The RX-7 is alive and well in America and the Land of the Rising Sun.
Although not sold new in the United States since 1996, the RX-7 remains in production in Japan.
This means Japanese performance companies are still pumping out freshly inspired parts for the car-inside and out. Getting upgraded power in the form of turbos and tuning electronics and the J-Spec look by way of body kits is easy. Plus, the designs of all these items are current, following today's trends and utilizing today's technology.
The JDM look is defined by the use of stock parts from a Japanese counterpart on the U.S. version of the same vehicle; it's been popular since the mid-1990s.
However, this popularity mostly centers on the Honda nameplate. Further, it seems rather boring to make your car look like a stock car in Japan-where's the power in that?
The aforementioned J-Spec look is what we call a car built to look like it was tuned and constructed in Japan-what a hot-rodded version of the car would look and feel like if it used mostly Japanese parts. This is the approach Allentown, Pa.'s Alex Nguyen took when he set forth to create a wild show-and-go RX-7.
A key advantage for Nguyen is that Japanese body kit makers come out with fresh designs each year, where the demise of the RX-7 in America translates into fewer new kits. Geography was also an advantage; we can't think of many places a J-Spec RX-7 would stand out more than the blue-collar, forged-in-steel landscape of Allentown.
Nguyen accomplished his mission and has done so well in creating the complete package, he landed the cover. His 1993 RX-7 is J-Spec, from its C-West body tuning to its Cusco footwork as well as under the hood where GReddy, A'pexi, Feed and Bonez are on call.
Heads turn and jaws drop when this Mazda is cruising Main Street. Nguyen employs a wild, yet tasteful, C-West body kit. The front clip provides aggressive ducting and incorporates JDM-style fog lights. The headlamps have been converted with C-West carbon-fiber inserts and CATZ lighting elements, eliminating the conventional pop-up headlamp assembly. A KnightSports carbon-fiber hood adds J-Spec style with its crazy vents and reduced weight, while D-Speed clear JDM sidemarker lights and JDM Efini badging are some of the subtler touches that drive home the car's J-Spec look.
The Mazda was sprayed with Dupont Tri-Color red paint with copper and gold pearl mixed in. The hood was not painted so all could appreciate its exotic use of materials.
For footwork, Nguyen dialed direct to Japan for a set of Sard GT-spec coil-overs with upper pillow ball mounts for added stiffness. Also on the order sheet were front and rear Cusco anti-roll bars and front and rear Cusco strut tower braces. A Brembo brake upgrade sporting huge 14-inch rotors help Nguyen balance speed and traction. Toyo Proxes T1-S rubber wrapped around Blitz Technospeed aluminum provide the RX-7's contact patch. The 19-inch combo features 19x9 and 245/35R-19s at the nose and 19x10s and 275/30R-19s in the rear.