Possible RX-8 purchase

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Groundpounder1
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Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Greetings to one and all who may read this.

I will preface this post by saying I'm brand new to the forum (hi) If I contravene some sort of rule I assure you it's totally accidental and I apologise in advance. I am a huge car fan, had many, and know probably intermediate info about RX-8's, but not enough to help me in the reason for this post.

I have recently been working for a new client who mentioned the fact they were after a quick sale on their very good condition 57 reg red RX-8. It looks excellent and I've had a sit in it etc, however it is currently not running (battery dead). It hasn't been used for 2-3 years and has been sat all that time covered up. It has done 37kish miles.

My question comes from the fact he said £400 quid (I am dealing with the guy, but I'm worknig for at his GF property, who's car it actually is). What sort of problems/issues arise from these cars being stood so long? He mentioned the brakes all need replacing, but he also mentioned something about the fuel going bad (?) in Wankel engines when being sat not used and I was wondering if this is first true, and if so how big of a job/potential issue this is and what sort of cost I'd be looking at for a whole brake replacement and whatever likely issues from being sat a long time.

I realise this may very well be a "how long is a piece of string" question but I figured I'd get a general feel for whether this was worth taking a punt on and what possible common issues may arise from these cars being sat. I will admit I'm sorely tempted as I've been after a nice second car for a bit.

Sorry for the fairly long meandering first post and thanks in advance for any replies.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by PaulAV »

Assuming your talking discs and pads all round, looking at about £250 available from the likes of euro car parts, as far as fuel is concerned, it's not just a rotary thing with fuel going bad, it doesn't keep, if there was just a small amount in the tank you could just add a gallon or 2 of fresh, before trying to start the car, squirt 5 to 10ml of oil into each housing through the spark plug holes, turn the engine over by hand a few times(the oil helps with initial compression and obviously lubrication) you really need to get it started though before making a final decision, over years of standing anything could of happened, ecu doesn't like being without power neither does the power steering module (however some cars start up after long term storage with no issues), £400 though is about scrapage value (parts sold off)
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Groundpounder1 (Thu Feb 13, 2020 4:23 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Nickp47 »

You can’t go wrong at £400 , if you don’t buy it I would!

If you want to end up with a well sorted car you would probably need to allow £500-600 more to get the brakes, fluids and ignition system up to scratch.

Do you know why it was taken off the road?
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Groundpounder1 (Thu Feb 13, 2020 4:23 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Heya Paul, thanks for the speedy and informative reply. Yeah I know fuel goes bad, naturally, I just didn't know if it was a bigger issue to deal with in these cars for some reason, as he did specifically mention it- I probably should've worded that better but thanks for the reply anyway.

I'm going to be a this place for the next week or so, so it shouldn't be a problem to have him get it running if he really wants the sale I suppose. I guess by and large £400 isn't exactly a huge risk, especially with scrappage even if there is some sort of issue I don't catch with not being the most knowledgeable about these cars from a mechanical standpoint.

It struck me as a pretty fair and worthwhile deal, but then my natural suspicion set in (rightly or wrongly) and I figured i should do some homework before deciding even though it's not really gonna stand me at much either way. It's literally 0.7m from my house where it is currently stored, so there'd be no transportation costs etc to go along with it.

I just am a massive novice with cars like this so I was slightly worried I may have been walking into some sort of minefield I had no clue about. I appreciate the input, thank you.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Heya Nick, no I don't know why it was taken off the road, The household currently has 3 cars, the owner is a nurse and I got the impression it was just a vanity purchase and lost its appeal/usefulness for one reason or another, but you never really know do you. Obviously I'd insist on at least seeing it run, I've had a browse of the FAQ buyers guide and seen some of the potential problems/things to look out for, which in itself was a massive help already from what I already knew.

I'm massively tempted. I've literally just sold my work van and now is the time I was looking for a nice second car now I have the space again, so it got me interested even further!
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by casey »

If it's got the OEM Cat fitted, that's worth £500 in scrap alone, so you can't go wrong at £400!

