Don,
As I recall you flew to Japan and had some input on the handling of the
RX7. I would love to publish an article about that.
What do you say ?
Paul
As far as me having any input into the handling of the RX-7, it's news to
me.
Here's what I can tell you:
Early in '79, it must have been, I took a job at the PR agency in LA that
had the Mazda account. Road Test magazine, where I had been working for
about three years, had gone belly-up, I had a wife and kids and a
mortgage and
needed a job so there I was, trying (without success, as it turned out) to
fake being a PR guy. This was just before the first RX-7 was introduced to
the press or anyone.
Since I was the resident "car expert" in the agency they sent me to Japan
to set up and arrange for the upcoming press trip on the car. This was
sometime in January, as I remember, maybe February. I got
there alone, didn't
speak a word of Japanese. Next day we went out to the proving grounds at
Miyoshi -- an hour or more in those days from Hiroshima -- and saw the car.
I was the first American ever to see and drive an RX-7, and the second
non-Japanese- the first being Paul Frere, whom Mazda had hired to come over
slightly before that and give them some feedback. I have no idea what that
feedback was.
Over the course of a couple days at the proving ground I sort of directed
the photography that eventually showed up on the cover and inside Car and
Driver, and also managed some of the art for some other magazines -- I think
for Motor Trend, as well. I drove the thing fairly extensively and
remember beating the factory guy's time for a standing
quarter-mile. Then we had
a couple days in the offices at Hiroshima, where we worked out details of
the press trip -- like what the official press gift should be, what should
be on the dinner menu, and so forth. I was basically helping figure out
the itinerary, meals and take-home swag for Sherman, Dinkel and those guys.
I hope they liked it.
I remember being mightily impressed with the thing -- remember, for the
time frame, it was quite a piece of work.
But I had no input with anything on that car.
Sorry I can't help you, but I'm honored that you ask.
Over and out --
Don Fuller
I still have my 1980 RX-7 Special Edition that I bought in NH in the
summer of 1980. I heard that the "Special Edition" was a marketing
test for option levels that eventually became the GSL. It had sun
roof, gold painted aluminum wheels (hard to believe that aluminum
wheels were optional back then, base car had steel wheels!), leather,
stereo, air conditioning, pin stripes etc. It has gone 160,000 miles
with no real troubles other than the air conditioner which is very
difficult and expensive to repair these days since the right
refrigerant is hard to get. Other than that it has been trouble free
other than normal wear items like brakes, clutch, shocks carb floats
and tires. And it still has the original raised white letter spare
Bridgestone tire in the well in the back.
As for the handling, it is the most tail happy street car I have ever
encountered, it loves to oversteer! Not necessarily a bad thing if
you know how to drive but rather unusual for a car sold to the
public. It is even easier to bring the tail around than my old pro-rally car!
SD
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