Source: Daily Turismo: 5k: Endangered Species: 1982 Mazda 626 ....
(Not the actual car. The one I was offered was white.)
An engineer friend offered me a free '81 Mazda 626. He was the first or 2nd owner, and it was a top of the line model with sunroof, power accessories etc. 5-speed, RWD. Reasonably well maintained, not horribly rusty (relative to other 35 year old cars around here). Ran when parked, about 10 years ago.
Considering the pile of unfinished projects I already have, I turned it down. I
think the car went to the crusher as a result (will confirm this weekend).
Now, after watching the latest videos from
Cold War Motors, I'm having second thoughts, or rather, guilt pangs (along the lines of: you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone).
I mean the Mazda will probably never exactly be a desireable classic, but was it worth saving?
It ticked many of the "worth saving" collectible boxes:
- coupe
- b-pillarless hardtop
- RWD
- manual trans
- top spec (factory RX-7 wheels!)
- relatively rare
- etc
But there's little else in the car to ignite passion for preserving it. It's a plain 3-box car in the truest sense of that description. Probably the same reason I didn't want it and neither did the owner. There are shades of Peugeot 505 in there, and maybe even BMW if you squint hard enough. But the truth is you have to look long & hard to find any notable styling elements worth lingering over.
What about sheer driving enjoyment? The modern 74 hp Mitsu Mirage has a better power:weight ratio. It would probably have been somewhat efficient... but if I'd taken it and fixed it up, I wouldn't have driven it enough for that to matter anyway.
So I gave it a pass.
But part of me wonders if I should have put it in inventory. Though I'm sure my neighbours would be glad I did not.