LoneStar23

I'm always looking at what's for sale and welcome discussion from the FB experts.

Take this 5 letter one listed on BAT. 1984, 177K miles Seller / Flipper just acquired it, so probably not a member on here. Car was driven plenty in its youth (102K in first seven years) but only 739 miles in the last 17 years (a crying shame!). Probably a lot of deferred maintenance.

Seller has no info on compression, or if engine was ever rebuilt. No receipts. No driving or start-up video, although there's one of it running. Ask for more info, lowball bid, take a look, or hard pass given the unknowns? What say ye?

BAT Listing: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1984-mazda-rx-7-34/

kencunm

iTrader: (3)

It comes down to risk vs reward.

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

It's always best to have a look in person if possible. Pictures often don't show everything or convey the true condition. No substitute for hearing it run, feeling the responce and experiencing the car in person. Sometimes you have to do a little poking around to find things like lurking rust issues. You can't do that through a screen. You are trusting the seller completely and even if they are 120% above board, no two people have the exact same opinion of what good and/or bad might be. Standards can very greatly.

This car looks decent. It appears pretty complete and unmolested which personally, I like. Going forward, I think the cars retain the most value remaining in stock condition. The interior is pretty good but will need some work (again a minty interior is a big plus due to parts unavailability). You can't see any signs of excessive body dings, scratches or rust but most of the exterior shots are pretty far away. (body work can often be the most expensive part of refurbishing a car)

I think your correct, the mechanical condition is this cars biggest question. Sounds like the seller is pondering a compression test, so maybe he still will. You can always ask for a start up and driving video. This is a no reserve auction but may not necessarily be a bargain deal. BaT has too many educated eyeballs on it to find any real bargains. Given the high milage and presentation, I believe this car will go on the lower side of 5 letter values but there will probably be some overdue maintenance and a few issues to throw additional money and energy at. Again, the best way to accurately know to what extent, is to put actual eyeballs on the car.

Toruki

All good thoughts, one additional aspect is that in the last week or so, there have been 7 SA/FB's on BaT, sort of a bumper crop compared to normal. Also, the market is softer than even a year ago, certainly two. You are still going to pay top dollar for a given car on BaT, I would avoid a non-communicative seller and a rotary sale without cold and host start videos, Fortunately the commenters will help tease out the details you might not think about.

BaT also just changed their policy on Reserve Not Met auctions. RNM used to mean end of deal and the seller was free to negotiate, generally with the top bidder. Now BaT continues to be in the sale and moderates a deal possibly between those two, the difference being you still pay the 5% BaT fee. Some feel it's good because you get the protections Bat affords the transaction (transferring funds safely) but others feel that the previous method put the 5% fee into margin for negotiation and resulted in a higher probability of completing the sale. BaT acknowledged that it wouldn't have done this back when it was growing, but they feel okay about reaping that cash now that they have the clout. So the stakes are different now with Reserve vs. No Reserve auctions.

The best advice I've received is that you should get the one you really want and that we quickly forget the price (high or low) once we've got our hands on it. And of course, it's not an investment.

Also, I think there are more 13B parts still available from the factory (compared to 12A).

Brownrx7

Definitely has been entertaining watching all these five letters sell recently, as for the five letter with 177k on it I have been keeping my eye on it and the comments, maintainence records are what will determine the price as going into bidding on this car if there is no records of anything how do we know what has been done to it? I’ve seen five letters with 200k+ but they where all taken care of and always kept up, if that is the case with this car it may be a good bargain five letter, if not it could be a five letter disaster… the seller not providing the detailed info may be the killer to this auction, we will have to wait and see..

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

I don't disagree that receipts of work done, document the work performed and can add a level of reassurance. But honestly, to me it's not necessarily a guarantee of mechanical soundness. Maybe I'm in the minority, but I rarely trust anyone to work on my cars except myself. Most mechanics now a days just do the minimum and move on to the next job. More money in it that way. They don't have the same level of passion for your car like you would.

