Fc - Fd?
 

I'm a noob and own a Mazda 3 but have been reading the RX-8 forums for over a year now. I love the 8, wish I could afford one :mad: Damn gas/insurance! Anyway since I'm a noob please dont kill me but what does FC and FD stand for. Or along with any other rotary related stuff. I finally learned the story behind Enfi <spelling? :hahano:

chassis codes

ooh gotcha. so is FC like first gen RX-7 or pre RX-7 like the RX-3 etc? And FD RX-7 and above?

FB = 1st Gen RX-7
FC = 2nd Gen RX-7
FD = 3rd Gen RX-7
FE = RX-8

Rx8 is not exactly a FE.. Lol

Well, nobody calls it an FE, but it is.
Check the VIN plate on your car....

SA or FB = 1st gen rx7.

that's just part of the vin number. the chassis code is SE3P. On the RX-7 the chassic code just happened to match the chassis code, which it doesn't on the rx8. and i'm not positive, but i don't think that the FE designation is used in the vin in all markets.

so technically, the rx8 is an SE, not FE.

Actually, I do believe you are right. Although, I thought FE was in the VIN in all markets.
That's what I get for trying to give a quick and simple answer on about 3 hours of sleep per night for the last week...

Except for the series 1 SA, I believe, that got its name from the VIN didn't it?

I think Mazda is just f'ing with people.

What do the 4th and 5th digits represent in 7's and 8's, anyway?

found these from a japanese owner...

SA22C = real chassis code of first gen RX-7
FC3S = chassis code of 2nd gen RX-7 Coupe
FC3C = chassis code of 2nd gen RX-7 Convertible
FD3S = chassis code of 3rd gen RX-7
SE3P = chassis code for RX-8

boy that's a mouthful lol

the 4th and 5th digits are the model designation, which happened to be the same as the chassis code on the rx-7s, except the first year or so of the 1st gen rx7. the 79-80 years the SA in the vin matched the chassis code. starting in 81, the US started a 17 digit VIN number system (which is still used today), and the 1st gen vin switched from SA to FB, but the chassis code remained SA.

confused now? good :)

FC for the win :rock:

Efini
________
Bong

Then there's the whole implication with RX-7's being called Savannahs. Anybody know the story behind that?

Quoted from wikipedia...

Series 1 (1979–1980) is referred to as the "SA22C". This series of RX-7 had exposed steel bumpers and a high-mounted license plate located in an indented part of the rear of the car, famously criticized by Werner Buhrer of Road & Track magazine as a "Baroque depression."

Series 2 (1981–1983) had smoothly integrated plastic-covered bumpers, wide black rubber body side moldings, wraparound taillights and updated engine control components. The GSL package provided optional 4-wheel disc brakes and clutch-type rear limited slip differential (LSD). The "FB" designation was only used in North America after the US Department of Transportation mandated 17 digit Vehicle Identification Numbers. Elsewhere in the world, the RX-7 kept the SA22C designation until the 1986 model year (second generation).

The Savanna (not Savannah) was the name given to the RX-3, the FB and the FC in Japan, the name wasn't used internationally

I think back in the 80's it was popular by car makers to name their cars female names or something... think Fairlady Z

the fairlady designation goes back to the 60s (the idea for the fairlady name goes back to 1958), and is still in use today (the 350z is a fairlady).

irrelevant side note, in the book a wild sheep chase there is a passage that refers to a Honda Fairlady. The honda designation wasn't in the original japanese text. it was incorrectly added by the translator.

somehow that fairlady name makes me think it comes from one of those weird japanese fetishes...

Acually, the "Fairlady" name came from America, as the Z was actually specifically designed for the American market. The Nissan employee who was responsible for the Z car had seen "My Fair Lady" and liked it so much that he named the car after it. But Nissan marketing decided that Americans would never purchase a car called the "Fairlady", so the 240Z moniker was adopted.

actually, the fairlady was orignally used for the datsun spl212 (1960), which was the predecesor to the 240z. the employee was Katsuji Kawamata, President Of Nissan Motors Japan, who did indeed come up with the name after seeing My fair lady (in 1958).

:bowdown: I guess I get to say I was close. I figured you knew more when you listed specifically 1958 in your post before this one. Was he President at that time, or the head of their North American venture?


Follows suit with DeLorean naming the GTO Judge, can't completely recall that story, though.

Yutaka Katayama was the head of the Nissan USA venture.

and yup, you were close :)

and i don't knwo the delorean gto judge story. i should look that up.

wikipedia is written by a bunch of tards that have nothing better to do. so a lot of the info is wrong.