In an attempt to lessen the sting of disappointment over selling my long term Seven roadster project, I was on the lookout for an interesting replacement. It would need to be less ambitious and less expensive, since family commitments had gobbled up most of the proceeds from the sale. What I found would check almost all the boxes: affordable, stylish, reasonably rare, and needing only minor fettling before a return to roadworthy status.
I first spotted this Mazda 808 back in September 2010 parked on a reasonably busy road in all its seventies glory. Yellow paint with black stripes, slot mag wheels with skinny tires, wood rimmed steering wheel and vinyl roof. Taken as a whole it gives off a mini muscle-car vibe. It was for sale as well, but sadly I owned four other vehicles at the time and the price was a little higher than I could scrape together. It disappeared shortly after and I figured it had sold quickly. Surely I wasn’t the only one that lusted after an early Seventies piston powered Mazda.
The 808 (also known as the 818 in other markets like Europe where it was assumed Peugeot owned the rights to any numerical name with a zero in the middle) is the piston powered version of the more famous Rx-3. Beyond the lack of a rotary engine there are some detail differences as well, with the Rx-3 having round tail lights, rotary badges, and different trim.
This 808 is powered by a 70hp 1.6L four cylinder engine, but other variants used 1.3L and 1.5L four cylinder engines. It is almost the same engine as what you find in a same era B-series truck and RWD 626s (1.8 and 2.0 L versions). This car was also sold as the Mizer in the US for the ’76 and ’77 MY, with the smaller 1300 cc engine.
The specification sheet indicates it might not be the sportiest thing ever with a simple live axle and leaf springs at the rear. The 808s seem to be more plentiful in Canada than the Rx-3, likely due to frugality of the typical Canadian buyer. Mazda claimed 30.5mpg when these were new, which is likely twice what the Rx-3 could manage.
But months later as I was scanning the local online ads as I habitually do, I spotted an ad for the Mazda 808 coupe, using my pictures no less! I called up the seller, who was an easygoing, friendly guy, and set a time to view it. Once I saw it, I was smitten all over again and made a cash offer right on the spot despite it being in non-running condition.
The seller said the starter was stuck and the engine needed some work done but the interior was in fantastic shape and the all-important trim was there. I dragged it home and once I verified that the starter was indeed stuck, I pulled it off and ordered a new one. Despite being a rare survivor, mechanical parts were neither expensive nor hard to come by online. The starter was cheap, but once it arrived I was disappointed to find it had the wrong number of teeth on the ring. At least the seller had affixed a helpful label. Fortunately I was able to combine my existing starter with the new one to assemble a functional starter. The car fired to life and ran quite well, with a hint of blue smoke from the exhaust.
There were a few other issues to take care of in order to get the Mazda roadworthy. The front brake pads were scary-thin. The previous owner had been unable to source replacements but he cannot have looked far, as I was able to find some easily online. What was impossible to find were the rotors, which luckily were still in good shape. Either I actually accidentally ordered wrong, or my order got screwed, up as I received four sets of front brake pads. Fortunately they were only about four dollars a set. The next pressing issue was the tail pipe which was completely missing. A local muffler shop hooked me up with something out of their existing stock. The muffler shop guys first reaction was “what the heck is that?”
Oddly, the Mazda came with no horns. I guess a previous owner must have harvested them for something else. Luckily I still had a set of horns from my old Hyundai Stellar kicking around. They weren’t the self grounding ones like what the Mazda probably had but I added a ground wire to each. I even had a spare bolt that fit perfectly from the bolt bucket so it was a zero dollar repair. I believe the red showing through in places is primer as the VIN indicated it was always a yellow car. I bled the brakes but unfortunately managed to overfill the cylinder a bit, which promptly blew the rear wheel cylinders. Again, spares were cheap and available, so it was not long before the brakes were again functional.
The trunk contained an unexpected accessory in this tow hitch. Its has two bolts that connect to the bottom of the spare tire well and two that connect to the license plate holder. I can’t imagine it would be rated for much weight with only those thin sheet metal connections but it is an interesting curiosity. I found a Rx-3 owner who also had one so they made at least two.
