What’s going on! My name is Edward Uche. I live in Los Angeles, and I am the newest addition to the Motor Mavens Crew. I’ve followed this automotive blog since it began back in April and words cannot describe how excited I am to join as a contributor. As the owner of a turbocharged FC3S RX7, I’d love to meet other readers of this site at a track day or event in the near future. However, right now it’s my honor to present you my first contribution, which deals with a subject I’m extremely passionate about – seeking knowledge involving all things Rotary. I’m happy to connect with all you fellow car enthusiasts and mavens out there; now lets begin…
What happens when you combine a national holiday and time off work with family and friends? …a well devised plan for a cruise, that’s what. During my Thanksgiving festivities this past week, I couldn’t help but squirm with anticipation for this weekend’s big rotary event, RX7Club.com‘s annual “Turkey Run.” The meeting location launching the rotary/old skool massive would be RX3 owner and MMA trainer Savant Young‘s Fight Academy in Pasadena CA. There were so many varieties of cars to be seen; RX2s, RX3s, FCs, FDs, Miatas, and even Toyota TE21s and S13s.
Keeping up with the latest in grassroots events, the members of the Southern Cali Motor Mavens Crew were on a mission to bring our viewers a look into the organic Los Angeles car culture. Witness.
Savant Young’s silver turbocharged Mazda RX3 proudly sat in the driveway of his Fight Academy, glancing at its younger sibling, Kent Soliven‘s white FC3S RX7 TurboII, which looked clean rocking an OEM style lip.
Father and son. This is little Saadiq Young with his father Savant behind the wheel. Saadiq’s future looks promising as someday he will carry the legacy of his dad’s finely built turbocharged Mazda RX3.
I spotted this four door Mazda RX2 sitting alone on the street when we rolled up to 7-Eleven in Sun Valley, our second meeting spot. Wankelholics on corner duty rightfully kept on eye on this gem as well. Peep the OG Mazda print alongside the door…so fresh with the vintage graphics.
Royce (Hoyce) Ladia and Jaime Gonzalez are both highly knowledgeable in rotary engine maintenance; they’re shown here lending a helping hand to ensure Kent’s Mazda TurboII FC3S stays well oiled as it gets driven up the canyons. I can’t stop admiring that front lip and piercing foglights. Love.
After meeting with more car owners at 7-Eleven, we all drove up into the canyons in a caravan. This quick snapshot while we were driving shows a perfect blend old and new carving multiple turns and elevation changes in the canyon.
MotorMavens crew tailed this classic Mazda REPU (Rotary Engine Pick Up) as it nonchalantly negotiated all turns of the canyon road. This truck looks gorgeous in blue, and the owners had several cases of Corona in the back.
Upon arrival we were greeted by this automotive spectacle, deep in the middle of the Angeles National Forest… Thank you, Southern California.
This nicely lowered S13 unloaded it’s cargo and cooled off a bit following the 14 mile drive up the canyon
This here is Arnell‘s RX3, which has beautifully hand crafted overfender flares, with wide, low offset SSR Mk-II wheels sitting under them. Don’t you just love the colors of 1970s Japanese cars?! I know I’m in love, how about you?
Even though most of the cars in the cruise were rotary powered, Henry Mendez brought his TE21 Corolla out to show how the piston-heads keep things aggressive… especially since his car is fitted with -26 offset Centerline wheels.
Turbo Tony Pham‘s flamethrower Miata drift machine sustains its ride height supremacy while sitting low, awaiting its next launch back down through the twisties.
The East Los Angeles based rotary collective R-Power joined the gathering and enjoyed good times with their closest homies, bringing an army of Rotary classics. When people say “don’t mess with rotary owners,” they’re probably talking about R-Power. Haha
This RX2 is owned by Victor from R-Power. The body is super clean, and to complete the 70s look, it sports the old school dealer applied vinyl top.
This FB3S RX7 is sporting the old school factory optional aluminum mesh wheels. I like them because they look like Campagnolo wheels from Italy, which were the basis and inspiration for many famous wheels, like these optional OEM RX7 wheels, TRD wheels, and even Mugen wheels.
Here’s a sneak peek on a future MotorMavens car feature…. before other Miata owners even think of stepping to Tony and his turbo NA6, you better brush up on your driving skills or get DSTROYD. You’ve been warned.
