After a truly heroic restoration of a rusted out Cosmo Sport, Mazda Germany did what anyone would do with a newly restored classic rotary — take it on a three-day road rally.
The Hamburg-Berlin Klassik Rallye takes 180 classic cars for a loop around northern Germany. In between, there are stages that test your driving skill in terms of straight-line acceleration and braking, navigation, and even driving on ice. In the penultimate episode of the series, hosts Det Müller and Cyndie Allemann test their skills at a TSD, or Time Speed Distance, challenge, where it’s not how fast you drive that counts Scores are determined by crossing the finish line at a precise time. Arrivals that are early or late are penalized, so it’s as much as a test of navigation as it is driving.
In the grand finale, it’s time for the rally. The Cosmo Sport joins legions of Benzes, Volkswagens, Porsches and many other varieties of European steel. The three days are not without its troubles, and the hosts must conduct a roadside brake master cylinder repair. In the end, the Mazda completes the 800 km (500 mile) event through some of Germany’s most scenic towns without breaking much of a sweat.
Watching from the US, what surprised us most were the number of Japanese cars seen in the background. We spotted a Toyota Team Europe A40 Celica, a Nissan S30 Z, a pair of RX-7s and a droptop FC3S, as well as an FJ40 Land Cruiser. After completing the rally, the Cosmo Sport was taken to its new home at the newly opened Mazda Museum in Germany. It was a fitting end to the series, and throughly enjoyable even if we don’t speak a lick of German.
Uhh, penultimate means next to the last. Not the best. That word is ultimate. Don’t worry, you’re not the only one who uses the wrong word…
If there are 14 episodes, 13 is the penultimate
I had a ’79 and a 87 Mazda RX7 Both nice, fast and good looking. But always had trouble passing emissions tests.Also flooding up and hard to start. Now I have a ’94 Miata. Great car. I also had a 323 and a 626. Year
The rx-7’s belonged to the owner of the Cosmo and Mazda Museum in Augsburg Walter’s sons and are out of his collection they said in the Video.
Btw, most probably going to visit the Mazda Museum in Augsburg next week 🙂
According to the Video, that exact Cosmo should exhibited at the Museum now 🙂
The german import-divisions of japanese car-makers are waking up now. They are sending classic japanese cars to classic-car-events to be part of the game and show the people that japanese car manufacturers have a history too.
Many viewers are not so familiar with japanese cars at these events, but they will have to get used to it.
Next step: Austrian importers will have to wake up and follow. I am looking forward to that.