a little history on the car before i start. i bought the car in december of 03. it came from NY and i bought it from the original owner. the car had 57K original miles. i drove the car home from NY and it ran flawlessly and i was immediatly in love with the car after that. i drove the car on and off for three years and in 06 after just turning 61K miles, the car went into storage. i brought my LS back home two day ago. i'm ashamed of myself for not driving it more and taking better care of it and keeping up on the maitenance. so, with that said, i made an afternoon out of starting to bring the car back to its former glory.

i started by replacing the muffler funnel. it originall looked like this:



i removed the old rusty funnel and was then ready to replace it:





new funnel bolted in place:



with tips:





here are some more pics of the car i took yesterday. the car needs a bath badly..

 

more pics:









nevermind the dirty engine. its on my list of things to do:









and i leave you with something that when i see it, always makes me smile:

 

looks great next to the back 8....

mint interior too

 

Looks awesome Dave, glad to see your working on it again. Did you ever get my pm?

 

Voila! Way to go Dave. What a difference.

 

just finished buffing and waxing the LS. will take pics and post back.

 

i'm really pleased with the way the buff and wax turned out on the LS. i took some time and cleaned and reconditioned the seats, streering wheel, gearshift ****, and headliner as well. makes me feel good knowing that the body is clean (save for the rust and scratches which are all over) and the interior is once again ready for daily use if the need presents itself. tomorrow i am going to clean and undercoat the wheel wells and try and take care of any underbody rust. i will provide pics of that tomorrow. i also was able to get new wheel cylinders on order as well. mine are forzen.. well, here are tonight's promised pics:

 

Hey that rich shine makes a difference Dave. If you ever get tired of law enforcement you could make a decent living as a pro detailer out her in Cali.

Your new exhaust covers are a huge enhancement.

Thanks for all the pics. Best I've seen of your LS. Saved 'em into my RX-7 pic collection.

 

Whew - looks like good old NE roads have taken a toll underneath Dave (looking at undercarriage around muffler). recommend Stainless hardware to fasten anything under there. The rear muffler bracket is (was!) still available - I powdercoated all my detachable undercarriage bits, shields, brackets, etc - tho POR15 or equivalent would do the job just as well.
As to paint scratches, you might be stunned at how much can be polished out by a pro that knows how to handle a power polisher at a good body shop!! $125-ish well spent.

If you decide to get those rust spots on the rear fenders taken care of (and I expect every RX7 in America with the likely exception of Mike's pair of SAs has this prob) - I found an EXCELLENT source of reasonably priced replacement panels in the UK.

Beautiful car - glad to see your giving it some Love
Thanks for posting the process....

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

nice car..

 

What is directly below the choke ****? Are those joysticks that control the mirrors?

 

Very nice Dave, that LS is a primo survivor. Are those original seats or have they been redone? Nice job if so. It would make a nice bookend with Andy's 79 GS, why don't you drive it down for ZoomFest?

Here's Andy's, it's all original as well

 

Stu, the LS originally was purchased and driven in NY. it was owned by a lady who didn ot take very good care of it. there is evidence of her running into tings..its horrible... i will be starting my sanding, metal repairing or rust cleaning and undercoating today. i'm starting with the wheel wells. they're very clean and solid. i will eventually fix the body and repaint the car.

Mike, the shine did make a big difference and i'm super pleased with the results. makes me feel good to see the car in as good of shape as it is. though i wish it were as clean as your LS..

 

they are joysticks that control the mirrors. they are original to the car. i believe that the 10th Anniversary SA was teh forst RX-7 to come fitted with the power mirrors and the LS followed the 10AE. the first time i got in the car i was perplexed by the joysticks..then, like a kid in a candy store, i started groping everything in the car.


Ray, the seats are original and must have been well taken care of by the previous owner. i try my best to sit down very easily in them and make sure they're conditioned on a regualr basis...of course since it hasnt been driven, i havent conditioned the seats until yesterday. what is ZoomFest?

 

i was going through some paperwork o the car and saw that before i transfered the title into my name, i made a photocopy of the original title showing the original issue of the title. looks like th eoriginal owner just paid cash or wrote a check for the car, as there was no original lein holder..kinda neat!

 

There is something sexy about a true unmodified SA, original wheels and all, very nice!

 

Agreed.

Do you have the original sticker price on the LS Dave? In the early days they were an incredible bargain.

Zoomfest is an Annual rotary gathering at Road Atlanta. Lot's of fun, a chance to watch some races, get your own car out on the track and hangout with some of those rotor heads you only know virtually. Assuming the wife and kids will let you go for the weekend (or bring them in the 8?!) and that the LS or one of your other rotaries needs a vacation, here's some details:

https://www.rx7club.com/se-rx-7-forum-35/zoom-fest-09-date-has-been-set-802931/

 

God damn that's a beauty SA.

 

Dave, Stu, Ray, and Chris - don't mean to hijack Dave's thread.

So many great pics in this thread. Wanted to add my first pictures of the summer taken today at the Huntington Beach Concours.

Thought it would be neat to contrast the first and last year SA22C base models - 79 RH GS with the 85 RH GS.

 

You guys are killing me!!!! I'm limited here in the sand box. My operating system does not let me view most sites like photobucket and the like. All the pictures not posted right to the site are blocked from my view. It's not going to be untill next year that I'll be able to put images to your words here. Oh well, Dave, have fun on your project and Ray is right-Go to Road Atlanta if you get the chance, you won't be disappointed. Maybe it could be timmed to attend one of their monthly club meetings? I'd be making a point to go this year but it will have to wait. Mike, from what I've already seen your cars are truely striking, I'm looking foward to seeing them in greater detail in the future. Ok, rants over, I'm going to go kick sand now.....

 

Dave-
Looking forward to postings as the resto progresses. Great to be starting out with such a solid car. Thank Gawd for Little Old ladies - turns out MY SA was owned by a LOL too! Never Raced or Rallied

Mike - yer shameless
85 is nice (no sunroof - I'd go INsane!!) - but really shows how neat and tidy the SA details are by comparison. Using the OEM hose clamps is a nice touch on the 85
(70 Z in the backgrd looked tasty too...)
Sunrise Red Rules!
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Mike, those are absolutely beatuiful 7's! i cant remember the last time i've seen a pair of more original 7's!! you are lucky to live in a state where the weather and road salt does not oxidize you cadmium platined parts and your aluminum parts and wheels. whtas the mileage on those 7's? those tires on that 85 GS look original....i could be wrong, but that irregular tread pattern looks awful suspicious.. any interior pics of both or other pics of the 79? did you buy those both new?

Stu, i plan on starting today before i go to work. i'm going to pull the rear wheels and clean and repair any rust in the wheel wells and undercoat both. i also noticed brake fluid puddling on the ground around the right rear wheel. i was glad that i ordered new wheel cylinders. should be in as late as tomorrow but i'll disassemble everything today if i have time before work. and as always, i'll be sure to post pics!

 

You just made my day. My Cosmo has those same type of mirror controls. One works, but the other is broken. I haven't been able to find one anywhere. Apparently only fully loaded Cosmos came with electric mirriors. I never thought that SAs might have them. Now I have another source to search for them. Thank you very much Dave.

 

man those cars are NICE, i think those pics made my day

stu- i think those might just be the original clamps, like they have never been off. radiator is original, its got the little silver sticker, hose is oem, alternator belt is the factory one too, my FC has the same belt, the replacements were blue labeled...

 

Why don't you guys have a SA contest at ZoomFest, best original condition? I'll provide the trophy (they are left over from work, not enough of us employees were worthy)