sad muppet

I have a scoob MY00 and love it to bits but have a hankering for something a little different. After some very hard thinking i have come up with a RX-7 twin turbo series 3..yes, the one with the funny wankey engine.

I think they look gorgeous and they are pretty rare..only 152 UK versions were sold. Jap import ones are 280 bhp standard. All road tests i have read rate it highly.

Doea anyone know anyone who owns one or has had one? If so, whats the story? Crap, unreliable and tempramental or as wicked to own as they are to look at?

Robertio

iTrader: (1)

For first hand experience you are probably best to join the yahoo group from:

fd uk

The engines are supposed to be reliable if serviced properly, but do require rebuilds after around 80k miles.

Danny Fisher

Sad, you could also look at the Mazda Rotary Club site (www.mazdarotaryclub.com). This also has a bbs on it, that you can ask questions.

Dan

SideShowBob

Hey sad, it all depends on how you go about it, the amount of research you do etc.
Mine arrives in February, its a '93 Type-R (+ mods ), and I am purchasing it through Newera Imports (www.neweraimports.com).

They have a permanent person in Japan who really knows his stuff, named Miguel, and he will source you a good one.
I can only speak from other owners experiences of owning a car bought by Miguel, but they are all very positive, and he was very thorough and prompt with all the info on the one Im getting, so am well impressed so far.

There is a yahoo group for fdukbuyers, and most of the questions you have have probably already been answered on there, so definitely worth a look if seriously interested.

The problem with the engines shouldnt be as big a deterent as everyone makes out, I had huge reservations about it, but lots of research and calls to recommended rebuilders shows that it can cost from as little as £3000, and for that, you get an engine that will last you at least 70k miles if you look after it properly, and comes with a warrenty etc.

The performance on a good RX7 sounds awesome, they do use fuel (budget on 17MPg), but for that you're getting one hell of a quick machine, that looks better and is a lot less common than rally reps.

So hopefully a dream.

sad muppet

interesting views. Sideshow, let me know how you get on. I have also been in touch with Miguel and he certainly seems to know his RX7's.

Will you be using yours every day for work? I would love to know how you get on with it. I read somewhere that fuel consumption can drop to 12 mpg which has put me off! Surely it should do 16+ mpg.

Good luck with it all, it sure is a beautiful machine

SideShowBob

I am going to use mine as an every day, and theres a few other people that do.
They sure drink petrol thou, most people get around 17MPG, if you drive really carefully to work and back, you will probably do even better than that, and then save the blasts for the weekend (yeah, like thats possible!!)

It also depends what car you come from, my Teg does about 23/24MPG, so in a way 17 is bad, but not too bad.

Ill let you know how it all goes, Miguel comes very highly recommended by everyone who's ever bought one from him, and is clearly an enthusiast (has a lovely one himself), so a safe bet.

May see you on the roads in something similar soon then?

cryptwalk

I want one. They are indeed a beauty, just the reliability and mpg put me off. If however you have deep pockets....

Good luck, nice choise.

Danny Fisher

There is a mini owners meet this sunday at the Guildford cruise. They normally get there early so that they can park up in the BK/Halfords car park.

If you are closer to Bedford, there will be 3 or 4 of us on track, and a few coming to spectate.

Dan

SideShowBob

Its like any used car really, you have to be careful when buying, but a looked after rotary should be as reliable as any other high performance car, maybe even more so.
As a second hand buy, if you do your homework, and are aware that the eninge may need around £3000 spent on it at 70k miles (which gives you another 70k miles at least), then I dont think the risks are too big.

The fule consumption cant be ignored, but they are very quick, as in Evo quick, which I dont think has much better fuel economy, so its the sacrifice I suppose that needs to be made to get a car capable of accelerating like that.

Ill report back on how I get on when I get it.

chockymonster

I'll agree with the newera bit.

Miguel has imported 3 cars for me, all have been as described and mechanically faultless. Top bloke.

sad muppet

hmmm, i still have my doubts i'm afriad. The RX7 is a gorgeous car. Did anyone see the top 100 most beautiful cars in car or something mag this month. They didnt have the RX7 in it--how could they! They even put the skyline in at No.75!! Wicked car yes but beautiful? No way!

Think i will stay true to scooby. Always wanted a P1 and they have very similar performance to the RX7 but with the benefit of 4WD and more reliable mechanicals. Still a bit out my price range now though. How about an STI Type R Jap import? Within the price range. How much more is it to insure a Jap import though and what about parts? Anyone out there own and run a Jap Sti?>