ITR to RX7

[joesnow]

Hi all,

I drive an Integra Type R, and it's my pride and joy. Its in it's element on bumpy A and B roads, engauging to drive, sounds ace, its fairly ecconomical to run, good fun on track, can swallow my music gear and mountain bike with ease - basically a great motoring companion.

However I find myself yearning for rwd, a bit more power and the looks of an FD RX7. I know they cost a bit more to run, and need to be maintained. This is no problem, as the teg needs a service every 6K, and I change the oil at each optional 3k too. So apart from MPG and oil what are they like to live with. Do they take luggage well, do they overheat, are they ok to insure, are they comfy, rattly etc?

I've read up on here and on the rx7 owners club, but would like some more opinions from the knowledgeable ph lot. I'd be looking for a pretty stock car btw. Many thanks.

JS

[Pulsatingstar]

For a standard car, it should take about as much luggage as your ITR I think as they are fairly close in size though not as much back seat room in the FD. It will be a quieter and softer drive. Id say the ITR is more focussed than a standard FD so you might want to consider one with some coilovers and maybe an exhaust if you wanted it to feel a bit more like the Integra.

It should be fairly comfy and not rattle. Id expect it to certainly be a bit more refined in that sense than the Integra which is a bit raw and noisey. It would be much easier to live with the FD on a long motorway trip.

As for insurance youd have to get your own quotes to compare, but Id imagine it being ok. If you get a good one and look after it then it should be fairly reliable. Apart from breaking a tip on track mine hasnt failed (ie left me stranded) at all in 3.5 years though I have had to replace a leaky rad which is pretty common to go now on older FD's. Infact I even managed to drive it back ok after breaking the tip lol. I think this FD has been the most reliable car Ive ever had it just uses lots of petrol. My first one on the other hand always seemed to have something going wrong with it which is why I went for one that had already been in the UK 2nd time around.

[joesnow]

cheers, food for thought there. I noticed that EVO are featuring an RX7 soon, should be an interesting read. I may look around for a test drive in the new year.

[mave]

IMHO they're not particularly comfortable, although I guess it depends on your body type. I'm 6'2" with a JDM model with sunroof. I needed to modify the seat runners to get reasonable leg room as the imports have less seat runner travel than the UK cars. I drove it for a 6 hour stretch before the mod, but I was seriously uncomfortable by the end. The seats are quite tight which suits me, but the back rest isn't long enough to support your upper back. The driving position is fantastic, but there isn't much elbow room to relax into. The steering is quite direct and darty, so less stable on a motorway than you might imagine, although I've got aftermarket suspension which may contribute. On that note, most cars have aftermarket suspension of some sort so there's huge variety; however, when they were new they were regarded as being on the firm side of comfortable, especoally the R1s. I've fitted a weeks holiday plus walking stuff into mine, although oddment space is limited. Driving round town is sometimes fun simply because you are low and can't see around other vehicles before committing the front of the car into traffic. Steering is heavier than you might imagine, although never a problem. Definitely try a few out before making your decision as a bad one might put you off, but a good one will hook you

[iaint]

mave said:

The steering is quite direct and darty, so less stable on a motorway than you might imagine, although I've got aftermarket suspension which may contribute. On that note, most cars have aftermarket suspension of some sort so there's huge variety; however, when they were new they were regarded as being on the firm side of comfortable, especoally the R1s.

If your suspension new-aftermarket or does it have a few years on it?

Mine used to be pretty unstable at high speed - the back end always felt like it was half-a-second behind the front. Didn't give a sense of stability at all. Turned out the dampers had leaked and it was just riding on the springs: very firm/harsh ride but just not right. New set of tein kit completely sorted it out. Now feels very stable under all conditions - could do with a geom check to dial out a little mid-corner understeer but it is very progressive moving into oversteer when asked to.

[mave]

iaint said:

mave said:

The steering is quite direct and darty, so less stable on a motorway than you might imagine, although I've got aftermarket suspension which may contribute. On that note, most cars have aftermarket suspension of some sort so there's huge variety; however, when they were new they were regarded as being on the firm side of comfortable, especoally the R1s.

If your suspension new-aftermarket or does it have a few years on it?

Mine used to be pretty unstable at high speed - the back end always felt like it was half-a-second behind the front. Didn't give a sense of stability at all. Turned out the dampers had leaked and it was just riding on the springs: very firm/harsh ride but just not right. New set of tein kit completely sorted it out. Now feels very stable under all conditions - could do with a geom check to dial out a little mid-corner understeer but it is very progressive moving into oversteer when asked to.

Good question, its got the same Tein kit which was on the car when I bought it. Had it fully aligned, good fun in the dry, but not very (ahem) progressive in the wet. The back actually feels planted at speed in the dry, but it follows cambers and doesn't like expansion joints etc. Maybe next after Christmas I should get the dampers checked on a rig...