zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Buying
/
For $2,500, Could This 1981 Mazda RX7 Make You Go Hmmm?
For $2,500, Could This 1981 Mazda RX7 Make You Go Hmmm?-June 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:54

Just like mama bear in the Goldilocks tale, today’s RX7 is just right—old enough to be a classic, but not too old to be a pain in the ass to drive. Let’s see if its price is fair to middling too.

As was pointed out in the comments on yesterday’s , a rev-happy Wankel is perhaps not the best engine to plant in an outdoorsy rock hopper. However, that somewhat more than minor annoyance didn’t dissuade fully 58-percent of you from giving that tall-standing truck’s $2,500 price tag a Nice Price win.

Seeing as you liked one rotary-powered vehicle for that monetary amount, let’s see how you like another.

Here we have the Mazda Wankel in its natural environment, a . This second series of the original RX7 added a number of aesthetic and functional niceties, including cleaned up bumpers, a reorganized dash, and a shorter shift lever for the now standard five speed.

The engine is the 100-horsepower 12A, and that gave the little Mazda sports car scintillating performance. Okay, it didn’t actually do that but for the era, it was pretty quick, and it handled competently.

This one probably doesn’t do much of anything at the moment as the seller claims it to be in need of carburetor work. A rebuilt carb will set you back approximately three-fiddy, while the DIY option is about a tenth of that. Should you want to go that latter route, there’s a carb manual () to aid in the rebuilding endeavor.

There’s not much else in the ad’s description of the car, other than that it has remarkably low miles (43K), which once again are mama bear not too little and not too much. It’s also described as having been “lady-driven.”

Now, I don’t know what “lady-driven” is supposed to imply. I mean, I’ve seen drive her “Parsh” and she rocks it just hard as any dude might. Maybe it means that it smells fresh inside since girls don’t fart.

Oh well, let’s move on to the car itself. It’s presented in metallic gold over a brown interior, and it all looks pretty decent at first glance. A closer dive raises some questions though.

The paint seems to change hues between the front clip and doors, and the rest of the car. Oddly, the rear bumper seems to share the front’s gold standard. The underlying bodywork is straight, but there are some dings and chips in the nose. You won’t notice those however, because POP UP HEADLIGHTS!

Inside, as noted, it’s a trip down to brown town. The vinyl/velour seats look intact and the dash is free of any cracks or accumulated Chiquita Banana stickers. Manual windows, locks and steering help the car maintain its svelte 2,340-pound weight.

A couple of things stand out here. First off there’s the little toggle switch on the side of the console that seems ready to stab the driver’s knee. What’s that all about? Then there’s the aftermarket stereo unit by Mitsubishi. I don’t know that I like the idea of some Mitsu in my Mazda, but then that’s an easy fix.

The title is clean, as seems the car overall, less the tires which look like they’re from the Bush I era.

Let’s tally up all this car needs then, m’kay? There’s the carb, which could run $35 or $350, then there’s about $500 worth of tires, and maybe some $$ to try and bring the paint back into unity.

That all would need to be added to the car’s $2,500 price tag, and we’re now at the point in the show where I ask you to vote on whether that’s a fair asking or not. What’s your take, is this RX7 worth that $2,500 ask it’s (briefly) described in its ad? Or, does that price warrant more to the story?

You decide!

Omaha, NE , or go of the ad disappears.

H/T to glemon for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOCP. Click to send a me a fixed-price tip, and remember to include your Kinja handle.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Buying
At $8,600, Would You Go Topless In This 1994 Cadillac Eldorado?
At $8,600, Would You Go Topless In This 1994 Cadillac Eldorado?
The seller of today’s Caddy claims they should be selling it at auction but says who’s got time for that? Let’s see if we have the time for this custom convertible at its non-auction price. Many of you agreed that the $950 asked for yesterday’s was “chump change.” Even...
Jun 30, 2025
At $5,900, Is This 1984 Nissan 720 4X4 A Solid Deal?
At $5,900, Is This 1984 Nissan 720 4X4 A Solid Deal?
According to its seller, today’s Nissan 4X4 shows “pride of ownership.” Let’s see if it would take swallowing one’s pride to pay its asking price. Opinions were split on how well the design of yesterday’s has held up over the years. Some of you commented that the design still...
Jun 30, 2025
Someone Willingly Paid $16,000 For A Maserati Ghibli On Cars & Bids. Don’t Make The Same Mistake
Someone Willingly Paid $16,000 For A Maserati Ghibli On Cars & Bids. Don’t Make The Same Mistake
Let’s cut right to the chase: buying a is not a good idea unless you have deep enough pockets for the upkeep. For those not in the know, they’re sirens. They draw you in with their premium Italian image and sweet songs of and then go in for the...
Jun 30, 2025
At $18,500, Would You Lean Toward Buying This 2022 Ford Mustang?
At $18,500, Would You Lean Toward Buying This 2022 Ford Mustang?
Today’s Mustang is being sold by a towing yard, which means it’s probably a lien sale. Let’s see if this clean title convertible is priced to put a new buyer on the hook. The general consensus on last Friday’s was that it would be the perfect car for someone...
Jun 30, 2025
At $950, Would You Go All-In On This 1984 Plymouth Colt GTS Turbo Project?
At $950, Would You Go All-In On This 1984 Plymouth Colt GTS Turbo Project?
One of the calling cards of today’s Plymouth Colt is its “Twin Stick” overdrive gear change, which gives the car eight speeds going forward and two in reverse. Let’s see if this project car has anything else to offer. Just as Goldilocks discovered when appropriating Papa Bear’s lifestyle and...
Jun 30, 2025
Which One Of You Suckers Is Going To Pay Over $32,000 For A 25-Year-Old Toyota 4Runner
Which One Of You Suckers Is Going To Pay Over $32,000 For A 25-Year-Old Toyota 4Runner
The (and Tacoma) have a death grip on used values. It’s been this way for years. Go ahead, go try and buy any TRD trim that’s a couple of years old; it’ll cost you as much as a new one — not that you could buy a new one...
Jun 30, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved