1979-85 Mazda RX-7

by Travis Geny

First-year model with standard wheels.

In 1979 Mazda jumped into the two-seat sports car market with the basic, no-frills, rotary-powered RX-7. The car was an instant winner, and Road & Track referred to it as “a major breakthrough for the enthusiast.” Its primary competition, the once lean and mean Datsun 240Z of the early '70s, had become the 280ZX, an overweight boulevard cruiser. Mazda had been using the Wankel rotary engine in its cars since the late 60s, but problems with poor fuel economy and high emissions limited its appeal. However, the type 12A rotary engine used in the RX-7 underwent a host of improvements that both boosted horsepower to 100, improved fuel economy to 20 mpg and increased the lengevity of the seals of the rotors. 0-60 times of 9.2 seconds were recorded, along with a 122 mph top speed—very respectable performance for the base price of $6,395. In 1984 the top-end GSL-SE model received the 13B rotary, a 1308-cc engine that produced the 135 bhp and 133 lb/ft of...