When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
When I was in high school in the early 80's I had an 81' RX-7 with lots of goodies. When I was going to college I always dreamed of the Porsche like lines of the FC and hoped one day I could get one. Now I am fortunate to own both an FD and FC after having a life long experience with these cars. They are unique and I guess that is what attracts folks like us to them. Call it their finicky nature or the misunderstood mechanics, they are unique and I guess that makes those of us that love them unique as well.
Bought the first RX7 new in 81 shortly after getting a "real" job out of college. 'S' model, with steel wheels. First mod on it was a dead-pedal. Second was the factory cassette player. Then wheels and the fattest tires I could fit with, wait for it...raised white letters. That was such a proud day. Sold it a few years later to buy my first house and drove an 81 Datsun 200SX (wished I had that back too)Then I got married. Damn near talked the wife into a low-mileage 88 TII but my daughter was coming. Then a second, bigger house. Then my son. Ah...life. Bought the FD in 2003 (checked 2004-2017 in poll). Working-retired now seriously considered looking for an original 10AE. Getting a trailer soon to find some fun highways. Hope to make it to Deal's Gap, the Southwest and head to the mountains...again.
First RX-7 was a used '80 model bought in 1984 during my sophomore year in college. And so my love affair with the Rotary Rocket began.
Purchased a '90 model in 1991 after getting a good deal at the dealership on a demo unit with about 3k miles. And two years later, I traded that one in for the 3rd generation version bought in August of 1993.
235k fun-filled miles later, and despite my admittedly oblivious nature to most of the engine/under-the-hood components overall, my love affair with the FD remains strong.
Get out of here, do you really have 235k on your FD? Would love to hear more about this.
Apologies for any confusion from my end. Original engine, with miles at 147k if I recall correctly, was replaced in 2004 with a rebuilt 13B-REW assy with 3mm apex seals by Rotary Performance in Garland, TX after deciding to go down the rabbit hole of popular FD performance upgrade mods. Also went with the '99 spec twins at the same time. With a PowerFC added a few years later, and tuning at about 11 psi, I was right at 300 HP. Life was good!
Fast forward to 2012. The only remaining mod I felt I needed to round out overall performance and let the engine breathe cooler was an upgraded intercooler. Biggest blunder of my FD tenure soon followed! In my haste to get a performance unit installed locally in Austin, I chose very poorly. (Did I mention before that I know very little about the engine components?) Long story short, my engine somehow got damaged via detonation, knock, or similar while on the shop's dyno I suspect, and was basically in limp mode for the next few years until I had the engine rebuilt and a more suitable intercooler installed by my trusted guys at RP in Garland. Oh well, you live. You learn. And you pay (dearly).
I guess the silver lining of the aforementioned fiasco is that I began to frequent the forum more regularly, and started to learn more about the subtle intricacies of the car; engine components & reliability mods, etc. And the last two years I've been gearing up for a swap of the twins to a single turbo setup (EFR 7670 eventually selected).
I'm naively "hopeful" this is the last major modification project for me. Did I mention rabbit hole?!?
First let me say that I started with buying the kid one. A turbo II FC with 20K and mint. He built that one up till it was worth nothing. I helped my kid go through three FC's before I bought my first 1993 FD Touring in 2005. We are now building his forth. An FC convert. Putting a Turbo II motor in. Built it and blew it up. Sold it after two years of ownership. Bought the Second FD from Pettit Racings Cam Worth it was a 95 three rotor Banzi. It had a bad computer set up. Wouldn't idle. It only wanted to go wide open. It was fast, but not worth investing in. Too tacky. Had it one year. Bought the last one I have now again from CAM. This one was much nicer. The three Rotor was only putting out about 340 RWHP. It is now 585 RWHP. I have attached the before and after pictures of the last one I will ever own. All in all seven cars. Four FC and Three FD.
Its great reading through everyone's stories here and seeing the passion for the car, and especially the stories of selling the car only to come back and buy another. The FD is truly a one of a kind car. I cannot imagine how it was for you guys that were lucky to be old enough to see these new, must have been incredible seeing them for the first time, especially compared to everything else of the era.
