Is there a better looking Japanese car? (Mazda RX7)

Member Name: puntomatt

Product:	Mazda RX7
Date:	23/01/09 (46 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very, very fast. Unique engine. Nice driving position.

Disadvantages: GPM not MPG, can be expensive to maintain.

A few years ago I had a mate who had one of these so I had extensive passenger and some driver experience of this machine.

He had a beautiful UK spec RX-7 which he crashed in the first week of ownership - driving round a tight bend he lost control and it oversteered through a fence and down a ditch. After 8 months of extensive repairs he finally got it back in showroom condition :)

First off this car is a fine looking vehicle, one of the better Japanese sports cars. The cockpit is like fighter jet with everything pointing at the driver and with little movement required say for changing gear. Getting in this car is not recommended for people of limited movement, it's low and the seating position is more like a sleeping position as your legs just stick straight out in front lol

Needless to say, with that long engine bay being filled with 2 engines and 2 turbos it can get a bit warm down in the footwell.

Now, when I drove this car the first thing I noticed was the incredible rate it piled on speed. With the foot down, 100mph came faster than you can say "how fast is this to 100?...oh". It'll go all they way round to about 150mph and I can tell you at these speeds it's one comfortable car and seems planted however it will punish you if you wimp out. Sometimes it's better to keep the foot down on the accelerator than the brake, which I should mention are amazing...I'm sure the RX-7 held a record for shortest distance to stop for a production car due to the massive brakes and 4-pot (?) calipers on there.

At low speeds it's also very civilised, it goes exactly where you point it, when you point... however with sports suspension you may get a bit of a bumpy ride on our fine British roads.

Because of the rotary engine MPG is horrendous, rarely out of single figures. Every 50-60k the tips will wear out and need replaced which I believe is an engine rebuild, it can also drink oil. Parts can be very expensive too as they may need to be sourced from Japan. But like every car if you keep on top of servicing your car will be happier.

One downside of the rotary engine is it's lack of torque however this is combated by high revving, which means to get the most from the car it really needs a bit of lead foot. Having moved to the darkside of diesel recently and driving other similarly high revving vehicles (Civic Type R) I'd miss the instant kick of torque.

Summary: Very fast and satisfying car...if you have the cash.

Processing/Quality:
Reliability:
Driving comfort: