Has anyone owned an RX7..

NeMiSiS

And are they worth it?
Simple enough thread.. I have my heart set on one, nevermind insurance..cut that out of th equation right now. I know the engines.. go.
Am I totally mad to consider even buying one?
Tom

unkel

NeMiSiS wrote:

Am I totally mad to consider even buying one?

No

What year and price and condition are you looking at? What's the insurance anyway? I heard somewhere that the wankel engine is taxed differently, not according to its capacity

A very early model (they were made from about '81) might qualify for classic car insurance, presuming you have another car as a daily driver

The last generation twin turbo is very fast - a lot faster than the fastest current RX-8

Petrol consumption will be crap, but I'm sure you know this

NeMiSiS

1995 1.7 Execellnt conidtion but 65,000 on it... so possible due an engine overhaul. Not the old versions.
Ya don't see alot of them for sale. Can't afford an RX8 yet..
TK

kikel

really cool car.

bazz26

NeMiSiS wrote:

1995 1.7 Execellnt conidtion but 65,000 on it... so possible due an engine overhaul. Not the old versions.
Ya don't see alot of them for sale. Can't afford an RX8 yet..
TK

Nice car but 65,000 miles on the clock of a ten year old car is nothing and would not require an engine overhaul. The rotary engine is reliable enough but I heard it can be thirsty. It may be hard to find a specialist in this country who would service/repair it if needed but I am sure there is somebody out there.

I also heard that they are taxed as a 2.6 litre but I am not 100% sure on this.

IrishRover

Just a word of warning - jap engines have a reputation for reliability, but not so the rotary engines. They do go wrong and when they do you are faced with two problems: one - who you can find that has experience working on them and two - the cost of paying for parts and labour on them.

Oh, and yeah the tax thing would be valid as said above as a 1.3 rotary would be equivalent to a 2.6 regular engine.

AlienGav

bazz26 wrote:

I also heard that they are taxed as a 2.6 litre but I am not 100% sure on this.

I'm 100% certain certain they're taxed 2.6!
A guy I work with had one in blue, IT WAS BLUE-TIFUL!!

He never had any probems with it, Thank God! But he always complained about the amount of money he was spending on petrol

A dragster towing a caravan would be more fuel efficient!

If you've a bottomless pocket get one, and loan me fiver...

Interceptor

Yeah a mate of mine bought one but put it away for the winter when he realised he couldn't get more then 8-10 mpg out of it. Blisteringly fast and very rewarding to drive, but no fun to commute in. Plenty of info on the web and several very good specialists in the UK when it comes to finding rare parts for them. Jap imports likely to have been molested and 'drifted', check for evidence rear shocks were swapped and avoid any with signs of drift use. Overheating can be a problem - many jap imports have extra cooling and additional temp gauges.

'c

Fabritzo

GT4 is out, it's the closest most here will get to driving one

528i

They're a ball of shyte, stay well clear of them, that w@nkel engine's design is fundamentally flawed in that they require an engine rebuild like every 30miles (because of worn friction seals or something).. a single turbo conversion narrows down a lot of boost pressure problems, but the latest (albeit extreme) mod in the states is a V8 conversion if you want the power and reliability to pull off some vin diesel stunts at da lights.. it is just so NOT cool to have your karr stall and not start again while eyeing up some corsa driver.

Gatster

Normally I'm in complete agreement with 528i's comments elsewhere on these pages, but think for the money/target audience/driving experience these are good cars, I was very tempted a couple of years ago but most I saw (in the UK) where far too Vin Diesel for my tastes...Yes they have problems and they're certainly not a 5 series, but if you can find a well looked after one from the UK you may be alright.

It is an IF though.

This lot occasionally have stuff you may be interested in, some is a bit extreme. If I wanted to drive a video game, I'd buy a f@#king playstation.

http://www.linney.org/MAZDA_current_stock.htm

De Hipster

Beautiful car, great fun but expensive to run & maintain.
Proceed with caution!

Ratchet

528i wrote:

They're a ball of shyte, stay well clear of them, that w@nkel engine's design is fundamentally flawed in that they require an engine rebuild like every 30miles (because of worn friction seals or something).. a single turbo conversion narrows down a lot of boost pressure problems, but the latest (albeit extreme) mod in the states is a V8 conversion if you want the power and reliability to pull off some vin diesel stunts at da lights.. it is just so NOT cool to have your karr stall and not start again while eyeing up some corsa driver.

yeah right and BMW is problem free.

engine seals were improved long time ago.

RX7 needs some special care but it is different beast and well worth the money

528i

99% of renowned car mechanics & motor technicians know absolutely nothing about this car (13 yr old 'racket' is obviously the exception though) so you'll probably need to have it shipped to UK for tricky repairs and mods when it inevitably goes bang.. I know of one person who's spent upwards of 30k and the car still isn't running properly, the car's a joke.

Even if you happen to stumble across a perfect example with reconditioned engine & 6ft long list of receipts, its still advisable to have 5 ***** AA road cover if venturing any further than say a 30mile radius of your home.

