Rotary13B1

iTrader: (8)

Just cruising the ads locally and found this...

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http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb...682030288.html

Date: 2010-04-08, 6:43AM PDT
Reply to: sale-6xsg7-1682030288@craigslist.org

From 1979 to 1985, an obvious question was answered by Al Dooley when, as Pacific Avatar, he converted the first generation of RX-7 into convertibles. He had been working as a sales manager at a Mazda dealership, and one look at the new RX-7 in 1978 told him that a convertible would be a natural for the RX-7's clean shape and simple lines. Alter jigging and strengthening the body with framing under the floor pan, inside, and in the windshield posts, custom convertible tops were installed, Interestingly, the trunk lid of the 626 was found to be an almost ideal fit and had to be modified only slightly to be used on the conversions. Although a few convertibles were sold with standard mechanical equipment, most also had turbocharged engines, modified suspensions and brakes, and custom wheels
and wider tires.

A series of wide-body convertibles, with front tenders and rear quarter panels flared, were constructed following the appearance of a special for a magazine, including one Twin Turbocharged RX-7 that was reportedly, and undoubtedly, a Porsche Carrera eater. The conversion also got extra publicity when one appeared in the low budget film, "Smokey Bites the Dust."

Several prototype convertibles on the 2nd generation RX-7 were built, though the project terminated when Dooley learned of Mazda's plan to produce a convertible of its own. First-generation cars were converted as late as 1988 with the last going to a doctor in Baltimore, Maryland. Although many were sold in California, Florida was the biggest market for Pacific Avatar's convertible RX-7s. In all, Dooley reports that 126 conversions were performed. The cars were numbered sequentially with a data plate installed under the hood.

THIS CAR STANDS OUT FROM THE REST BECAUSE OF THE FENDER VENTS AND HOOD . IT'S FULLY LOADED MINES A FEW OPTIONS BECAUSE ITS NOW A CONVERTIBLE . IT HAS 7850 ORIGANAL MILES ON IT . IT HAS A ALPINE CASSETTE DECK , 2 ALPINE AMPS , 6 SPEAKERS AND A 8' BAZOOKA TUBE . WEBS 3 PIECE WHEELS , NADI GOLD PLATED AND SIGNED STEERING WHEEL , THE CAR NEEDS A FEW THINGS TO BE MINT BUT IS A AWSOME CAR TO HAVE . NEEDS A NEW TOP DO TO FADE AND DRY ROTTED WINDOWS AND HAS SOME SCRATCHES ON THE RIGHT SIDE FENDER AND QUARTER . I WAS GOING TO FIX EVERYTHING BUT NO TIME AND THEN THE VALUE WILL GO UP BUT IF U DO IT YOUR SELF YOU COULD HAVE A NICE SUMMER RIDE AND A NICE INVESTMENT FOR RESALE LATER . HAVE MORE PICTURES ON REQUEST . IM TAKEN RESONABLE CASH OFFERS . THIS CAR IS WORTH SOME MONEY !




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EvilWankel

iTrader: (2)

sweet!

rotarydude

iTrader: (2)

isn't this Cliffh's avatar? nope his is red but I think this is the one that they used for pictures in the mazda buyers guide

Jeezus

iTrader: (4)

I think I saw that a few times on ebay a while back. Asked an outrageous price.

EDIT: Read the ad, needs a new top. Good luck finding one, I heard they used
a Mercedes top from some knowledgeable folks. Also, is it me or does the
center surround look to be wood?

rotarydude

iTrader: (2)

for the "unknowledgeable" folks(BTW i only have enough knowledge to get in trouble which is why my ACUs, army uniform, is flame retardant) the tops were custom made "similar" to that of a mercedes. Getting one made is not that hard just money, esp if you have the original to work as a pattern I am having 2 made at the same time for my avatar, just the second won't have the windows installed until needed. The center surround isn't wood but it is laminated and that is really a very crappy job... well it wasn't originally but it wasn't made to last. The last piece people need to know about the avatars. Although the cars were beautifully built originally they were never designed to last long term.

Here are some problems I have found on mine, it is an 83 model with very low miles.

- Rear deck around the top and deck lid has between an 1/8 and an 1/4 (yes I said a 1/4) inch of mud to sculpt the transition.
- Frame re-inforcement was not undercoated prior to assembly lots of surface rust
- Interior was very good for the time but now is trash, originality can be replicated in most personal garages but still won't last.
- Most had completely custom radio sets that don't exsist anymore anywhere but this butchered much wiring in the dash
- Many have 12A Turbo Arkay draw-through setups, which are impossible to find (BTW anyone got parts or a setup for sale this is holding me back from getting mine on the road)
- For the widebody cars... those kits haven't been available for years..... the good news is Mariah makes one that will work just it isn't always the original style.
- Interior colors were changed many times and dashes and other pieces were just painted now they are peeling.
- Exterior colors were changed and when sprayed under the hood it wasn't done well, so you have tons of peeling paint.

In my case we found that the best option was to start over and take the car to bare metal. Pay a large amount to have the custom work on the deck redone better than original and do the same for the paint and interior. It will look the same but will not be the same it will be better than original.

I hope that this helps and I am sure that cliffh who knows much much more than I do will vouch for most of what I am saying.

Oneiros

Interesting. We had a similar deal down here, where a convertible company made a bunch of first gen RX7s into soft tops. Don't think any of them had anything fancy like turbos, just the soft roof and a few other body mods..

orion84gsl

iTrader: (5)

^ Very nice. the first gen definitely should have had a factory vert model.

challer2000

Yes I do remember this on ebay, it was on there about three or four times. I think it was in the ballpark of 25k+