miata or rx7?

F

FSCatalyst

Member
:
Black Protege ES 2.0L
I'm looking to get a second car and I can't decide which one is for me. I'm looking at either a first gen or second gen, miata and a second generation rx7. I was hell bent on getting a miata but after looking into the RX7's..theres something dark and mysterious about that rotary engine.

Any opinions from owners who have both or had driven both?
 
I like both the FC RX7 and the NA miata.

If I were to choose between the two, I'd have to say miata. Nothing can duplicate the feeling of a 1st gen miata.
 
MsP155 said:
id say put both together...miata body rx-7 motor 20b?...that gotta be a beast!!
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that'd be crazy (drive2)
BlackCherry06 said:
The Miata will spend far less time with the hood up.
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if you get a good specimen, the RXs aren't too bad, but the miata has a pretty solid engine (save the 1990-91s, unless they've been meticulously maintained)
turbolife said:
Miata, more cost-friendly
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yup
seanmcsean said:
If I were to choose between the two, I'd have to say miata. Nothing can duplicate the feeling of a 1st gen miata.
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Heck yeah :D
 
I have owned a 1st gen and 2nd gen RX-7, as well as a 1st gen Miata.

The RX is fun and smooth, but will never be a cheap to own and maintain as a Miata. Both will take a fair amount of abuse, both will have you revving the engine to redline, but the Miata gets better MPG, is a convertible, and not to mention the Miata has that great go-kart feel.

As others have said, the Miata chassis, with a rotary is the perfect combo, but if you want that combination, you have to do it yourself.
 
I had a first gen Miata ('97) and a second gen RX-7 ('87). I miss them both. A lot.

Which one should you get? That depends. What do you want? More specifically, what do you want the second car for? If you want a competitive autocrosser, I think you have to go Miata. If you want a convertible, you can go either way, but you'll have a much easier time finding a Miata than an RX-vert. If you're over 6', you probably want the RX-7. If you want to put gas in, change the oil, and not think much about maintenance, get the Miata. If you want to take a special someone for a weekend road trip with a quantity of luggage, go RX-7. RX-7 is a better track car, Miata is a better autocrosser.

I loved both cars, and I had them at the same time.

Miata Pro:
Greatest stock shifter ever; high-revving; light-weight; great handling; moddable; cheap to maintain; cheap to insure; great on gas; great around town; easy to find cast-off stock parts; you can buy the stock 14" alloys for $100 or less a set, and 14" tires are cheap.

Miata con:
Not especially fast; convertibles are easy to break into; small trunk; revs like crazy on the highway; no room for a bitchin' stereo; many of the racing seats on the market don't fit; you'll need to install a roll bar to take it to the track; it's getting harder and harder to find good used ones cheap, and even bad used ones are getting pricey!

RX-7 Pro:
Comfortable; fast; powerful; luxurious (esp. in GXL trim); fun, fun, fun; screaming, crazy, rotary engine; Turbo model is faster still and piiimp; good handling; great road-trip car; room for luggage; Turbo and GXL have huge stock brakes.

RX-7 Con:
Heavy car; harder to hustle around an autocross course; newest one you can find is 17 years old; engines are known to crap the bed around 100K; bad gas mileage; bad emissions (if you have emissions inspections); expensive insurance (ours was 10 years older than the Miata, and cost us much more to insure); several interior trim bits are notorious for cracking; electrical gremlins are common.

So, what is it you want?
 
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Great post, Foolish. Up here in Canada the miata/mx-5 is still a bit of a hard car to come by used. Even if used with 150,000kms the asking price is around $5,000. I want to get a two-seater, coupe/convertible to cruise around in the summer pretty much, with light autocross. Also I was planning to boost it in the future, not heavy boost but around 170whp with 'pep'. I was thinking it would be perfect on a miata, especially with its light chassis.

If I got an old rx7 and rebuild the engine, it would last me a long while right? I heard it was pretty to take in and out the rotary and rebuild it. Well, more simple than piston engines anyways. I have my own tools about 2000$ worth and up, and access to my hoist at work (I'm a second year auto apprentice) so I'm thinking it wouldn't be bad to learn on...

If they say the miata is pretty much bullet proof it would be alot easier on the mileage... Perhaps I should just go test drive both and see which one I'll fall in love with!
 
FSCatalyst said:
Great post, Foolish. Up here in Canada the miata/mx-5 is still a bit of a hard car to come by used. Even if used with 150,000kms the asking price is around $5,000. I want to get a two-seater, coupe/convertible to cruise around in the summer pretty much, with light autocross. Also I was planning to boost it in the future, not heavy boost but around 170whp with 'pep'. I was thinking it would be perfect on a miata, especially with its light chassis.

If I got an old rx7 and rebuild the engine, it would last me a long while right? I heard it was pretty to take in and out the rotary and rebuild it. Well, more simple than piston engines anyways. I have my own tools about 2000$ worth and up, and access to my hoist at work (I'm a second year auto apprentice) so I'm thinking it wouldn't be bad to learn on...

If they say the miata is pretty much bullet proof it would be alot easier on the mileage... Perhaps I should just go test drive both and see which one I'll fall in love with!
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I used to help out at a Rotary repair shop, and saw many rotaries rebuilt first hand. If you are mechanically minded and would enjoy an engine rebuild, a rotary is a fun project. The simplicity of a rotary engine is unique, and with a few important tips, and a couple specialty tools, a rebuild can go very quickly. Not to mention the satisfaction of running a motor that you built.(friday)
 
if you plan to rebuild the car eventually/anyway, then a S5 FC would be a good choice if you can find one in good body shape.

remember in its heydays, FC's are one of the most popular sports cars for club racing, but that was a long time ago lol
 
and age definitely should be taken into account here; the 'newest' FC would be a 17 years old by now, which is about the same age as the 'oldest' Miatas!!
 
i never owned a rx7 but i drove my friend's once. But i owned the 1st gen miata.

Rx7: powerful, you get looks but too heavy, MPG sucks, expensive to fix, and all ppl know the engine has ALOT of issues!

miata: good MPG, cheap to fix, you still get looks, not as fats as the rx7 but with some work you can make it fast, plus the feeling of driving a go-kart convertible is worth gold for me!

I'll go for the miata (yes)

good luck! (thumb)
 
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