How many UK-spec FD\'s left in the UK?

[turkster]

Hi All,
I\'ve been in the market for an FD for a few months now, but its been a bit tough finiding one in decent nick around my area (Wirral). I work 50% of the time in the UK and 50% in Zurich, and was therefore after a standard UK-Spec RX7, as they don\'t allow JDM models on Swiss roads if you\'re classed as a resident (Switzerland is crazy when it comes to the bureaucracy!).
Anyway I\'ve noticed a lot of the UK FD\'s get snapped up straight away by continental importers who then sell them on at around 150% profit. I recently tried to bid on a UK spec car on Ebay but got outbid at literally the last second by a guy from France.
So my options are...   buy a JDM model and keep it in England. I\'m getting a bit impatient now so might have to go down this route.
or try to wait around for another UK spec to come up and go for it straight away- but does anyone know how many are actually left? Anyone know of anybody that might be looking to sell to a genuine enthusiast and not someone looking to make a quick buck?

[rei99]

I recently tried to bid on a UK spec car on Ebay but got outbid at literally the last second by a guy from France.

Strange :Giggle I think there were more UK spec on France than in UK now...

[S3TH]

Prob less than 100 left in uk. Then u got to find one that isn\'t rotten!

[Aubec]

There were about 124 IIRC, I\'ve got one.

[DRAGON]

The less the better, they are in so much worse condition than the imports, Rust and siezed bolts all over. Always used to laugh when I saw someone specifically after a UK one like it was a good thing!

[Aubec]

Yep, I have spent a lot of time drilling and retapping!  Also lower power out of the box.

[turkster]

Thanks for the info guys. Yeah I\'ve heard some bad things about the rust on UK spec cars. I guess what it boils down to is whether I can put up with using the car for only half of the year if I get an import.

If I was to drive an import to Switzerland it would have to be registered here, and the process is ridiculous and costs an awful lot of money. It has to go through an emissions test at stricter regulations than the normal equivalent of the MOT, and a noise test. Everything on the car must be standard, or if there are any mods they need a Swiss market conformity certificate. The equivalent of the SVA requires most components to be examined for CE compliance, and would probably cost around 7000 quid. To see the kind of premium FD\'s attract in Europe you should check out this one for sale: http://www.autoscout24.ch/AS24Web/Detail.aspx?from=list&wl=1&lng=ger&id=7371240&qs=from%3dDefault%26zipcountry%3dCH%26make%3d46%26modellike%3drx7%26cur%3dCHF%26sort%3dtopl%26total%3d9%26eftotal%3d9&page=1&row=5