imo.. im probably in the minority but i see the value in driving it than watching it sit in my garage and wait for it to appreciate..
enjoying the car at this point exceeds any monetary gains to be had by storing it and saving the mileage ... the dollar growth is just too slow for me..
the 2007 porsche turbo i should have bought a few years ago went up in value MORE than the fd in the last decade...
what do i know.. just put 1600 miles on the cym last week.. folks thought i was nuts for "devaluing" it..

 

I don't know, slogging down the freeway in rush hour traffic, or running to the local Piggly Wiggly for another bottle of bourbon just seems a waste of good premix.

 

you shouldnt make excuses not to drive the car.... you should be making excuses to drive the car
take the road less traveled.. take the long route...

 

^youre both right, really Its all your own perspective. I see it as this, I tend to only drive the car when I can properly enjoy it. Sunday cruise, an afternoon drive up to the hills in the country, a morning at cars and coffee. I don't get much enjoyment out of it sitting in traffic on the way to work, or making errand runs. However there are those odd days that you wake up, and decide to use it for the commute for the hell of it.

Some may want to lock the thing away in a sealed environment, and treat it as a piece of art. They aren't wrong. Some of you crazy guys drive and enjoy the car every day as a driver, that isn't wrong either.

The only thing that I see being wrong, is buying a car for the sole purpose of an investment, when there's so many other better investments you could make that don't have the risks of being a finicky old sports car.

 

The FD prices have just started to move. That said I'm with you 100 percent. However if nice ones become 50k cars my daily driving days are over. I'd say really nice ones or those that are desirable with under 20k miles have hit the 40k mark right now so I could definitely see them at 50k in 2019 or right back to 30 hehe, you never know.

 

You are definitely not alone. I said this many times in the past: I bought this car for myself, to drive and enjoy for MYSELF. I didn't get it to serve as a storage facility in order to keep it pristine for the next guy.

 

Seems to me like there is a gap here from 15k to 25k. I would suspect my car falls in this category between fair and really good.

PSA... My car is not for sale but everything has a price....

Anyway - Fritz how would you price this car?

1993 SSM Touring - Manual with sunroof.
Very clean and sorted car but paint is not all original - no accidents other than a small scrape on rear bumper
65k miles
Oil pan leaks (I have a brace but have yet to install)
A/C works but does not blow as hard as i would like.

Red interior
Interior has pretty much been redone with the seats recovered, new carpets, all plastics except the door upgraded to 94 plastics.
99 spec cluster that has been converted to miles from km

Exterior is stockish with Tein flex Z coil overs and Enkei RP03 wheels, spec 99 tails

Engine rebuilt 6k miles ago with new bearings, gaskets, Rotary Aviation classic seals and nice housing/irons
Running Adaptronic ECU
Currently Non Seq setup on stock twins with MAC solenoid controlling boost at 10 PSI

Other things to note
94 rear subframeEvery bushing replaced in suspension Including pillow bushings 6k miles ago
Rewrapped wiring harness
Aftermarket downpipe and full exhaust (HKSCarbon)
Pettit intake
Supra fuel pump
New fuel filter
IRP 140 amp alternator
Fast acting AIT sensor


I don't think I would sell it for anything less than 20k.
Based on your analysis where would you classify this car?
Do we need something between that 15 - 25k gap in price you mentioned above?

 

^^You left out one of the biggest details. Milage

 

Thanks I updated it right after I posted. 65k

 

I spy an non-original cluster (tach needle point down to 0 at 6 o'clock). Unless there is a nice paper trail to prove mileage, its taken with a grain of salt.

 

^^ Agreed. That's the problem when swapping out speedo's.

 

i believe in the years to come that there will be more folks willing to forego originality.. low mileage and mothballed cars for a well built one.. and command premium..
recent generations have been the ones fueling this.. saw very little in the form of OEM at local shows and even the larger ones like SEMA.. scales may tip in the next decade

 

Yep!

It's already happening. Adam sold his modded well kept FD for 35k (had 70k plus miles). I bought a 94 touring with some mods that had 47k miles for 27k. Sold a 94 touring with 16k miles that was mint for 30k. Monetarily I made the wrong decision but for the sake of enjoying the car I definitely made the right decision. I'm 100 percent about the car not the mileage/value and I think most of the other true enthusiast or people who drive these cars think the same way.

PS Just bought back my SSM base light weight with 55k miles because it's an incredibly well setup FD and those are harder to find than nice low mileage ones LOL

 

I can see 2 camps of buyers developing for RX7 in the next few years . One end are the car collectors that appreciate super low mileage ones (garage queen) and will continue to put up big $$$ for them. The other end are enthusiasts that appreciate a strong well running driver with mods that improve the reliability and drivability without sacrificing originality (resto-mod). I am definitely in the "resto-mod" crowd as I see zero value in buying a garage queen.

 

20k and it would sell in days. 25k months to years but it would eventually sell

 

Interesting to see the options and conditions sort themselves out from the top down. How's the FD/BTC exchange today?

 

Thanks Fritz. Kinda what ideas thinking. Thanks for the reply!

 

Just a point of reference: I purchased a 1 owner 94 touring, bone stock, lady owned, original paint, AUTO, 87k miles for $15,300 off of ebay a month ago. The car drives perfectly without even a rattle and everything works basically as new. Black with TAN interior (one of my preferred combos). Leather is softer than on my 2017 Porsche TS. The carpet looks new, nothing broken, etc. Even the plastic is mint. I didn't care about the auto as it's already on it's way to the shop for a major build. I only cared about the options, color, and condition. I wasn't looking for a future collectible. I may have overpaid a bit based on the info in this thread due to the auto, but I was willing to pay a premium for the unmolested condition and full-history.

 

Interesting things are going on in the market at this time. It seems the majority of nice FDs currently listed are being listed by dealers at stupid prices or 40k and up. Also several by the same dealer.

Here's a great example that could indicate where the value currently is: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1994-Mazda-RX-7-Turbo/152872765771?hash=item2397ed494b:g:QZoAAOSwn9VaYig 3&vxp=mtr

I would not be surprised if the reserve is over 45k. I suspect the auction will end at about 37k. At this time the dealer doesn't even know what an r2 is. However with nice pics, compression test, pressure test etc... I think this could really be a 40k fd, which is impressive. Personally I think the values have gone flat and will stay there for a bit. Or in other words getting 40k for any FD is still going to be a challenge but I do believe this particular one because of the mileage, color, year etc... might actually be the 1st stockish FD I witness sell for 40k or more. Hopefully it's as clean as it looks and isn't a barn find.

Again this is likely a good example to attach current value to (and adj the value of your car up or down based on miles, color, model, year etc..) if it actually sells.

 

An "R2" with tan leather seats?

P

 

And another clueless dealer. At least the price is somewhat in line.......hehe: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1995-Mazda-...JaXvVt&vxp=mtr

 

I've probably ruined the value of mine by permanently shaving the sunroof and rear wiper, and figures they'd go up in price before I had enough room for two. I'd LOVE to have a second one, and be able to have a street and track car.

 

Hm... CW '94, tan leather, metal sunroof... hm. (See sig below... many miles, but brand-new engine, turbos, wiring, etc, etc. I have no idea where that puts our car!!)

 

And sunroof lol...

 

Not really, the wiper delete and sunroof delete increase the value of your car as do all the mods. I'd seriously consider giving you 35k plus. Your car is in a class by itself.

Not to mention the R2 came in 3 colors blah blah blah. I just don't get the current mentality of there's an rx7 listed for 40k so I guess mine is worth 40k.