Is this a steal?
 

Hello guys. I am new to the forum and after talking to my friend who has beat on his rx-8, i convinced him to sell me the car for 4000. Is this a deal or should I run far away? The car is an 04 and has 75,000 miles on it.


The bad:

-Paint needs some touching up
-Tranny doesn't go into first
-Motor has the lost of compression issue, but if you bump start it or charge the battery real good it will start up fine. Usually, only when it has not been started for a while, but bump starting always works. I really haven't compression tested it yet. I was planning on testing it sometime this week with the ol' remove the relief valve and take a video camera to the dial trick. Honestly, I don't know if the engine is really at fault. All the times we have driven the car, the battery was just too low. Also, will this be covered under the new extended warranty for the whole engine to be replaced if it is indeed the apex seals?
-Back bumper has some dents
-Rear suspension is severely messed up I believe. (see photos) note: tire wear, bent suspension components (please learn me something and tell me what they are called. Upper and lower camber arms?


This is all that i am tell with a real quick glance. I haven't gone over it with a fine tooth comb, yet. Could you guys please assist me on what to look for? How can I confirm that the chassis is completely straight and it is not just the suspension? Also, can i just replace the first gear syncho or do i have to replace the whole tranny?


Also, Don't worry, I am capable of during the work myself.

PICTURES
http://s1132.photobucket.com/albums/...marcucci7/RX8/

Consider the thought that it sounds like you'll need a new engine, need to repair/rebuild all or part of the transmission, fix the suspension issues, buy a new rear bumper, touch up the paint, etc. $4000 is too much to ask for a car in that miserable of shape (from what I can tell from the information you provided at least.

Stay away from it. Just search around and buy an '8 with low miles and maintainance records.

It's a gran touring. The kbb is over 10k. If I can confirm that there is no frame damage, and the engine has the correct compression or I can get it replaced, is this a good deal?

Car- $4000
Transmission- $1200
Suspension components by megan racing- $600
Windshield- $200
Rear bumper- $400
Paint touch up(I know someone). $300
-------
Overhead-$6700

Sell for 9500

Profit- $2800

You could even get parts cheaper by purchasing used items off members here.
However, you won't get near that much money for the car, unless you advertise to schmucks :)

It looks like the rear is slammed and the front is stock?

I bet that car will need a lot of money dumped into it very soon. Be prepared for that if you go for it.

If you take the 4g to get it and add the 3 g to fix it, consider that 7 g can get you a much better car to start off with.

No.

a friend in need is a friend in deed, a friend with weeed is better.
no this is not a deal.

It looks like the rear has been curbed.

Thanks guys. I think i am just going to start out in an rx7 fc. Screw this idea. Thanks for the help.

Are you building this car for you, or just to "flip" and make some money?

ive never heard of "flipping" cars....it usually works the other way around, buy a car for 10k, pour 10k in parts and sell for 9k. :crazy:

It started out being a flip. I went into it under the impression that it was just the transmission (this was what he had told me). Given that there was such a huge margin for profit, my friend being stupid, and my wallet needing money to buy an fd i said why not.

Then I started doing research and finding out that the rx8 was actually a lot easier to drive than the rx7 and that the fd was actually a lot more of a monster than i thought it was. At that point, I decided i would keep it for awhile, go to autox meets and learn how to handle a real sports car.

But, now, after the 8th time of driving past it and thinking there was something foobar'd with the back, i decided to jack it up. I jacked it up to find this nonsense.

:tank: This is what i feel like doing to my friend.

Unless its a GT with navi and basically fully loaded its going to be difficult to sell it for 10k.

To clarify so you dont have to....

If you buy a FD you...

Have alot of money to pour into a car just to spend it over and over again fixing shit.
Have another Daily driver
Are mechanically inclined or VERY dedicated to learning.

People who buy FE's tend to not meet the req of FD ownership, or just love the rx8, whatever the case.....from what ive heard though, stock vs stock the FE's are easier to drive, though the potential what you can achieve with a FD is off the charts, given you have massive funds.

Check out the Rx8's For Sale section, probly find alot better deals that this.

On what other members already said...it is not a good deal to start with. Go with your guts and look for something else, good luck.

If your friend pleads with you to take that RX8 off his hands for free, tell him, "I'll think about it."

The starting issue sounds more like it needs a new battery and an upgraded starter. Possibly plugs, wires, and ignition coils.

As for the rest of it, sounds like your friend doesn't give a crap about things.
Would you want to pick up a girlfriend after he was through with her?
Probably not.

Think of cars in the same way.

BC.

So in trying to take advantage of a friend in need of selling his car, you find out he was actually trying to take advantage of you and now you're mad at him?

:rock: :lol:

http://assets.diylol.com/hfs/048/6f8...ius-2ab24f.jpg

no way you can sell it at KBB price. its never a good selling car thus the price isnt accurate.

That's a pretty bad deal for a car that needs so much work.

Alright guys, Looked at a series 4 rx7 and realized how much more awesome it would be to work on an rx8. What do you think would be a fair amount on a car like this if we take it to a friend's shop and see if the frame is straight and the frame does happen to be straight? 2500?

I convinced my friend to sell it to me for 2800. He finally admitted to me that he slid into a curb. If i jack it up and send you guys extensive pictures of the undercarriage, do you think you can determine if there is frame damage?

The rx8 has a unibody construction. Not a frame. If the unibody is bent it will never be right again. You can mask problems with alignment but they will be there none the less. Chances are though the unibody is fine. A curb hit wont bend it unless it was a granite curb and a 100mph power slide. Most likely there is a bent control arm or something. But regardless it doesn't explain why the car sits so low in the rear. Id say 28 is a fair deal. It worth at least that in parts if nothing else.

Won't the car having that kind of camber make it be lower to the ground? It's not that much lower. It just looks that way because the car is on a weird incline

$2800 is good, but if you can get it for $2500 that would be better.
The $300 will pay for the bent control arms.

Still, 3100 for an rx8 that just needs a transmission and some cosmetics, IF it's just the control arms(I'll have it checked), is a bangin' deal. Isn't it?

Unless there's more suspension components that are damaged. Are their?

Also, Any suggestions on aftermarket control arms? I want to upgrade everything that i replace. I want to keep this car an autocross it.