Mazda Luce
Encyclopedia
Mazda used the Luce name on its largest sedans in Japan
from 1969 until 1990. These vehicles were exported under a variety of names, including RX-4
, 929
, and Cosmo
. The Luce nameplate was replaced by the Mazda Sentia
name in 1991. The name "Luce" was taken from the Italian
word for "light".
of Italy
. It was low and sharp, looking more like a contemporary BMW Bavaria than any of its smaller Mazda brothers.
The production version, launched in August 1966, had a higher roofline but retained the BMW look. It was a front-engine, rear wheel drive 4-door sedan, and featured a square 1.5 L (1490 cc) 1500 SOHC engine, producing 78 hp (58,1 kW) at 5,500 rpm and 84.5 lbft. It sold poorly at ¥ 695,000 (US$1,930) and a stroked 1.8 L (1,796 cc) 1800 engine was added for 1968. This new model, the Luce 1800, produced 104 hp (74,5 kW) at 5,500 rpm and 112 lb ft at 2,500 rpm. An estate (station wagon
) was also added. It was introduced two years before the Toyota Corona Mark II and the Nissan Laurel
in Japan.
The Luce Mark I was sold in Australia
under the names "Mazda 1500" and "Mazda 1800".
-powered Luce appeared in 1969. The Luce R130 was produced from October 1969 to 1972. It used a 1.3 L 13A engine, which produced 126 hp (94 kW) and 127 ft·lbf (172 Nm). Quarter-mile (400 m) performance was 16.9 seconds. This model was a front wheel drive two door coupé with front disc brakes. This model, Mazda's only front-wheel drive rotary, is now a collector's item and very rare.
, but expanded to a full line in 1971. This included all three of the company's piston-powered models, the compact 1200
, mid-size 616
, and full-size 1800.
The US-market 1800 produced 98 hp and 108 lbft and cost US$2,280. Performance was sluggish, with a 0-60 mph time of 17.5 seconds and a 20.5 seconds and 65 mph (29.1 m/s) quarter mile. Unlike the rotary
cars, the 1800 was a flop. Road & Track
magazine said it was solid to the point of being overly heavy, with pleasant handling but poor performance. It was gone from the market for 1972.
Opposite to what happened in the U.S., in Europe the 1800 had a better performance with 104 hp at 5,500 rpm (SAE) and maximum torque of 109 lb·ft at 3,000 rpm (SAE), for a 0-60 mph time of 13.4 seconds. The poor performance of this engine in USA was probably due to fact that in USA the petrol had an octane index of only 85 r.o.n. while in Europe the petrol at the time had an octane index of 95 r.o.n (up to 100 r.o.n. today). Also the manual transmission with four gears used in Europe contributed to a much better performance than the three-speed automatic transmission usually used in the US. The 1800 (fitted with a manual transmission) also sold in small numbers in Australia.
The number of Mazda 1800 automobiles imported into the U.S. are as follows.
The 1800 saloon (model SVA - 4-door) was producedn from 1968 through 1973 where a reported 39,401 units were made. An 1800 estate version (model SVAV - station wagon) was added in 1970.
in export markets. It was available as a coupé, sedan, and "custom" (station wagon). Two rotary engines were offered, the regular 12A and low-emission AP 13B.
Engines:
that looked like a huge, square coupé, and a wagon, which had more of a utilitarian role than the sedans.
Aside from the regular piston engine variants, the 12A or 13B rotary engines were on offer. The piston engined variants were exported as the Mazda 929
. A rotary engine version was exported to "general issue" countries & sold as an RX-9. Most RX-9's were sold with the smaller 12A engine.
A facelift was given to the range in 1980, giving the car a more 'European' styled front. When the range was replaced in 1981, the wagon models continued, due to there being no wagon model of the new range developed.
Engines:
Engines:
engine as one of many engine options. It was still exported as the 929, and differed from the (continued) Cosmo. In the 1990s Mazda sold the body stampings to Kia where it was reproduced until the early first decade of the 21st century in piston form and sold in Korea only.