With new cars, there is so much technology, you are kind of at the mercy of the dealers or technicians who have good, recent training and experience. Older cars are a different beast. I believe there are 2 kinds of people who make good classic car owners. Those who are do-it, yourselfers and those who have the deep pocket, disposable means to pay someone else to do it for them.

Either way, if a vehicle has been well cared for and sorted, you can tell. It will be tidy and well kept, not dirty and look like it's been forever since anyone has even rubbed up against it. Things will work, very little will be inoperative. People who are thorough and do good work, leave things in better condition than when they found them. Cleaning or fixing one thing will make the surrounding areas to feel substandard, which just creates more work. Good mechanics take pride in their workmanship. This is something that shows through in the finished job and something that your average car owner or flipper doesn't take the time for. So for me, the presentation says a lot. Receipts are more of supporting documentation.

Holdfast

I disagree with the statement above "there are no deals to be had on bat" just a couple weeks ago a red 79-80 SA with only 15k miles sold for only $11 or 12k. No reserve. Guy is now selling it on fb for $22k. About right for a car that clean.

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

The car you are referring to did not sell on BaT. It was bid to $12,750 and remained with the seller, who now is advertising the car on Facebook. He also posted the car on FB previously, fishing for offers before being told he should list it on BaT. Since the no sale auction, he has advertised it first, for $19K, then in trade for a Sprinter work van and most recently, again for $22K. This is the auction for that car SA22C 527557: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1979-mazda-rx-7-67/

There has been another Sunrise Red car on BaT a couple weeks later which maybe you are confusing the first car with. It isn't as original, but was listed as a no reserve auction. It did sell at $8,100. This was a bit of a deal for the buyer but not so much for the seller. The seller paid $5,400 for it 4 years prior, put $3,500 worth of new seat covers, plus a complete re paint, while only getting $2,700 more than what he paid. S/N SA22C 517424: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1979-mazda-rx-7-68/

LoneStar23

Here's one you Bay Area people might want to look at. 1979 GS. 109K. $6,800

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/cto...768637060.html

Looks like a few custom bits around the shifter. No belt on AC compressor.

1BADRX7

The exterior looks nice but it appears to have been repainted at some point and is missing the weatherstripping in the wiper motor cover panel and the side moldings (unless the early cars didn't come with them). On top of that, there appears to be surface rust near the engine label plate as the paint is missing.

I guess it's not "all there, nothing missing" like the ad states

Holdfast

Looks like a good deal. I've seen it on there for a couple of weeks now.

LoneStar23

The '84 five letter car with 177K miles on BAT just sold for $8K. Seems to be a fair # for buyer & seller.

LoneStar23

Here's one on CL. 1982, 87K miles. Engine rebuild at 86K - that seems like low miles for a rebuild on a 12A, right? Asking $13K. I've seen nicer go for less.

https://akroncanton.craigslist.org/c...766415266.html

LoneStar23

Two listings of note on BAT:
(1) A 12K 1985 GSL that sold for $27.5K in 2021. Stunning! https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1985-mazda-rx-7-80/
(2) A 1977 REPU with a 13B. At $10K it's already out of my league... https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...tary-pickup-6/

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

At 10K, that REPU is a good buy. Three years ago, I sold a 1975 REPU that hadn't since 2010. I sold it as non-running for $6200. I would have been happy with 4K. I must have gotten 200 replies' wanting to buy it. I could have gotten more if I wanted to ship it overseas. It wasn't good enough for BAT and I didn't even try. I just posted on FB and sold it within a few hours. I was happy with the price. Sold it to by my 4x8 CNC plasma table.

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

The 85 GSL will be an interesting one to watch for reference. It sold for a very hefty price just 3 years ago when the market was stronger. Very curious to see what it bids too in the current market or if it even meets the reserve.

The ad this time is much more professional looking than before also, all glamor shots with low lighting. It has already gathered a few comments about how it belongs in a museum. Goes to show the power and influence of the presentation.

LoneStar23

Then there's this! Rotary-Powered 1973 Lotus Europa

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...am-special-12/