Im looking at buying a 93 RX7 that has been modifyed. The owner says its been dynoed at 425 HP. My question is how reliable is the 3rd Gen RX7. Ive been told that the engines need to be rebuilt every 80,000 miles or so. This will be my daily driver so im just wandering if they are reliable for daily commuting. Any info would be greatly appreciated. This will be my first rotary powered car.

My personal opinion will be that any car thats been modified (especially 425RWHP FD) isn't going to be so call relaible and good for daily.



If you want a daily communter, I suggest something that does better on gas and something that's not turbo charged. FD's could be a reliable car if mods are done right (not 425HP mods).. but since you don't seem too be knowledgeable in these cars, I highly suggest you getting a reliable daily and later picking up an FD.. Most FD owners I know have a daily that they drive to and from work. But there are small percentage that do use it as a daily..

Being an owner of a 430hp FD3S I can attest that what Herblenny says is accurate. It has it's moments and when Its set up right for the most part I trust it to get me where I am going. That being said. I also have been the game long enough to know that anything can go south at any point with FD3S. Also to my benefit I have had my hands into every modification on my car. If something goes wrong I usually know where to start looking.

I have not used my FD3S as a daily car in a long time. I would not want to use it as a daily for much more than a week. It's definitely not a good candidate for a daily driver. It makes a great toy if you have the cash and patience to play. A good commuter car it is not.



As far as 80k mile rebuilds, well with 425hp and the shitty 10% mixed ethanol fuels these days you will be lucky to get close to that many miles out of a motor. Most single turbo cars get rebuilds or remans fairly often. I dare say at least one motor a year, two years if your lucky. You'll likley blow it up well before it wears out.



If you really have your heart set on FD3S, get one as close to bone stock as possible. At least then yoiur not buying someone else's mistakes. That's my advice.

i agree with phil and dave all the way!!



i'd be very weary about trusting my schedule on a 400+ hp fd.



i've done it and yes it can be done, but you gotta make sure you have a plan B ready at all times, and make sure your plan B is pretty reliable

I'm gonna jump on this bandwagon too.

IMO this is not a DD car. They are all 12+ years old and were complicated even when new. They get crappy mileage (evan when left essentially stock like mine). They only hold two people and have next to nothing for cargo space and while that probably isn't a real big deal, there will be times when you'll want to get more than a 12 pack of beer and a loaf of bread. When something does breaks down (and it will happen more often in a DD), the parts tend to be expensive. Also, I'm not sure where you live, but winter driving in the snow or ice is next to impossible and all else being the same, they tend to be expensive to insure. Now factor in this heavily modded FD your looking at and even if you have decent mechanic skills and experience, there's likely to be ALOT of gaps between the Factory Service Manual and what's under THAT hood. And forget taking it a MAZDA dealership as it's not likely that any of the techs have even seen one, let alone worked on them.

If you've got a good job and NEED to be at work on time... every time, get a Honda and save up for a nice stock weekend car like FD3boost suggested. You'll worry less, enjoy it more and it probably won't be anymore expensive than trying to keep it on the road as a DD.

Thanks fpr the Info guys. I went ahead and bought it on Friday. I also baught a 1990 Honda Accord to do my commuting in. I will say this I have had a permi grin for the last couple days. The person i bought the car from has had all the work done at Rotary Perfomance in Dallas TX. I called and talked to them quit a bit before I decided to buy it. Its mostly going to be a weekend car though. I may drive it to work on Monday to show everyone. Im hoping If I drive it easy and im not to rough on her she will last at least this year.. lol

congrats on the purchase. i think what the other guys were trying to say is that the fd is quirky car and even more so when it has that much power. i daily drove my single turbo for 2 years and finally gave into selling it for something else. now i want another one! once the rotary bug has you it doesnt let you go easily.

This is just my advice..



Don't think driving it easy will make the engine last longer.. I was told by many rotary experts that you need to tach it up at least once a day to "clean out" the engine. So, tach up the engine!



Also, rotary engine likes to be driven in higher RPM. Don't put too much load.. like cruising up a hill in high gear and low RPM so you could save gas and think you are driving it "easy". Make sure to put in low gear and higher rpm..



Congrats on your purchase and hope you love the 7 as much as most of us here on this forum!

I second everything said here. I think it was a guy from my local dealer who told me that a little old lady was driving an RX-8 easy and her engine got carboned up. They told her to run it high at least once daily or trade in for a Miata.