In the 818s, Mazda, like several fellow countrymen, is busy strengthening the model range. It soon offers quite a complete range. One of the cars that plays a very nice role in this is the Mazda XNUMX. Perhaps it is no longer in everyone's mind. There will be days when you forget it. That is unfair, because this was a really nice family car in those years. And a good alternative too.
Grand Familia. The smaller 1000/1300 was called Familia, so to move up the 818 it was called Grand Familia in Japan. In America, the engine-dependent type was called Mizer (1.3) or 808. The latter model name was also used in Australia, for example. The compact mid-sized car was available during its career as a pleasant sedan, attractive coupé and practical station. The Mazda 818 was launched in 1971, and that market was large. The 818 was offered outside Japan in Europe, Australia and America, so depending on the market, the model name could also be 808. Japan adjusted its supply to demand and needs, according to good practice in those years. With respect for that market. Mazda also realized how that worked.
Conventional, proven technology
The 818, therefore, a fairly conventional design when you consider the state of the art from those years. In terms of chassis, there was little new under the sun. The front suspension was independent with coil springs. A stabilizer was placed at the front for balance. At the rear, a rigid axle with semi-elliptical leaf springs served. The braking system (front discs, rear drums) was separate and powered. The wheel drive was at the rear. The body was self-supporting, and the passenger compartment could accommodate two adults in the front and a young adult in the rear.
Complete
As with many Japanese cars at the time, the 818 was quite complete, and the operation was child's play and also: quite precise and smooth. The entry-level power source was the light over square four inline engine with overhead camshaft and 1.272 cc. In a number of countries (also in various European) this engine was only available after the first facelift (75/76), there, for example, the 1.586 cc engine was on the menu from the start. And then again not in Japan, because the 1.586 cc engine was allowed to wait there until 1973, when the 1.490 cc (also known from the Luce Bertone) was retired. For whom all that was not enough: you could also order the 808/818 concept with a Wankel engine and it was called (well, simply put) RX3. Simply put, because the RX3 was of course an independent model. For our regions, Mazda provided a two-disc Wankel engine with a four-fold Hitachi KCB 306 carburettor. The displacement was 2 × 491 cc, and the piston engine equivalent was 1964 cc. The top? 175 kilometers per hour, quite a value in 1971. Better not to do that, because then you would speed from pump to pump. We will come back to the RX3 in detail.
Other appearance
We already mentioned the facelift, the 818 (from now on we just call it that) got a longer nose, slightly different type designations (for example 818 S DX) and a modified face with round headlights instead of rectangular ones. It also resulted in a different grille and a ditto bumper. The closed wheel covers disappeared. And in some cases a three-speed automatic transmission was available. Later, Mazda changed the rear light units again and made more minor cosmetic changes. Mazda did nothing about the high-rise frame line. Fortunately, because that partly gave him his character. The changes that were made gave the 818 slightly more visible dynamics (although that is personal of course), while the initially hot-blooded looking coupe now a bit more chic. And yet: what remained was the idea that the 818 was always perky on its legs
Child of his time and country
A child of his time, a child of his country, a country that was already building excellent cars at that time. And kept traditional European competition to a minimum. And our own competition, because the supply from the land of the Rising Sun grew in the 818s and was really not lying. The Mazda 818 didn't do that either. Good handling, smooth and comfortable driving, basic equipment with which they showed that they take the buyer seriously and an impeccable image with ditto technology. Just good. And simply better than many people thought. The Mazda 1971 was also such a car. That is why it was built 1978 times from 625.000 to XNUMX. It also became the second passenger car for Kia, which built it under license as a Brise II. It is strange that there are days when you forget this Mazda. Was it too good and too sympathetic for.
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The most beautiful are you Still forgotten the super gold
My mother's cousin made me love rock music and the Japanese coupé cars.
He had one and I can still see it in his driveway.
Beautiful car at the time.
Ridden in various types 626 for many years. What a pleasant and solid cars. Afterwards I had Ford and Audi's, because I needed bigger models because of the family expansion and Mazda no longer made those larger models. But in terms of reliability, always with melancholy thought back to the Mazdas that were never wrong.
Mazda 818 and 818 coupe, were the little brother of the 929 and 929 coupe from the mid 70s.
They were beautifully lined, reliable cars. You saw both the 818 and 929 on every corner of the street.
Unfortunately they were disposable products then and now it is easier to buy an old Lamborghini than it is to find an 818 or 929 from that era.
In the early seventies I worked at a Saab / Mazda dealer near Hasselt. My wife drove a honda S800 coupe. With the arrival of our first daughter the Honda became too small and I decided to buy a promotional model Mazda. RX3. When I got home I told my wife that I had bought her a new car.
A Saab ??? no a Mazda. A coupe ??? No a sedan. Still not an orange ??? Yes, at the top. Disappointment at the top. A nice fast family car but dangerous on slippery and wet tracks because of too much horsepower and rear wheel drive. Also huge gas guzzler
And suddenly they were there, the Japanese, un-European in line, rich in equipment and well-made. That was a shock for the marketing guys from Opel, Ford, Fiat and Renault. In a standard 1970 Kadett there were thin skai chairs, nasty rubber mats and a lot of blind plates where only for payment such silly things as a clock, a lighter, a mono radio or a light in the glove compartment could get.
Still, when a neighbor arrived with a Datsun 100A, I heard my father say to him: “How did you end up buying such a Japanese ramshackle? Then take a Lada! ”. Until then, Japanese was synonymous with cheap, crappy junk. In the Dutch East Indies, where my father was born, you bought Japanese watches for a guilder. A Japanese bicycle cost about ten euros and lasted for two months. Japanese toys were sold by the kilo in the market.
By 1965, Japanese industry began to focus on five areas where Germany, the UK and the US had previously ruled: automobiles, motorcycles, consumer electronics, cameras and shipbuilding. “Becoming the best in the world” became the motto. They have won all five sectors. England, with its Victorian factories and Labor unions, lost completely.
In terms of design (ex- and interior) those cars were not a tour de force. It went pretty well, but a rigid rear axle with leaf springs? Many former buyers were concerned with the standard sun visors, the clock and the FM radio (mono). Then you quickly forget such a car afterwards, and it becomes special again 50 years later.
In the 70s I lived in a small village in the middle of the Veluwe. There you had 2 garage owners. One became a Toyota dealer, the other Mazda dealer. I'm talking about the late sixties / early seventies. Both dealers had a huge market share in our region. Mazda drove half of the village. The other half Toyota. My dad drove Ford because my uncle was a Ford dealer. But, what a beautiful and especially "luxury" cars they were back then. I will never forget them, the 1300, the big 919/929, 616 later 626, where I got my driver's license. (After 7 lessons). Of course there were also the nice Toyotas. The Corolla, Carina and the super horny Celica! How can you forget it? Unfortunately, they were also typical children of their time and already rusted when you were sweating in them, so many ended up prematurely on demolition. Soooooo bad!