boost geek

Hi! For starters, I do not own an RX7. I have a Dodge shelby charger turbo that has so far run 13.6@104.6 mph, but who cares.
I really want to get this car. It's a 3rd gen RX7 that is sitting in an abandoned yard, the plates have expired in Jan/02. From what I understand, these cars have incredible handling, and as much as I like my S.C., I'm getting tired of fwd. I've tried for a week now to get a hold of the owner of this car, but he has'nt been to his shop all week. The car is behind a fence, so i dont know what condition the drivers side is in, appears to have a black fender, also needs headlight assembly and turn signals. I do all my own automotive work, with the exception of auto body. The rear wing and piece between the tail lights look like they might be in the car, but i cant get close enough to tell. I can see there is some red stuff between the seats and beside the passenger door. Can you tell from the pics if this car is an R1? What is the wheel bolt pattern spacing? What is the max I should offer this guy for the car? Also, can you get decent rotor seal kits for these?
Blast away with opinions, good or bad, dont hold back your thoughts, and thanks in advance!



ps I've looked at your picture thread, and WOW, you guys have cool cars!!! I'm sure this is the poorest condition one posted in a while...

turBRO240

iTrader: (1)

Honest opinion.... buy it and part it out and sell it the parts to us :]

your not going to get much out of it.... its in pretty bad shape.... offer max 2k for it

and as far as buying seal kits for this.... HAHA.... the motor would be absolute junk....a new remanufactured one is around 4k... plus all kinda of parts here and there just to get it running.

your MUCH better off buying a roller of the forum for sale section.

as u can see there is frosting on the windshields of the cars, which means cold, which usually means rain.... which obviously means rust damage.

all in all.... THIS FD is not worth trying to get running..... spend your money on a roller off the forum or find a good used FD 16-20k.

SLOASFK

iTrader: (5)

That poor FD...I'm going to go cry now.

Also, being as how it's been sitting on the ground for an unknown ammout of time, I'd imagine the chasis is probably crap too. Likely rusted, possibly bent...

turBRO240

iTrader: (1)

exactly

boost geek

So, if the engine was shot, an LS1 or something wouldn't be worth it for a transplant?
Great posts, keep 'em coming!

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Remans are $2600ish, not $4k.

That car looks to be in rough shape. If you can buy it for a few thousand, it might be worth getting into, but be prepared to spend upwards of $10k to get it running right. That's my prediction.

chinaman

I would look the car over very carefully. It looks like it's been sitting for a while from the oxidation of the top surface. It sitting in grass for a long time with no wheels on it, just on it's belly more than likely means rust. It's not an R1 (hatch has a hole in it for rear wiper, R1 does'nt have that). Body looks all stock and I don't see an R1 lip. Get inside the car, hook up a good battery and see if everything turns on. Anything is possible, money answers everything. Do you have enough?

boost geek

Do I have enough? Well, I dont wanna spend 10 grand. 20 grand for a used one is more than I owe on my house. I own a Turbo Mopar, and the owners of such cars are usually tight wads. I originally wanted a rwd platform to convert a 2.2 turbo Dodge engine running a rwd tranny (Ford C4), such as an older Toyota Corrola, Dodge Colt, or anything light and rwd. Then I seen this car, not ultra light, but not bad at 2800 lbs. I can make an 8 valve 2.2 easily push 300 hp with almost the same amount of torque, and originally thought of putting that engine in this car. With a rotary rebuild, can you get away with rotor seals, or do you have to resurface or replace the troich chambers? I love a new challenge, these cars look SO cool, only seen a couple in my life going down the freeway, low roofline, I figured this would be the ultimate roller.
That said, I have to get a better look at this car, driver side could be shot, trunk could be full of water from the open holes, because when it rains here it pours! We get on average 5 feet of rain per year here. Yup, feet! I have to get a hold of this guy, then I'll know if I still want it.

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

My FD weighs 2600 pounds in full street trim .

Also, tightwads and these cars don't mix. Your bank account will thank you if you turn down this challenge, trust me.

pinkrx7

iTrader: (2)

poor car.. reminds me of my own.. in the beginning!

Miff

You can tell it is not an R1 immediately based on the sunroof. If you see leather, it is a touring/PEP model, otherwise it is a base model. R1's are overrated anyways, tourings are the same thing only nicer. Unlike other manufacturers, the R in R1 only means 'rough' suspension.

Anyways I don't see why everyone is saying this car is in horrible condition? Doesn't seem to be any rust, the only body damage is the rear hatch. Throw on a couple of light and signal pieces and the body is perfect. At this level, an LS1 swap would be perfect for this car. No more rotary headaches.

spandy

iTrader: (1)

WTF, that is messed up.

