1992 Mazda RX7 Type-R
Discussion
Thought I'd start a proper build thread for this as things are (very slowly) moving again...
In 2011, I decided to stop being a fanboy and put my money where my heart was - into an FD RX7, a car I have lusted after for as long as I can remember. I picked up a clean '92 JDM car with a basic spec and fresh (DIY) rebuild having only recently been a grade-4 import into the UK. The only thing I didn't like was the R-Magic Type-II spoiler (which I still have if anyone wants it!). The way I saw it, these cars were at the lowest prices they were ever going to be so if it did the inevitable and died on me, I probably wouldn't lose much money on it and I could at least scratch the itch.
I did exactly what you should do when buying a car like this. I read every google link I could, signed up to all the rotary forums I could find and asked all the right questions so I knew what to look for. Then I came face-to-face with the first one I'd seen and couldn't throw my money at the guy fast enough. It broke down on the way home, but still, happy.
Dat spoiler doe.
Obviously, the first thing I did was rip that off. Then I grabbed some halfrauds paint for the wheels and took the rear lights apart to spray them up too.
I would love to tell you that this is where I went mad, buying anything and everything I could to add power or make it look better, but the truth is I was head over heels in love with it. Everything about the car was every bit as good as I could have hoped for. I used the car every day (averaging 9MPG...) until I was sent away to the Middle East with work for a two week exercise. Then while we were away, Iran started saber-rattling and my two week jolly turned into a four month tour. I missed lots of things while I was away but especially my missus and my car.
I landed back in England to a foggy winters afternoon and the first thing I did was fire up the FD for a drive. She repaid me by over-pressurising, over-heating and spitting a huge chunk of radiator out onto the roundabout. I didn't know it at the time, but this was to be my last drive of her.
She was whisked away to the garage for what I suspected would be a new radiator and a clean bill of health. However she failed the dreaded 'champagne test' and that was that. Engine dead, in need of a rebuild - £3.5k. Suspected cause was fuel sat in the engine had eaten the coolant seals. For the next two years, this is where our story ends. She sat there for two years and I'd all but given up hope. I managed to get my 99-spec spoiler at some point but that was it.
In the feels:
I thought about the car most days, felt horrific that my dream car was sat rotting outside in the elements. I finally moved into my own house having become a civilian again and got enough spare cash together to bring the FD to her new home - my first garage! In the mean-time I'd bought this MX5 as a daily too.
I was happy, but sad. I knew deep-down that the ever-growing list of things I wanted to do to my MX5 would likely keep my engine rebuild a distant dream and I was right. I washed the FD and got rid of the weathering that had occurred, but I was no closer to driving her again.
Then one morning on my way to work, a nice young lady stoved into the back of my MX5, subsequently writing it off. Typically, the insurance has been an absolute clusterf*ck to get any money back and I figured I might as well put the money to good use. So straight on to a trailer she went!
In 2011, I decided to stop being a fanboy and put my money where my heart was - into an FD RX7, a car I have lusted after for as long as I can remember. I picked up a clean '92 JDM car with a basic spec and fresh (DIY) rebuild having only recently been a grade-4 import into the UK. The only thing I didn't like was the R-Magic Type-II spoiler (which I still have if anyone wants it!). The way I saw it, these cars were at the lowest prices they were ever going to be so if it did the inevitable and died on me, I probably wouldn't lose much money on it and I could at least scratch the itch.
I did exactly what you should do when buying a car like this. I read every google link I could, signed up to all the rotary forums I could find and asked all the right questions so I knew what to look for. Then I came face-to-face with the first one I'd seen and couldn't throw my money at the guy fast enough. It broke down on the way home, but still, happy.
Dat spoiler doe.
Obviously, the first thing I did was rip that off. Then I grabbed some halfrauds paint for the wheels and took the rear lights apart to spray them up too.