The 808 came with both the original owner’s manual and service book. It let me know that the car was s
The interior was one of my favorite parts of the 808. The black vinyl seemed untouched by the years, and only a few small cracks marred an otherwise perfect dashboard. The coupe had the upmarket wood-look steering wheel and genuine wood shift knob standard. I have seen a few sedan and wagon 808s and their interiors are much more plain.
After a quick adjustment back to “armstrong” steering and vintage brakes, the 808 Coupe was my new daily driver. Only then did I notice that the rear seats did not have any seat belts, which limited me to make taking one son at a time as a passenger. While the four-speed had great gear spacing for around town, the engine got very busy at highway speeds. It was a good thing that most of my driving was strictly in city, as a mere 50mph saw 3,000rpms on the tachometer.
A set of first generation Rx-7 wheels and white letter tires were picked up cheaply at a local swap meet some months later. While I loved the look of the vintage slot mag style rims, I thought the wider tires might give it a handling boost. To use first generation Rx-7 wheels on my 808 I needed a thin spacer, otherwise the wheel would hit the front brake caliper. Luckily I had one from a previous car which was only 5/16″ thick, and I used lug bolts from a late seventies BMW 320i. The back did not need a spacer but I had to use Mazda 626 lug nuts. Very oddly, the front uses lug bolts and the rear uses lug nuts.
This is where our story turns from love story to a sob story. I was in the midst of some rather poor luck with mandatory safety inspections at the time. The last two cars through the process had been running quite sweetly when taken in, but both were returned in non-running condition. This time the timing chain snapped on my Mazda 808. Not really anyone’s fault (unlike last time with my Nissan Micra), but frustrating none the less. They also over filled the brake cylinder (just like I did months earlier) and blew out the rear brake cylinders again. This proved to be the last straw for my wife, who had been on me to for years get a sensible vehicle.
Sadly, I towed my 808 home, and as luck would have it I needed to store it outside for a few days rather than park it in the usual spot in the garage. An owner from the local Mazda dealership slipped his card under a windshield wiper and was looking to see if I would sell. I really was not ready to, as I had planned for the 808 to be a “keeper,” but as a concession to martial bliss a deal was struck were he bought my 808 and and I purchased a brand new Mazda 2. He was planning to do a light restoration and use it for promotion, but I have not seen much movement on it since.
That’s my favourite of your COALs. Shame it couldn’t be a keeper.
That’s a far out car!
I drove one of these but I think it was called 818 in the UK.I was working part time delivering cars to and from a back street garage for repair in 1979 just before finishing university
I have owned a LOT of Mazdas- RX-2/3/4/7, 626, and currently a Mazda5. Probably a dozen total. Amazingly I have never driven an 808 or a 616 (the piston- engined RX-2). These were quite rare around here (Milwaukee- Chicago area) as the vast majority were rotaries.
Your car should have been a keeper, although I can certainly relate to the marital harmony thing. It is only in the last couple years that I have been in a position to have a toy or two without messing with the “bliss factor”.
Now that brings back memories. My grandfather’s daily commuter was an RX-3. He loved that car, and kept years into retirement.
I bought an RX-3 and convinced my sister to get an 808 at the same time so we could get a better deal. I moved on quickly but she kept it for many years and it was reliable and cheap to mantain. I did her oil changes and brake repairs, it was a very simple but will built car. I wish I had the RX now.
What a fantastic car! Shame you had to let it go.
What would’ve been your ideal plans for this car?
Well I would have liked to find a 2.0L and 5spd out of first generation 626 to swap in. Would have given a few extra horses plus an overdrive gear while still looking stock. But where the heck can you find one? A Miata engine and gearbox would have been my second choice.
MX5 Miata pretty much bolts in, boy racers use them in the RWD 323s instead of Rotaries sometimes.
My first car was a 1979 626 coupe with a 5speed. Those 80 horses were enough to have fun with it. Great car and somewhat the successor to these I think. As others have said, I think I agree that this is one of your best COALs yet, or at least one of my favorites.