Like already mentioned, I'd get inside see what it looks like. Hell, if you could get it for 2k or less, you could make a couple bucks if you wanted to take the time to part it out......parting out a car is alot of work though.

4-5 years is a long time for any car to sit like that....hate to say it but it might just be best leaving it where it sits.


And why would someone take a car like that and just let it sit? My uncle did the same with a 65 mustang....sat on his property for YEARS rotting away, saying he was gonna fix it up some day. He finally just sold it to someone who actually will bring the car back to life. This car was kinda rough,a little rust, no motor, interior was pretty trashed, but the body was straight and clean other than a few dings a some surface rust, what lies beneath I have no idea. He sold it for 6k.

JP's 93 fd

iTrader: (28)

I think you shouldn't buy the car. It seems like theres going to be a lot of problems to come. It's not even on jack stands, so the owner didn't even give a damn about the car (what a waste!). If you decide to get it, good luck!!!!

telum01

that's going to be an extremely expensive project. it looks like every bit of it will have to be gone over. my opinion is to find something in better condition. much better condition.

damn skippy. i've been shelling out cash ever since i got mine. i bought it for $7k and i've driven it less than 200 miles due to a blown coolant seal that's forcing me to rebuild the engine (boo previous owner). if you don't want to spend a lot of money on a car, don't get an FD, especially not one in this bad of condition.

XxMerlinxX

iTrader: (2)

We can speculate all you want, but until you get more up close pictures, and actually see if it's running/has an engine/whatever, then we can't say yay or nay. If the driver's side is damaged and it needs a new motor, I'd say not to bother. If it's mint inside and just needs a new paintjob outside, but needs a new motor, I'd say go LS1 (still costly though). If it needs work inside, new motor, and has body damage, no way. Be sure to check underneath if possible. Pretty much snap as many pics as you can, then report back.

chinaman

[QUOTE=Miff]You can tell it is not an R1 immediately based on the sunroof. If you see leather, it is a touring/PEP model, otherwise it is a base model. R1's are overrated anyways, tourings are the same thing only nicer. Unlike other manufacturers, the R in R1 only means 'rough' suspension.

Anyways I don't see why everyone is saying this car is in horrible condition? Doesn't seem to be any rust, the only body damage is the rear hatch. Throw on a couple of light and signal pieces and the body is perfect. At this level, an LS1 swap would be perfect for this car. No more rotary headaches.[/QUOTE

How did I miss the obvious?? Did I not get it right though?? I just love it when newbies are so excited and want to let everyone know they know something about their car.

JHew84

iTrader: (9)

god forbid a *gasp* sports car! *gasp* not ride like a cadillac .

It probably does have some corrosion damage, but it's really impossible to tell until you take a closer look. Give the floor panels a good kick, see if they give at all or feel mushy. I agree with the 10K dollar estimate to get it up and running under it's own power, assuming the motor it has now doesn't run, which is very likely after sitting for that long. I wouldn't offer anymore than 2000 for it, and that's only if the interior is pretty clean, and the car is mostly complete.

Miff

No, you didn't. A R1 lip doesn't necessarily mean it's an R1.

And by the way my buddy's 04 M3 sure rides like a Cadillac..

NissanConvert

iTrader: (1)

These are the cars i don't mind seeing swaps in. or even being tubbed out and/or turned into race cars. Their former owners have already taken great big dumps on them and to make them streetable could cost a pretty penny. IMHO all you can do is speculate with these pics, so i will decline as the possibilities are myriad.

My FD didn't cost nearly as much as an M3. And i'll bet you a
that your buddy's m3 doesn't handle at all like a cadillac at the bleeding edge of it's handling capacity.

JHew84

iTrader: (9)

of course it will ride smooth, it's a bmw , I still wouldn't compare it to a cadillac though .

chinaman

That is correct but, an R1 does'nt come with a rear wiper.

buzen

Is this with labor? Which shop?

boost geek

Anyone know what new troich chambers are worth? I'll post more pics when I get in touch with the owner.
Thanks for the responses!

VegasFD

My initial thoughts are: whoever owns that car/tow lot obviously knows that FDs are becoming rare and more valuable. So, if they aren't taking any initiative themselves to try to get the car running, it's probably a hopeless cause. The expense of rebuilding an RX-7 piece by piece would be outrageous. Plus it would take a long time to find all the parts.

-Scott

Crymson

Do It!