large turbo and chargecooler ect so decided to sell up and buy a fast car.
I have never been in an RX7 and dont want to be one of theese people who go to view cars just to be a test pilot. I live in Hindhead surrey right on the A3 if anyone wants to show off there car to me :p
Anyway, what I\'m after is a white 3rd gen 2+2 hard top, 1992/1993 to keep cost down, not bothered about mods but would like one with an aftermarket exhaust. Im looking to spend about £5500, I\'ve seen some on autotrader for this price but none in white :mad:
Am I living in a dream world or is this realistic?
Sorry for the long thread.
well, I would say you could pick one up for that price, but be aware you better have very deep pockets or be a good mechanic with the time to learn about rotary engines. Chances are it will be on its way out and will need rebuilding sooner rather than later at that age and that price. I think most people on here will back me up when I say unless you are buying a car that has had money spent on it on a consistant basis, you are gonn be apending a good amount of time off the road. Personally I think you would find it cheaper to spend about 8-9k on a car that comes from a well known and reputable source and has been well looked after.
That said you can sometimes find a bargain, I picked up a silver 92 with 63k on the clock, that was rebuilt a couple of years ago by RE:Worx. When I had it compression tested the lowest face was an 8.2.
In the 3 months that I have owned it I have spent over 3.5k on it with a new exhaust system, new wheels, a new rad, a major service, a new ecu that I had mapped, a new induction kit and a new intercooler.
If I had spent 8.5k in the first place I would have a better car than I have today so there\'s a lesson on there somewhere.
ont the other hand....
I bought a rex in sept 04, cost 6.5K \'93 on L plate.
about 65K miles on the clock...
had no major trouble with it at all....
new clutch 535
few new sollenoids 100
a few oil changes and new plugs and filter ( all done my self)200
few new bits of piping..... 200 ( inc Labour)
all in all about a grands worth...
took it to Pip of WGT auto dev. fame and he said it was a good buy... lovely exmaple... good nick. and comepltely standard, apart from bils tein suspension.... which is what I wanted but some prefer allready modded ( and therefore in my opinion thrashed)
I got mine from autotrader... I would deffo reccomend that you try before you buy... and try the car you want to buy aswell... you hear quite a lot about people getting cars from japan, and waiting 3 months for them to arrive and when they do they are not as good as the auction stated....
you can have alook around it drive it get it checked over and know what it is before you buy it....
either way though... once you buy and RX7, it will be a love affair between you your car and your wallet...
good luck mate and welcome to the club....
love affair between you your car and your wallet...
I know how that feels!!! Thanks for the replies, I see what you mean, I could get one for about 8k after I sell the MR2 but then i\'ll be left without a car for a while. might do a P/X then.
The one I have my heart set on is up for £7000, its exactly what I want and its got a good service history, recently had new rotor tips and seals.
There is a black one with a sunroof not too far away from me thats 6.5k and had an overhaull including turbo\'s
QuoteOriginally posted by the lemster
but some prefer allready modded ( and therefore in my opinion thrashed)
that totally depends on how the modifications have been done.
Part of the reason I have spent so much on mine in those 2 months, is because I have modded it very carefully, so as not to damage the engine.
Modifications done poorly will thrash the car modifications done well will only enhance it.
Check the for sale thread.
Boltoa\'s car sounds well sorted. Nicely moded, plus almost every parts that can go wrong have been replaced recently. Would have bought it myself if he was asking 9k 2 months ago.
Careful on what you buy, and make sure you have at least a couple of grand spared for later days.
I think you already have a fast car:D
I had a 96\' MR2 turbo which was lightly tuned before I got my RX-7 and the MR2 would easily stay with a stock RX-7,bet yours goes like a rocket running 1.2bar, so performance wise I would\'nt expect the RX-7 to be a shock when you first drive one.
I agree with the other guys comments,spend more and get one that\'s had plenty of TLC,there are bargins to be had ofcourse but there\'s also alot of dogs out there,try to view and drive quite a few before you buy,a bad RX-7 will put you off for life but drive a good one and you\'ll be smitten.
Good luck.........
The guys are right, 7s are not cheap to run so getting a good car will put you in good stead for the future.
Whetever you do it helps to know what to look out for. Maybe someone knowledgable in the club could come and help you check out the car you want to buy. Good boost pattern, smoke etc. An existing clued up owner will find it easier to spot a dog.
Here is a buyers guide so you can do some homework :)
http://rx7.voodoobox.net/infofaq/bguide3g/bguide3g.html
http://robrobinette.com/buyaused.htm
http://www.scuderiaciriani.com/rx7/buying.html
They are high maintenance cars and need a lot of attention. Do the reliability mods first ;)
They are really great cars when they run right, but when they don\'t you just hate \'em!
Good links:
http://www.turborx7.com/
http://www.fd3s.net/
http://robrobinette.com/
http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=68640
http://www.rx7club.com
http://www.nopistons.com
Good luck! Hope to see you in the 7 club soon!
Oh, and here!
http://www.mazdarotaryclub.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=256
:D
something else I would say is that if you\'re going to see a car tell them you want to see it stone cold. If you get there and it\'s even slightly warm, walk away.
Definitely check the coolant level before firing it up and the oil dipstick. If you can see any oil in coolant or coolant in oil then walk away.
If the oil is thick an d black then walk away
When you fire it up see how much smoke comes out of the exhaust, a little puff is fine, if you see clouds of either black or white smoke then walk away.
Obviously go for a spin and look out for weird noises.
stop it once warm and fire it up again any problems and you\'re out of there.
Other obvious things are the boost pattern and if it has been modded without fueling being taken into consideration.
And that is where my highly limited knowledge of how to spot a beauty from a beast pretty much ends.
However the only way to really know if you\'ve got a decent one is to get it checked over by a rotary specialist.
QuoteOriginally posted by FD3Typer2
# Maybe someone knowledgable in the club could come and help you check out the car you want to buy. Good boost pattern, smoke etc. An existing clued up owner will find it easier to spot a dog.
i think this says it all mate. get somebody who knows to check it out with you. If not you spend forever getting it right.
Scott
Buy with your head not your heart.
Theres been a deluge of utter crap come through in the last 2 years, check out the interior for wear, if its looking very shabby, chances are the car has done lots of miles. (Many get clocked when the speedo gets changed over to mph.
to reiterate:-
Buy with your head, not the heart!
Thanks for all the comments and help guys, Ill be spending my day reading FAQ\'s instead of ghosting laptops LOL
Think ill have to wait a little longer and save more money so I can afford a newer RX
hi there, possibly also on the lookout for an RX7 once i\'ve got my Discovery sold :)
very useful info there :)
Quote from: Oedipus Rexsomething else I would say is that if you\'re going to see a car tell them you want to see it stone cold. If you get there and it\'s even slightly warm, walk away.
Definitely check the coolant level before firing it up and the oil dipstick. If you can see any oil in coolant or coolant in oil then walk away.
If the oil is thick an d black then walk away
When you fire it up see how much smoke comes out of the exhaust, a little puff is fine, if you see clouds of either black or white smoke then walk away.
Obviously go for a spin and look out for weird noises.
stop it once warm and fire it up again any problems and you\'re out of there.
Other obvious things are the boost pattern and if it has been modded without fueling being taken into consideration.
And that is where my highly limited knowledge of how to spot a beauty from a beast pretty much ends.
However the only way to really know if you\'ve got a decent one is to get it checked over by a rotary specialist.
This post almost certainly would have saved me 4 grand if I\'d seen it before I bought mine... any chance it could be reposted somewhere it\'s more likely to be seen? With other people\'s tips added if there are any more simple things to bear in mind.