924Board.org

[astrodave]

I was wondering what you guys thought about the difference between these cars. It seems that I could either buy a second generation rx7 n/a or a 924 of some kind, in decent condition for about 3 grand. I think that it would be better to get a late 80's early 90's version of the rx7 as apposed to a 1980's 924S. For one thing the maintenance would be cheaper on an rx7.

I have been looking at sports cars in the 3 grand price range for sometime. My two favorites are the mazda and porsche stated above. This probably has something to do with the fact that they look a lot alike. Anyways, the minimum requirements for a car have been a 2 door coupe, manual transmission, reasonably fast, good handling (i guess just sporty in general), and it had to be able to be a daily driver (about 25 miles a day at 60 mph). I am not sure why I am writing in past tense as I am still looking for a car but regardless, the two I found were the rx7 and 924. Oh yeah and gas mileage wasn't really an issue in my search but I was not really interested in the turbo of either model because the cars just don't last as long.

So, has anyone been in an 2nd gen. RX7, how does the handling and power match up? Should I have considered any other cars? (Please don't suggest hondas or probes or any junk like that...I will not ever buy one of those cars.) Another one of my thoughts about buying a porsche is that I should wait until I get out of college and get a job so I could buy a much better one. Perhaps one I would enjoy more...

Ok so give me your opinions. Again I am going to be looking at cars in the summer at a cap of 3 grand.

Dave

[Paul]

Drive both them, then decide.
_________________
White 87 924S "Ghost"
Silver 98 986 3.6l 320 HP "Frank N Stein"
White 01 986 "Christine"
Polar Silver 02 996TT. "Turbo"
Owned and repaired 924s since 1977
Porsche: It's not driving, it's therapy.

[Peter_in_AU]

ahhhh, the eternal question. Here's a test in objectivity.

The English magazine Classic Cars asked the same question of four of their writers a couple of years back although in their case it was a comparison between the Gen I RX7, a 924 (not S), an Alfa GTV and something else which I can't remember. The testers were asked to be as objective as possible.

Of the cars the 924 and the RX7 were the stand-out favourites. Everyone loved the power of the RX7, thought the handling was OK, hated the cheap plastic interior. With the 924 they loved the handling and interior and wished it had more power.

When the scores were added up the RX7 just beat the 924 which was a long way ahead of third place. Interestingly, when summing up they said that although the RX7 was a marginally better car on paper they would all prefer to own the 924. One guy summed it up by saying "Which line sounds better 'Darling, can I give you a ride home in my Porsche' or 'Darling, can I give you a ride home in my Mazda'".

As you're talking a 924S then you have more power than the non-Turbo RX7 so that's not an issue. 924S maintenence is not cheap but then the RX7 guys seem to change engines like I change moods.

Really very little in it. You need to ask yourself "am I Mazda-guy?". Some people are.
_________________
1979 924 (Gone to a better place)
1974 Lotus 7 S4 "Big Valve" Twin-cam (waiting)
1982 924 (As featured on Wikipedia)

Learn to love your multimeter and may the search be with you

[Lizard]

you stated 1980 924S, well in all actuality the chance of it being an S (just basically suspension package) is pretty slim,
the maintenance of the 1980 924 is very little and easy to work on, parts are plenty and very cheap,
I have never owned or driven a mazda RX7 so I can offer no imput however I do know that the RX7 will be a quicker off the line, while the 924 will be more go-kart like and have better handling,
however if you spend a couple of dollars on the 924 for a stage 2 billit camshaft, and possibly a header I think you should be able to keep up with the RX7 off the line,

imo go with the 924, best auto forum online I have seen, near perfect (50/50) weight distro so this will also make it an excellent winter car (they handle great in the snow, no added weight needed), however I would recommend that if you purchase the 924 with the 4 bolt suspension (discfront, drum rear) that you consider spending a few dollars and converting to M471 which is 5 bolt suspension and discs all around which does greatly improve the braking of the car, however even with the 4 bolt setup the 924 will probably outbrake the RX7.

good luck with it.
_________________
3 928s,

[astrodave]

Thanks for the input! Yeah i'd agree that driving them first would probably be my best bet as I have only been in a first gen. rx7. I would also agree that 'Porsche' sounds a lot cooler then 'Mazda'.

Lizard - You said that the S extension was just a difference in suspension? I thought it had a detuned 944 2.5L engine as well or are you talking about just the 1980 model or something?

Hmmm.... Mazda or Porsche, Lizard has once again made the Porshce look just as appealing as the Mazda. It's going to be a hard decision when in comes down to it but I do think I need to give both a fair shot. Oops, late for class got to run.

Dave

[Helstrm]

Keep in mind that the rotary engines are a bear to work on and the apex seals are the one major issue they have. If the seals blows then you lose compression on one of the two cylinders and you are down for the count. Most Rotary engines blow the apex seal between 100k and 140k miles depending on how well they are taken care of. I know you said that you are not worried about the mpg but keep in mind the the Rx7 might get you 20mpg if you are lucky... Make sure that if you decide on one that it is not smoking at all. They will use oil that is how they are designed but smoking of any kind is a good sign that the seal is about to go. Also any RX-7 you look at make sure you get a compression test done. Low compression also means rebuild time is approaching.