I would love to tell you that this is where I went mad, buying anything and everything I could to add power or make it look better, but the truth is I was head over heels in love with it. Everything about the car was every bit as good as I could have hoped for. I used the car every day (averaging 9MPG...) until I was sent away to the Middle East with work for a two week exercise. Then while we were away, Iran started saber-rattling and my two week jolly turned into a four month tour. I missed lots of things while I was away but especially my missus and my car.
I landed back in England to a foggy winters afternoon and the first thing I did was fire up the FD for a drive. She repaid me by over-pressurising, over-heating and spitting a huge chunk of radiator out onto the roundabout. I didn't know it at the time, but this was to be my last drive of her.
She was whisked away to the garage for what I suspected would be a new radiator and a clean bill of health. However she failed the dreaded 'champagne test' and that was that. Engine dead, in need of a rebuild - £3.5k. Suspected cause was fuel sat in the engine had eaten the coolant seals. For the next two years, this is where our story ends. She sat there for two years and I'd all but given up hope. I managed to get my 99-spec spoiler at some point but that was it.
In the feels:
I thought about the car most days, felt horrific that my dream car was sat rotting outside in the elements. I finally moved into my own house having become a civilian again and got enough spare cash together to bring the FD to her new home - my first garage! In the mean-time I'd bought this MX5 as a daily too.
I was happy, but sad. I knew deep-down that the ever-growing list of things I wanted to do to my MX5 would likely keep my engine rebuild a distant dream and I was right. I washed the FD and got rid of the weathering that had occurred, but I was no closer to driving her again.
Then one morning on my way to work, a nice young lady stoved into the back of my MX5, subsequently writing it off. Typically, the insurance has been an absolute clusterf*ck to get any money back and I figured I might as well put the money to good use. So straight on to a trailer she went!
Edited by Rogue86 on Friday 17th June 12:54
Work finally begins...
Having finally got the engine apart, unsurprisingly lots of parts are needed now (new rotors, housings, eccentric shaft) so I'm waiting for them to be found and ordered. I've also learned a fairly obvious lesson and that is not to buy a car based on it having a rebuild. The chap who built this car has bodged everything to within an inch of its life and it's a wonder the engine lasted as long as it did!
The upside of waiting is that, having been paid a couple of times, I could buy some bits for that car in time to have them fitted. So I did - as well as buying a new daily (seen in the garage here):
So the work being carried out:
- Engine rebuild and street port
- Apexi PFC fit and base map
- Bride seat fit
- Kouki front end fit/paint (+lights)
- Respray boot spoiler
- RE-A diffuser fit/paint
- Toyo T1R fit
- Wheel bearing replace
- MOT
Then once she's bedded in I can finally have her mapped properly and enjoy her again!
We're four-months into the build at this point and here's how she looks at the moment.
'99 spec front offered up. Not the best fit to be honest and it's going to take some work to get it lined up properly but it completely transforms the front end. Cant wait to see it finished and painted:
Diffuser is also on. Unfortunately while underneath they've found that someone has knocked my exhaust and broken it so I'm waiting for a price on one at the moment.
So much room for activities:
Now the engine is apart we've also got to the bottom of why it died in the first place so soon after a DIY rebuild from the previous owner. Turned out he had a slight twist in the main water seal. Of all the things he bodged on the engine, I'm surprised this is what failed and I wasn't instead burned in a fireball of cheapness as one of the glued solenoids exploded. As a result my rotors look like this:
Currently waiting on some oil-pump metering lines to arrive so the engine can be built back up.
Having finally got the engine apart, unsurprisingly lots of parts are needed now (new rotors, housings, eccentric shaft) so I'm waiting for them to be found and ordered. I've also learned a fairly obvious lesson and that is not to buy a car based on it having a rebuild. The chap who built this car has bodged everything to within an inch of its life and it's a wonder the engine lasted as long as it did!
