By the mid 70’s Japanese cartoons had paved their way into Latin America, with media-content-creation being another chapter in the notorious rise of the Asian nation. However, those Japanese shows brought themes and values that no Hannah Barbera or Disney cartoon ever attempted. In my childhood those differences appeared more often than not on Space Battleship Yamato (Star Blazers in the US); a futuristic space opera filled with an undercurrent of doom and sacrifice. In the show, humanity is on the verge of extinction by an alien species invasion; on the brink of defeat the Earth Defense Forces turn the sunken haul of Imperial Japanese Battleship Yamato into a galaxy travelling spaceship. After lying dormant for centuries, not only would the sunk in WWII Yamato complete its role as a warring machine, it would also save humanity in the process.
What kind of show was this? And what kind of people came up with it? Not only was the Yamato plot hard to follow and missed by my young self, but the show’s leads suffered painful fates and incidental ones croaked in relentless manner. While being a sci-fi adventure wrapped in colorful cartoon idioms, the show had a dark military undercurrent; individual desires were considered selfish as the larger mission, to be achieved by generations and not individuals, was the main goal. Whether your favorite character managed to see the fulfillment of said mission was beside the point.
(In the US broadcast of Star Blazers the Yamato’s real life background was edited down for obvious reasons; concentrating the plot around the main characters’ travails).
In due time I would get familiar with such Japanese storytelling trademarks; a main character was to die midway, for the ‘mission’ was to be achieved by the group, at some point in time. It was a ‘generational’ fight. Other traits differed from US ones as well; leaders were generally cool headed and silent (á la Clint Eastwood), while a younger hothead always placed the mission at peril. No Bruce Willis or Rambo would ever lead in a Japanese story. Years later, even in lighter fares from Miyazaki, main characters endured a certain amount of physical pain. Hardship and sacrifice were to be expected in Japanese storytelling.
Our post’s barely-hanging-in-there dormant RX-4 (2nd gen Luce), was an early chapter in Mazda’s quest to bring the Wankel’s rotary engine promise to the world. And the rotary made test of those Japanese proclivities for hardship and sacrifice, as its promises of efficiency against the standard 4-stroke engine came not without a few drawbacks. If it wasn’t for Mazda’s Japanese endurance, the whole Wankel episode would only be a curious entry in automotive history, as not even NSU -the engine’s promoters- could escape a tragic fate under its spell.
To western sensibilities Mazda’s persistence comes either as an example of indomitable spirit… or folly. While all other makes, from Germans to Americans, gave up on the whole effort, the persevering and weary souls of Toyo Kogyo Co. (nowadays Mazda, above in its early days) managed to succeed in bringing fairly efficient rotary power to the world. Not that their single minded efforts proved exempt of trouble; but Mazda’s rotary, through fails, falls, and bursts of success, remains around to this day. It may lay dormant from time to time, but its rotor soul is always in wait to spring back to life when least expected. To save humanity perhaps?
The rotary’s development has been previously partially covered at CC, and a great detailed take appears at Ate Up With Motor. In short, Mazda’s interest in the engine came from despair, partly due to political and diplomatic winds. The convoluted episode of Japan’s carmakers and their relationship with their Ministry of Trade and Industry (MITI) needs its own chapter; suffice to say MITI bureaucrats thought the nation’s interests would be better served by consolidating Japan’s automotive industries into three major conglomerates. Should the MITI intentions ever materialize, Mazda’s demise/absorption was almost certain. Company president Tsuneji Matsuda took a shine to the Wankel’s revolutionary potential after NSU announced it proudly to the world, and along other makes bought rights to access the technology. Matsuda’s thinking was that Mazda’s fate hinged on its capacity to develop technology so essential to Japan that no ministry would ever think of ‘consolidating’ Toyo Kogyo.