As a child of the 90's, I loved the RX-7 in video games growing up. In Jr. High it was a dream car, not some crazy Lamborghini or ferrari. A year after getting my license I bought my first FC in 2008, which I did a thorough job of wrecking a year later. Had 5 FC's before the FD(haven't gone a full year without a rotary car since I was 17!). After buying my first house I started the hunt for the exact FD I wanted in 2013, and luckily within a month found it. I remember my heart skipping a beat when I pulled up to the sellers house and seen it on the hill. The car could have blown up on the test drive and I still would have paid full price, I was completely smittened by it. The test drive was a ******* dream, the seller had me drive his "fun route" which was a 30 minute drive through Tennessee mountains. Being a person who comes from the midwest, the roads alone were a sensory overload, much less being in my dreamcar that I was less than hours from owning. Loved it ever since, and still get that stupid joy every time driving it.
Have had moments of questioning selling, but not sure what I'd get. The child in me has thoughts of selling everything and going after an R8, but even that as expensive as it is doesn't give me the same feeling the FD does. Really, what else out there under 6 figures scratches all the itches the FD does? The FD scratches everything on my checklist that I want in a sports car:
-Sexy Looks
-Light weight/wonderful anolog handling
-Exotic, powerful engine
-Heritage of passion built by a company not high on their own significance
-Awesome interior layout
-easy to work on without tons of proprietary tools
I can't think of another car that does all that as good as the FD. Can't imagine selling it for any reason other than financial issues, because I would certainly be right back here buying another FD soon after.
Its great reading through everyone's stories here and seeing the passion for the car, and especially the stories of selling the car only to come back and buy another. The FD is truly a one of a kind car. I cannot imagine how it was for you guys that were lucky to be old enough to see these new, must have been incredible seeing them for the first time, especially compared to everything else of the era.
As a child of the 90's, I loved the RX-7 in video games growing up. In Jr. High it was a dream car, not some crazy Lamborghini or ferrari. A year after getting my license I bought my first FC in 2008, which I did a thorough job of wrecking a year later. Had 5 FC's before the FD(haven't gone a full year without a rotary car since I was 17!). After buying my first house I started the hunt for the exact FD I wanted in 2013, and luckily within a month found it. I remember my heart skipping a beat when I pulled up to the sellers house and seen it on the hill. The car could have blown up on the test drive and I still would have paid full price, I was completely smittened by it. The test drive was a ******* dream, the seller had me drive his "fun route" which was a 30 minute drive through Tennessee mountains. Being a person who comes from the midwest, the roads alone were a sensory overload, much less being in my dreamcar that I was less than hours from owning. Loved it ever since, and still get that stupid joy every time driving it.
Have had moments of questioning selling, but not sure what I'd get. The child in me has thoughts of selling everything and going after an R8, but even that as expensive as it is doesn't give me the same feeling the FD does. Really, what else out there under 6 figures scratches all the itches the FD does? The FD scratches everything on my checklist that I want in a sports car:
-Sexy Looks
-Light weight/wonderful anolog handling
-Exotic, powerful engine
-Heritage of passion built by a company not high on their own significance
-Awesome interior layout
-easy to work on without tons of proprietary tools
I can't think of another car that does all that as good as the FD. Can't imagine selling it for any reason other than financial issues, because I would certainly be right back here buying another FD soon after.
Yep yep yep yep yep.......
What's crazy about this little japanese sports car is even exotics can't give you the same loving feeling and that my friends is priceless
As someone else mentioned the word ANALOG really is what makes this car so off the charts awesome. You can literally hear and feel everything the car is doing. I literally can't think of anything this car does that you don't feel and hear. ****, I even love all the crazy smells. It's just a sensational, mechanical, car guy, driver's wet dream
Wow, I got myself a little worked up. I'm going to take a restroom break
My best friend bought one my senior year of HS(he actually still owns it). I drove it back from the teen dance club(yea yall remember those days) and raced an NSX on the interstate. The FD had a PFC on base map and full exhaust. We pulled the NSX and I was hooked from there. Bought my first FD in 2002 and have owned at least 1 every day since with the exception of a 2 week period.
Ive owned over 100 FDs and currently just have one. Its a rough example I am slowly bringing back to a really nice FD. With my travel schedule and kids playing sports the FD is more of an idea to me these days than something I actually get to enjoy. These cars have been a part of my daily life for 16 years and cant see me ever not having one to build or play with.
