General FC questions

[protegeV]

Ok, I have a beater car which I used for my driving job. I figure I can get about $2500 for it, so then Im gonna look into getting either an FC or a Miata as a project car.

I just want some general info in this one thread w/o searching all over the place for it...

Questions
1. Can I get a decent FC for $2500?
2. How are these reliability-wise...Turbo or N/A
3. Am I out of my mind for thinking I can work on a rotary with no experience or is it possible?
4. What's the highest mileage I should be looking at?(do they tend to crap out at a certain mileage - 75K, 100K, 150K, etc)

 

[FC3s Boy]

for your fisrt 7 go with a n/a fc they can be very reiable and fun , it all depends on the last owner's mant. I have seen soem 200k + on a stock 13b and , one of our guys just got a nice one for $900.00.

 

[protegeV]

sounds good. I was just reading in another thread about power levels...and it seems the 89-91 N/As have a lot more power than previous years, so this is what I will probably stick with.

 

[FC3s Boy]

86-88 had 142hp and 89-91 had 160hp but the later ones weighed a little more, I have mine with some bolt-ons and it makes 160-170 rwhp, runs mid 14's in the 1/4 and gets 20 mpg. It is the most reliable car i have had with over 300 passes at the stip with out any problems

 

[protegeV]

86-88 had 142hp and 89-91 had 160hp but the later ones weighed a little more, I have mine with some bolt-ons and it makes 160-170 rwhp, runs mid 14's in the 1/4 and gets 20 mpg. It is the most reliable car i have had with over 300 passes at the stip with out any problems

damn, not bad at all...is that the blue one in your sig?

what year is it?
also...how do rotaries take to nitrous?

 

[mountjonas]

you should be able to find one under 2500. i had a 1990 gtu in great shape. it was in the paper and auto-trader for months and i couldn't even get anyone to look at it so i ended up giving it away to my cousin.

 

[FC3s Boy]

damn, not bad at all...is that the blue one in your sig?

what year is it?
also...how do rotaries take to nitrous?

yea it is the blue one, they like nitrous just don't go over 75hp shot , I like to run a 50hp shot

 

[protegeV]

since im not getting many looks at my miata thread...

i realize im gonna get some bias here, but whaddya think about getting a miata? lighter, strong engine, NORMAL engine, haha...might be hard to find at a low price though.

I dunno, i like both cars, hard to choose.

 

[FC3s Boy]

since im not getting many looks at my miata thread...

i realize im gonna get some bias here, but whaddya think about getting a miata? lighter, strong engine, NORMAL engine, haha...might be hard to find at a low price though.

I dunno, i like both cars, hard to choose.

I would say the miata is more reliable than a fc for sure, i just don't like drop tops

 

[Masshole]

Miata - nice car.. but you see them everywhere

FC: go N/a for your first one till you learn to take care of a rotary
if it's 86-88 there can be problems with the 6port actuators
if it's 89-91 there can be problems with the oil metering system

they're extremely reliable cars so long as you treat them well. Dont let them overheat, dont run low on oil, change the oil regularly. I only blew one motor in my FC and that was because i let it overheat. Easily solved, replaced motor in about 20 hours of labor in my garage relatively easily. Very fun to drive, handles like a dream, and i'm a bit more partial to them than i am to the miata. I miss my FC like hell and wish i never sold it. You should be able to find one for $2500 or less very easily

 

[protegeV]

I hear rotaries can have problems with overheating...
doies this mean i should expect to take a pitstop every hour on a long trip, dont let it sit idling long, or just watch it overall?

and would an upgraded radiator solve the problem, o ris just inherent with rotaries and there's no solution other than to have a good temp gauge, and keep you eye on it?

 

[FC3s Boy]

I hear rotaries can have problems with overheating...
doies this mean i should expect to take a pitstop every hour on a long trip, dont let it sit idling long, or just watch it overall?

and would an upgraded radiator solve the problem, o ris just inherent with rotaries and there's no solution other than to have a good temp gauge, and keep you eye on it?

i run mine to vegas and back with out anyproblems, just take care of it and it should be good to you

 

[Masshole]

I hear rotaries can have problems with overheating...
doies this mean i should expect to take a pitstop every hour on a long trip, dont let it sit idling long, or just watch it overall?

and would an upgraded radiator solve the problem, o ris just inherent with rotaries and there's no solution other than to have a good temp gauge, and keep you eye on it?

the overheating problem with rotaries is not that they are prone to it. The problem you run into is if you LET your car overheat; it's more fragile than a piston engine. I only had my rotary overheat once, and that was because i blew a coolant line. My piston cars have all overheated numerous times.

 

[protegeV]

yeah, Im having a problem with my current beater car(saturn) overheating. It is going to be sold to buy the RX7

 

[protegeV]

also, is there any reason I shouldnt be looking at a pre-86 RX7(FB?)

I kinda like the way they look with the long hood and slung back cab area where you're almost sitting ontop of the rear wheel

I realize they are a lot more power deficient than later models, but maybe they're lighter (dunno)

 

[xelderx]

I just got my rotary engine stand adaptor in the other day. I might pull the blown motor out of my '86 this weekend and learn how to rebuild one with it. I hate sending things to other people to get fixed. I feel I'm getting attached to the 2nd Gen so I better learn to work on it.

 

[FC3s Boy]

also, is there any reason I shouldnt be looking at a pre-86 RX7(FB?)

I kinda like the way they look with the long hood and slung back cab area where you're almost sitting ontop of the rear wheel

I realize they are a lot more power deficient than later models, but maybe they're lighter (dunno)

I have 2 of each right now the first gen's are great cars, it is just that parts are harder to come buy , it is a tough choice I use the first gen for drag racing and the 2nd gen for daily driving / road racing

 

[FC3s Boy]

I just got my rotary engine stand adaptor in the other day. I might pull the blown motor out of my '86 this weekend and learn how to rebuild one with it. I hate sending things to other people to get fixed. I feel I'm getting attached to the 2nd Gen so I better learn to work on it.

atkins rotary has a video on how to rebuild it will come in handy if you are doing it yourself

 

[xelderx]

atkins rotary has a video on how to rebuild it will come in handy if you are doing it yourself

Yea I got the phone # for the guy that actually made the video..Bruce somethingorother...He doesn't live too far away from me so I'll give him a shot and it might be a hair cheaper than Atkins, although they do know their rotaries.

 

[protegeV]

Im glad my thread was of help to you Justin, hehe...j/p(laugh)