The upside of waiting is that, having been paid a couple of times, I could buy some bits for that car in time to have them fitted. So I did - as well as buying a new daily (seen in the garage here):
So the work being carried out:
- Engine rebuild and street port
- Apexi PFC fit and base map
- Bride seat fit
- Kouki front end fit/paint (+lights)
- Respray boot spoiler
- RE-A diffuser fit/paint
- Toyo T1R fit
- Wheel bearing replace
- MOT
Then once she's bedded in I can finally have her mapped properly and enjoy her again!
We're four-months into the build at this point and here's how she looks at the moment.
'99 spec front offered up. Not the best fit to be honest and it's going to take some work to get it lined up properly but it completely transforms the front end. Cant wait to see it finished and painted:
Diffuser is also on. Unfortunately while underneath they've found that someone has knocked my exhaust and broken it so I'm waiting for a price on one at the moment.
So much room for activities:
Now the engine is apart we've also got to the bottom of why it died in the first place so soon after a DIY rebuild from the previous owner. Turned out he had a slight twist in the main water seal. Of all the things he bodged on the engine, I'm surprised this is what failed and I wasn't instead burned in a fireball of cheapness as one of the glued solenoids exploded. As a result my rotors look like this:
Currently waiting on some oil-pump metering lines to arrive so the engine can be built back up.
Ved said:
If they're doing a good job...
That's a bit of a sore point at the moment unfortunately which is why Ive deliberately not mentioned any names. Certainly the quality of what work I have seen has been excellent and what I would expect from a chap as knowledgeable as he is. But four months of delays and at least five completely ignored deadlines had made the process pretty stressful, certainly not something Id wish on anyone else or one that Id go through again. Im hoping the car will be better than I could ever have hoped for to try and take some of the bitterness of the process away.Some good news for a change - having waited and waited for my OMP lines to turn up, they finally did, which means work can start on putting this back in the car:
Also a bit more progress on the bumper, with the damage caused in-transit repaired and lots of attention paid to the panel-gaps to make it look as OEM and keep it as strong as possible. Really happy with the way this is shaping up now, though still some work to do where the OS headlight sits:
Also a bit more progress on the bumper, with the damage caused in-transit repaired and lots of attention paid to the panel-gaps to make it look as OEM and keep it as strong as possible. Really happy with the way this is shaping up now, though still some work to do where the OS headlight sits:
Little bit more progress with the front bumper taking shape and the wings/bonnet/pop-ups ready for paint:
Bit of preliminary paint to make sure all the shaping is correct:
Blitz exhaust on, obviously needs a bit of elbow grease as its used:
So the million dollar question...will it be ready for Christmas?
Bit of preliminary paint to make sure all the shaping is correct:
Blitz exhaust on, obviously needs a bit of elbow grease as its used:
So the million dollar question...will it be ready for Christmas?
Getting close to the Christmas deadline now so I'm fairly worried it will be next year before I get her back now. Still a lot to do and only a few working days left. 
How the rear looks with the diffuser/exhaust. Spoiler paint keeps reacting so it hasnt been re-fitted yet. I could do with spacing the rear wheels for now as well.
99-spec front on. Really, really happy with the work they've done on this to get the fitment spot on. Looks OEM now, a far cry from how it looked when it was first offered up. Not happy with the number plate itself though so that will be getting changed.
How the rear looks with the diffuser/exhaust. Spoiler paint keeps reacting so it hasnt been re-fitted yet. I could do with spacing the rear wheels for now as well.
99-spec front on. Really, really happy with the work they've done on this to get the fitment spot on. Looks OEM now, a far cry from how it looked when it was first offered up. Not happy with the number plate itself though so that will be getting changed.
Thanks for the kind words guys!
Oh and thanks PH for this!
DMN said:
Like the look of the car, but that rear diffuser does look like it sits a little low to me. Is it just the angle of the photo? I'd be worried about it hitting road as the suspension moves.
I think it's the angle of the car to be honest, without the engine in the car has some serious rake going on at the moment. It does sit low but hopefully it shouldn't be an issue.seefarr said:
I might go for slightly bigger porting (for the comedy brarbrarbrar idle) but still very jealous.