Ratchet

admit it , you just don't like the car or the rotary engine based on German invention.

U just sound like this other group of people complaining about automatic gearboxes.

OHH it's burns petrol ,it's going to blow, where you get the parts, nobody will fix it , buy a manual :rolleyes:

RicardoSmith

Yes an engine rebuild ever 30 miles. Your exagerating a tiny bit...

528i

Ratchet wrote:

admit it , you just don't like the car or the rotary engine based on German invention.

U just sound like this other group of people complaining about automatic gearboxes.

OHH it's burns petrol ,it's going to blow, where you get the parts, nobody will fix it , buy a manual :rolleyes:

If you even had a car, you'd realise these are quite valid concerns, fortunately most people don't have sony playstation virtual reality money credits and wouldn't base their entire judgment of a sports car on afew fast & furious DVD's.

IrishRover

Here are a couple of comments from a thread on a UK motor site where someone was considering buying a mk2 RX7:

please... DO NOT touch them, my friend has one and has spent a FORTUNE on fixing it (only had it for 6 months). Has only ever ran properly for a few weeks (after the first rebuild!!)
go buy a 200sx - much, much better
hth

what he said.. go ask how many local tuners will touch them for engine problems. Then you will realise that there's about two people in the country who know how to work on them.. then think how full their wallets are because of this lol

bazz26

As an alternative:

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=Car&carID=168701&message=You%20searched%20for%3A%26nbsp%3BNissan%20300%20ZX%2C%20Year%3A%201996%2E%20Your%20search%20returned%20one%20vehicle%2C%20which%20is%20shown%20below%2E&CFID=13433130&CFTOKEN=12688744

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=195851

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=Car&carID=189523&message=You%20searched%20for%3A%26nbsp%3BToyota%20Supra%2E%20Your%20search%20returned%20one%20vehicle%2C%20which%20is%20shown%20below%2E&CFID=13433130&CFTOKEN=12688744

RicardoSmith

I guess you have to wonder where everyone else gets them serviced in the UK. Since theres quite a few around. Yes they need specialist attention. Which is definately something you'd have to have covered if you were buying one. You buy a lemon, as in any car.

http://www.rx7-uk.co.uk/owners.htm
http://www.mazdarotaryclub.com/

I know a few people who get their sports car serviced either in the north or the UK. Since theres so few specialist places in the republic for anything exotic.

Theres a few links to specialist places there too.
http://www.rx7-uk.co.uk/links.htm

I reckon the rx7 is one of the best looking cars around.

Ratchet

200 SX :eek: with blowing big ends yeah that's good replacement for RX7


my little 2.8 voice of wisdom. Yes, RX7 gen 1 rised some genuine relibility and quality issuses, many of the problems where rectified later.

93-on car is some cracking car for the money and there are many things about the car that would make you forget about higher running cost .

This engine is just different and not everybody will touch it but cost of service work woudn't be far from BMW dealer servicing cost .

Considering entry price for this model, you get enough fun for the money.

The Clown Man

Always loved the RX7. How much does one of these go for these days you know?
Year/price would be nice.

Ratchet

check Uk ebay motors, they have some fine cars for sale

CJhaughey

Go vintage and get the RX3 great looking Jap classic, with a nice rotary to boot.

Kersh

My friend has a 92 Rx7. The engine blew within days of getting it. It has a single turbo conversion, and fuel/boost mappers etc. There is a guy called Eddie in Bray, who deals with these cars. He is not expensive...2400euro to rebuild my friends engine. They are troublesome cars, and you really need another car, same goes for gto/300zx/skyline etc. I rotate 3 cars at the moment due to niggly problems on each, so I always have a spare car. Make sure you bring someone to look at the Rx7 you want to buy, but a sick one is easy to spot- the engine sounds way different to a healthy one. Fuel consumption is really poor, I get my 300zx from swords to clondalkin, and it costs me 10 euro for the return trip. My friends Rx7 is way worse.

stratos

I love the rx7 but unless your loaded, and don't care I'd have to say stay away. It's a money pit !

Dooom

Kersh wrote:

There is a guy called Eddie in Bray, who deals with these cars

Lol, that has to be one of the shadiest descriptions of someone I've heard in ages.

Out of interest, what size engine do the RX8's have? I've seen in a few dealer sections in papers that they're 1.8's?! Now surely that can't be right, would've thought they were at least 2.0. Personally I'd take the RX7 over the RX8 any day, but as has been said many times here - the engine is known to do nasty things. And when it does bad, it does very very bad (grammar sucks). Course I don't know considering I've never even sat in one, but just my 2c.

RicardoSmith

Why 2.0? Engine size does not equal more powerful...

Dooom

Dunno, just assuming. Plus they looked like they were bigger than 1.8.

But technically it does though doesn't it? I mean obviously weight etc. is a large factor, but at the end of the day - a 3l Supra is going to beat a 1.1l Uno.

ds20prefecture

Spike wrote:

Dunno, just assuming. Plus they looked like they were bigger than 1.8.

