Learn Me first Gen RX-7

I rode in my friend's 1st gen RX-7 and I really liked it. What problems do they have and what should I look for if I was thinking about buying one?

Rust in the rear wheel wells

Blown Apex Seals

Rust in the rear wheel wells

Early 13b engines are pricey to fix....go with the carbed 12a

The rust in rear wells is actually the upper rear control arm mounts, remove the bins to check it properly.

Easy to get to 150 hp out of the 12a, more work after that.

Wander steer is the term for the worn steering box, can be adjusted out if not too far gone.

Early 13B engines were the carbed 4 port and they are rare and extremely awesome, a BP version can make 300hp.

Best site for info and help www.rx7club.com

Late 83 and all 84/85 have bigger axles and bearings. GSL cars have LSD and rear discs. GSL-SE have LSD, rear discs and the EFI 6 port 13B.

There are some rare Limited Editions, 78, 79 are called the SA, 80 to 83 are Series 2 FB, 84/85 Series 3 FB.

Odd wheel pattern 4 X 110 makes it difficult to find rims but not impossible, GSL-SE have the popular 4 X 114.3

Aftermarket parts are available from specialized suppliers, notably ReSpeed

Ask me if you want more

I lubs 'em. 12A's are pretty tough but the supply of rotor housings etc is drying up quickly. The good thing is that a 13B is a pretty easy swap and there's tons of stuff out there for that one. The toughest part of that swap is the fuel system, if it's going in a 12A car and you don't want to do FI the best thing to do use the bottom half of the 13B 6 port manifold, get a Racing Beat upper manifold and a sidedraft Weber or Dellorto. Of the two, the Dell is the best for street use. There are Weber IDA setups, I'd be leery of that on the street.

It's not real hard to convert a carbed car to EFI if you are inclined to do so, the engine harness from a 2nd gen car is easily removed and then there's minimal wiring to connect it to a 12A car. Add a return line to the fuel tank, a high pressure fuel pump and you are set.

All 12A and 13B trannys interchange. You have to watch the clutch disc spline and diameter, but it's all swappable.

The rear axle stuff has already been covered.

Sheet metal: the 79-80 is the 'cleanest' of the 1st gens but sheet metal is getting scarce. 81-85 stuff is still pretty readily available. The manual window regulators will wear out, making life pretty miserable. The regulators are still available and are not very expensive.

They covered it pretty well. They can be had stupid cheap, so hold out for a rust-free one that runs great (you know, like mine...). Generally the higher mileage ones are better as they have actually been driven. Rotarys don't like sitting or cold.

79-80 are the SA and are pretty cool except for the rear/taillights/license plate area. 79 had a bunch of one-year only things, so they are best avoided unless you're buying a low-mileage creampuff. All were drum brake rears with a carb'd 12A and the 4x110 pattern.

81-83 are called S2 or FB's. The LE came out for 81 with the really pretty mesh wheels (what's on mine) that also had special paint and leather. The GSL model added in rear disc brakes, a really crappy LSD, and a removable metal moonroof. All are 4x110 pattern with carb'd 12A's, though now with a little more power and a better distributor/ignitor setup (electronic, no points).

84-85 are S3's and got a significantly redesigned interior. They also got a revised rear suspension, larger front spindles, and an upgraded rear axle. The GSL continued on with an improved LSD but still the carb'd 12A and 4x110. The GSL-SE came out with a FI'd 13B, 4x114.3 pattern, better brakes, and a wildly different offset/track width.

The carburetor on the 12A is a 4Bbl Nikki that is a quite good unit. Sterling can get them up to 385cfm. The N/A 12A is a really good engine, in fact the world's quickest/fastest 2 rotor in the world is a 12A. Mazda figured out that a thinner, taller rotor makes more power (kinda like a bore/stroke) so the 16X is actually shrinking back down to the 12A's thickness from the 13B and getting taller.

There's more aftermarket now for the SA/FB then ever before. RE-Speed, Tri-Point, Racing Beat, Sterling, Suspension Techniques, Black Dragon, Koni, KYB, Tokico, etc, etc, etc all make parts for the things. I highly recommend them!

• 1 on what everyone else already said.

I love em and am on my 5th or so. Lots of fun and for the most part have been reliable for me. I bought my first 79 from Kansas City sight unseen and it had more rust that I anticipated. I seem to have problems going through rear ends (ring gear) every so often so check to see if there are any noises coming from there. Granted I always replace it with a used 150k+ miles so that might be part of it and I am not easy on them at all.

Just checking in, I'm an FB owner (rebuilding a field find) and love 'em. Everything said in here is true.

aussiesmg wrote: Early 13B engines were the carbed 4 port and they are rare and extremely awesome, a BP version can make 300hp.

Tell me more about this.... this is very relevant to my interests. Is that 300hp n/a? Very expensive to get to this point?

BP=Bridge Port, usually pretty expensive if done right. I know you can get a 12A up to 280-300 with a peripheral port, and those are a lot easier to find, although it may not be much cheaper with the level of work it'd take.

Turbo 13B's are all 4 port but they have lower compression (7:5-1) than the NA's (either 8:5-1 or on late S5's 9:5-1). So it's possible to build an NA 4 port 13B by using NA rotors with turbo irons and rotor housings. AFAIK the early 4 port 13B intake will work on the later turbo irons, somebody sing out if I'm wrong!!!

If you are hands on the templates can be found easily to do your own bridgeporting. PP engines are incredible but lose reliabililty and are very difficult to street as they don't run under 5000rpm very well at all.

300 plus is very obtainable with an NA 13B using a 48IDA Weber modified to a 51. Use good parts, these are very simple engines to build but experience makes a big difference.

Any exhaust restriction kills rotary HP, so do your research.

I am not a turbo fan, if you want more than 300 hp go V8

Thanks for the help. I now have one more car on my list of cars to buy if the price is right.

The price usually is, even by our standards. I got mine for $500, and running examples can usually be had for less than $1000 in various condition.

I got mine for $200. Changed the battery and drove it home. Only thing missing was the passenger window.

They have to be one of the simplest most complicated cars you will ever own. Love them and will probably own one forever.

Toyman01 wrote: They have to be one of the simplest most complicated cars you will ever own. Love them and will probably own one forever.

I bought mine because I knew nothing about them (rotaries or carbs) and it's the best choice I've ever made. I'm never selling this damn car.