Wow this was a rough one David but it soumds like it might have had a reasonably happy outcome. Was the lug nut/bolt mismatch factory, or perhaps with the gearing perhaps a sign of an axle swap? I would think anchor points might have been present behind the trim for rear seat belts.
I’m not sure on the mismatch. If I ever seen another I’ll check it out and let you know!
They used the same rear axle for the screaming rotary that was the performance option for these cars and those would pull mega rpms. The later RWD323s had a 5speed option that bolts in.
The ending to David’s story is a prime example of why I’ve recently embraced the MGTOW lifestyle, and probably the reason why all my car-loving friends are single like me.
Ya man,… notice a recurring theme in the endings to David’s stories. Bummer.
Just got to find the right lady! 9 years married two weeks ago, 14 since I met her…5 antique cars. As long as I pay the bills and scrape her windows in the winter, she couldn’t care less. She just cleaned out the Corvair’s interior for me, and I didn’t ask her to do that.
I had to look it up; I’ve never heard of
MGTOWmisogyny before.I thought it was a towing company for errant British cars.
It has less to do with misogyny, and more to do with men rebelling against both de facto and government-sponsored misanthropy that has become all too common in North American post-feminist society. Also rebelling against manipulation and nagging that is all too common in a modern domestic setting.
Just ask any poor schlub who’s walked in on his wife boinking the FedEx guy, filed for divorce, and then finding out that she’s still entitled to half of everything, as well as a big chunk of his reitrement- all as a reward for being an adulteress.
Ask the guy who’s a victim of paternity fraud, who now is legally obligated in some states to pay support for the illegitimate offspring of his wife or GF’s secret affair. Or the guy who loses his job and has his life ruined because of totally false domestic battery or child abuse charges by a vengeful ex out to destroy him purely out of spite.
Or finally- something that us car guys can relate to: some poor guy being forced to give up his prized classic vehicle due to constant nagging, fits of anger, withholding of physical intimacy, or threats of divorce if he doesn’t cave in.
I spent a great many years feeling sorry for myself because I was never able to meet “the one”. All these years later, after seeing the emotional, financial, and legal carnage that can result when such relationships go sour, suddenly I don’t feel so bad.
MGTOW does not equal misogyny. That’s just another lie put out by feminazis and gold diggers who feel threatened by many men’s newfound independence and autonomy. MGTOWS have simply seen the truth, and refuse to be controlled or manipulated any longer.
I have to agree Christopher. While part of my still being single is due to major health issues in my high school days, I just kind of like my life the way it is. I wouldn’t be averse to meeting a nice lady, but I am not actively seeking it out. I like using MY money for things I want. It was so nice being able to buy the Town Car because I wanted it, and did not have to consult a girlfriend or wife beforehand. I also suspect that if I got a girlfriend, all my model cars on display in my condo would wind up in a storage unit…
But…I had to look up MGTOW too. I thought it might have had something to do with British roadsters and Lucas electics!
Just find someone who is willing to accept your “hobby” even if she doesn’t share it. My wife couldn’t be less of a car person (her first car, picked out by her dad, was an AWD turbo Talon TSi which she merely described as “cute” and “zippy”) but my 1/18 and 1/64 models are still out in the open. They’re all in one room, but they’ve not been totally banished. She tolerates my stopping during walks and trips to photograph random old cars on the streets. And much to my surprise she didn’t veto the idea of my buying the Volvo, though I’m sure the $2000 asking price had as much to do with it as any other virtues of the car. 🙂
Your car may have had a rear axle swap, the automatic version of the 808/818 in the early years had a 4.11 rear end. People also often added screw in wheel studs to the early cars, which all came with lug bolts. Perhaps wheel studs were added to this car all around, then the front rotors were swapped out for new ones at some point and the front studs were lost. The studs are heck to remove, once they have been in there a while.
Hope the dealer keeps the car more or less as-is. So many of these are lost to conversions to faux RX3s. The paint job, too, is something custom, and is actually very well done, and frames the vinyl roof nicely, considering all the angles and shapes in the underlying sheet metal.
