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Rotorheads-
Let me start this off with my pics and observations about Saturday's (Nov.9th) 22nd annual Seven Stock event at the Auto Club track in Fontana, CA. This is my third show. I followed the Arizona contingent (ably lead, as always, by Tim E. and his sublime Yellow FD)
We gather for the 5 hour drive at the outskirts of Phoenix for the 9AM departure:
Of the 20-or-so RX7s that joined in, my lonely little SA was the sole 1st gen represented:
Our Friday arrival included the SoCal RX7 Club's (7 Stock organizers) invitation to Preview Night at the Track, where we got to ogle over Mazda USA's collection of street and Racing Legends. And the chance to mingle with some of Mazda Japan's rotary guru's, part of a large contingent of Japanese Rotary Cognoscenti who attended.
HERE was an interesting moment:
On the left is a sharp American 4-rotor entrepreneur (sorry, I missed his name) who builds custom 4-rotors like the art-work seen here. The circled oriental gentleman? None other than Mr. Amemiya, of RE-Amemiya tuner fame. I think he was impressed...
I would have LOVED to have that 4-rotor block under glass as a coffee table!! Yours for $65K...
Day-of-Show:
This really only shows 1/2 the field. Lots of vendors around the edge, and all the 1st gen and old-schoolers to the left of the orange building, out of frame...
In spite California's determination to burn to the ground, there was not a sign of smoke or fire to be seen. Picture-perfect.
And all the action was not static cars. The site is nestled right beside the racing Oval, and the afternoon was a backdrop of Killer B's rorting/brapping/popping and flame-throwing on the track beside the Show. And if you happened to have brought a helmet, for a small fee it looked like you could get out on the track and lap with the Real Racers too...
On the show grounds-
Probably not a huge surprise, the FDs dominated the field, which is a big change from my first 7 Stock in ...2005?... when most of the cars were 1st Gens. Obv the following 14 yrs have started to winnow down the field of our beloved SAs and FBs?
The Rotary Elders had their own line up, with a set of breath-taking RX-2s front-and-center:
I did not even know these were colors offered by Mazda...
Then there was this iconic JDM RX7. In it's Japan-only (?), one-year-only Mach Green paint-
With all-do respect to it's owner (and completely understanding what paint and bodywork cost these days) it was frustrating to see such a near-perfect car with some painful, ah, injuries. Notably the driver fender, and a fair amount of chips and bruises. The paint, which could well be original, was mostly excellent, making the flaws all the more apparent. Def a car worthy of investing some coin to bring it back to its original glory! Fingers crossed that will happen...
The rest of the field of 1st Gens was...interesting. A couple popped out as being particularly nice, but most were pretty...tired.
Bless them all for bringing them out! But had me wondering where all the really cherry ones were? Different folks, different car-culture, and of course, disposable incomes made for a big variety of stock, not-so-stock and lets-just-go-crazy presentations.
One notable sample, parked in the "premier" line-up of front-row RX7s was one of our Cali Forum members, DivinDriver.
Most of us have seen his immaculate 80 GS Tornado Silver SA. To really appreciate his passion, you can't just look at the car. He kindly (bravely?) left the hood open all day and I think this shot represents True Love! wow...
Other tasty moments:
There were at least 5 JDM RHD SAs present. Again (IMHO) a pretty tired collection of cars, but some interesting little details.
Plaid trim was the Big Deal of course, in 1978, 79. And a fair number of 79 US RX7s came with. But never in THIS color trim, nor on these JDM Limited seats (built in headrest version we did not get until some 1980 Specials, then standard in the FBs):
Some really exceptional cars jumped out, this one in particular. It had been blazing around the Oval off and on all afternoon, leaving pretty much everyone else in its wake. And the sound was glorious. When the owner finally rolled it back to the show grounds, we all got to peak under the hood. The car is a faithful repro of the famous Savanna factory racers of the 70s, massive flares and all. Beautifully presented, but no garage queen-
Not to be out done, Mazda treated us all to several runs of some of their factory racers too. I was more than surprised (startled is a better description!) when they lit up their original 78 SA Track car and put it up on the oval (along with its 4-rotor younger brother).
Great to see these old timers still able to get out and howl! Well done Mazda USA...
OK-
so - were you there? Post up your picks and observations please!
Big shout out to the SoCal RX7 club for staging another great event. Kudos to the guests and visitors who literally came from all over the world to participate. And for me personally thanks to Tim E. and the Rotary Car Club of Arizona for organizing the Run to Cali.