[maireeka]

You asked if you should have considered any other cars. I think that the Nissan/Datsun Z car would be a great choice for you. You could get a pretty nice Z for 3k, and the 1st gens are very easy to work on. It's also much easier to get parts for a z car than for a porsche.

Just a thought.
_________________
1977 Porsche 924 red and READY!

[J1NX3D]

do a search on these forums for a link to a top gear video from '86. It compares the 924S vs RX7 s2 and the 924S comes out on top with handling, 0-60, top speed and mpg.

for the model range, the 924 was from '76 to '83 in the US and '85 RoW with the 2.0L audi engine and the 'S' was a rare suspension package.

The 924S ran from '86 to '88 and had the 2.5L porsche engine
_________________
'86 944

[macBdog]

I have the top gear video that J1NX3D is talking about, its great to see the two cars side by side. If anyone wants it, PM!
_________________
1979 931 with a 350 chev
1973 911E with EFI

[Darin81T]

I am a former Z fanatic and have driven tons of Z's from the 240z to the 300zxTT.

In my opinion, the 924 is a better car than the 240Z in all aspects, except for the engine. The Nissan 2.4 straight 6 is powerful, has rock solid reliability and is cheap.

The 300ZXT is a sweet ride as well, but it's a touring car and can't really be compared to the 924. It's more comfortable and can be made into a streetable 12 second car for very cheap, but it's not a nimble car like the 924.

If I had the choice between the Z, rx-7 and 924S, I'd go with the 924S.


just my two cents

Darin Flynn

[astrodave]

maireeka - I had looked at the Z's for awhile. I was really worried about rust though. I like the first gen. 240z and 280z. I guess I should try and ride in one of those too. Does the x extension stand for turbo on the z cars.
Darin81T - I don't really like the 300z cars and I am more interested in handling over power, but I will give the Z's a chance for sure. It was the first car I was every really interested in way back when. It got me interested in cars years ago.
macBdog - I sent you a pm about the video.

I didn't know about the rare suspension package on the 924, I always thought that it was the 2.5L 924S that people were talking about.

What about luxury devices like power windows, leather, power locks? I know these are on the rx7 but how about the Z's and 924(the 2.0 or 2.5)?

[John Brown]

Determine first if you are looking at a 924S or a 924 (little s). World of difference. Especially because one of the very first people to participate with this group (predecessor - Vaughan started us out as a mail-list) was up in your neck of the woods and was VERY particular about the fact that her car was an 'S', and don't you forget it!! Who knows, you might be looking at her car.

Here's the deal. In the US the 924 was available through the '82 model year. 2.0 Audi motor. There WAS an 'S' package during some period and there used to be a page discussing this package somewhere on the main site. We think the package contents may have varied a bit depending. Not entirely clear that some 'S' packages may have been dealer installed decals. Depending on the year, the package may or may not have included the M471 option, etc, there is (was - I think it's no longer available) a decal the goes on the hood. And expensive decal by the way. But esentially it is still an 82 or older 924. Frankly, at this point the early 'S' is nothing to be excited about.

On the other hand. The 924S was available in the US for the '87 and '88 model years. This car is the 924 chassis and interior with the 944 motor, alloy rear suspension arms and of course early 944 running gear otherwise. 2.5 liter motor.

So. Which is it?
_________________
John
80 931 - #931 44Cup
99 Escalade - tows track cars
gone but not forgotten: original 924.org car - 82

[helowrench]

astrodave
The 280ZX was made from 80 to 84 I think. It was the last z with the straight 6 (all later 300Z's came with the v6). I had a 82 280zx 2+2 at the same time I owned my 78 924. The ZX his a GT type car... more luxury less pure sports car. It came with AC, power windows/locks/steering/brakes. The turbo models were only offered during 83 and 84.
Direct comparison of the two cars will reveal a very different personality. The ZX will pull and pull from the torque of the I6 but does not have the crisp handling of the 24. however the 24 did not have anything near the pull from the motor.
A lot of this is due to the two cars weights. 82 280zx 2+2 3200lbs 78 924 2600lbs.
More HP and tire on the ZX but much less weight on the 924.
The ZX is a better car on open high speed road (interstate) hands down, I have run at 120+mph for 30 min or so and it loved it and was running great. The 924 was a much more tossable car in the twisties and if you want it to perform you have to "drive it like you hate it" upper RPM band of the motor. , but setting up a 4wheel drift around the apex and transitioning correctly to the next curve on a tight tree lined road is a singularly satisfying feeling.
for info on the Z or ZX go to ZCAR.COM
Sorry for the diatribe but I do miss my Z, BTW it currently has 290,000+ miles on the original motor! The head has never been removed. But it did eat 4 transmissions before I found out that my driving style was killing them (there is a simple fix for that too).

hope this helped.
Rob

[Lizard]

seeing as how noone else answered the S question,
the 924S that came with the 2.5L 944 engine was only supplied to the euro market starting in 86 going to 88, the 924S was only avalible to the US market from 87 to 88.

I hope that clears it up for you.
_________________
3 928s,

[maireeka]

helowrench is right about the z. 280zx was 79-83 though.
_________________
1977 Porsche 924 red and READY!