I've had my 1993 since 1995. Used it for a daily driver for 180,000 miles. Runs fine but don't have the time to drive it anymore. Gonna put it up for sale soon. Hate to do it but I rather another person enjoy it than just sitting.
I bought my FD in October of 2000. I'm the 2nd owner; first owner was the wife of the dealership's owner. I'd had a FC and wanted to trade for an FD, but the ex-wife was pregnant in '92 when I was drooling over a CYM at the local dealer, and we ended up getting a Suburban. Seasons pass and things change and I find myself getting divorced in 2000, so...first thing I do is get the car I'd wanted, lol!
First engine lasted about 93,000 miles (I'd bought the car with about 60,000 on it) and 5 years or so, took a few years to save the money for the new engine. Got the new engine, sent it off to a fellow forum member and awesome engine builder, who tore it completely down and rebuilt it with all the 'good stuff' and did a nice port job on it. Since then it's been nothing but fun, but I rarely drive it, frankly. I've put about 18,000 miles on in 9 years I guess. Just put a new stereo in it that is, as my 23 year old son says "a religious experience", lol. Planning on fixing the assortment of dents and dings it's accumulated over the years and repainting it soon. I'll never sell it, it will go to my son when I no longer need it.
Been in love with the FD since I was a kid and first laid eyes on one.
I bought my first FD back in 1999 at the ripe age of 12 for 18,000 credits when Gran Turismo 2 came out.
Seriously though, I just bought my first FD for real a couple of months ago. '93 BB touring with red interior! Bought it in Cali, and it's only ever lived west of the Rockies, so no rust! As long as I'm alive, I'm never selling this car. Never thought I would have the chance to own one, and here I am finally with my dream car. My credit card is already starting to melt. You guys were not joking when you said to get ready to feel the pain in your wallet.
I know I'm a newbie on here, but thought I'd share if anyone is interested.
Just bought this FD a few months ago. Can't believe it took this long... I've been driving a 2004 330Ci for the past 12 or so years. Started off with a slammed Maxima, restored a 69 Mustang with Edelbrock carbs bored over 0.40 and glass packs, got into sport bikes like the SV650S and GSX-R600, and then tried to go after some dream cars like the NSX. I had actually forgotten about the FD since everyone talked about how bad reliability is on these things.
The crazy thing about the FD is how connected it makes you feel. A few people have mentioned already how it's so mechanical and analog. I think the NSX is the only other car I have driven that makes you feel so in control. But the one thing that kept me from buying the NSX is the interior layout. It's such a stupid thing to gripe about, but it just didn't feel as good as the FD.
It's almost like I could feel the limits of the NSX while I can feel the potential of the FD. I dunno if anyone else felt like that...
First saw the FD on a rotating podium at the Denver Auto Show in 1992 (1993?). My jaw dropped. I told my friends I'd have one some day.
5 years later on a drive back from Colorado Springs to Denver my wife suggested we stop at the Mazda dealership to see if they have "that car you love." Bought the 1993 BB base that night, and still own the car. And my wife is still by my side (of course)!
It's been mostly sitting for a while, but has temporary plates and will pass emissions again!
In 2005, I bought an FC. I loved the car. When I was in elementary school, I was playing Tokyo Xtreme Racer, and watching old OPTION Videos and RX-7s were always my favorites. I graduated high school in 2006 and decided to buy an FD as a grad gift to myself. I worked at a restaurant 6 days a week and worked a part time job on top of that to save enough money to buy one. I finally found the exact one I wanted in 2007. Completely factory spec in black, it was how I wanted it so that I can truly make it mine. I bought it and less than a a few months, I discovered the coolant seals were shot and I had to sell my FC to pay for the rebuild. I dropped a ton of money onto the engine to make it as bullet proof as possible for future builds and ended up blowing the motor because of faulty tuning from my builder... There's been a lot of ups and downs with the car, that I'm sure most owners can relate to.
