RX-7, a Fun and Fast Car

RX-7, A Fun and Fast Car

The Best Car I Ever Owned

Back when I was in college I purchased a used white 1980 RX-7 which was in mint condition. I purchased the car for the ridiculous price of only $800 from a very wealthy family who really didn’t care how much they got from what they probably considered an eyesore.

The car didn’t have a single dent or scratch on it. It had a kick ass A/C unit that blew freezing air and it had a nice aftermarket stereo and factory mag wheels.

The advert for the car simply said “1980 RX-7 Best Offer”. I set out with $1,500 in my pocket and soon came upon a large estate that even in the late eighties was worth around 4-5 million dollars. I knocked on the door and a girl around my age said she was selling the car and she just wanted to get enough to pay for food for her horse for a month from the sale of the car. She said the bill for her horse was around $800 a month including grooming.

I drove the car around her family’s estate, floored it, slammed on the brakes, and then peeled off eight one hundred dollar bills out of my wallet, and I promptly had a title and a signed bill of sale for a mint little sports car.

Unfortunately I never can leave well enough alone and after a few months I turned the RX-7 into a fire breathing monster. I ordered headers and a 3 inch exhaust for it, took off all the pollution devices, and installed a ported and polished racing motor. Soon I was drag racing it around NYC piling up broken parts and points on my drivers license. Eventually I totaled the car on the Henry Hudson Parkway in New York and sold off the parts.

Looking back however I realized the best time I had with the car was when I had just bought it and it was the way it came from the factory. I drove it during my eighteenth summer and just enjoyed having a simple reliable sports car. Some days I still go on eBay and see if there is a clean first generation RX-7 near me for sale. If I do find another RX-7, I promise myself I will leave it stock and just enjoy the simplicity of it. It really is a finely engineered and fun to drive little car.

Georg Monssen