I\'ve got a bit of a dilemma,
There is a RX7 that i am looking at buying at the moment, its very clean had a rebuild recently, the problem being i\'m going to have to borrow the money for it. (7000) and then lay out over 2000 for insurance. I\'ll be 21 when i drive it.
Am i doing the right thing? is worth me getting into more debt, its going to be very expensive to run i know, but to what extent i don\'t and a shock it will be as i\'ll be coming from a 1.2 corsa!
What i would really like is some insight to how you lot found the journey of buying your first RX7. the faults you found with them after you bought it and the extra outlay of cash you had pay out etc etc.
...and then the big question was it worth it?
You see i have to try and convince my mum too!
Thank you!!
Noooooo don\'t do it, let me know which one it is so I can have it! :cool
Seriously, do as many checks on the car you can beforehand to give a bit of confidence and plan for the worst-case scenario. Then when you get it and have everything covered you’ll get so much more fun from it rather than worrying what might happen.
Its always worth it, although you may not think it when you bank balance is in the red.
Make sure you can afford the day to day running plus a little extra as you don\'t want to have to sell up if you can\'t afford a couple of new tyres.
The main thing i\'m worried about is petrol, how much does it usually cost to fill a tank and then how many miles roughly would you get out of it???
it costs alot to fill the tank and you don\'t get many miles
budget for 17-22mpg as a rule for twin turbo set up.
costs about £60 to fill and i\'m lucky if it last a week!
right i was 20 when i bought may first rex, thing is the first outlay of money for the car etc etc isnt too bad u can cope with the repayments, but in my opinion dont ever borrow money for insurance its a huge huge mistake.
also consider the day to day running of these cars. im not pushing more the 10-15mpg in mine that all adds up.
also would u have any spare money for the "rainy day" cos even tho it has just been rebuilt these are 10-13year old cars other things WILL go wrong
that is a hell of a lot of money mate. i got mine recently for about £4k and i am paying nearly £3k for insurance. i insured the car on the basis that i would do about 20k a year.
my mates worked out that purely on fuel (optimax on the basis of 94p,litre) and insurance, nothing else taken into account that i would need £10k to run it for a year if i do exactly 20k miles. this is quite alot when you are a full time uni student with only a part time job etc
i need to put her through an MOT soon which i know of things that i need to get sorted first. ow yer plus some new tyres all round.
i have had it just under 2 months, and i have got it serviced which ended up costing £990 due to the fact i needed to do front discs, pads, plus water pump.
And i walked out with a big list of stuff i still need to do, let alone a rebulid might be looming in the near future due to unsure of correct millage.
Plus the need/cost to run another car for millage, lol. why do we do it.............................................cause it is worth every minute when you do over a porshe/M3/or for that matter almost anything else.
i knew a Rex was going to be expensive to run but i never thought quite like this.
however i have just turned 21. so was therefore was driving a (apparently going to find out for sure soon) 300bhp at the rear wheel Rex that at the age of 20. How cool is that(proper pimp)!!!!!!!
They are by far the coolest car on the road and you will def enjoy owning one. but think about the money seriously and what ever figure you calculate it will cost you add on some more to get you final figure
i am the first one to addmit i am a little bit of a poser (however one that can actually drive (not just for show)/hense having my race licence) etc but lets be honest with the way Rex\'s turn heads, everone driving one has got to be a bit. :burnout
sorry for the long post
sounds like you are about to enter my world, Sjaineb! prepare yourself for a horror story of grotesque financial proportions and if you still want one after you\'ve read it, you\'re already addicted to RX\'s and it\'s too late for you anyway!
I work for my dad, we started a new business in early 2004 so I haven\'t been exactly flush for money in the last couple of years.
Last year, about june, i decided i was sick of not having a car, so i got a loan for £8000 with the intention of buying an Audi S2. As I was still not getting paid I borrowed more than I needed and was going to use some of the money to make the repayments until i started to get paid (yes, stupid i know but I was gasping for a car)
At literally the last minute, my brother convinced me to try for insurance on an rx7 instead, and unbelievably it was around the same figure, so my plan changed overnight. I was very patient (for me) and looked over this forum for 2 weeks before I bought one, this was probably my biggest mistake, I should have waited and learned a LOT more about the cars before parting with the cash.
So I paid £6750 for a lightly modified black 92 RX7, and I was well pleased!
For about two weeks, until the engine blew up.
