cars

Mazda

Japan · Founded 1920

The rotary rebels. While everyone else played it safe with pistons, Mazda bet the company on spinning triangles.

Heritage

Mazda started making cork, then machine tools, then three-wheeled trucks. But they became legends by mastering the Wankel rotary engine when everyone else gave up. The RX-7 was their rotary sports car masterpiece, evolved over three generations until the FD became one of the most beautiful cars ever designed. The Miata proved a tiny roadster could save a company. Mazda has always punched above its weight — small, scrappy, and willing to take engineering risks that bigger manufacturers wouldn't touch.

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Mazda Vehicles (1)

1993 Mazda RX-7 FD

1993 Mazda RX-7 FD

$35,000-80,000 Car
Engine: 1.3L Twin-Turbo Rotary (13B-REW)
Power: 255 hp (US)
Trans: 5-speed manual
Years: 1993-2002

The FD RX-7 was Mazda's final statement on the rotary sports car, and it was magnificent. The styling — penned by Mazda's own design team — remains timeless. The sequential twin-turbo 13B-REW was the most sophisticated rotary engine ever mass-produced. At under 2,900 lbs with perfect 50/50 weight distribution, the FD handled like a telepathic extension of the driver. It was also Mazda's most expensive car to build, and they lost money on every one. The RX-7 was discontinued in 2002 because emissions and crash regulations made the rotary untenable. It was the rotary's swan song, and Mazda made it beautiful.