Discussion
Hello again!
The search for a fun car continues! (although I am very tempted by an MX5)
But one other question - what are RX7s like?
I'm particularly interested in the early wedge shaped ones (mk1 and 2?) but have to be honest, I don't really now anything about them other than the fact they're rotary powered RWD. Any idea what the performance figures were and if a 15 year old rotary engine will still do that? I know the handling of the later RX7s is supposed to be good, are the earlier ones similar?
Chris
The search for a fun car continues! (although I am very tempted by an MX5)
But one other question - what are RX7s like?
I'm particularly interested in the early wedge shaped ones (mk1 and 2?) but have to be honest, I don't really now anything about them other than the fact they're rotary powered RWD. Any idea what the performance figures were and if a 15 year old rotary engine will still do that? I know the handling of the later RX7s is supposed to be good, are the earlier ones similar?
Chris
ALL RX7s are rotaries, in fact all Mazda RXanything are rotaries.
The first generation SA22C(series I, II, III) was 79-85 so at least 21 years old now. I have had several (road and race), getting hard to find a good one now, sold a real gem a couple of years ago. Would like to get another as a track toy to put a 13B turbo in. These were the lightest and simplest RX7s.
2nd gen FC3S(series IV, V) 86-91 was the Porsche 944 stylee. Had a S5Turbo road car, now have one for track days/ sprint events. Considerably heavier and bigger than the first gen. Nice "GT' car.
3rd gen FD3S (series VI, VII, VIII) 92-02, the best of all. True 2 seater with fantastic engine and handling.
Tim
The first generation SA22C(series I, II, III) was 79-85 so at least 21 years old now. I have had several (road and race), getting hard to find a good one now, sold a real gem a couple of years ago. Would like to get another as a track toy to put a 13B turbo in. These were the lightest and simplest RX7s.
2nd gen FC3S(series IV, V) 86-91 was the Porsche 944 stylee. Had a S5Turbo road car, now have one for track days/ sprint events. Considerably heavier and bigger than the first gen. Nice "GT' car.
3rd gen FD3S (series VI, VII, VIII) 92-02, the best of all. True 2 seater with fantastic engine and handling.
Tim
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm I would love an RX7 - 3rd gen - test drove one and that was it - I was in love. But at about 12mpg I couldn't afford to run it then. Now however........ Hmmmm
I don't know anything about the older ones, but the 3rd gen need an engine rebuild (rotor tips get worn) at about 60 - 80k depending on how the car's been driven - a compression test will let you know if it needs it or not. It will set you back about £2500 but the great thing about these cars is that once it's done it shouldn't lose any more value if it's properly looked after. They really are turning into a bit of a classic.
Bloody good cars IMHO.
I don't know anything about the older ones, but the 3rd gen need an engine rebuild (rotor tips get worn) at about 60 - 80k depending on how the car's been driven - a compression test will let you know if it needs it or not. It will set you back about £2500 but the great thing about these cars is that once it's done it shouldn't lose any more value if it's properly looked after. They really are turning into a bit of a classic.
Bloody good cars IMHO.
bint said:
But at about 12mpg I couldn't afford to run it then.
If an rx is returning 12 mpg then it's either on track (in which case they aren't really pushing it enough - expect 7-8mpg) or it's badly tuned.
See the other current thread for my comments...
Even when mostly standard the worst I got (heavy traffic in london and caning it combined) was 17mpg. Now it's modded I get better economy, go figure!
I'd love a very early series 1 (with the smaller rear lights) as an everyday alternative to my series 3. The life expectancies of the series 1 and 3 are similar at ~60K miles between rebuilds, whereas the N/A series 2 is maybe 100K. Not sure about the series 2 turbo. You could probably regard the handling of the cars as slightly better than their Porsche equivalent of the time; series 1 vs 924, series 2 vs 944, series 3 vs 968. Series 1 was 0-60 in 9.2s, 110-130bhp, 120mph, 1005kg.
Take a look at mazdarotaryforum where there are specific forums for each series.
Take a look at mazdarotaryforum where there are specific forums for each series.
I had a Turbo 2 as a company car !! It did over 90k in two 1/2 years, never missed a beat until i left it standing for 3 weeks, lost compression ! If it had been towed to start, they say the tips would of "flown out" and been fine again. I had a new engine fitted, but thats a long story, didnt pay ! A mate of mine also had one and if he started the car and turned off the engine within 2 mins, it would do the same, never did it after discovering it and went on until he sold it and simply told the new owner not to do it.
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