Blame bad luck if you like, but I would be inclined to blame me buying a car that I hadn\'t fully checked out.
So the loan went up another £4000 to a total of £12000, in order to pay for the rebuild AND a couple extra months repayments cos i still wasnt earning anything.
A month or so later i got the car back, and it took me about a month to start disrespecting the car so much that it bit me in the ass and I crashed it into a wall. (the fastest car i had previously driven was a FWD diesel mondeo)
I got the cheapest insurance quote I could by possibly failing to mention a couple of engine mods (about 50hp over stock) hence no payout, so now I had a £12000 loan, and a big lump of metal that i couldnt afford to fix, and almost no income.
Luckily I had the driveway space and garage space to break the car and sell it for parts. This is the only thing that kept me afloat financially from October to March, I was getting £400 a month from my dad, and nearly £300 went straight into the loan payment, not to mention credit cards, phone bill, etc etc.
Somehow through all this my only thought was getting back on the road in an RX7 (i know, im a terminal case) and as breaking the car had taught me a lot about the mechanics of the rx7, I thought i might be able to use the knowledge to fix up a cheap, broken car.
Through a bit of luck (about time too) i managed to save enough to get another car at a very good price from a family member, and then through another bit of luck I managed to part ex the car privately against a very neglected but highly modified RX7.
This new car also came with a load of extras which I have managed to sell on, again it is the only thing really keeping me out of the red, and hopefully it will soon be up and running, although more than likely the only thing i will be doing then is selling it and trying to recoup some of my lost money!
So now i have huge debts, a pile of rx bits in my garage and a broken car (currently) but for some reason im still here!
Pick any one of the many mistakes I have made, and try to avoid them and things could be ok. Just plan, plan, plan, dont be hasty, and make sure you have accounted for ALL the costs likely to be involved. It may mean you should perhaps wait a year or two, but it could make it much more worthwhile in the end.
my advice is take someone with you who knows these cars, even a poorly rex will feel quick, i went from a 200bhp car to a rex that was only boosting about 70% and it still felt quick.
Also thewre are rebuilds and rebuilds.
my car was bought with a new engine and lasted me 10,000 miles before dying, its been exactly 1 year since i last drove my car but i wont get rid of it
Dont do it, not at that age and not by taking a loan out and specially not from a 1.2 corsa. You wont be able to afford repayments, aswell as fuel, as well as maintenance specially if something goes wrong
Quote from: sjainebThe main thing i\'m worried about is petrol, how much does it usually cost to fill a tank and then how many miles roughly would you get out of it???
The RX-7 is the most efficient means devised by man of converting a tank full of petrol into a tank full of air. All you have to do is turn the ignition key a few times and hey presto....amaze your friends with this most impressive of disappearing acts...... :rollin
Quote from: AdriansturgessThe RX-7 is the most efficient means devised by man of converting a tank full of petrol into a tank full of air. All you have to do is turn the ignition key a few times and hey presto....amaze your friends with this most impressive of disappearing acts...... :rollin
F@*king Brilliant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!......how true
i say go for it if your prepared for the costs. I got my MR2 Turbo at 19 and was in for a shock with the maintance bills. I was a poor student and wasnt prepared to shell out money for maintenance. That was my downfall and i had a crap time with it. I sold it on broke after spending loads modding it and bought a broken rex. I had it rebuilt straight away and with insurance it skinted me out. Everything i had saved from leaving uni last summer was gone, but i had a georgeous rex. Now im quite close to finishing the running in and im getting it tuned soon. the fuel is crazy at the moment and thats driving off boost and then theres the maintance costs, i.e suspension bushes, brakes etc etc. On top of all that ive still got a few things to buy for it to finish the whole car off but the big thing is i have an understanding girlfriend that doesnt mind me spending 50-70% of my earnings on my car. If you cant budget a proportion of your wages each month then i wouldnt reccomend it. If you can save a couple hundred a month then youll be safe.
jesus dandan - your a brave man !
why not go for a RX7 Turbo II - hell of a lot cheaper - not likely to kill you in 20 mins - and still JUST over 200 BHP and 155mph top speed
drive one of them for 12 months - get the experience and then play with an FD
its a cheaper way and prob more insurance friendly
just a thought really - and to be brutally honest - from what you have said - i wouldnt buy an FD unless you have VERY deep pockets - there is NO WAY i would be in that much dedt at your age
like i said - take the FC route - you can pick them up for under £1500 - so not a huge dent in the wallet
just my £0.02 worth
either way its up you ... and welcome to MRC :D :D
Just make sure you\'ve got a mate with welding gear eh Grinder! :chat
oohhh :D :D :D
yeah OK they DO have their downsides - but i bet some of the UK FD\'s will start to suffer soon !
