A Japanese lady celebrating her eightieth birthday determined to mark the event in a singular approach. She not solely surrendered her driver’s license, but in addition gave up the handbook Mazda RX-7 she’s owned for the final 25 years. Don’t fear, although, it is a heartwarming story
In a now-viral interview on YouTube by Nagasaki Broadcasting, Japanese housewife Naoko Nishimoto stated that she was on the lookout for somebody to take over possession of her Mazda RX-7 as a result of she was going to surrender her driver’s license when she turned 80. After the interview Nishimoto was inundated with emails, receiving over 400 with presents to take the RX-7 off her arms. A kind of emails was from Mazda’s PR division.
It seems one in every of Mazda’s engineers had seen Nishimoto’s interview and instructed the PR workforce to achieve out to her. Nishimoto recalled seeing the e-mail to CarWatch Japan:
“It was an e mail full of ardour and sincerity, and it appeared to shine to me.” The Mazda one who despatched the e-mail additionally had a powerful attachment to the RX-7.”
Nishimoto owned a variety of distinctive automobiles earlier than she received her arms on the RX-7. CarWatch says she received her license when she was 21. Her possession historical past was largely Toyota, having owned Publicas and Coronas till one thing stunning occurred when she was 55 years outdated.
When she was 55, her Corona Coupe, which she had been driving for practically 10 years on the time, began to malfunction and she or he was contemplating shopping for a brand new one. She occurred to be watching the anime “Preliminary D” along with her son and fell in love at first sight with the fashion of the RX-7 (FD3S). She instantly went to a close-by Mazda vendor and ordered a brand new automotive. The acquisition value on the time was about 3.2 million yen.
She didn’t buy simply any outdated RX-7, both — she particularly ordered an RX-7 Sort RB S. This was a “base” mannequin with some gentle efficiency goodies like suede seats, rear spoiler, ZR rated tires and fog lights. It had Mazda’s turbocharged 13B-REW Wankel engine making 261 horsepower, mated to a five-speed handbook transmission. Over 25 years, Nishimoto put simply over 48,000 miles on the RX-7.
She says after a decade or so, issues are likely to begin to go improper with vehicles. Not so with the RX-7. She was sadded to be taught when manufacturing of the RX-7 ended, because it meant she couldn’t exit and change it with one other one if she wished to. “At first, I believed that if it began to go improper after about 10 years, I might simply swap to a brand new RX-7, however after I heard that manufacturing was ending and I might now not swap to a brand new automotive, it grew to become much more vital to me,” she instructed CarWatch.
The automotive is now within the arms of Mazda, who gave Nishimoto and the RX-7 a handoff ceremony on the native dealership that she bought the automotive from and serviced it at. She was offered with flowers, the license plate from her automotive, and design sketches of the RX-7. Mazda’s President and CEO Moro Masahiro known as Nishimoto’s relationship along with her RX-7 a primary instance of how vehicles are way more than simply one thing for us to get us round in. He additionally remarked how the RX-7 was particular to him.
“This was a shifting reminder that you just see a automotive not simply as a method of transportation, however as an vital companion in life. It was additionally the primary mannequin for which I used to be liable for advertising and marketing after becoming a member of Mazda, so it’s a automotive that holds very particular recollections for me. We are going to treasure this automotive, together with tales of the times whenever you lived a contented, energetic and vibrant life, drawing vitality from the facility of vehicles.”
Nishimoto’s RX-7 will probably be saved at Mazda’s R&D heart in Yokohama, the place the automaker says its public relations will use it for particular occasions.
