1991 was a giant 12 months for Mazda. It made historical past on the 24 Hours of Le Mans by turning into the primary Japanese model to win the Grand Prix, bringing house the gold with the rotary-powered Mazda 787B. The identical 12 months noticed the arrival of the Mazda HR-X, an idea automobile powered by a hydrogen rotary engine. The brand new decade additionally introduced with it Fantasyard, a contest the place completely different departments of the corporate strived to develop probably the most inventive automobile idea. The successful car for 1991 was an unconventional compact suitcase automobile, developed by Mazda’s guide transmission testing and analysis unit.
Mazda’s dinky suitcase automobile packed away neatly right into a 57×75-centimeter (22.5×30 inches) Samsonite bag, the biggest hardshell case the engineers might discover. Along with a pocket bike, the case fashioned the premise of their new creation. Regardless of its small dimension, the suitcase automobile weighed a staggering 32 kilograms (roughly 70 kilos) and will attain surprisingly excessive speeds.
If you had been able to journey, the three-wheeled machine was fast to arrange. All you needed to do was shift the entrance wheel into place by eradicating a part of the suitcase, then connect the seat and rear wheels. As soon as assembled, the kart-like creation might hit speeds of round 18 mph courtesy of its 34cc, 1.67-horsepower engine. The automobile’s small dimension additionally supplied a low heart of gravity, making it comparatively simple to deal with.
Mazda’s suitcase automobile by no means hit the market
Mazda’s smallest automobile wasn’t actually designed with mainstream markets in thoughts. Regardless of its dimension, the automobile was truly fairly cumbersome and heavy, so it wasn’t particularly sensible or transportable. It was the product of an in-house competitors come to life, favouring innovation and technical prowess over practicality. Due to that, the suitcase automobile did not find yourself being mass-produced and is among the rarest Mazdas ever made.
Solely three of the suitcase vehicles had been made. There was the unique mannequin created within the wake of its design successful Fantasyard, a European reproduction, and an American mannequin. The European mannequin was created for a presentation on the 1991 Frankfurt Worldwide Motor Present, and has since mysteriously disappeared. The unique suitcase automobile was by chance destroyed, making the mannequin constructed for the US the one one which’s nonetheless in existence.
Though the suitcase automobile did not lead to a commercially out there cool three-wheeler you could possibly drive on the road, it was nonetheless a hit for Mazda in its personal method. The quirky packaway trike captured the media’s consideration, highlighting the Japanese automaker’s enjoyable, boundary-pushing designs. The automobile was in line with Mazda’s total ethos and a few of their flagship creations — just like the 1931 Mazda-Go, one other uncommon three-wheeler — making it a very precious advertising alternative.