how many 16 yr old cars do you know that dont need welding :D :D
im sure my rusty car is getting famous on these boards .. and along with me being cheap ????
sjaineb - on a serious note - see if anyone near you has an FD and ask them to take you out .. this is a good way of making up your mind :D
Quote from: grindersee if anyone near you has an FD and ask them to take you out .. this is a good way of making up your mind :D
Noooooooooooooooooo........... Don\'t do it..... one ride and you\'ll be hooked for ever.....you\'ll never be free....don\'t get into an FD...It\'s just not worth it.... :cool
Go for it but be ready for when the financial headache kicks in , they are very addictive cars and once you have one you\'ll sell your own mother instead of the car
I got mine around the same time as I got my son , I\'de saved the cash already and was pretty flush , once work got tight I struggled because I never realised how much bloody child care costs would be but I pulled through and things are on the up again or where untill my engine poped , the credit card is going to get hard for the rbuild and I cant afford to do everything I wanted , but its going to be worth it
If you do go for it being good with a set of spanners will save you loads , servicing every 3000 miles don\'t come cheap at the specialists but it aint that hard to do if you know what your doing
I say go for it but be warned , oh and even more importantly be bloody careful , I moved up from a megane coupe and I thought it was quite nippy and I\'m a pretty good driver , still almost stacked it in the first week due to a little bit of water running across the road , the power needs a lot of respect , even when your used to it
Sorry to rain on your parade, at 21 comming from a FWD Corsa [sheesh!] you are in for one hell of a shock a RWD 250+bhp car is not to be taken lightly, if you A] want have a bank balance next year be able to fill it with petrol, and [c]enjoy the experience of these wonderfull cars get yourself in the position of being able to afford it without getting into debt, a car at the end of the day is an expence, you NEVER make money from cars - leave that to the dealers.
Keep the Corsa as a daily driver.
The rex costs £50 to fill and will do about 200 miles before you have to put another £50 in it.
If you have to ask about running costs, you can\'t afford to run it.
Drive it when you want to. If you drive it when you have to, like going to work on a freezing winter morning, it will catch you out. Rexs were getting stuffed at about one per week during the winter.
Noyzboy
Yeah...I\'ve got to say it amazes me how many youngsters are owning these cars. When I was 20 I was just pleased to own a car! If you can genuinely afford it then fine, but better to save your money towards a deposit on a flat or house - this will set you up for a far more stable financial future. Boring, I know. :(
^ But true, I\'ve still got a loan on my FD and I haven\'t driven it for 18 months :(
Listen to all the true adults coming out. You can tell there are some fathers talking here.............. "i wouldnt get into debt at you age", lol
Let us youngsters have are fun :driving :Thumbs-up
Adriansturgess made a very good point. do not get to close to an FD and especially do not get in one unless you are ready to be absolutly hooked instantly.
it is a cool car to own what ever your age that is for sure, but i think you are gambeling with a little to much debt to be honest.
go on get it you only live once,i\'m 45 and got my rex about a month ago,i have some quick cars and very fast bikes the most powerfull being a yamaha v-max 155bhp faaaaaaaassssssssttttt, this rex is amazing it feels a lot faster than some bikes i\'ve had,its true they love petrol they drink it like its going out of fashion,
but the upside for me is i don\'t go to the pub very often i\'d rather put the petrol in instead, its more fun.bloody insurance is bit bad £400 fc but i am an old git,
i was driving an fto before this rex and got quite a few looks in that,the amount of looks you get in a rex is amazing,when they are on the pavement just watch all the spin arounds you get as you drive past,
one thing to look out for are these :burnout it does them without trying.
Quote from: D1 WTFdo not get to close to an FD and especially do not get in one unless you are ready to be absolutly hooked instantly.
Isn\'t that the truth, I took a look at a midly tweaked one (300hp-ish) about 40 miles from my home, the guy started it and I thought wow the noise was awesome.
I then sat in it and thought this is awesome, he drove it for 5-10 miles hard, he let me drive it back - I drove like a fairy but did plant my foot once, from then on it was only a matter of time :cheers
you will be hooked if you go for a test drive........
you will be fduk\'d if you buy one.