1991 was the last year of the Luce nameplate. The Eunos Cosmo
was already on sale (JC), and the HD platform spawned the Mazda Sentia
(now exported as the 929
), and the Efini MS-9, making 1991 the last year for a 4-door rotary powered sedan prior to the RX-8.
Engines:
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
from 1969 until 1990. These vehicles were exported under a variety of names, including RX-4
Mazda RX-4
The Mazda RX-4 is an automobile sold in the 1970s. It was a larger car than its rotary-powered contemporaries, the Capella-based RX-2 and Familia-based RX-3. It shared the Luce/929 chassis, replacing the R130 in October 1972, and was produced through October 1977...
, 929
Mazda 929
The Mazda 929 was originally a mid-size car from 1973–1987 and as a full-size car thereafter. Marketed over three decades, the 929 was originally the export name for the Mazda Luce. When equipped with a rotary engine, it was called the Mazda RX-4 in export markets...
, and Cosmo
Mazda Cosmo
There have been four generations of Mazda automobiles which went by the name of Cosmo, although they are not all particularly related. All were Grand tourers, with the first proving a successful launch for the Mazda Wankel engine and acting as a "halo" vehicle for the new Mazda brand...
. The Luce nameplate was replaced by the Mazda Sentia
Mazda Sentia
The Mazda Sentia is a large rear wheel drive luxury car sold in Japan in the 1990s. It replaced the Mazda Luce nameplate on the Mazda H platform cars for Japan in 1991 and was retired in 1999 after two generations.-1991:...
name in 1991. The name "Luce" was taken from the Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
word for "light".
1965
Following an agreement signed with Bertone in April 1962, the 1965 Luce 1500 show car was designed by Giorgetto GiugiaroGiorgetto Giugiaro
Giorgetto Giugiaro is an Italian automobile designer responsible equally for a stable of supercars and several of the most popular everyday vehicles driven today...
of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It was low and sharp, looking more like a contemporary BMW Bavaria than any of its smaller Mazda brothers.
The production version, launched in August 1966, had a higher roofline but retained the BMW look. It was a front-engine, rear wheel drive 4-door sedan, and featured a square 1.5 L (1490 cc) 1500 SOHC engine, producing 78 hp (58,1 kW) at 5,500 rpm and 84.5 lbft. It sold poorly at ¥ 695,000 (US$1,930) and a stroked 1.8 L (1,796 cc) 1800 engine was added for 1968. This new model, the Luce 1800, produced 104 hp (74,5 kW) at 5,500 rpm and 112 lb ft at 2,500 rpm. An estate (station wagon
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
) was also added. It was introduced two years before the Toyota Corona Mark II and the Nissan Laurel
Nissan Laurel
In April 1968 Nissan presented its new Laurel in four-door deLuxe and Super deLuxe versions, both equipped with a 1.8 L inline-four cylinder engine and independent rear suspension. In summer 1970 a hardtop coupé joined the line-up, one year later a 2000 cc engine became available...
in Japan.
The Luce Mark I was sold in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
under the names "Mazda 1500" and "Mazda 1800".
R130
A rotaryWankel engine
The Wankel engine is a type of internal combustion engine using an eccentric rotary design to convert pressure into a rotating motion instead of using reciprocating pistons. Its four-stroke cycle takes place in a space between the inside of an oval-like epitrochoid-shaped housing and a rotor that...
-powered Luce appeared in 1969. The Luce R130 was produced from October 1969 to 1972. It used a 1.3 L 13A engine, which produced 126 hp (94 kW) and 127 ft·lbf (172 Nm). Quarter-mile (400 m) performance was 16.9 seconds. This model was a front wheel drive two door coupé with front disc brakes. This model, Mazda's only front-wheel drive rotary, is now a collector's item and very rare.
1800 (USA)
The Mazda brand entered the United States market in 1970 with just the small R100Mazda R100
The Mazda R100 was the export name for the Mazda Familia Rotary Coupe, an automobile produced by Mazda in Japan from 1968 to 1973. It used the chassis from the Familia and the rotary 0820 engine similar to the one used in the Cosmo Sport Series II. It was a 2 door 2+2 coupé and was produced from...
