Seniorchief

Watched the Mecum Auction in Monterey CA last weekend and boy do they have money in Monterey! Saw a 1974 Datsun 240Z go for $120k, and a 1979 Datsun 280Z with twenty-eight miles on the odometer and window stickers still attached go for $210k. Maybe someday the RX7's we love so much will "feel the love."

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

i was there this weekend, and they had a whole pile of Z's and they were NICE. like i remember those things when they were new, and they were not that shiny
it was a little odd that those Z's were the only Japanese cars we really saw all weekend, usually there is more than that.

but yeah TONs of money floating around, lots of interesting cars, and they were selling.

Pronkie

If you get a chance to see a red 1988 Turbo II RX7 at events around the Bay Area make sure you look at the mileage...It has less than 3k on it and is all original...I saw it at the Japanese Classic Car Show last year in Long Beach and it's unbelievable....He was invited to show it last Saturday in Monterey at a invitational only event....It's like a time capsule......Even down to the original tires..Forgot the owner's name but goes by Ruthless Rotary on social media.....

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

I recorded Mecum Monterey but haven't watched it yet. They previewed that collection of Z cars during their last auction and I've been looking forward to seeing how they did. The owner had some extremely rare, early models and their preparation all looked absolutely stunning. Z cars came 10 years before the Rx-7 and have always been a step and a half ahead on the value curve. A few have sold on BaT for multiple six figures. With Z cars, it seems the early ones are valued the most, while with Rx-7's it the last generation that gets the most appreciation.

1st gens are still undervalued IMO. It's going to take more enthusists to get comfortable with our quirky power plant and accept them as something special before they gain respect. We certainly have the racing pedigree. Not sure I even want to see it. It's a double edged sword that can eventually price many grass roots enthusiasts out of the game.

Seniorchief

I was on Hagerty's site a few weeks ago and was surprised by what I found on the 1985 RX7. What is not shown on the document below is the prices increase across the board by 20% for GSL-SE models.

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

As far as 1st gens go, the 5 letter cars lead the way due to their refinement and increased performance. Only an ultra low mile, un modified example of a "regular" 1st gen will get comparable love. (at least for now) All models have legitimately gone up in the past 3 or 4 years. I'd say by about twice as much as they used to go for.

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

This topic is a double edged sword for me. I've been collecting and restoring these cars for more than 20 years and I've always enjoyed them because they were affordable and most parts were available. It has been an incredible journey. With the market driving the values up to numbers that are in my opinion, out of line, it has ruined the entire RX-7 experience for me in many ways.

With higher values, it makes a guy less likely to go and drive the car whenever and for whatever and more likely to let it sit in a garage, rarely being driven because the car is now worth 5 times what it was 5 years ago. The point of owning these cars is to enjoy them, not to let them sit and rot away. There are a few people that have utterly ruined this car for new enthusiasts, as they are pricing their car at a stratospheric level and marking parts way up, simply to profit. People see this and they fall suit and now a regular guy can't afford to maintain and restore his RX-7. And in turn, there will be less and less of these cars on the road and more and more rotting away to nothing.

Look, in a way, I'm happy my cars are up in value, but the value curve is just out of line. A gradual increase would have been fine. It does somewhat deter me from driving my 80 LS and my 88 10AE more regularly. The cars are now near irreplaceable to a guy with a budget like mine. It's terrible that they are still not the reasonably affordable sports car they were intended to be.

VA RX7

I was waiting for a post just like this. Me nor any of my family never intended for these cars to be an investment, they were just cheap, awesome looking, reliable sports cars. We don't benefit from the rising values because we do not have any that we want to sell. The only good thing I can see about these cars getting more attention is a possible jump in replacement/aftermarket parts, but I haven't really seen that. I really hope there doesn't come a time where I would be scared to drive these cars in a spirited manner but I guess time will tell.