See this topic:
https://www.rx8ownersclub.co.uk/forum/v ... =6&t=81320
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by PaulAV »

Someone had to mention the cat! Hahaha
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

There was a spate of cats being nicked off all manner of cars from the place I used to live a few years ago- it was a regualr epidemic. I didn't even consider that angle tbh, but that's definitely something worth considering also. You're all tempting me here ha ha, I dunno what I expected, but I was envisioning being told categorically that it was not worth it even at that cheap of a price, but you're pushing me in the other direction for sure.

Not gonna lie, they've always been on my list since they were released I've just never bitten the bullet for one reason or another, so it's definitely ridiculously tempting, especially as it's gonna cost me apparently nothing essentially if I end up breaking it for parts if it has issues.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by goodeggbob »

hi and welcome mate, the real emphasis has taken a big turn towards bodywork,if it was a rust free shell,and the suspension and subframes are in good nick,at 400 quid it has got to be work a punt. obviously ,get the owner to get it started,and if it does,then snap his hand off,with a good shell everything else is fixable,rob.
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Groundpounder1 (Thu Feb 13, 2020 5:50 pm)
Rob :thumright:
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by PaulAV »

Let people know where you are, there may be someone local who would be willing to give it a once over/help with starting
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nightfire10 (Thu Feb 13, 2020 5:41 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

That would be pretty nice honestly and above and beyond, I wouldn't expect stuff like that but I can see this is a nice place. I really just wanted to search for the best place for advice and what to look out for etc.

I'm in Derby for what it's worth, and I definitely believe I've been swung further in favour of it honestly.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Heya Rob, thanks for the welcome buddy, appreciate it, and thanks for the reply. It's in pretty great condition from the looks I've given it, I haven't checked underneath or cills fully, but the bodywork in general is great, as is the interior (red trim leather).

I've honestly been massively swayed by coming here, I had a few doubts about it being so cheap and my lack of mechanical knowledge about them, especially after being sat, but I'm coming around for sure after the responses I've had here :D
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by qwakers »

tell you what, buy it and ill give you 450 for it :D
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Ha. If I end up not doing anything with it after buying it, you can have first dibs ;)

It's in writing so I can't back out even.
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qwakers (Thu Feb 13, 2020 5:58 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Ollie »

qwakers wrote:
Thu Feb 13, 2020 5:53 pm
tell you what, buy it and ill give you 450 for it :D
Ahahah. Can you afford the petrol this time around James? :p
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by goodeggbob »

just out of interest,which model is it? ,and where has it been stored.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by qwakers »

:rofl:
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

I'll get back to you on that tomorrow Rob when I am there and give it a closer look now I'm actually on the brink of just getting it. I could post pics or whatever tomorrow if that'd be of any interest/worth.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Ollie »

Just see if it has headlight washers or not. If it does its a 231. If not its a 192. Either way a good body for either is a 10/10 should buy. Rust is the biggest enemy for us.. Yes thats right. Bigger than apex seals.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Good tip, appreciated. I shall check and report back on the morrow :)

On the back of that comment, yorin, are you saying that there isn't really much mechanically that would be an issue if it's able to turn over and run etc and the bodywork is ok? I have no qualms about spending money on it, but I am unsure if a full scale project is absolutely viable for me right now. I realise that's a very open question and there could be anything going on or it could fail totally, but still.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by goodeggbob »

a big part of the advice being given is the assumption that you can do some of the work,if any is needed, yourself. i think that most of the replies so far are from people who are pretty handy with spanners.
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Nickp47 (Thu Feb 13, 2020 6:36 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by qwakers »

rule of thumb, buy a solid one, expect to need to rebuild it. if you dont, bonus.
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goodeggbob (Thu Feb 13, 2020 6:51 pm)
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by goodeggbob »

check the mot history,even though it has lapsed,it may give you a few pointers.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by Groundpounder1 »

Yeah I can do stuff I also have a mechanic friend who would always be willing to help out with stuff too so I’m not that bad really, I just don’t want a huge project but am willing to do whatever is required within reason. I’m just very aware that not all cars are alike naturally, and I am literally clueless about the rx-8 hence me being here 😁 I’m fully aware of my shortcomings.

I’ll do some checks tomorrow and see what’s what and go from there. I appreciate all the input so far though, thanks a lot to you all for the advice and pointers.
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Re: Possible RX-8 purchase

Post by 30405 »

Depending on your locations you may find friendly club members that are will to lend a hand/teach when it comes to working on the car.