Sometimes the most amazing things come from places from which you least expect them. Take for instance, Mazda, a car company very much run by enthusiasts who love sports cars and racing.
Mazda designers and engineers, despite their always-limited budgets, seem able to surprise us over and over again. Mazda is the only Japanese car company to take the overall win at Le Mans, the RX-7 sports car is the winningest GT car in the history of IMSA, and the Mazda Miata, itself a surprise when released to the public, is the world’s most popular sports car.
The RX-7, which launched in 1979, was a great budget sports coupe that put the final nail in the coffin for the small-bore sports cars from England and Italy, and even made Porsche go back to the drawing board and create the 944 from the lesser 924 in order to be more competitive.
While RX7 initially was marketed as a budget sports car, that changed in 1993 when Mazda released the third-generation version of the RX-7.
What Mazda gave us was a no-holds-barred sports car that combined breathtaking styling with true world-class performance. It is possibly the finest car Mazda has ever created for the enthusiast, and something we are not likely to see again.
The Pick of the Day is one of these “halo” models, a 1993 Mazda RX-7, that is described by the Los Angeles, California, seller as a pristine example that has covered only 37,000 miles from new. A sunroof-delete model with a 5-speed manual gearbox, the Mazda still wears its original red paint and tan leather interior, and includes its original books and tools, according to the dealer’s ad on ClassicCars.com.
Like all third-gen RX-7, it is powered by a twin-turbo 13B rotary engine and is capable of a 0-60 time of 4.9 seconds and can cover the quarter mile in 13.5 seconds, according to contemporary tests. The RX-7 also boasts amazing handling due to its light 2,800-pound weight, ideal balance and superior suspension tuning.
Happily, this RX-7 has not been altered with the many performance mods that are commonly applied to these cars; finding a third-generation RX-7 that has not been heaving modified for street racing is difficult, and this car looks to a superior example in original, unmolested condition.
The asking price for this future collectible is $32,500, which is right on target for the current market price. Buy this car, keep it stock, enjoy it, and watch it increase in value over the next few years.
To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day