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

ive been playing with these for a long time too, i got my first one in 1993! back then it was just a car that was cool a few years ago, then they got cheap and people really didn't like them (the difference in reaction between the Rx7 and the Triumph Tr3 was HUGE 20 years ago). i'm a little bemused that the people that used to not like these cars at all, now think they are valuable classics.

the rarity of these has made it so that instead of switching Rx7's every couple of years, i'm kind of stuck with the ones i have. and the money means that if i sold one, it probably wouldn't get replaced (ironically i'd probably get another Tr3, prices of those haven't changed). these two things i'm not a fan of, but what can you do?

that being said the stuff up for auction is almost in a different league than what most of us have (including me) its all low mile, fully documented and really really nice cars. those Z's were better than showroom, i remember when the 280ZX was new, and i've never seen one that nice! camera still broke when i tried to take a picture of it though...

Seniorchief

Aftermarket is non-existent for first gens now, and there isn't any coming down the pike. Parts, if any are available, are now priced in the stratosphere. The same thing has happened to the 1959, 1960, 1958 Chevy Impalas, the 1974 Bronco, the 1965 Pontiac LeMans, the 1969 Plymouth Fury III and the 1966 whale tail VW that I put a 1600 dual port from a rolled Super beetle into ($600 for the bug, $200 for the motor.). Everything costs more now, and I will tell you I won't be ashamed to ask for what I decide to sell my Five Letter for. It's as close to a thirty-eight year-old "turn-key" RX7 as as I can make and will price it accordingly. Nothing stays the same and we all get priced-out of things that used to be fun an affordable but that's the marketplace today. My next two-seater will be based on what has aftermarket support not only now but in the future as it is now were all scrapping over the same parts still available, or being forced to out-bid someone else trying to buy it. When I retired from the military and moved back to the Midwest I picked up my 2000 Acura RL as my daily driver. So yes, it is my "blue-sky Dry roads" vehicle and spends a lot of time in my garage while I have put money into the RL, and upgrades to the home I bought. It doesn't mean I love it any less or don't enjoy it when I do take it out but after twenty-nine years I don't want to be the guy sitting in it when some clown blows through a stop light or sign looking at their phone which is the average day living in a city like I do. With the majority of vehicles on the road being SUV's or trucks sustaining a hit would be the end of my RX7 and I can tell you I would not handle well after the journey I've had with her.

j_tso

iTrader: (2)

Is it the same people? I thought it was baby boomers who looked down on them, and it was gen x and millenials with money that are collecting them now.

Regarding parts availability, if our cars really become collectible and people spend money restoring them, there will be demand for higher quality parts and Mazda may commission new parts like they have for the FD, FC, and MX-5. They'd be pricier though and people who are used to them being cheap cars may not bite.

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

its a fair point, i don't know, i just see the shift in attitude and think its funny. maybe i'm a little skeptical too?

one of the odd problems that Mazda has is that a lot of stuff has been available the whole time, you can't bring it back if it never left. they currently have 111 GSL-SE rotor housings and 20 sets of fenders... fenders are still 80's prices too

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

Rx-7's aren't experiencing any problems / issue's that other cars haven't also gone through. It's part of the cycle of life so to speak. While true that we don't enjoy the aftermarket support of OEM style replacement parts, many other makes also suffer the same fate, and the older the vehicle gets, the harder it is to find decent parts by picking through the bones of other abandon wrecks.

Luckily for us who still remain, these cars were insanely popular when new and they made a bunch of them, so while natural inflation has steadily driven prices up, we at least still have parts to find and go through. You just need to come to terms with how much your car means to you and what it takes to keep it going. This desire to re-live our youth is what drives us to keep our cars on the road, or find an old one to restore and bring back. That does not change, but the stockpile of available parts continues to shrink as more and more cars get parted out by those who want to capitalize on the old parts they have out in the shed, when they think they have suddenly turned into gold.

It's the price of admission. At least the higher prices help bring more parts out of the barn and kind of funnels them to those who are more serious about restoring these cars and preserving a few of them for future enthusiasts to continue to enjoy. It doesn't make it easier and yes, there will be some who drop out or gradually be left behind as values trend further upward. May not be ideal, but I guess it's better than not having them worth anything at all. Not as much fun owning something that has no value to others.