The Mazda R100 is already a rare car in the US. Thanks to an Australian rotary enthusiast, it’s now even rarer. A one-owner, numbers-matching example has been shipped halfway around the globe to Alex, a new owner in Australia, who christened it with the license plate USA 10A.
Technically, the car has had two owners, the original American one who bought it in 1970 and an Australian bloke who shipped it to Queensland and left it in his garage for two years. That’s when Alex, the current owner, found it, bought it, and fixed it up. Our friends at Grassroots Garage caught up with him for a video.
It’s an amazingly complete car, with all the interior pieces present, accounted for, and largely undamaged. Even with its first-generation 10A rotary engine, it scoots pretty well. It’s been lowered, but still looks fantastic on original hubcaps and whitewalls. We’re sad we’ll never see it in this hemisphere, but glad it lives on with someone who appreciates it.
“It’s been lowered,”
….and the population of original R100’s has been erased by one.
A lowering can be easily reversed.
Great car! Only 649 R100s imported in 1970. the fewest of the three model year offering.
Great video, it really shows off the character of the R100 Rotary Coupe. And you can see how relentlessly smoothly it revs, it must have been an absolute revelation in the 70s, compared to the usual pushrod I4s in similar-sized cars. No wonder Mazda was selling boatloads of rotaries in the USA without even a proper dealer network, at least until the Arabs turned off the taps. A very special car, great to see it being cared for.
Hi,
BEEVEE (Bernie) here from Melbourne Australia (can’t get the “introduction section to work?”), so I’ll say hi here as my first hello!
Loved watching this rare R100 imported to Australia…………..what I loved the most was the respect the driver gave this little piece of history by driving it the way it was intended. If he continues to treat it this way all the time, and so preserve it and lessen the chance of a “write-off”, then my heartfelt congrats go out to him………….keep up the “care” mate, and dont be tempted to “thrash” her for a one minute thrill, but forever to regret any damage