Talking about warriors and kamikaze missions, Matsuda laid the Wankel assignment on Chief of Engineering Kenichi Yamamoto, who distrusted the whole concept from the start. However, in perfect Ronin spirit he took to the task with resignation and zeal. If his body was to fall by the wayside in the effort, so be it. The Rotary Research Team was conformed in 1963 with 47 engineers, and as per usual in Japanese tradition, military thinking was summoned when the team took on the moniker “47 Ronin.” (In Japanese culture, the Ronins are a line of Samurais venerated for their selfless loyalty and courage). Yamamoto instructed the members: “From now on, I want you to think about the rotary engine whether you are sleep or awake.” Much as with Honda’s CVCC, the Wankel took heavy toil in all members; with endless hours of work producing hundreds of failing prototypes. Considering the daunting quest, we can be pretty certain those “47 Ronins” did indeed dream nightly about those ever failing rotors.
After a lot of trial and error the dual rotary engine was launched in ’67 on the Cosmos, Mazda’s showcase to the world. The Cosmos styling was Japanese at its most outré, resembling a would-be-prop from Speed Racer, had it ever been shot in live action. An exponent for Mazda’s ambitions, the Cosmos was a flagship for the rotary. Slowly but surely, the Wankel started to seep into all of Mazda’s offerings. The company had found a call in the gospel of the rotary and moved on to spread its attributes in all market segments, sometimes in rather puzzling ways.
After the Cosmos retirement, the second generation Luce, our RX-4, was to be the rotary’s flagship. Well, not quite; as Mazda decided to compete head to head with Toyota and Nissan on the upper market echelons with the Roadpacer, a Holden HJ fitted with a 13B Rotary. The thinking behind it deserves its own digging expedition, and shows Toyo Kogyo’s puzzling actions were about to get the company lost in a maze of its own making.
In Vintage Reviews, R&T declared the RX-4 coupe “the best Mazda yet.” The rotary provided the RX-4 with performance a notch or two above its class, bringing revs no normal car could compete with, and providing a sports-like ride with more than decent acceleration; 0-60mph was just below the 10 seconds mark. As the rotary was a daring enough proposition, and proving that Mazda wasn’t Citroen-mad, the remaining bits of engineering were rather traditional and proven; unibody with FR layout, and traditional Hotchkiss drive at the rear, though with rather acceptable axle response according to reviewers.
In summary, R&T placed the car under a glowing light and hoped great things for the brand. Indeed, sales in the US had risen from a mere 2,000 units in 1970, to almost 120,000 by 1973.
While the original Luce had Giugiaro lines, the RX-4 was an in house design that took on American cues, rather successfully so; the proportions were taut and the shape sporty and pleasing. Mazda’s styling team showed great prowess in spite of their ‘newcomer’ status. The vehicle looked just as accomplished in sedan and wagon form, a chapter that’s been previously covered at CC.
At the time, the front and back ends were criticized for being a bit fussy on detailing, which was true and showed not all of the Cosmos’ vices had been expunged. On my curbside find, most of those faults are not notable for obvious reasons; the original grille with its Kabuki theater detailing is, sadly, nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, in the back the car possessed a peculiar plastic cover with chintzy looking taillights. If I didn’t know better, I would argue the RX-4’s back provided later inspiration to Pontiac’s cladded phase.
I had driven past this RX-4’s grey lump a few times, not knowing what it was from the distance. “Some Datsun, probably…” I said to myself, and it took me a while to finally detour into the side street where it lays. Once up close, knowing it was no Datsun, it was time for closer inspection. I more or less remembered those tail lights, but couldn’t quite place the model in my head. It was their peculiar detailing that Google Lensed me onto its identity.
In period brochures the interior showed a driver oriented cabin, although this example’s is the furthest thing away from it. No driver would willingly sit on that control bay, as it stunk quite some. My picture taking was rather swift, as someone had been using this marooned Mazda flagship to attend more basic human necessities.
Here, this is what that cabin was supposed to look like. Not bad, huh? That steering looks French though, not American; but Japan’s stylist have always been quite the cherry pickers with their design cues. Before we get too depressed thinking ‘what could’ve been…’ let’s see what lies in the back.
Oh, there you are, forlorn Kabuki grille! Why you being so shy? Wouldn’t you prefer to be up front in full display? And what about those seats? Terrible choice. I suppose it was a matter of finances, for they seem more fitting in an Aspire than this RX-4. The seats do seem to suggest vehicle usage until a decade or so ago, which is not bad for a rotary powered vehicle.