This gorgeous silver MX83 Toyota Cressida is owned by John Sayno, a professional chef who has a history of owning 1JZ/2JZ powered vehicles. He was always easy to spot at the track, because his Toyota Supra and Lexus IS300 stood out from the sea of Nissans that were out drifting.
Under the hood of his MX83, John has a 1JZGTE engine. Check out that Weld engine cover… pretty cool.
I just love how well polished and pristine the wheels appear on Henry’s TE21 Corolla. Purchased at a very upsettingly low price as well.
These two kids are getting a rotary education by going out to all these events with their parents. Outside with the backpack is Little Nate, talking to Saadiq, who’s sitting shotgun in his dad’s RX3. You can always tell which RX3 is owned by Savant, because he has his green HKS air filter fitted where one of his headlights should be.
This here is Mel’s blue RX3 sitting pretty on polished Epsilon mesh wheels. Only a few select people know where he acquired those flares, haha.
Respect your elders… classic Rotaries are alive and strong in Southern California. Come on out to one of our events and absorb the feeling of what it’s like to own one of these old school Rotaries. I used to own an RX3, and seeing these RX3s out in full force today makes me want to buy another one really, really bad.
:: Edward Uche
loving these sexy rotary cars!
HELL YES!!!
Awesome write up and pics……Thanks Ed!!!!
much rotary love ed. =] way to start your first MotorMavens blog post about the rotary! congrats! lookin’ forward for the next post and next event that’s gonna take place. keep it up bro!
Good shit that was a good day indeed
Great job man! You should come down and cover the December 13 cruise in San Diego. There will be a ton of FDs coming out.
awesome stuff, wish I knew about this.
Sure is one hell of a way to start your Mavens blog, awesome, keep it up! I can’t stop drooling at all the RX-3’s…here in the Canadian prairies old school rotaries are pretty much nonexistent. You guys have it good in SoCal, I’m jealous.
Jaime Mc Tightpants hahah
looking real tuff with that HKS filter poking out of the RX3! I missed out….Tony Pham’s car looks a lot different now haha.
I love the Rotorszzzzz
HAHHA theres sooo many pics i came out in lol.. tight pants, red head band lol..
Thats how we roll in So-Cal. ME and eddie throw some big Rotary events… next one will be in Jan so spread the word, and keep an eye out on RX7club.com .
awesome coverage guys, very nice! can’t get enough of the oldschool jdm stuff
Nice shots man…i gotta learn some stuff from you
R Power will jack yo shit
Great feature, I love old school rotaries. More please 😀
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Very Cool! Would love to see more pics and some more information about the FCs that were there. Sweet looking FC2000 in the back of that one pic.
Great writeup, excellent pictures; glad you guys could cover the fun!
One minor correction, though; my Tornado Silver 1980 first-gen is an SA22C, not an FB3S. One year off.
Damn…all these lovely rotary’s. Nice spread. Keep the rotary’s coming!
One word: awesome. 😛 I want your new job, Ed. Maybe your car too. 😉
nice coverage, and sick shots! thanks
Very Nice, Great Turn Out and some awesome shots! Keep up the good work !
Nice writeup! One of my favorite roads!
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Very cool! Highway 2 FTW! That white Miata is super slick. Can’t wait for the feature. Love the old school coverage!
Being a FC owner myself, it’s great to see these rotary legends all in one place, and even better that they got together at a twisty course as opposed to a parking lot. Kudos, and I hope to see more things rotary in the future.
Thanks Ed for the love son!…I had to rep for the Corolla’s!
Another awesome So-Cal event. This is what owning these cars is all about!
Thanks everyone for the feedback. I appreciate all who came out this past Saturday and those who’ve read the article. Alot of work went into this so it’s really awesome reading your positive responses. I promise to deliver more content, stay tuned mavens.
@ Glen…apologize for the incorrect chassis code designation on your first gen Rx7. It’s since been corrected man. Thanks.
– Edward
The RX3s Ahhhhhhhh C’est magnifique! Arnell’s yellow RX3 with the awesome fender flares gave me goosebumps and the Wankelholics Red RX2 had me cooing at the monitor like a freakin’ pigeon! Great coverage from the new Maven!
Sweet article…. i need to go shoppin for my Mazda RX2….I aint seen one so clean for some years… good job Uche…made it feel as though i was there
Great Article & Pictures, keep it coming!
good shit Ed
great article and straight to the point ! finally something out of the streets ,real shit
now i can finally like this website
that white miata that you guys will be featuring is sexy but please don’t make it a habit of featuring cars with fake wheels. i know the car itself is a monster and deserves it but cars with fake wheels just shouldn’t get featured imho. just my opinion though, not trying to dis.