But technically it does though doesn't it? I mean obviously weight etc. is a large factor, but at the end of the day - a 3l Supra is going to beat a 1.1l Uno.

And a 1.3l rotary Mazda will knock the socks off a 3l Supra.

PowerHouseDan

My Local Mech has one and all i can say WHAT A CAR!!!!!

528i

the w@nkel revolution or combustion cycle is completely different to a standard piston engine so measures smaller at 1.3 'actual' cubic centimetres, but insurance\tax companies supposedly classify it as a 2.6l engine (based on power output), when it should be classified as a 6.3l based on fuel ecomony

It helps if you're a mechanic alright.

Kersh

I only know him as eddie, in fact he is quite highly regarded in rotary circles, and usually has a few rebuilds to do at any one time. He set up my friends fuel/boost computers too, and its running like clockwork so far. Im sure he has a real name etc.

Delta_ie

The new rx8 is taxed as a 1.8 but is a 1.3, to answer the above question.

RicardoSmith

Spike wrote:

Dunno, just assuming. Plus they looked like they were bigger than 1.8.

But technically it does though doesn't it? I mean obviously weight etc. is a large factor, but at the end of the day - a 3l Supra is going to beat a 1.1l Uno.

But not a 1.8 Elise...

peterk19

Yea id love to get an old rotary Rx3 or an R100 i drove a few in new zealand all i can say is i love rotary engines and the reliability issues get the uprated apex engines seals and tips and they are grand cars oh and about working on them do it yourself they are the simplist engines ever i helped a mate rebuild a 13b and a old 11a i didnt expect it to be so easy.
i prefer the old non turbo wankel engines myself when you port them they sound better than any engine ive ever heard totaly individual compared to any car in this country
Pete
oh just wondering has anybody seena ny of the old rx's in this country or is it even possible to get one here?

CJhaughey

Never seen any rotary mazdas here apart from the batmobile Rx7-8
all the RX3's I ever saw were in NZ too! thats maybe why nobody replied to my post=RX3 unknown in Ireland and maybe Europe.

Thumper Long

I used to import the RX-7 amongst other high end Jap machines for a company i used to work for and i have seen nothing but trouble from them, even blew the engine in one myself, without trying too hard I may add. they are beautiful cars to drive, far superior to supras, gto's etc, but just not reliable enough, thankfully the majority went to the UK so only had to listen to the moaning over the phone, I see some of the above posts reckon replace the seals and your ok, believe this at your own peril. unless you have a serious softspot for these or 10's of thousands burning a hole in your pocket buy one, but then if money was no object id buy one maybe two, one in blue one in red and fishtail off into the sunset, one of the best drivers cars ever built (along with the 6r4 for pure smile on face value )

ButcherOfNog

Kersh wrote:

They are troublesome cars, and you really need another car, same goes for gto/300zx/skyline etc.

as a matter of interest, whats troublesome about these? I'd have expected them to be fine as long as you were doing low milage on open roads, i doubt they'd like sitting in traffic jams for long periods.

RicardoSmith

ButcherOfNog wrote:

as a matter of interest, whats troublesome about these? I'd have expected them to be fine as long as you were doing low milage on open roads, i doubt they'd like sitting in traffic jams for long periods.

The nature of the rotary means it uses oil more than a conventional engine. Plus it needs more attention then other types. So if you neglect it, they give trouble. Also they tend to have lots of electrical gizmos which can go wrong.

ButcherOfNog

Ricardo, i was quoting and referring to kershs comment on gto/300zx/skyline's. I agree about the RX7, beautiful to look at tho.

RicardoSmith

ButcherOfNog wrote:

Ricardo, i was quoting and referring to kershs comment on gto/300zx/skyline's. I agree about the RX7, beautiful to look at tho.

My bad...

Kersh

I have a gto and a 300zx, and so far...gto gearbox went, that got fixed under warranty, and the waterpump failed, took the cambelt with it. The tps gave up, as did the idle stepper motor, so I had to replace those.
On the 300zx the centre bearing on propshaft went, the exhaust fell asunder, and thats so far in the 6 months I have it.
I am usually nosing around the UK forums for these big jap cars, and I am in the zx and gto clubs, and these cars are in general not cheap to run or service.
In fact the most reliable car that I have is my 25 year old 911 sc. I put 9000 miles on it in 7 months, and not one thing went wrong. Now I only drive it during the summer months , when I usually have running repairs on the other 2.
Afaik the supra is the really reliable one, again from reading up on them.

CJhaughey

Kersh wrote:

Afaik the supra is the really reliable one, again from reading up on them.

What do you expect? Have you ever heard of an unreliable Toyota?

Kersh

As reflected in 2nd hand market price for them. A group of jap supercars topped by the Nsx...still 19000 stg for a 91...followed by the Supra, c. 7-9000 stg for a 93/94.