Talking about which, was this sample powered by rotary or conventional means? Let’s say, for the sake of this column, that it WAS a rotary, with a later Nissan engine swap (the local’s common fix to keep rotary vehicles in some kind of running order). In the US the RX-4 was sold solely with rotaries, either with Mazda’s 12A or 13B under the hood. Elsewhere a 1,800 cc reciprocating engine was also offered. Any of those could have laid inside this sample, as it was sold locally with the full range of choices.
So Mazda is doing all rosy and nice by the early 70’s, too bad the Wankel’s gas guzzling performance came at a cost when the ’73 energy crisis hit. After which, in Japan the model fizzled, and a failed effort was made to boost sales with an anti-pollution version distributed amongst government agencies. Meanwhile, in the US sales went from a plump 120,000 in ’73, to a meager 41,000 in ’76.
This is not a bad point to add that Mazda’s rotary reliability wasn’t quite on par with Toyota’s or Nissan’s offerings. After a promising start, the Wankel gospel was about to make martyrs of those Mazda Ronins.
Mazda’s story is a rather crossed one, as the enthusiast oriented company has brought many vehicles cherished by car lovers; yet somehow, in spite of competitive offerings the brand never quite made it into the big time. The rotary’s botched launch is largely to blame of course, with Toyota, Nissan and Honda taking over the international market while the Ronins waited for the dust to settle and prepared for future battle.
Not that their daring spirit ever disappeared, with their peculiar inclines ever so often materializing. In recent news the rotary is about to be revived for the umpteenth time, this time as an auxiliary engine to extent the range of the company’s electric offerings. Mazda’s early rotaries may have died, with the later RX-7 and RX-8 going out in 2002 and 2012 respectively; but while I doubt this post’s RX-4 will ever rise in Yamato like manner, the soul of the rotary always lies there, in waiting, ready to rise again for the battle.
More on the RX-4:
Vintage R & T Review: 1974 Mazda RX-4 – “The Best Mazda Yet”
Curbside Classic: 1974 Mazda RX-4 Rotary Wagon – Still Spinning
Hasn’t Mazda been burnt enough times by this technological dead end money pit? Let. It. Go.
Mate had an RX-2. “Where are you Brad?” “Still warming up the Mazda”
Late 1980s/early 90s my suburb was infested with these as they brapppped,pfffttted and wankwankwanked around. Fortunately, rust, crashes and plain old good taste has made them rare. I can’t remember when I last heard one.
It can be a bit of a stretch to list features on a basic car. So why not make a joke of it like Mazda did on their features and options! pictures above showing that the driver’s door opens.
I kind of like the idea of a technology that just kind of knocks around waiting to find a really good use for it. The rotary engine has been on that list for quite a few years, now.
I had never paid attention to those taillights before – wow.
Always infatuated with the style and proportions, including the fussy details…what a wonderful combo of late 60’s/early 70’s Japanese and American design. That rear 3/4 view is wonderful. If only they had a OHC 6..that would have been tough for this guy to resist.
Their OHC four seemed to go okay, several friends had the 929, and it was popular for a while to put small block Fords into these – the sedans anyway. I’m thinking the torque would turn this beautiful body into a pretzel.
A V6 Chevrolet twists them up pretty well as my brothers mate found out it went like a bullet once moving but the shell couldn’t take it.
I defintely need the hum of an in-line 6, but I’m sure a V6 or small V8 would fit in the space better. Shame to hear about the twist issues…fantasy garage dream shattered!
She’s my Mazda Luce Coupe, you don’t know what I got…
👍🏻😎😜😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 LOL!
Great find, and a great write up! This is a ’74 coupe. The RX-4 was only produced for the U.S. market with the 13-B engine. This example also appears to have the manual 4-speed (5-speeds came later). Many RX-4s were equipped with the automatic transmission, the characteristics of which drains the driving appeal of the rotary engine.
This car, as hard as it would be to restore or to find the various unique and rare interior and exterior pieces for, is actually quite in demand and is worth more than one would think.
