Barn Finder Patrick S referred this little Mazda RX7 to us to consider. Since this model is my favourite RX7 I must thank him for that. You will find this Mazda listed for sale here on Craigslist. Located in St Petersburg, Florida, it is offered with a clean title. The seller has listed it with a price of $6,000.
The first thing that I would like to say (and our Barn Finds readers can correct me if I’m wrong) is that I believe that there is a mistake in the listing. I believe that this particular RX7 is a GSL. Regardless, it is in really nice condition. The seller is only this car’s second owner, and have owned it since 1999. They claim that the car has traveled a mere 35,000 miles. As usual I treat such claims fairly carefully, but the overall condition of this car indicates that this is possible. The body and paint look great. There are a few little chips and a slight dent in the side just behind the passenger side door, but otherwise it looks good. It appears that they’ve treated the tires with some of that spray-on tire shine and it has gotten onto the wheels, but they look to be in good condition. RX7s of this era with high mileage can tend to suffer from deterioration in the appearance of this type of wheel due to the impact of brake dust on them, but these look to be free of that problem.
As previously stated, I do believe that this little Mazda is a GSL. It seems to feature all of the touches that indicate it. It looks to have the 4-wheel disc brakes as a starting point. When it comes to trim and features it does have a sunroof and electric windows which were all part of the package. What this car does feature above that package is the optional leather seats. This was a rare option box to be ticked, so it makes this RX7 that bit more desirable. The interior does look to be in great condition, and well above what we expect of cars of the 1980s. The trim and plastic all look to be in good condition, as does the dash.
From this side we can get a further view of the interior and see that it is in good condition overall. One unfortunate thing to note is that even though the factory-fitted graphic equalizer is still in the dash, the factory radio/cassette has been replaced with an aftermarket CD player. The car is fitted with air conditioning, but this has never been operational as it leaks gas. I would probably want to fix that. Mechanically the car runs the 12A rotary engine backed by a 5-speed manual transmission. We get no indication of the condition of the drive-train, but if it has been maintained properly and treated with a little bit of respect it really should be okay.
These are a great little car that handle well and can be made to really perform. In standard form they lose out to some of their rivals due to lack of engine torque, but they are a really pleasant car to drive. If they are properly maintained then they can be long-lived. If I am right and this is a GSL then they are currently selling for around the $9,000 mark. At $6,000 this could be a great buy.
You’re correct, it’s a GSL with those options and a 12a. If it had the 13b it would be a GSL-SE.
GSL-SE was a real sports car. the 12A powered ones are light & handle great (for 13″ wheels) but are doggy on acceleration to say the least.
i will never forget how quick the SE revved & being startled by the rpm buzzer at 7k rpm, nor the noise of the tires (big 14″!) grabbing traction into second gear the first time i drove one.
wonderful design, sleek & simple with a beautiful interior & usable hatch space. too bad the oil burning & leaking & crap fuel economy that some owners experieinced soured their reputation.
the asking price feels very fair to me, especially if condition checks out to be anything like it appears.
i’d still love to own one….it’s a lot more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.
A close up of the clutch pedal might reveal the true mileage. If 35K is correct, not a bad deal.
Is this “little” RX7 smaller than all the others? I had a regular sized 1981, and it looked the same. My Wife’s 90+ year old high school teacher had a “little” Ford taurus, but it looked normal size to me. (Just a pet peev of mine)
I owned this same car but with front and rear air dams and black interior. I drove this car summers only for 5 years and found it to be not only very fun to drive but easy to work on and really just a very great vehicle. I finally sold it and bought a 928 S4, also very nice car but lots more maintenance than the the little rotary!
Karl
Almost the same story. RX7 to 944.
Tom that’s funny the RX7 is obviously a stepping stone car to more expensive to maintain cars. You know Tom I drive a 16 Z06 Vette and I still miss that little RX7!
I wish I could buy that car.
3 small sports cars I owned and loved, I loved my RX7, fun, responsive . My TR3 I put a TR4 trans in for the first gear synchro, I could reach out the door and put my hand flat on the ground. My 1958 Porsche speedster, god I wish I had them back.
Just got an 85 rx7 gsl what a joy to drive bone stock can’t carry much of a load but can it corner around taco a Washington yehaw
I paid 150.00 for a white rx-7, had a leaky aftermarket sunroof, smelled like a moldy loaf of bread, swapped a friend for his 260z, a week later the Mazda was dead, drove the 260 for a year and don’t remember if I sold it or swapped, wish I had it back