Hay hows it going guys? well Im knew here and looking into buying a Rx-7 and found one and had some questions regarding its value. I found a 1st get I think a (84) gsl with 62k original miles yes 62k. The think is in great shape minamal rust and runs great and has no dings or dents. But the only thing wrong with it is the rear end is shot. So what do you guys think that i should offer the guy or what do you think that it is worth? Also how much will it be to put a knew rear end in it?

 

How do you know it runs great if the rear end is shot? You won't know for sure what condition the engine is really in until you put a load on it. Wassup?

 

if your looking for a first car, i would suggest you get something that you can depend on, like a honda or toyota, get the rex if you want to spend time working on it, restoring it, they are loads of fun, and if u have a bone yard that u can get parts cheep from than go for it, what kind of price is the 84 going for,,,,most folks here paid as low as 300.oo for a running 7...good luck,

 

I paid $250 for an 85... They thought the motor was bad, but the carb needed adjusting...

 

I paid $1200 for my '83 GSL (w/ 112k miles, ran perfectly) and $800 for my '85 GSL-SE (wouldn't start because of bad igniter, w/ 98k miles).

I hope this helps you a bit. It might be a good idea to see how much he want's for it and go from there. Did you check for rust behind the cargo bins? Just get a screw driver and remove a cargo bin to see behind it. 1st gens are known to have rust there. You can't see it from the underside of the car.

As for the rear end being shot, I'm sure what you mean. In what way is it shot? In anycase if your referring to the diff. then you might be able to pick up on cheap from a junk yard.

 

I paid $7,000 for mine!!...............in 1988...hehe I have an 84'gsl. It seems so werd to think that I paid that for my car

 

This car is mint though. All the fender wells are not rusted, the under belly has some but to be suspected from a car in maine, nice inside and out. The gray paint on the car still sparkels. The guy just said when it goes the rear end just cluncks really bad. That would be the dif. right?

 

U-Joints

 

Rear wheel bearings 'clunk' like that too, they get really loud if they aren't replaced. As mentioned above, driveshaft could cause the problem too.

That isn't to say the diff is for sure ok, but it definitely is not the only possibility for that kind of problem.

Wheel bearings are very cheap if you do them yourself, but quite expensive if you have to pay someone. It's a fairly long job (if you don't have a press anyways lol) requiring one or two special tools, but several of us on here do them ourselves in our driveways. If you're used to working on cars it won't be a problem, but it probably isn't a job for a rookie.

The driveshaft is an easier job, although you have non-replaceable u-joints on that 84, so you'll more than likely need to replace the whole thing. You can buy a new one with replaceable ones though.

If neither of those solve the problem, you're into the differential. I wouldn't say this is exactly a cheap problem to fix, depending on how you go about it I guess.

Personally, given that you don't know which of these is the problem and assuming you'll need to pay someone to fix it, I wouldn't offer very much for the car. If you're really keen on getting a mint RX-7, just look around a little more and I'm sure you can locate one with less potential for being a money pit right off the bat.

*On the other hand*, it's very likely that all that's wrong is the wheel bearings are shot. In that case, if you can do the fix yourself, you've got a mint RX-7 for $50 worth of parts. It's your call.

 

I have had a clunky LSD diff since I bought it in '96. Put on 75,000 on it with no additional problems. The bearings are good and the u-joints on the driveshaft are good so I knew it was the diff. It got much less clunky once I put in new fluid and LSD additive. However this may not fix yours.

 

OK, here's my guess...you will need $550 for the rear and a lot of labor costs, so you tell the guy you'll give him $1800 for it. Go as high as $2200 and no more.

 

I'd pull the rear compartments out and check for rust in there - it doesn't matter if it has 30 miles on it, the car is still 18 years old! Check for rust on the inside wheel wells - common problem. You may discover that it has a serious rust issue, I call it a "battle-wound". This can be fixed, but just make sure you check that and let the seller know about it.

 

hopefully this car has 62k on it cause it was drive a little bit consistently thoughout its lifetime, not sat for years just a thought