Talk me out of buying an FC

"mkbruin, Atlas VP" (mkbruin)
05/01/2014 at 07:49 • Filed to: None

I find myself thinking about rebuilding a 13b. Talk me out of a fc to be a dd/toy...

DISCUSSION (19)

William Byrd > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 07:52

None of my friends with project cars have had an easy time. There is always something wrong with their car. Something to adjust. Something to replace. Something to tune. Which means none of them DD their project cars on account of reliability. This spans domestic and import, doesn't seem to discriminate.

So toy, yes. DD, no!

Vince-The Roadside Mechanic > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 07:58

Get a 2002 or a 240z.

RotaryLover > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 08:08

Buy one. The N/A variants are quite reliable. The Turbo II are the strongest Turbo rotaries that Mazda made from factory. Even the transmission is stronger than the glass one in the FD. I'd say, but an N/A if you want the looks and the reliability. Go Turbo II if you wanna know what you're missing. But buying a used rotary is like buying a Porsche. You HAVE to get all the maintenance paper of the car if you can. Don't buy one from a young person that tells you "Bro, I know rotaries. I rev it everyday because, Rotary engine" or the ones that sell them because they don't have money anymore. Unless they can prove that they done the maintenance. Check the underbody too and do a compression test at Mazda. The compression is a bit different than the one you do on a piston engine.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > William Byrd
05/01/2014 at 08:11

Counterpoint: the less a project car is driven, the longer the time it takes to get bugs ironed out and the higher its susceptibility to issues from resting. The best way to attempt having a reliable project car capable of DDing is to first DD it - once it's achieved a baseline level of operational, that is.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Vince-The Roadside Mechanic
05/01/2014 at 08:11

I was going to suggest first-gen MR2.

William Byrd > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
05/01/2014 at 08:14

Makes sense!

Although make sure you have carry a cell phone, extra fluids, and some tools. :)

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 08:26

Disregard it as a DD and treat it like a project car until it is DONE. A lot of my friends had RX-7s as daily driver cars and it was a nightmare when they were half finished. One of my friends finished a very nice GTU FC and he had a legacy spec B as his daily driver and snow car. The GTU was a great car to be in. My other friend's red/white paneled beater RX-7? Nopenopenopenopenope.

Vince-The Roadside Mechanic > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
05/01/2014 at 08:48

That will do.

willkinton247 > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 09:10

The only place I see FCs regularly are at SCCA races. Why? They're apparently kind of fast, but AWFUL to drive around town.

Freddy "Tavarish" Hernandez > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 09:13

No such thing as a rotary DD. At best it's a weekend toy because at some point, it will not work. It can be a hell of a project though. Do it and take pics.

Local Miata Bro > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 12:56

Dont't so I can buy it.

aevum > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 14:29

When you buy an RX7, its a legal requirement that you purchase a 1993 Toyota Tercel as your "backup daily". So try to find someone selling them as a package deal :)

TulsaMtnBiker (OkieRising) > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/01/2014 at 22:02

Kinja'd!!!

This pleases me.

toplessFC3Sman > Freddy "Tavarish" Hernandez
05/02/2014 at 13:48

I'm currently DDing my FC 'vert - it's running well, the biggest problem is the fuel consumption

Andrew P. Collins > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/02/2014 at 14:05

I owned an '89 non-turbo in high school. DD'ed it (drove a lot , plus hooliganism) and only really had problems with the crappy mods I thought were a good idea as a 17-year-old.

Ran it all year, on 18" rims with Nittos in Massachusetts. Didn't even crash that often.

Joseph Shaul > Freddy "Tavarish" Hernandez
05/02/2014 at 14:29

V8 swap? V8 swap.

lasdla > mkbruin, Atlas VP
05/02/2014 at 16:34

We cant. Just post pics once you get it

texturbo88 > Freddy "Tavarish" Hernandez
05/05/2014 at 16:36

On the contrary, I daily drove an FC for two years without any major issues that weren't fixable in 5 minutes. The NA FC's are incredibly reliable cars contrary to popular belief. It's when you add boost that problems crawl out of the woodwork, er- apex seals...

anothermiatafanboy > mkbruin, Atlas VP
06/10/2014 at 13:11

Without bringing practicality into the matter, I say: holy hell that car is beyond sexy! get one!!!