, but expanded to a full line in 1971. This included all three of the company's piston-powered models, the compact 1200
Mazda Familia
Mazda's automotive plans for the early sixties consisted of growing alongside the Japanese economy. To achieve this goal, they began by building an extremely cheap Kei car, the R360 in 1960, planning on introducing gradually larger and pricier cars as the Japanese customers became able to afford them...
, mid-size 616
Mazda Capella
The second generation rear-wheel drive Capella was available between 1978 and 1982, in both sedan and coupe forms. It was known on export markets as the Mazda 626, with the exception of the United Kingdom, where it was called the Mazda Montrose, the name was changed to honour the local Mazda...
, and full-size 1800.
The US-market 1800 produced 98 hp and 108 lbft and cost US$2,280. Performance was sluggish, with a 0-60 mph time of 17.5 seconds and a 20.5 seconds and 65 mph (29.1 m/s) quarter mile. Unlike the rotary
Mazda Wankel engine
The Mazda Wankel engines are family of car engines derived from experiments in the early 1960s by Felix Wankel, a German engineer...
cars, the 1800 was a flop. Road & Track
Road & Track
Road & Track is an American automotive enthusiast magazine. It is owned by Hearst Magazines, and is published monthly. The editorial offices are located in Newport Beach, California.-History:...
magazine said it was solid to the point of being overly heavy, with pleasant handling but poor performance. It was gone from the market for 1972.
Opposite to what happened in the U.S., in Europe the 1800 had a better performance with 104 hp at 5,500 rpm (SAE) and maximum torque of 109 lb·ft at 3,000 rpm (SAE), for a 0-60 mph time of 13.4 seconds. The poor performance of this engine in USA was probably due to fact that in USA the petrol had an octane index of only 85 r.o.n. while in Europe the petrol at the time had an octane index of 95 r.o.n (up to 100 r.o.n. today). Also the manual transmission with four gears used in Europe contributed to a much better performance than the three-speed automatic transmission usually used in the US. The 1800 (fitted with a manual transmission) also sold in small numbers in Australia.
The number of Mazda 1800 automobiles imported into the U.S. are as follows.
- 1970 - 1,058 Sedan - 937 Estate
- 1971 - 1,020 Sedan - 1,639 Estate
- 1972 - 100 Sedan - 0 Estate
The 1800 saloon (model SVA - 4-door) was producedn from 1968 through 1973 where a reported 39,401 units were made. An 1800 estate version (model SVAV - station wagon) was added in 1970.
1972
The 1972 rotary Luce was also known as the Mazda RX-4Mazda RX-4
The Mazda RX-4 is an automobile sold in the 1970s. It was a larger car than its rotary-powered contemporaries, the Capella-based RX-2 and Familia-based RX-3. It shared the Luce/929 chassis, replacing the R130 in October 1972, and was produced through October 1977...
in export markets. It was available as a coupé, sedan, and "custom" (station wagon). Two rotary engines were offered, the regular 12A and low-emission AP 13B.
Engines:
- 1973-1976 1.8 L (1,769 cc) 1800 I4, 2 barrelCarburetorA carburetor , carburettor, or carburetter is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. It is sometimes shortened to carb in North America and the United Kingdom....
, 83 hp (61 kW)/101 ft·lbf (137 N·m) - 1975-1976 2.0 L (1,970 cc) F/MA I4, 2 barrel, 103 hp (76 kW)/123 ft·lbf (167 N·m)
- 1972-1976 13B (1,308 cc), 127 hp (93 kW)/138 ft·lbf (188 N·m)
1977
The 1978 Luce Legato (introduced in October, 1977) was a large and luxurious sedan, still powered by Mazda's piston or rotary engines. It was also available as a four-door pillarless hardtopHardtop
A hardtop is a term for a rigid, rather than canvas, automobile roof. It has been used in several contexts: detachable hardtops, retractable hardtop roofs, and the so-called pillarless hardtop body style....
that looked like a huge, square coupé, and a wagon, which had more of a utilitarian role than the sedans.
Aside from the regular piston engine variants, the 12A or 13B rotary engines were on offer. The piston engined variants were exported as the Mazda 929
Mazda 929
The Mazda 929 was originally a mid-size car from 1973–1987 and as a full-size car thereafter. Marketed over three decades, the 929 was originally the export name for the Mazda Luce. When equipped with a rotary engine, it was called the Mazda RX-4 in export markets...