Finally to my little Red Bastid 80 SA that ran flawlessly with the Big Boyz FDs the whole 1000+ miles there and back home. My *** will be sore for a few days, but the memory will last a lifetime...
Ck - my SA is no spring chicken either, so I hope no offense. Of course everyone should have there car at these events, even if they sit in the parking lot like mine did, with the other 'civilians' attending the show. I just know there ARE some really amazing 1st gens out there and would like to see more of these attend and get displayed too...
The Mach Green Savanna rx7 is owned by a guy on here. He did a write up on it. The car is a pre-delivery model and was a gift to his grandfather from the President of Mazda in Japan. I think not addressing the body damage is forgiveable as the car is completely original and one of a kind, especially in the US where Mach Green series 1s are not exactly common.
I think not addressing the body damage is forgiveable as the car is completely original and one of a kind
I agree, it could go either way. There are avid supporters on both side of the fix it or leave it fence. Looks to me like he did perform a "sympathetic finish restoration" however. In original condition, the car had a pretty pronounced v-shaped dent on the top of the front bumper and down to bare metal (surface rusted) spots on the front fender / header panel. Those spots look to have been touched up and blended. Same with the leading edge of the drivers door. No knocks against the car though. I think it's absolutely gorgeous. Stu's pic makes the Mach Green paint pop!
Plaid trim was the Big Deal of course, in 1978, 79. And a fair number of 79 US RX7s came with. But never in THIS color trim, nor on these JDM Limited seats (built in headrest version we did not get until some 1980 Specials, then standard in the FBs):
I've saw pictures of this interior before. Although it has a very close look of the original plaid pattern I am skeptical that its factory. I've never saw the blue plaid in any sale brochures. Only the white red and tan/brown plaid. Were you able to speak with the owner to get the back story? Is this a 79 or 80? The door trim and center console tell me it's a 1980. The separate headrest seats were first available in the USD market in 80 as well.
The Mach Green Savanna rx7 is owned by a guy on here. He did a write up on it. The car is a pre-delivery model and was a gift to his grandfather from the President of Mazda in Japan. I think not addressing the body damage is forgiveable as the car is completely original and one of a kind, especially in the US where Mach Green series 1s are not exactly common.
i've been playing with Rx7s since the early 90's, and this is the first time i've seen Mach Green in person, and its a really amazing color, its astounding that the Mazda USA guys saw it, and then asked for beige...
car should be left as original as possible, its really really nice.
mine is the Grey one next to FM's car. the paint sucks, but the car is otherwise really original, and really nice
I know the owner of the yellow rhd SA with the plaid interior. Its a custom plaid that he liked and used on his seats. He just recently got them reupholstered.
mine is the Grey one next to FM's car. the paint sucks, but the car is otherwise really original, and really nice
You were at the show j9? Sorry I missed you, and likely, your RX...
LOL - we all commune in the Forum year-round, then prob walk right by ea other at these shows out in The Real World.
Ironic.
And a bit frustrating...
I definitely had a great time at SevenStock 22. My second time out, last year being my first. Another great event with amazing cars and great people.
The Mach Green Savanna is mine.
Obviously everyone is entitled to feeling how they want about my car and it's condition. No, it's not perfect, but it is original inside and out (You should have seen it 2 years ago).
I inherited the car with any damage it exhibits and have only breathed new life into it since then.
Without re-stating all the particulars, for how rare and iconic the car may be, fundamentally it was never intended to be kept as a show-quality car.
It's been in my family since new, and it's always meant to have been driven and enjoyed, as it still is by me today.
I'm proud of it: how it looks, how it runs, and what it means to me. I bring it to SevenStock so that this community of enthusiasts can view a rare piece of history that otherwise noone else may ever see.
One day when I have piles of money, I may make it look perfect, but until then I'm going to drive it with my head held high and a full heart.
I really enjoyed the pictures Stu, thanks for sharing!! Seven Stock was held on my birthday this year and it would have been the best birthday gift to be able to attend with my wife and kids and a couple of our 7's. Sadly however, it was not in the budget. I can however live vicariously through the pictures I see posted of the event! Would have been an amazing experience for all of us!
Mach Green is a beautiful colour, especially in person where you can better appreciate the metallic. From memory, Mach Green was only available in the GT LImited variant in Japan, so it was an exclusive colour even there. In Australia, we were lucky enough to get our 1979-1980 models in Mach Green. I've seen a handful. This one below belongs to Mazda Australia as part of its heritage fleet, which I was lucky enough to go visit as part of a VIP tour last year.
I agree that's its a beautiful color, perhaps my favorite SA color. Shame we didn't get there here in the U.S. I'll just have to build my own I suppose.