Fast forward 10 years later, and I still look at the car like the first day I saw it. It now has an RE Amemiya kit on it, as it's always been my favorite kit for the FD as I've always loved anything that came out of RE Amemiya. I took a few Japanese classes while I was in university to make the use out of the trip so that I can one day meet Isami Amemiya and personally thank him for the inspiration to stay focused on what I love and to never give up through the tough times.
On July 7, 2017, I ventured out to Tsukuba Circuit and finally had the opportunity to meet my hero:
Not a bad way to spend my 10th year of FD3S ownership. As soon as I came back from Japan, I went straight to my car and stared at it for about 15 minutes remembering all the times I've had with it and the awesome people I've met just because of owning it. Especially after some good inspiring words from Mr. Amemiya himself, I know I'm on a good path with my FD, and I regret nothing. I can't wait to see what's in store for the future!
In 2005, I bought an FC. I loved the car. When I was in elementary school, I was playing Tokyo Xtreme Racer, and watching old OPTION Videos and RX-7s were always my favorites. I graduated high school in 2006 and decided to buy an FD as a grad gift to myself. I worked at a restaurant 6 days a week and worked a part time job on top of that to save enough money to buy one. I finally found the exact one I wanted in 2007. Completely factory spec in black, it was how I wanted it so that I can truly make it mine. I bought it and less than a a few months, I discovered the coolant seals were shot and I had to sell my FC to pay for the rebuild. I dropped a ton of money onto the engine to make it as bullet proof as possible for future builds and ended up blowing the motor because of faulty tuning from my builder... There's been a lot of ups and downs with the car, that I'm sure most owners can relate to.
Fast forward 10 years later, and I still look at the car like the first day I saw it. It now has an RE Amemiya kit on it, as it's always been my favorite kit for the FD as I've always loved anything that came out of RE Amemiya. I took a few Japanese classes while I was in university to make the use out of the trip so that I can one day meet Isami Amemiya and personally thank him for the inspiration to stay focused on what I love and to never give up through the tough times.
On July 7, 2017, I ventured out to Tsukuba Circuit and finally had the opportunity to meet my hero:
Not a bad way to spend my 10th year of FD3S ownership. As soon as I came back from Japan, I went straight to my car and stared at it for about 15 minutes remembering all the times I've had with it and the awesome people I've met just because of owning it. Especially after some good inspiring words from Mr. Amemiya himself, I know I'm on a good path with my FD, and I regret nothing. I can't wait to see what's in store for the future!
Bought my '95 new in Fall 1996. Probably one of the last RX-7's sold new in the U.S., it had sat on the lot to the point that it was heavily discounted ($10k off the sticker price). It was the first new car I ever purchased and I have babied it from day 1. I laminated the window sticker and have kept every receipt. I was immediately aware of how few they imported in 1995 and have always felt like I was helping to preserve a piece of history. I used it as a daily driver until I got married and had kids, but now take it out on weekends for "pleasure" driving. It started my passion for relatively rare cars, and now shares the garage with a '91 Porsche 928GT (one of 147 imported that year) and a 2001 Saab 9-3 Viggen convertible (one of 738).
97 thru 18..
cliffnotes.. as jotting down my history will just time me out of this log in and lose what ive written..
3 CYMs having bought back first one... 2 BBR1s... 2 SSM base and touring... 1 SSMR2... 1 CW 20B PEP... and 2 91 S5 TurboII red and black
tracked.. solo2.. dragged and even daily'd them.. none were bought to part.. sell or garage queen'd... owned them to drive
03-10-17, 07:54 PM
That was such a proud day. Sold it a few years later to buy my first house and drove an 81 Datsun 200SX (wished I had that back too)Then I got married. Damn near talked the wife into a low-mileage 88 TII but my daughter was coming. Then a second, bigger house. Then my son. Ah...life. Bought the FD in 2003 (checked 2004-2017 in poll). Working-retired now seriously considered looking for an original 10AE. Getting a trailer soon to find some fun highways. Hope to make it to Deal's Gap, the Southwest and head to the mountains...again.
Bought it in Cali, and it's only ever lived west of the Rockies, so no rust! As long as I'm alive, I'm never selling this car. Never thought I would have the chance to own one, and here I am finally with my dream car. My credit card is already starting to melt. You guys were not joking when you said to get ready to feel the pain in your wallet.