They can be deadly cars in the wet, they are soooooo arsy in stock form. If you are not experienced with powerfull RWD cars i hate to say but you will be very likely to crash it. (you are probably thinking........ i can handle it, it only goes as fast as i want it to) I was 18 when i crashed my first RX7 (elford Turbo) i\'m now 32 and havent gone for more than a year without one (rx7 and crash) and every one has been modified. Lukily i do most stuff myself otherwise i couldnt afford it.
Grinder made a good point about an FC to start with.
Personally i dont think the car is worth what you are willing to go through but it will depend on how much you worry about money or lack of it. My friend is 32 and is still paying off a loan that he took out when he was 25 to bail him out of trouble after buying a porsche and he earns over 60k a year.........
Quote from: ds2000Isn\'t that the truth, I took a look at a midly tweaked one (300hp-ish) about 40 miles from my home, the guy started it and I thought wow the noise was awesome.
I then sat in it and thought this is awesome, he drove it for 5-10 miles hard, he let me drive it back - I drove like a fairy but did plant my foot once, from then on it was only a matter of time :cheers
I still cant get over the sound on start up werwerwerwerwer bbbbrrruuuuummmmm burgle burgle. i saw mine, first time i had seen one in the flesh i think. looked sexy as f%*k, i though to my self i could drive away in this today.
then i heard it start, my legs went soft hmmm what a phat noise.
i then took her for a test drive down the road very slow, got to the end went to turn left hit the windscreen wipers, that preceeded to go mental. finally found the right side indicated out. pooteled down the road, got to a more wide open road, pretty straight so planted it (she was already pretty warm),
that was it she had to be mine. my test drive was only about 2 miles. but the way she pulled, hitting the second turbo i was sold. i think i only took her to about 6k revs aswell, lol.
all said i dont think it is work 10k plus of debt..........or is it.....NO.... :Giggle
DO IT! DO IT! DO IT! :burnout
DON\'T DO IT...... :Nono!
GO RETRO - I snuck into the rotary world by finding myself a nice fb. I\'m a very happy chap every time I drive it. Didnt cost a lot, insurance is very cheap, sounds great, and turns heads as these cars are like hens teeth in this country. Admittedly it has no way near the punch of an fc or fd but there\'s endless scope for tuning the 12a engine and getting yourself a fast, cheap machine. I\'ve always wanted to own an fd but the more I drive the first gen, the more I want to stick with it and tinker with the engine. For the sort of money your planning on spending you could get yourself a really top notch fb, probably with some engine mods. Personally I feel an fd with upwards of 250bhp is the sort of car someone should be looking to buy after a lot of experience driving other cars with this sort of power.
Sorry to say though, even at less than half the power of the fd, the fb\'s still get through fuel like an F14 Tomcat on reheat.
Whatever you do though, make sure you own an rx7 either now or in the future ;)
i would wait untill your older, because the insurance is gonna cost ££££££££. Get an mr2 then work your way up. In feb 2004, My mate had a mint 94 fd rx7. He took me for a spin round the area and after that, i wanted one asap. I loved how small the cabin is how and cockpit like it is. I also loved the way it looked. A Month later at the age of 24 i took a loan out for £6000 plus £350 intrest and bought a red 41,000 miles stock fd from japan. It didn\'t have any proof of rebuild or no service history, but i never knew about the engine mith at the time. It was a huge gamble, but when the car arrived i was well pleased with it. Luckily the engine is still fine and never misses a beat. I dont regret buying it at all.
I\'d agree with the power comment.
I bought my FD after coming from a very well set-up 200hp Prelude.
I found the FD fine in the wet but one day it did catch me and I was lucky I didn\'t hit anything.
Basically I came off a round about in the outside lane, it was a nice summers day but had just started showering. I thought "greasy roads, be good". I was in 3rd doing about 25mph and pressed on the accelerator to move upto 70. I think I probably pressed it down 15-20% at the most.
Before I knew it I was going passed the car on the inside sideways, I had turned about 30 degrees towards the barrier. Luckily I didn\'t panic I kept the accelerator in the same position and waited until I had cleared the front of the other car, then when I backed off the FD swung a bit but went back into shape.
I considered myself very lucky as I wasn\'t gunning the car, she did earn a bit more respect though :)
Uhm no posts from sjaineb for a while...I reckon we\'ve either scared him off completely or he\'s out scouring the country for FD\'s at this very moment! When you look back over the posts on this thread: Do it; Dont do it; Do it; Don\'t do it - Its enough to confuse anybody; Poor chap- what a decision to have to make. Trouble is we do live in a \'Have it now\' culture and nobody\'s got any patience to wait for anything anymore it seems. That\'s why the level of national debt is so terrifyingly huge......
sjaineb whats the decision then?
I\'d go for the miserable advice; it was a £40K car when new, if you need to take out a loan for the full price of the car, then you won\'t be able to run it :( Don\'t forget, even if the engine is good, a set of rear tyres will cost you over £200, the bushes may need doing at that mileage (£400), it all adds up. And lets face it, you\'re not going to be able to resist ragging it to show your mates, and it is a huge step up from a 1.2 Corsa. I remember the shock going from a 1.0 Escort to a 1.4 Astra, then again to a 2.0 16v Alfa, then to a BMW 325, and then again to the Rex. Every step was a learning curve, and I had a few "moments" along the way. Unfotunately, I think jumping from a Corsa to a Rex is an accident waiting to happen, although I hope I\'m wrong :(
First of all, thank you.
You lot have been so helpful, i really appreciate it. I have listened to all of your advice and that from my family and friends and i think its too big of a step to make at the moment. I will own one definatly, possibly end of next year. Although the thought of owning one sends tingly things in my belly, i just have to think logically, it will send me into alot of debt.
So, i have decided that i will go for a car that is a lot smaller but i can make my own through modifying, a Honda Del Sol. Still a bigger engine than what i\'m in now, its a 1.6, but not as bad for insuance as the RX7. Cheaper to buy, insure, fix, run and modify it will be a step to the RX7.
Still i would like to know what you think though because you all have been so helpful, I\'m still gonna stay on the forum and listen in on how every one gets on with their cars.
Again, Thanks!!
^ Its a good move, the del sol as a great b16 engine, its 160hp and has a high red line, so the power delivery is similar to that on a rex, beit not as rapid.
Have a look on //www.hondarevolutions.com and head to the forum, lots of good advice on buying del sols can be dug out :)
i concur with ds2000, them honda\'s are nice looking and oh boy can they rev and rev, build quality is better than most. a good choice by all accounts.
i purchased my rex when i was really skint, for the first year i only went out a handful of times cause i couldn\'t afford to put the petrol in! let aloan new tyres, servicing etc etc.
there\'s nothing worse than having something really pretty sitting in your drive that walk past every day but you can\'t use.
all the best in your del sol
Reasonable compromise I would say. Did you consider an MX5?
i\'d like to thank sjaineb for responding to this thread in such a friendly manner even though he isn\'t immediately getting an RX, a lot of people would have just left the forum and never looked back.
Absolute best of luck with the CRX, they are cracking cars and I hope you do manage to get an RX one day, I also hope you stick around the forum, it\'s a nice place to be!
And if you ever need convincing that it\'s worth the wait, let me know and I\'ll take you for a spin (once it\'s running lol)
:)
how about an fto
very very very nice cars and you can get an 1800 one cheaper insurance
i miss my fto but i like the rex better
oh and the fto is quite good on fuel
Yeah, he\'s been a good sport and taken it right on the chin. :)
I nearly went the FTO route once. Is it just me or are they becoming a much more common sight on the roads...Hardly a day passes when I don\'t see one.
Quote from: AdriansturgessI nearly went the FTO route once. Is it just me or are they becoming a much more common sight on the roads...Hardly a day passes when I don\'t see one.
i see more porsche\'s than anything else :rollin
Yes but over 50% of all cars on the road are BMW\'s and it\'s rising. fast...... :cool
Good choice man , lovely looking cars , make sure you get one with the electric roof it looks cool as its going down :2eek
Sjaineb,
You\'ve had a range of advice, but the common theme is that people here care. Nobody flamed anyone else.
Enjoy your Del sol & keep browsing this site. Be safe.
Noyzboy
Watch out for rebuilds.... Not all are done properly, most don\'t last as long as a low genuine mileage example.
Spend your money on a car with under 40,000 GENUINE miles, preferably close to standard and in top condition.
Buy a cheap one and you\'ll usually spend more than a good example would have cost in the first place and forever be talking yourself into what a good idea it was to buy a cheap one to do up.... It\'s not, just get a good one in the first place.
But if you can\'t afford the petrol, buy something else to run about in.
Rex\'s can be awesome cars, if you get the right one....Horrible if you get the wrong example!
Miguel