Dear Gran Turismo fanatics, remember RE Amemiya? To jog your memory, the tuning house is now 50 years old and specializes in souping up rotary-powered Mazdas and sending them off to do battle in various Japanese motorsport tracks (like the Super GT or D1 Grand Prix). Occasionally, it modifies a road car, too.
Take this Mazda RX-7 ‘Spirit R Type A’ with 90,000km on it: It is one of the finest variations of Mazda’s Wankel-engined cult hero. Just 1,044 were built, and only 53 were painted in red, so it’s about as rare as good dialogue from the last season of Game of Thrones.
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But while the original had to make do with the then-standard Japanese sports car output of 276hp, Amemiya cranked this one up to 588hp. It very nearly has as much power as a Porsche Carrera GT and actually equals the German legend’s 0-100kph time of 3.5sec. Now, that’s quick.
Open the hood and you’ll see lots of blue wires, and nestled beneath all that is a 13B-REW powerplant that’s aided by a pair of HKS turbos, an Apexi ECU, ARC intercooler, and bridge porting. If all of this sounds like gibberish to you, it basically means your eardrums are in for a serious assault.
Things are just as loud on the design front, where a brutal aftermarket body kit has been stuck on to help with aerodynamics and cooling. There’s lots of lightweight focus, too, with the hood, the rear diffuser, the taillight panel, and sections of the wheel arches built from carbon. See that preposterously oversized rear wing? It’s also made from carbon, and is fully adjustable.
Smaller fixtures include a not-so-small Prodrive exhaust with light blue coloring for maximum effect, and 17-inch forged alloys from Advan. Behind those wheels you’ll find red brake calipers and Bilstein suspension. There’s also a tow hook up front, in case you stick it in a ditch.
If you thought the cabin would take a calmer approach, we’re sorry to disappoint: One of the RX-7’s standout features is both its driving position and just how focused the interior is. You’re sat squat to the ground, scraping your buttocks against the road, while your legs are way out in front in a different part of the car.
The various console buttons are packed tightly beside you in a proper compact setup, and since this is an Amemiya-grade car, there are additional plus-size readouts mounted atop the dashboard. You’ll never actually use them (obviously), but they’re cool to look at.
The red Recaro seats are made from carbon and Kevlar, and there’s a bespoke steering wheel from Nardi Personal. But the biggest change is the roll cage, which stretches right up to the passengers and isn’t at all intimidating.
This very car is going under the hammer via Sydney-based boutique car dealership Axxle for an estimated price of just under £200,000 (P14,900,000), or what you’re expected to pay for a one-bed just outside the McLaren M25 these days. Which would you rather have?
NOTE: This story first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
