Any blog article which starts with this is worth reading!


The Original Mazda RX-7 Is A Goddamn Masterpiece for the full article. Happy reading, and great to see our cars still garner a lot of attention from enthusiasts,

 

Very nice, thanks for posting LD!

 

So he loved it INSPITE of the engine?
Civilian.
Some goofy observations, but each to his own. I guess its not a bad thing that not everybody "gets" it. So much more the awe when people smile and try to figure out what it is. We will just keep it our little secret eh?

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Interesting read. He likes it, but he doesn't. I liked the old illustrations and pictures. I found this interior shot especially interesting. Maybe its just some applied affect to the picture, but I don't think I've ever saw this particular color / shade of interior before, even on a JDM car.

 

those door panels show up in the pic like how my 83 gsl leather/vinyl is. kinda cloudy, not one single color but rather "distressed" like bomber leathers ( insert joke here)

 

I'm not all that up on the details of something as modern as an FB, but that's an SA interior shot. Black, Wine, the Purplish-Red/Brn and 2 tone Brown are the only SA interior colors I'm familure with. This looks like wine with some kind of "dapple cammo" accent on the door pannels.

 

Yeah, the author seems to have some attraction to them as he talks about an -SE that was near his house growing up that he took an instant liking toward, and he even knows the disk brake and LSD setup, so he's knowledgeable.

I think it's interesting that the RX-Vision announcement by Mazda has created a lot of buzz around rotary cars in general, and the 1st Gen RX-7's definitely have a lot of followers given that so many were made. Nearly everyone I talk to when I'm out getting gas or driving around either had one, or knows someone who did back in the 80's. That's part of the allure is seeing these cars still on the road and sounding wonderful. Drove mine into work today, and still brings a smile to my face,

 

"The rotary design traces its way back to Felix Wankel, who was a super ****, and they require specialty parts and expertise."

Probably one of the most unnecessary sentences ever to appear in an article about cars.

 

It's also a SA exterior shot. Surprised no one has mentioned that.

 

Thanks Longduck, that was a fun article to read. Reading the comments, there's a bunch of guys missing their rx7s. We are so lucky to have stayed with this car and keep them around to show off.
I just bought an 84 gsl that is so close to new that it scary. I love these cars.

 

I only looked at the pictures the first time I looked at the article.

So I just got a chance to read it, and I must say, this is an interesting narrative from someone who is most likely not as old as the cars he's talking about.

"Go to any autocross, rallycross, or budget road racing event, though, and you’ll still reliably find these Mazda sports cars. Simply follow your ears to the most unbelievably loud wail coming from the slowest car on the course and there one will be, muffler broken, rotary engine bleating away."

Interesting observation. That'd be us.

But I still like the photos better.



Nice work Raphael Orlove!

 

neat article. made me wonder if he'd ever driven one though... the one thing i do agree with is that i do like the SA/FB as a car, its not just the engine, although i like that too.

i can relate somewhat, i rode my bike past a yellow Tr3 from kindergarten to high school...

 

This dude didn't write one positive thing about the car without coming back around and writing something negative.

 

Not really an article worthy of Jalopnik's usual level of automotive writing.

Because Mazda is the underdog car manufacturer, small, Hiroshima, rotary flagbearer, the Sa/Fb had to be a parts bin car. It's obvious the writer never drove one because the car is somehow much more than the sum of its pedestrian parts. What a disappointing and frankly pointless story riding the coattails of the RX Vision hoopla. Read at your own peril!

 

This one written exactly last year is a bit better:Car Reliability is a Myth

 

all great port war sports cars are parts bin cars, its a classic formula. i've had a bunch of the British and Italian competition to the Rx7 over the years and....

the MGB, basically the body/chassis/suspension was designed for the MGB. the B series engine was designed for cars. the result is nice, but bland, the rubber bumper ones are soggy*

the Triumph Tr2/3, the body and frame are unique, but everything else is right out of the parts bin. the engine has roots in a tractor. results are great, its the best car i have ever driven. it completely lacks anything to distract you from the driving experience, but is not uncomfortable.

SA/FB, also great, as we know. the family tree branched right at the SA, so while the GLC and Rx3 are the same under the skin, the Rx7 is just similar, it doesn't literally share that many parts with the Rx3/GLC. engine obviously has better roots than the tractor engine. how could you go wrong. stock SA is a really fun car to drive, although its uniquely disco.

honorable mention is the NA miata, which is the follow up to the 1st gen in a lot of ways. the miata, mechanically, and intentionally, right out of the parts bin. its basically a RWD 323, it shares just about everything, engine, brakes, it uses the FB's transmission, and HVAC. the engine was designed to be in a car, so it lacks that.

just to be divisive, i should point out that the FC and FD were purpose built, and not as good as the SA...

*i just sold a rubber bumper MGB, its soggy, but that makes it perfect for 2015 traffic, 70hp/2300lbs is about the right power to weight in 2015, you can actually drive the car somewhat. the 230hp Rx8 is way too fast to actually use any of its potential

 

Remember that being controversial sells more ad clicks than truth or simplicity. The photos provided by Mazda make the article, and as a recently written piece, I thought it deserved mention amongst purists here.

 

i find it's best to take things like this with a grain of salt. the authors that write these things don't necessarily write based on what they know, whether that is through experience or good research - and that's just a general statement, nothing directed particularly at this guy. for me, whether they love it or hate it, i'm just glad to see that people still make the time to write about one of the coolest cars ever made.

 

I think Raphael Orlove is a hack, his writing is not very clear or well informed. He's basically a
troll on Jalopnik IMHO.

 

I didn't even read it. Sounds like I'm not missing anything useful.

 

Agreed, the piece looks nice at first glance but on closer inspection it turns out to be a very heavily plagiarized cut and paste job by an internet troll.

Still, the title and pictures make it worthwhile, just don't look too closely.