. A rotary engine version was exported to "general issue" countries & sold as an RX-9. Most RX-9's were sold with the smaller 12A engine.
A facelift was given to the range in 1980, giving the car a more 'European' styled front. When the range was replaced in 1981, the wagon models continued, due to there being no wagon model of the new range developed.
Engines:
- 1977-1980 1.8 L (1,769 cc) I4, 2 barrel, 83 hp (61 kW)/101 ft·lbf (137 N·m)
- 1977-1980 2.0 L F/MA (1,970 cc) I4, 1 barrel, 90 hp (66 kW)
- 1977-1980 13B, 127 hp (93 kW)/138 ft·lbf (188 N·m)
- 1980-1980 2.2 L dieselDiesel engineA diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
, 66 hp (49 kW)/104 ft·lbf (142 N·m)
1981
For 1981, Mazda brought back the Cosmo name for the HB platform Luce coupé. The sedan was also exported as the Mazda 929. The wagon was essentially the same as the last one from the A-pillar back. Production of the Cosmo continued after the Luce was replaced in 1986.Engines:
- 1981-1986 2.0 L (1970 cc) MA I4, 1 barrel, 90 hp (66 kW)/118 ft·lbf (160 N·m)
- 1981-1986 2.0 L (1998 cc) FE I4, 2 barrel, 101 hp (74 kW)/115 ft·lbf (156 N·m)
- 1981-1986 2.0 L (1998 cc) FE I4, FIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 118 hp (87 kW)/126 ft·lbf (171 N·m)
1986
The 1986 Luce was large and luxurious on the HC platform, now with the 13B turboTurbocharger
A turbocharger, or turbo , from the Greek "τύρβη" is a centrifugal compressor powered by a turbine that is driven by an engine's exhaust gases. Its benefit lies with the compressor increasing the mass of air entering the engine , thereby resulting in greater performance...
engine as one of many engine options. It was still exported as the 929, and differed from the (continued) Cosmo. In the 1990s Mazda sold the body stampings to Kia where it was reproduced until the early first decade of the 21st century in piston form and sold in Korea only.
1991 was the last year of the Luce nameplate. The Eunos Cosmo
Mazda Cosmo
There have been four generations of Mazda automobiles which went by the name of Cosmo, although they are not all particularly related. All were Grand tourers, with the first proving a successful launch for the Mazda Wankel engine and acting as a "halo" vehicle for the new Mazda brand...
was already on sale (JC), and the HD platform spawned the Mazda Sentia
Mazda Sentia
The Mazda Sentia is a large rear wheel drive luxury car sold in Japan in the 1990s. It replaced the Mazda Luce nameplate on the Mazda H platform cars for Japan in 1991 and was retired in 1999 after two generations.-1991:...
(now exported as the 929
Mazda 929
The Mazda 929 was originally a mid-size car from 1973–1987 and as a full-size car thereafter. Marketed over three decades, the 929 was originally the export name for the Mazda Luce. When equipped with a rotary engine, it was called the Mazda RX-4 in export markets...
), and the Efini MS-9, making 1991 the last year for a 4-door rotary powered sedan prior to the RX-8.
Engines:
- 1986-1991 2.0 L (1,998 cc) FE I4, FIFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 116 hp (85 kW)/121 ft·lbf (164 N·m) - 1986-1991 2.2 L (2,184 cc) F2 I4, 1 barrel, 115 hp (85 kW)/129 ft·lbf (175 N·m)
- 1986-1991 2.2 L (2,184 cc) F2 I4, FI, 127 hp (93 kW)/141 ft·lbf (192 N·m)
- 2.0 L JF V6
- 2.0 L JFT V6 FI, 150 hp
- 1986-1991 3.0 L (2,954 cc) JE V6, FI, 165 hp (121 kW)/182 ft·lbf (247 N·m)
- 13B turbo
External links
- http://www.hemmings.com/hsx/stories/2007/09/01/hmn_feature9.html Crazy on this car: Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car, 1967 Luce 1500