Now, yesterday we saw a 69% Booth Numbah Two recommendation on the $8,995 Chevette, and now we're looking at a car from the same era that's priced at six grand more… yet I suspect we're going to see a little more enthusiasm for the price tag on this pristine example of Wankel history. It's for sale by the original owner. It's a California car, and it was always garaged. The odometer hasn't even hit 2,500 miles yet! It's been bid up to nearly 10 grand by now, but anyone willing to fire a big $15,000 Buy It Now cruise missile right this minute can take it home ASAP. Is it worth it? You decide!

[eBay Motors], thanks to TK for the tip.

Sure, it was a nightmare to make the Wankel pass America's ever-toughening smog standards (and let's not even mention the complexity of the later RX-7 Turbo's emissions gear), but the power-to-weight of that little engine was nuts. The '85 GSL weighed a mere 2,345 pounds and went pretty well with 101 horses. However, the following year was the debut of the Honda CRX Si, with 91 horses driving just 1,865 pounds. Sure, the Honda had front-wheel-drive, but the Mazda was suddenly looking a bit heavy.


This car's owner must be treating those apex seals right, because I see it on the move frequently. A 23-year-old daily driver with a Wankel!

With Mazda RX-7s taking the first two places at LeMons South (not to mention three of the top ten at the Arse-Freeze-A-Pa-Looza), you've got to figure you're looking at one of the all-time great budget race cars. Light, simple, and powered by a wailing rotary that's sure to give your competitors a migraine by the time the race is over... and you can get 'em for peanut shells! Say, this '85 RX-7 with an asking price of only $200. Two hundred bucks! Don't worry about that "not running" part, because the Wankel is such a simple engine- how hard can it be? You might even be able to sell off sufficient parts to come out ahead in the deal, leaving more money in your budget for beer and pornography safety equipment. Don't listen to the self-proclaimed experts who tell you that the RX-7's aluminum control arms make it too fragile to be out on a track with a bunch of big Detroit bullies, because you'll win for sure with yours!

Maybe you should listen to those experts who think the RX-7's inability to brush off impacts make it too much of a gamble at the 24 Hours of LeMons. Sure, the Mazdas finished first and second, but they got lucky! What you need is two tons of Detroit iron and a big ol' V8 to torque your way to victory. The Punisher Racing Caprice finished just four laps behind the winner, thanks to LT1 power and cop suspension... and you still have time to put together your own Caprice for the Texas race. Howzabout this '91 Caprice, with an asking price of $750? With five-buck gas looming, we're pretty sure you can negotiate the seller's price down, then sell some parts to get down below the 500 dollar limit. It runs fine (though you might want to be sure it has the LT1 and not the 305) and it only has 85,000 miles on the clock. There's some body damage, caused by a "commercial shoot driven by precision drivers" (that's reassuring, because you can't trust body damage caused by an ordinary driver on the way to the Stop-N-Rob), which is why it's so cheap. Throw some fat tires on it, maybe chop the springs, and you'll be the terror of Houston!

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