If you follow sports cars of a certain era, you likely know that the early 90s were a bit of a peak for Japanese imports. This was the time in which every major manufacturer was churning out a high-end sports coupe that was largely competent and worth considering if you were shopping for a high-performance GT model. Mitsubishi had the 3000GT; Toyota had the Supra; and Mazda, the RX-7. Sadly, this 1993 model listed here on eBay has been battered and burned and is offered a project with bids to $6,000 and the reserve unmet.
This is what we refer to as an FD-chassis RX-7. It’s likely the most sought after generation of Mazda’s high-performance machine, and it checks the boxes in other ways, too. This was easily the most attractive of all the designs (I know, that’s an opinion, but one that I feel many others would back up), and the turbocharged rotary engine was offered in perhaps its most tunable form yet. Of course, that’s also likely part of the root cause of this FD’s catastrophic engine fire.
I don’t care what they say: modifying a turbocharged car just always seems to end badly, in one way or another. Yes, I get it, there are lots of high-performance cars and trucks running insane amounts of boost with fully forged internals and not spontaneously combusting. But I will simply say this: turbocharged cars seem to be far happier when left in factory form. Just enjoy the respectable performance, and don’t crank up the boost to untenable levels, and all will be good. Who knows if that’s what happened here, but it sure seems likely.
This is one of the very few FDs I’ve ever seen with an automatic transmission, and the seller confirms that it’s rare bird for that reason alone. Now, I would say in most cases, this is a major drawback, but given the RX-7 has been known to make a half-decent drag car, it wouldn’t surprise me if the slushbox isn’t totally working against it. Now, a 5-speed would undoubtedly be a much more desirable car, but I give the seller credit for scooping this up at a salvage auction and flipping it down the line. A seriously cool car that apparently, ran very, very hot.
Good reminder for all of us, fire extinguishers are a low cost peace of mind. Seen at least a dozen vehicle fires on the side of the freeways over the years, and not a one of them had an extinguisher. By the time the FD arrives, the car or truck is not much more than a metal skeleton when it’s all said and done. Well worth the 25 bucks a piece investment to have one in each vehicle you own.
The abbreviation of Fire Department in your post confused me. The car is an FD… and then you say “by the time the FD arrives”. In my experience a RX7-FD typically arrives before anything else.
Let it burn. That way you are sure the insurance company will total it.
Unless you have a good- sized extinguisher and know how to use it, I’d guess you have about a 50/50 chance of putting out an engine fire. I don’t consider a $25 extinguisher good-sized for that job.
They have the new extinguish stick they may cost over hundred dollars but they last way longer then a fire extinguisher and don’t leave a powder mess ,my son has 2 in his street/ auto cross car and they are thin put next to seat or glove compartment
Ouch, I was never much on Japanese cars until a guy gave me one of these. I regret selling it to this day. I have and have had way too many cars over my lifetime. I had the same gut feeling when I sold this as I did my 59 Electra convertible. Mine was black.
These were cool cars Lavery. As for best looking, i prefered the previous gen dubbed the Turbo 2 models.
If you’re repairing a totalled in the rear car, this is worth what? The entire front end is a rebuild and metal replacement here. There’s more rubber and plastic than meets the eye … Now missing. Reserve not met at $6k? It’s not a Ferrari. Be real. Rebuilt Title = Fractional Value. Rebuilt as a race car? That’s all I can assume, but again: Wiring harness, lights, all suspension parts, vents, hoses, sensors etc etc… if you try to restore it for street use: It’s cheaper to buy one ready to go, even if it’s high mileage. No, the automatic transmission won’t be ok. Before sensors and friction plates were torched, he was running high boost high HP, so you can assume it was suspect fire or not.
Not sure what I’m missing here.
The defenition of the word tragedy is of something bad that could not have been avoided. Guess what, what happenned to this car, that a’int it. A little maturity could have easily averted this “tragedy”. Part it out, crush the rest, and let her be at peace. Maybe she will come back as a nice little Nissan Leaf!
I had one of these an R 1 model with low miles for more than 20 years. A real driver’s car all around. Still regret selling it about 3 years ago before prices skyrocketed. That being said this appears to be an overpriced parts car..
Nice looking car but even the turbo cars where pretty doggy.
Horsepower 255 @ 6500 RPM
Engine Rotary, Turbo, 1.3 Liter
Torque 217 lb-ft
0-60 4.9 seconds
I had one of these briefly in 2000. It was by far the fastest car I’ve ever had. Mine was also an automatic. This is a shame to see, these have a special place in my heart.
$6,000 bid, for this? Now there’s a real fire sale going on. Maybe the Asian car nuts have contracted the MOPAR disease.
The title shows up as a total loss from fire damage. This may be an issue to put this vehicle back on the road.