The peculiar tides of rotary ownership and economics create a weird “feast or famine” history of the early rotaries. At first, through ’73, the rotary was loved for its performance in years when the rest of the auto world was going from spritely performance toward drudgery, by and large. As noted above, sales were great through ’73. From ’74, the rotary was hated for its lousy gas mileage and bad real-world engine durability. So depreciation was huge and resale was nil. There was not actually a distinct ’75 RX-4, as the inventory of new ’74s supplied the Mazda dealers through ’75, slow sellers as they were.
Rotary fans snapped up the cheap used rotaries and kept them going, but everyone abandoned them when the much better, in almost all ways, RX-7 came out in ’78. Between the fragility of the cars and the drivetrains, and the “moving along” done in the ’80s, these cars have become very thin on the ground. The cadre of early rotary enthusiasts is small but rabid, and loves these things. The internet has revived the early rotary scene in the last twenty years or so, for parts availability, engine building and maintenance techniques, and just keeping the cars out there and visible.
This car would be sought after by that small group, being a manual transmission coupe. In the weird economics of the early rotary Mazda, this is a good find and more valuable than one would think, given its rundown condition.
I have always loved the Mazda rotary. But they are not for everyone. Those who don’t know the meaning of “oil change” need not apply. But for somebody like me, used to 2 cycle engines and the need for periodical refreshing, no problem. 28 years as a marine mechanic, I can overhaul a Mercury V6 2 cycle powerhead in my sleep. And I don’t see a rotary as more complex, just different. My dream Mazda? REPU (Rotary Engine Pick-Up).
I used to see one of these trucks around N.Portland with custom license plates that said
“3 ROTOR”
Well, I’ve never watched any Japanese animation except for accidentally glancing at the screen when my kids were in their Pokémon phase. But I have driven an RX4 (as well as RX2’s and RX3’s). I preferred the smaller ones, especially RX3 wagons. The broughamesque aspect of the RX4 was just a bit too much for me at the time.
Terrific article that has renewed my interest in these RX-4s. Near-flawless style in their purest form. I believe the Roadpacer had been written up at CC before, which may send me down another rabbit hole simultaneously.
Its hard to find any rotary Mazda here these days they have seemingly been swept up by enthusiasts and rebuilt, I have seen an immaculate RX2 sedan a few times on the southern motorway and more recently at a show its been totally restored back to showroom condition.
I have always been a fan of the RX4 design. Although it is fussier that the RX2 it doesn’t suffer from the ugly weirdness that some 1970s Datusns did. The early 12A RX4 sedan has the same front end as the 929, but then the 13B came with that pointy front end that suited it so well. And what a dashboard!
One of the main points of the rotary was its smoothness and quietness, ruined by those idiot hoons who hotted any Madza Rotary car up and ruined them with those very load brap brap sounds and lurid colours, ghastly wheels, fluorescent interiors etc. I don’t know if these practices of bad taste were confined to Australia or if this also occurred in the US.
Unfortunately as the RX4 and its 929 twin (quite a few piston to rotary conversions occurred) sold in decent numbers here, as did the other pre RX7 rotaries, there was always plenty of examples out there to be ruined, thrashed and crashed.
Unfortunately no 5 speeds or wagons (929 excepted) were sold here.
Our family has an automatic 929 wagon back in the day and I can attest that the piston cars went well too, for what they were. The finish was better that a Datsun 180b or a Toyota Corona.
Aside from the durability aspect of the rotaries, it’s a shame that Mazda did not put some more effort into the suspension. If Nissan could offer an independent rear end at the time in some of its models…..
A Datsun 240K or a 180B SSS would leave a RX4 far behind on a bumpy winding road.
I owned an RX4 and later a 323. One was “interesting”, the other economical and reliable. That’s basically Mazda in a nutshell. They can do either one very well, but never both in the same car. Put the two cars next to each other and they’d be like Betty and Veronica. An expensive proposition that would break your heart or a cheap date, take your pick.
Excellent post Rich.
That statement early on pretty much sums up the key differences between cultures that then goes on to define so much…including how Mazda has fared to this day.
It’s all part of a plan that is about survival of the group versus the individual. The antithesis of some cultures, but core to many others’ (and I dare say to nature overall).
Anyhow, thanks for taking a deep dive into what starts as a car in the weeds and winds up to be something much larger (or sometimes in the reverse direction of that). In the best CC tradition. 🙂