The seller of today’s RX-7 FD says it’s mostly stock. That is of course, if you discount the wheels, the exhaust, and while you’re at it, almost the entire body. That body is a rare RE-Amemiya re-skin and we’re about to take stock in what that might be worth.
Do you know how many manual transmission-equipped station wagons you can buy new here in the U.S. these days? There’s the Volkswagen Golf SportWagen, that’s reportedly still sticking around. There’s one. Then there’s the VW Golf Alltrack which is a slightly beefed up version of the SportWagen. There’s two. Other than that… ?
That dearth of options wasn’t always the situation and that’s what made yesterday’s manual-equipped so interesting. Saab doesn’t offer stick shift wagons any longer for the simple reason that Saab doesn’t offer anything anymore, having been killed off by a heartless GM back in 2011.
Well equipped and seemingly without significant flaw, that Combi’s combo of decent engine, six-speed and all-weather AWD managed to bring favor to its $7,500 asking. While some of you averred that $5,000 was where the car should live, a narrow 52 percent of you gave it a Nice Price win at the higher asking.
There’s another car that we can give a nod to along with Saab in the fallen marque graveyard. That’s the Mazda RX lineup, or hell, any rotary-powered street car for that matter. The Wankel was once going to be the engine of the future, touted for its impressive power to weight ratio and significantly lower number of moving parts. Unfortunately, those attributes came at the cost of fuel efficiency, durability, and unless heavily massaged, low-end torque.
That’s not to say however that the Wankel doesn’t have its fans and that is perhaps made most evident in today’s This is a car that takes that rotary car cult membership and fully tops up the Kool-Aid.
Okay, but first off, just what the hell is an RE-Amemiya AC987 aero body kit, right? Its creator, . is a Tomisato, Japan-based street tuner and race car builder. Founded in 1974 by Isami Amemiya, the company has long focused on extracting as much power out of Mazda’s rotary engines as possible. In fact, the RE in the company’s name stands for Rotary Engine.
Strangely enough, this RE-Amemiya RX-7 is claimed by its seller to be almost completely stock mechanically. That being said, it does have an aftermarket exhaust, culminating in one of the biggest fart cans you’ve ever likely laid peepers on. Seriously, you could fit a baby in that thing!
Another deviation from the FD factory is the wheels. Those are 3-piece 18-inch alloys by Manaray and are described in the ad as being ‘impossible to find.’ The whole car is fairly rare here in the States since it is a JDM edition—meaning right-hand drive—and rocking that sweet RE-Amemiya body.
The wrong-side driver’s seat will be a major pain in the ass to deal with if you use a drive-thru with any regularity. The bodywork is so sweet-looking however, that it will be worthwhile just to lot-park it and walk in to get your double latte or Big Mac. After all, you’d then get to walk back to the car after the fact and take it all in.
According to the ad, the bodywork was added by RE-Amemiya and remains in what’s described as flawless condition. The styling is reminiscent of a Porsche 959 in front and an Alfa Romeo 4C from the back. The greenhouse is FD all the way, but the car looks unique enough that I don’t even mind the elimination of the pop-up headlamps. Okay, so I’m still a little bitter about that.
The interior is in equally wonderful shape, and features cloth buckets and an aftermarket double DIN in the dash. Big-ass amps and bass speakers clutter up the luggage area, which might be a good place for a future owner to make their own mods on the car.
The engine here is a twin turbo-equipped 1.3 litre 13B REW, and that’s matched—as were most FDs—to a five-speed manual transmission. A limited slip diff helps put the claimed 255 horsepower and 217 lb-ft of torque to the pavement with as little fuss as possible.
There’s only 65K on the clock and the car was imported in 2017 as a ‘classic car’ under the Federal Government’s 25 year rule. It’s said to be completely legal and carries a clear title. The ad makes claims to the car’s uniqueness, stating:
This is the only RHD RX-7 RE car in the USA, and only one of 3 total RE cars (the other 2 were LHD models built here and one doesn’t have the FULL conversion like mine does).
It’s beloved by its importer and present owner, but he apparently is of the mind that should you love something enough you must set it free.
That’s what he is doing, with the only exception being the free part. No, this RX-7 is far from free. In fact the asking is a cool $39,999. And yes, there are a ton of other options at that price from which to choose.
None of those would be perhaps be quite as cool or unique as this modded Mazda through, and so it’s now time for you all to vote on whether or not this Amemiya-modded FD could take that $39,999 asking. What do you think, is it worth that kind of cash as it sits? Or, is that just too much to get RE-Amemiya-d?
You decide!
out of Philadelphia, PA, or go if the ad disappears.
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