It was very tempting, but ultimately I want this car to be as driveable and reliable as possible. My ultimate aim with the car is to drive it through Europe and onto Majorca so I can photograph it in the mountains there. So it has to work!Oh and thanks PH for this!
Edited by Rogue86 on Friday 18th December 21:23
KeiranM235i said:
Any more photos of the mx5, looks stunning!
Thanks, although the last time I drove her she ended up looking like this unfortunately, after someone behind me got a bit giddy at the traffic lights and set off before anyone else in the queue did:
Fairly predictably even though the damage was light she was written off for it. On a better day she looked like this, though these were taken before I removed the windscreen sticker fitted by the previous owner and fitted the FEED-style side-steps:
There was nothing particularly ground-breaking about the car to be honest, she was essentially a copy of a car I built in 2006ish. At that time they were only the second set of Sportmaxx wheels in the UK and I was determined to make them fit. Since then though it's been a well-travelled path over here. I don't think many people really understood that I built the car because I liked it, not for other people to like. My first car got a lot of criticism for the wheels being daft, then all these years later my silver car got criticism for the wheels not being an original idea. I guess you can't win on the internet! But it was fantastic to drive and I loved how it looked.
This was my old car, I loved it more than I am capable of loving another human being:
Unfortunately, in my only ever crash (and on a test drive when I was selling it...) I stacked that one spectacularly into a lamp-post after the car swapped ends on me and I opened my pocket of talent to find it empty.
I love MX5s though. In fact in the whole time I've been driving I think I've always had either an MX5 or MK1 MR2 as a daily driver. I've only just broken that trend by buying an Ignis Sport instead as I need the money for the RX7. A decision I'm really happy with because it's a car that just does everything well. I think the main reason I love the RX7 so much is because it basically feels like a grown up MX5. A few of my friends have had Supras and while I adore them, as someone used to small two-seaters they feel huge and ungainly. But the RX7 feels absolutely tiny, has excellent all-round visibility and the noise it makes frankly does funny things to my trousers. It feels how I imagine a 300bhp MX5 would feel if it was built by a manufacturer. In fact the only thing that becomes a nuisance is the thickness of the doors which make it difficult to get out of the car no matter how big the parking space is!
Anyway, back to the silver car, I p/x'd the car onto the rebuild bill for the RX7 so she has since been restored/resprayed and now looks like this (the RX3 is his also):
Probably not the path I would have gone down in terms of paint, but it's been done very well and the cut-wing at the front looks sublime. These guys are also sorting the bodywork out on my RX and I've got to say the finish from what I have seen so far has been superb. I also kept a few bits from this car and the Bride seat will be going into the RX. The rest of the bits are still sat in my garage so I should probably get around to shifting those!
Edited by Rogue86 on Saturday 19th December 15:17
Well, I found out why the Christmas deadline was never made...
So now I'm waiting for the garage to fix that panel gap. My Apexi PFC has also stopped working and at the moment the engine isn't receiving fuel properly. All in all, the car is no-where near ready.
At least the engine is in though:
Spoiler still not painted/fitted.
So while I own an RX7, I'm driving this around
So now I'm waiting for the garage to fix that panel gap. My Apexi PFC has also stopped working and at the moment the engine isn't receiving fuel properly. All in all, the car is no-where near ready.
At least the engine is in though:
Spoiler still not painted/fitted.
So while I own an RX7, I'm driving this around
Well, after being sat for almost three years she's finally cranked into life again!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkJq2GNykgg
How she's sat now (low-quality pic):
I was hoping she'd be done today but I'm going to assume that will slip as the spoiler still needs to go on and the seat in judging by this pic. A step closer though!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkJq2GNykgg
How she's sat now (low-quality pic):
I was hoping she'd be done today but I'm going to assume that will slip as the spoiler still needs to go on and the seat in judging by this pic. A step closer though!
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