Working in the industry, I witnessed the immediate disappearance of older cars and it directly corresponds with the "cash for clunkers" program.

I REALLY hated that program. So many beautiful cars where destroyed by careless and vile people wanting a government payday.

 

somewhat i suppose, the other end of it is the cost of fuel. granted right now it is still rather low but at nearly $4 a gallon when it rises and with how much fuel the rotary cars use, they weren't really destined to keep up with the trend.

i mean you can buy a car now that gets 50mpg without looking very hard, that's at the very least twice as efficient as most of the 7's on the road. when you can save $100 to $200+ a month in gas alone, it's a surprise it didn't take hold sooner.

my 7 sits in the carport, i drive it every once in a while but certainly not on a daily basis unless i am forced to with issues in my other car. i get around 65mpg in town with my daily driver(in the 7 it would probably be around 10mpg...) but i still wouldn't give up the 7, i just wanted to have a way to spend more money on the important things and not feel trapped at my house by the cost of driving.

lets put it this way:

that 4000 mile trip i just took i averaged 70mpg over 4000 miles which is 57.14 gallons of fuel, at an average price of $2.59 which is a total of $148 in gas for the whole trip

if i drove the 7 strictly on the highway it averages 23.5mpg(which is better than about 97% of the FCs out there), over 4000 miles that would be 170.21 gallons and premium i might add which is about $2.79 per gallon which would put the cost of fuel at a measely $475.

it's a big difference once you put it on paper, and i assume most people are realizing it as well. you still see them out at meets, and i still randomly drive by a house here and there that has a pile of rotary cars, so they are surviving in some form. but this isn't just something with RX7's, it is all older cars.

the huge rotary car shows like sevenstock will always stay strong and give you an idea of how many are out there. hell, it may even grow larger, giving people a reason to get their cars out again as they don't get driven as much anymore. personally it doesn't bother me not seeing many FCs on the road anymore, it makes me feel that much more unique when i take mine out.

 

Yeah, I get soooo many stares in my mint gxl. I only take it out when its sunny on a Friday or weekend cruising. I do not know why anyone bothers using these for daily driving anymore. Do you see anyone daily driving an 67-88 camaro? You see them getting restored and brought to car shows to remember the uniqueness and or flat out track cars.

This is going to happen to the FC to. Maybe not as the current millennial interest involves... (at 28 I do not understand 90% of my age group) whatever the **** else but cars.

 

It's still a fine driving car with practical room and relatively easy maintenance.
One of the nicer highway cars I've ever owned.
Cheap to register and insure.
Right at the outside edge of the last generation of (mostly) "mechanical" cars, before computers took over every little function.

There are a few reasons for ya.

 

These are the reasons I tell people. enough space that is is "versatile" enough for daily usage.
Cheap, and "reliable" in NA form.
Has nearly all the modern doo-dads of the 2000s and is simple enough to repair on your own.

My only concern I've had of late is the lack of safety devices.

 

the same could be said of my honda insight, except it gets about 10 times the gas mileage.

the main difference is people look at you with disdain in the insight. people look at you curiously or even happily in the RX7.

 

Prior to this century all my vehicles were either motorcycles or British sportscars whose main safety feature was "Hope I get thrown free and land on something soft!".
(the first happened frequently, the second, not so much...)

In an age when Minis are the size of PT Cruzers and every shambling mumblewit drives a 4000lb. SUV, what vehicle- short of a Hummer, perhaps- can be considered "safe"?

 

as far as performance cars go fuel economy is not THAT bad, crap my daily drivers get between 10-16mpg anyhow

I wouldnt factor fuel economy into the equation a light footed properly running NA FC can average 18-20mpg and easily get 22+ on the highway

 

i guess it really depends on what you do with the car, i simply can't afford to do the things with the FC that i can with many other more efficient cars. well ok i can but why? sure i enjoy the car more but it's also a pain in my *** as well, and i get tired of watching the money burn out of my wallet faster.

daily driving the FC i would put 15 gallons in a week. my current daily driver i put in 15 gallons every 5 weeks.

at the end of the year that translates into thousands of dollars, 2-3 years and ive spent as much extra on fuel as the car is worth.



by NOT driving my FC everyday anymore i estimate i save over $2000 a year in gas. know how much i paid for my new daily driver? about the same as i save in a year on gas.

 

you must drive a boring *** car lyger

 

it is pretty boring, lol. but it also gives me a reason to enjoy driving the rx7 more when i do.

 

or, mk4 jetta 2.0 8v. My current DD and love it to bits. Beat the snot ******* **** out of it and it just takes it at over 30mpg driving like a dick at all times. A bit of suspension work and it has put many "faster" cars to shame in my favorite road home numerous times.

I blow the engine? oh shucky darn, $500 at the j-yard and an afternoon to put it in. Tranny? good luck destroying an 02J 5 speed, and if you do? you earned it. Yet, less then $500 at the j-yard for that to.

GLS model to be more specific. Power everything and heated seats. Which in MN is a nice thing come winter. Paired with my spare set of wheels/tires wrapped in blizzax, I have put a few suvs in the ditch trying to follow me.

