As the day wore on, and my duties track-side came to a close, I was afforded more time to spend wandering around the sea of RX-7’s on the other side of the grandstands.

As the day wore on, and my duties track-side came to a close, I was afforded more time to spend wandering around the sea of RX-7’s on the other side of the grandstands.
Rotary Spirit was created in 2018 in an attempt to host the most comprehensive Seven’s Day meeting throughout all of Japan. This year marked the second annual event, and I happened to be at Fuji Speedway when the festivities were going down.
I feel that the aftermarket companies that support older chassis don’t get enough credit. To produce new parts for an application that is constantly diminishing in population isn’t something easily committed to. It takes a dedication, and a love for motor sport, to appeal to these cars. As time passes, because we’re so enthralled by the cars of the 80’s and 90’s, we don’t recognize just how old some of these cars are. The FC, for example, made it’s debut in 1985; celebrating it’s 30th birthday just last year. Appreciating the everlasting potential of these cars is something worth noting, and Atsushi-san of Shizuoka does just that with his Tamon Designs clad RX7.
I get used to seeing some pretty serious builds around Japan; a lot of times it’s all or nothing. It’s almost as if the middle ground is the least popular place to be when it comes to time attack. More often than not, because it’s all interesting to me, I try to find a balance between sharing both the ‘all’ and ‘nothing’ builds. Every once in awhile, however, I’ll come across one of the more minimal builds and start to question the aggressive look of the in-depth, competitive builds, and why I took my personal car down that path. Toshi’s FC is among those that make me question why I don’t have a spirited daily anymore…
When I had first decided that I would be attending Final Bout, to be honest, it wasn’t the event that I was actually looking forward to; it was seeing this particular car. Don’t get me wrong, I was excited for the event, but getting to see in person, and more so getting to meet the builder, of what I perceive to be the most well executed FC in the country would become the highlight of my trip.
Saitama native Nakashima Tomoyoshi, or Tomo for short, is an avid fan of the RX-7. Unique in many ways, the car has stolen his attention for better half of several years. Before he built the FD you see here, Tomo was the proud owner of a white Savanna FC.
July 7th marks a day in Japan that RX7 owners and enthusiasts rejoice almost religiously. It’s a day of celebration of a lineage of car that has had an impact on this world […]
Cruised by TC1000 to watch an open track event while we enjoyed a couple Emerald Mountain Blend’s for a few minutes and spotted these two FC’s. Pretty simple looking, but as you know simple […]
This past weekend Long Beach’s Queen Mary played host to the 9th annual Japanese Classic Car Show. A show that I particularly enjoy, as it’s roots are firmly planted in the nostalgia of the Japanese […]
OK, everyone close your eyes. On the count of three, open them and bestow upon yourself one of the most intense RX-7 builds to date. Ready? OK, 1…2…3…open! You peaked didn’t you? Anyway, pick your jaws up from the floor so I can continue this post. Every time I think this guy has outdone himself, he comes through with yet another build for the books. The RE Amemiya built NA Super-7 is hands down one of the greatest FD builds I’ve seen to date. The beauty, of course, lies in the extensive body work that Isami Amemiya is known for. Click past the break to get up close and personal with the curves – courtesy of JDM Clips.
I haven’t really had time to read on forums and other blogs about AutoCon because I’ve been so busy, but if I had to guess at what people are saying about it I would imagine some of the comments would be unjustly negative. People have a tendency to exaggerate things when they don’t go their way; but that’s just human nature. Anyway, aside from a few hiccups during roll-in that caused delays, I had a great time at this show. I didn’t attend last year, and had been really look forward to this one. I assumed the show would draw quite a crowd, so we showed up pretty early to have some time to shoot before gates opened at 12. Justin was great at organizing the media list, but unfortunately, due to the somewhat unorganized parking, media didn’t get to go in until general admission time. Again, not a huge deal, but it defeats the purpose of having a media list. With that said, I’d like to thank Justin and everyone else involved with Auto Connection and the cause it supports. I look forward to a bigger and better show next year – and of course, with time, things will get more organized. OK, if you’ve read this much your probably wondering why I opened with a shot of a M3. NDF is mainly Japanese, but I couldn’t help snap some shots of the German’s at this show. There were some awesome BMW builds. Click past the break for volume 1 of the coverage!
Alright, I honestly thought that this would be the last post from TAS I would put out, but it looks like that’s not the case. I’ll be making it a series of 5 for full coverage; one more to go. Anyway, runner up for best model would be from Gontaya. I really don’t have anything to say about this one…click past the break for more TAS goodness.