The Mazda Cosmo is a grand touring coupé that was produced by Mazda from 1967 to 1995. Throughout its history, the Cosmo served as a “halo” vehicle for Mazda, with the first Cosmo successfully launching the Mazda Wankel engine. The final generation of Cosmo served as Mazda’s flagship vehicle in Japan, being sold as the Eunos Cosmo through its luxury Eunos division in Japan.
Mazda chose to use the name “cosmo“, reflecting international cultural fascination with the Space Race, as Mazda wanted to showcase the rotary engine as forward-thinking, with a focus on future developments and technology.
The Series II/L10B was introduced in July 1968. It had a more-powerful 128 hp (95 kW)/103 lb·ft (140 N·m) 0813 engine, power brakes, 15 inch wheels and a 5-speed manual transmission. The wheelbase had been expanded by 15 inches (38.1 cm) for more room and a better ride. This Cosmo was good for over 120 mph (193 km/h) and could accelerate to cover a quarter-mile (400 m) in 15.8 s.
Visual changes included a larger grille under the front bumper with two additional vents to each side of this “mouth”. Only 833 were ever made, and fewer than six Series II models were initially imported into the United States. The price was up a bit to 1.48 million yen (US$4,390).
Comedian and former talk show host Jay Leno owns a 1970 Series II Cosmo which was featured on the North American Speed Channel series My Classic Car in March 2006. It was believed to be the only remaining Series II Cosmo in the United States, though the original Cosmo 10a engine was replaced with an RX-7 12a.
However, Mazda’s U.S. division “found another in the garage of Phoenix-area car collector Glenn Roberts and made an offer that he couldn’t refuse,” according to Car and Driver magazine’s September 2007 issue (“A Tale of Two Rotaries”). There is a Series II Cosmo in a collection in Alberta, Canada as well.
A 1970 Mazda Cosmo Sport Series II L10B Coupe sold in January 2015 for US$110,000 inclusive premium at auction at Bonhams.
Racing :
In 1968, Mazda went racing with the Cosmo. They selected one of the most grueling tests in Europe to prove the reliability of the rotary engine, the 84-hour Marathon de la Route at the legendary Nürburgring circuit in Germany. Two mostly stock Cosmos were entered, along with 58 other cars. One major change to the cars’ 10A engines was the addition of a novel side- and peripheral-port intake system: A butterfly valve switched from the side to the peripheral port as RPMs increased. The engines were limited to 130 PS to improve durability.
The cars ran together in fourth and fifth place for most of the race, but the all-Japanese car was retired with axle damage in the 82nd hour. The other car, driven by Belgians, completed the race in fourth overall. This was to be the only racing outing for the Cosmo—the next Mazda race car would be a Familia Rotary (R100).