@Plague Murkz: yeah man I totally feel you. The steering wheel on that white Miata costs as much as all four of the rims on it… but Tony’s car is super dope, and he drives it well. I’m definitely a fan of high end wheels though, so I feel your pain. Maybe we can help him get some other wheels, hmm…
@Peter North: wow we’re so honored that a celeb like Peter North reads our site!!! LOL dope hahahaha. Glad you finally like our site man. But yo I thought we’ve been posting real shit from the streets since day 1!
@Edward Uche: CONGRATULATIONS on having such a successful debut on our site! Calm down there, Mr. Popular! haha
Oh yeah, and you need to order one of these 1TB hard drives (only $99 and free shipping) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16855990015 ASAP so you can download my entire music collection.
@Pertano: Nice to finally meet you man. I was wondering who owned all the old school whips on Toyota3TC.com and Craigslist! hahaha
more 1st gen RX7 pls. Great coverage!!!
Looks like fun…… and the road up to Hang glider hill?? Little Tujunga canyon road? I fly hang gliders when I’m not drifting my 1985 Celica or 1989 240sx……
I wish I would have known about the event !
best,
Seth
Nice article Ed. Hey Bob I dont know who you are but shouldnt be saying shit like this on the internet. Idiots like you see us and dont think we got PCs. We try to keep it kool with everyone in the Rotary community but people like make it hard.Sorry Ed but I felt I had to say something.
@P-nut: Hey man, are you from R-Power? If so, I just gotta say, DAAAAMN. I don’t know how many people and cars you guys have in your crew, but whenever I see you guys at shows or even on the street, you always roll super DEEEEP. It’s crazy… I’ve never really seen that many old school rotaries rolling together in a pack like that. Respect!
And hey, have you seen Japanese Nostalgic Car Magazine before?
haha i was there on the cruise .. it was chill .. seeing all of those FCs made me miss mine .. but ill settle for my 240 for while ..whens the next event ?
thanks for the cool write-up. Next time, I will have my son drive the other RX-3.
Props on the Campagnolo reference. It seems like younger guys get hooked on the trendy JDM and German car scene, and never get to experience Italian cars.
Here are some real Campy’s on my ex-77′ Lancia Beta Monte Carlo. It had 40K miles when the picture was taken, my father bought it used in 81.
And just for kicks, my 79′ Alfetta Sprint Veloce:
OK guys, keep the awesome posts coming! I used to have a couple FC’s so I appreciate the Rotary blogs.
I guess direct links aren’t allowed.
http://s84.photobucket.com/albums/k23/stupidbuthey/?action=view¤t=alfettabanner.jpg
and
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k23/stupidbuthey/IMG_1562.jpg
Peace!
Tony’s NA makes me smile. So clean.
@ Mel…it was realy cool having you out there, you actually made it to your long awaited debut. Savant told me how difficult it is to get you out to event sometimes haha. Thanks for showing, your 3 is amazing.
@ p-nut…it’s cool man. You guys are cool and always in full force. You roll really deep to a good majority of Rotary functions which is awesome. That shows dedication and passion for Mazda’s. Continue doing what you do R-Power.
Dope post!
Great Job Uche ! Love the pictures (:
Hey sorry if you were miss inform Ed but the owner of the gold rx2 is Wally not victor and thanks for the pic u made the car look clean. Hey bob don’t hate just appreciate the rotaries maybe One day you may own a clean rotary you just need to grow up.
awesome cruise and meet cool to see somany rotaries come together! look forward to the next one. its cool i wasnt the only nissan haha…..
@ Wally…thanks man, my bad about the name mishap. I’ll be sure to meet all of you entirely so that I get everyones name. Dope RX2 though, awesome Mazda history your driving. Are you running the 13b or 12a setup? Just curious…
some good shots on here ed. lovin the coverage. great stuff
Coooooooooooooollllll cars!!!!! I am a big fan of old school cars. These masterpieces are the real beauty!!!
THESE ARE THE COOLEST CARS IN HISTORY. GOOD VINTAGE CARS ARE THE TRUE BEAUTY OF MOTORING.
cool pic’s u guys really take pro shots!!!!
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We would love to have MotorMavens cover our March 29th Drive & Lunch this Saturday in Malibu/Calabasas. Please contact me via e-mail if this isn’t too short of a notice.