It is ironic, how a car with no traction control and as far as I am concerned a one wheel peel front axel, mated with a five speed manual, poops on trucks and suvs in the snow up here. Sure, the snow tires help a tad, but they do not stop you any faster. nor does 4wd.

I digress, and am straying way off topic to this thread. we should start a "best DD" thread here.

 

the new generation of kids don't see the appeal in the exterior so don't want to learn about them also people think there too unreliable but personally I think there one of the greatest cars ever made in the 80s

 

Back to the original question... I don't think it's dead just a little more obscure. The fad from the initial d is gone and the focus is back on the FD. I too live near St. Louis, but know of at least 4 or 5 FCs near me that I can think of real quick.

join the face book page it's where a lot of us are. They just had a cruse too. STL RX Club

I love my 87 T2 and even love reversing all the crap that the kid that had it befor me did. He really didn't know what he had and I think he let it go just because he got in over his head.
I have to admit I am one of the part guys. I got a no title 88 to put my 87 back together.

 

Definitely has died down. But so has everything else besides an ae86. Why? I think because Mazda hasn't done anything in a while for the rx chassis. Once the new 7 comes out, I am sure it will gain more popularity.

 

read an article today about the honda s660 today that sold out in japan already. most buyers are over 30. the kind of people the grew around this era or foreign win. younger people are not interested any more. We need another initial D, or something car racing to get popular to get the kiddies involved

 

But, I remember before Initial D. I guess it makes me wonder, did drifting make fc's popular? I think Initial D was a nice piece of support along with drifting.

With out drifting, would any one care much for fc's?

 

I loosely want to say Fast and furious (oh god why) helped a tad bring 80s-90s jap cars onto the street. But, During high school, I was in a small town that only had bro trucks and tractors. So, I can't say I remember the late 90's scene nor the early 2000's. Only the aftermath.

 

This is my first post after finally getting my FC on the road after over 2 years of sitting in storage, after I purchased it off the previous owner. In my neighbor hood, I've seen an FB, FC and FD. I've caught a couple stares driving around San Francisco, but I've yet to make it to any meets.

My FC is a daily driver, but since I use public transportation a lot, it stays parked most of the time. I went to Sacramento and met another FC owner, and he says FC's are rare to see on the road.

I don't think it's dead, it's just the diehards keep it alive. And I'm happy to finally have my FC running.

 

i will tell ya that the business side of the FC work i have had turned from 90% of my business to almost nonexistent.

i can't even find work on any rotary cars to try to put food on the table anymore. the RX8 work ramped up a lot in the last few years but even those jobs are stagnating in amount fairly quickly due to the fact that the value of the 8's is falling like a rock.

it is partly in fact that the rotary engine is quickly falling behind the times and has no possible way to catch up even through technological advances. the inherent problems with the engine do not help its cause either.


rotaries are turning into DIYer cars, stored hidden away in garages, taken out on special occasions as reminders of the uniqueness and differences of the car. while my shop work has turned to nothing my parts sales continue to climb to reflect that people just don't want to pay shops anymore, add in the fact that so many dickholes that wanted to start running a rotary shop drove away half the possible clients with shitty workmanship and service... well i'm not threatening anymore. i've pretty much given up on the business and i'm selling it off one part at a time, any engine rebuilds i get i just consider hobby jobs as i did so many years ago. i'm fine with it now, it's actually what i have reserved of myself and want even though i will still do the odd rebuilds and continue to recondition parts to sell and keep the cars on the road.

7-8 years ago i had waiting lists of 3-6 months or more for engines. now i can't even discount them enough to make much profit with no waiting list, even with delivery to your door in the continental US. i've built maybe 6 engines in the last 2 years versus 50 a year at its peak. many shops i knew simply do not even rebuild engines anymore, some were rather large names too at one point.

life is too short to spend 60 hours a week of your life making minimum wage for a dying business.

is the rotary dying though? no, i don't think it ever will fade away. people are just taking it on themselves to keep them alive, but i have a feeling the shops will continue to fold over on themselves as the quantity of shop builds disappear from people's budgets.

 

i don't think it is either. i sold an MGB the other week. the guy who bought it, is British, mid 30's, software programmer. when he found out i had Rx7's, he almost was more interested in them than the MG!

there is just something about the Rx7, its just cool.

 

Definitely not dead. There are a ton in the mid atlantic.

 

I hope its not dead, I finally just picked up another FC after years of looking. I see the forums died down a lot though, that's kind of a bummer.

 

We are the FC Rx-7 scene. And that's fine with me.
On a side note, I sold an 88 AE with 8K miles a few years ago and I regret it. I've even thought about and tried selling my GTUs(32K miles) and got hammered for what I was asking for it so I decided to keep it since it is the best driving rx7 I have. Even better than my PEP 95 fd with 16K miles.

 

The scene is still alive, it takes one or a group of enthusiasts to do something cool with the culture, expose it and create a buzz. I'll say social media has diminished attendance in forums, reducing members to lurking classifieds and browsing pics.

The FC will remain an awesome car, those who maintain it and tastefully build one for the street will always attract the attention it deserves.