1:24 Mazda Savanna FC3S RX-7 '85

The Savanna FC3S RX-7 of the 1985 model year

The set aims at the early state of the second generation of the RX-7 as it looked in the year of its introduction. The year 1985 is a turning point for this car: Mazda then left the shaping of the first generation behind and came with a markedly more modern body. It is precisely this model year that is given in the name, so the model represents the FC3S in its original, not yet facelifted execution.

The first year of the second generation

The new Savanna brought a unitary body with aerodynamically clean shapes, pop-up headlights and an entirely reworked suspension. The engine remained the 13B rotary seated behind the axis of the front wheels, which secured the car a balance of weight that was not a matter of course on coupes of that time. Japanese customers bought the car as the Savanna; on the export markets it appeared without that name. Early examples keep to this day the reputation of the purest form of the whole generation, because the later model years added accessories and changed details.

Recommended sequence of work

First comes the chassis with the wheels and the interior in turn, because they are easier to work on away from the body. Only after that does it make sense to deal with the external paint. The early execution tends to be sober in shape, so the result stands on the quality of the surface and on the sharp edges of the transitions. The chrome trim strips and the window frames can be accentuated with a paint with a metallic effect applied with a thin brush once the base shade is finished.

For which modelers

• Anyone interested in Japanese coupes of the middle of the 1980s
• Collectors who want the generations of the RX-7 side by side
• Modelers working with glossy single-color paints
• Builders who like a sober production execution

The model will arrive taken apart and without paint; modeling equipment is needed to finish it.