I have just paid a deposit for a tatty 1982 project. the 1st gen cars are almost non existent over here. There are very very few runners surviving and if they are runners they are almost certainly running on a piston engine while the Rotary would have been junked a while ago.
The car I have just reserved is also running on a 4 pot Mazda engine. The body has some rust in places and the roof is a mess. The paint is awful and the sun roof has been "enlarged"
. My plan is to return it to its Rotary glory and clean up the body. The interior too has some missing switches and the right lower part of the dash is broken. I know this must sound like a horror story to many of your ears but having gone through the restoration process with 3 Alfa Romeo coupes I am convinced that there is potential here. If I were to ignore the rust spots and the botched roof the rest of the body is straight despite the blistering joke paint.
I would need all the help I could get because I am an absolute novice when it comes to RXs. I would like to know the best places to get an engine, bumpers, a roof panel if possible and some trim bits. Oh and the seats don't look original too. I would also like to buy a book on the first gen and like to know what the exact spec of this car should be. All cars that came to Sri Lanka were JDMs I am quite certain, as was the practice then.
Once brought back on to the road this should be the only rotary powered 1st gen RX7 on our roads. (Import of used cars are not allowed).
I have always had a soft spot for all gens of the RX7 but never actually gone for one until today! I have been busy with restoring my three classic Alfa Romeo coupes. My parents first car was a Mazda 808 and we have owned several Mazdas between us. And so I have a bond with the brand.
