Year of the Rotary?

1985 Mazda RX-7 GSL-SE

S/N JM1FB3322F0899133. 4,800 miles. “1.3-L 13B rotary, 5-speed manual transmission, limited-slip differential, Royal Maroon Metallic paint, gray cloth upholstery, 14-inch alloy wheels, removable glass sunroof, factory cassette stereo with graphic equalizer, cruise control, A/C, power accessories.” Condition: 1. SOLD AT $35,700. Bring a Trailer, 3/21/24.

This might be the year for the first-generation RX-7. In the past few months, four first-gens have sold for over $20k. (The highest was an 860-mile car at $44k.) Is this the new normal? Maybe. For the past few years, most first-gens have sold in the $8k–$20k range. With nearly half a million built, the RX-7 will never be rare, but few have survived. Similar to other Japanese cars from the era, many were modified. Contributing to the growing scarcity of nice RX-7s, rotary engines don’t do well sitting in storage for extended periods. The apex seals dry up, making the first startup destructive if not lubricated with ATF beforehand. Fortunately, our subject car has a great video showing it has a strong-running engine. Other details like the original window sticker and paperwork made this a desirable survivor. A professional detail might have added a few grand to the price, but this car was still well sold.

1993 Autozam AZ-1

S/N PG6SA103142. 63k km (39k miles). “Turbocharged 657-cc inline-3, 5-speed manual transaxle, silver 13-inch, eight-spoke wheels, ‘Gullwing’ doors, A/C, Kenwood CD stereo, MOMO steering wheel, HKS boost pressure gauge.” Condition: 1-. SOLD AT $18,957. Bring a Trailer, 3/26/24.

Back in 2019, the SCM Autozam became one of the highest-selling examples here in the U.S. when it brought $20k on Bring a Trailer. Our car earned strong money then, partially due to a full refresh of the engine after it blew a head gasket on the Caravan to Concorso drive down the coast for Monterey Car Week. Over the past five years, more AZ-1s have been imported, and the top of the market is now around $30k. Mazdaspeed versions and ones with aftermarket body kits tend to sell on the higher end, but sometimes that doesn’t even matter. I think for most bidders it comes down to availability and appearance. Our subject car has been fully repainted from the original Classic Red and it also contains some ’90s-era tuner parts, such as GAB struts, the boost gauge, and the steering wheel. A market-correct sale.

1995 Nissan Cima Hearse

S/N FGNY32301382. 20k kilometers, (12k miles). “4.1-L V8, AWD, 4-speed automatic transmission, 15-inch wheels, fog lights, wood-look interior trim, cloth upholstery, power-adjustable seats, memory function for the driver, A/C, cassette player, CD player, cruise control.” Condition: 1. SOLD AT $5,852. Cars & Bids, 2/20/24.

This is a traditional “reikyusha,” Japanese for hearse. This specific style is called a “miyagata,” or “shrine-type,” which dates back to sometime before the 1940s. The wood is all handcrafted, with the design unique to the requests of the customer, and typically modeled after the architectural stylings of both Shinto and Buddhist religions. Originally, Western-built cars were used, since Japanese cars of the era weren’t powerful enough to carry all the additional weight. A little over a decade ago, Japan moved away from this style and the more-traditional Western-style hearses we are more familiar with are now used. In the past, there were over 1,000 of these in operation, which accounted for over 70% of all hearses in the country. These included both Japanese luxury-car conversions and American cars, such as Lincoln Town Cars. Older hearses like this in Japan sell between $10k–$20k and considering their size and weight, shipping probably cost at least $2k. So I have to ask, who is the market for one of these? I think we can understand why bidding didn’t take off here. Well bought, and the new owner will certainly stand out at Professional Car Society events. ©