1. The name Mazda apparently comes from Ahura Mazda, the god of Zoroastrianism, whatever that is!
2. The first car to wear the Mazda badge was the ‘special’ R360 Coupe.
3. A 1979 Mazda RX-7 achieved a 1/4 mile time of 11.039 seconds at 111.8mph. Not bad, especially considering it had an electric motor!
4. The first production rotary powered Mazda was the quirky 110S Cosmo. A slightly modified one finished fourth in a monster 82hr Nurburgring race.
5. In the ‘70s the little RX-3 won the Japanese Grand Prix touring car category beating Skyline GT-Rs in the process.
6. The 256bhp Mazda 3 MPS is one of the quickest and fastest Mazda’s you can currently buy, with a 0-60mph time of 6.1 seconds and a 155mph top speed faster even than the RX8.
7. The 1975 Mazda Roadpacer was the first car to feature an anti-hi-jack function, operating the central locking when you went over 10mph. It also did 103mph and managed 9mpg!!!
8. If you really have to, you can get an ʻAston Martin styleʼ MX-5. Custom Automotive Restyling in Australia make this, the AMX07.
9. The largest parade of Mazdas was at the grounds of the UNESCO Zollverein World Heritage site in Essen, Germany in 2010. There were 459 MX-5 owners in total.
10. The Worldʼs fastest RX-7 is the Racing Beat Bonneville which recorded 242mph. It has a highly modified 13G lump and it was hoped it would hit 300mph!