The rotary-engined Savanna RE coupe was a very popular sedan racer in Japan and it’s likely that the reason Mazda called the subsequent RX-7 the Savanna RX-7 in the domestic market was to not lose that connection despite the fact that the RX-7 was quite a different car.
Even among the rotary Savannas, there were some different levels of suspension tune, but the basic layout doesn’t need any apologies for sportiness. (The British Escort TC and RS had struts and Hotchkiss and was an extremely successful sedan racer and rally car.) Where that layout leaves something to be desired is more in the area of civility. If you have everything tightened up enough for good body control, occupants end up needed kidney belts over rough pavement.
Yeah they ride rough but are fun to fling around on gravel roads, and who cares about ride comfort in a sporty sedan?
These were developed into the RWD 323 and the floorpan and suspension is shared with the RX7 parts are everywhere. Good little cars and fun to drive too fast on low traction surfaces like gravel, Rotary engines were uncommon here and restricted to these coupes but they are better cars with piston engines in my opinion.
Love it. My favourite of you COALs thus far David. I loved Mazda during this era.
Probably my favourite car so far too. I loved my Spitfire as well but more for the memories created in it.
A cool rare car. I see some ’73 Plymouth Satellite Sebring in the front end. Maybe even some Mopar in the back. Mazda was first, perhaps Chrysler was watching.
That interior brings back memories… My family used to own an RX-4 wagon in the early 1980s. If only THAT car had a cylinder engine. At the time, we were poor immigrants fresh off the boat and got suckered into buying that car, which promptly died. My stepfather ended up rebuilding the rotary engine himself – in the street, in the middle of winter.
I have written a memoir about our RX-4 that was published in a book of stories a few years ago. If you have some time to kill, you can read it here: http://mystory.hias.org/en/stories/view/index/identity/38
Great story. I have sold parts to a few Russian customers over the years. Some of the repairs I have seen show real determination and creativity.
Neat story and neat car. I love the front end and interior. I’ve always liked small Mazdas, from the 808 to the GLC, to the Protege and now the 3. I like the new Demio more than the 3. It’s going to be a hit.
What a great car! It’s too bad that it met such an untimely end. That yellow and black color combo – how deliciously 1973.
Very cool little car–and wow that’s some bad luck with safety inspections. Did you have bad luck with multiple shops, or are there few places certified for the inspections in your area?
At least the bright green color of the 2 keeps some of the offbeat nature of the 808. I’ve never seen another that color (the 2 in general is pretty rare around here, the Fiesta well outsells it).
Had an 1972 RX2 for about 2 weeks. Traded a 66 VW sundial camper for it. Saw the error of my ways and traded it back. He was not a happy camper, but reluctantly agreed. I couldn’t believe such a small light car used so much gas. Too bad your ownership did not work out, why do some women have such common sense?
I’ve pretty much given up on ever finding true love at this point, but if I ever do, I’m flexible.
If she wants to trade my ’95 LS400 for something more practical, so be it. My Vette, my Ventura, my Monza, and even my ’71 GMC Sprint I’m willing to sell for the right price.
HOWEVER- I draw the line at my ’72 Delta Royale convertible, my ’66 Biscayne, and my ’02 F250 Super Duty pickup. If she tries to make me get rid of any of those- well… she knows where the front door is.
Man, I am jealous. I never find any car this interesting for sale.
Great car David. I remember the original post well and was hoping you still had it but suspected your blue Mercedes Diesel replaced it.
Very cool. I learned to drive stick in one of these back in the early ’80’s. It’s in much nicer shape than the one I drove, which belonged to my sister’s old boyfriend.
The first new car my wife ever bought (before I met her) was a 1973 808 with the factory special edition paint like this one, but in a groovy and unique two-tone lilac colour scheme. I’m not sure if she special-ordered the colour or bought it off the lot, but we never saw another like it.
She absolutely loved her 808 – it was her baby – and she still owned it when we met in 1977. It was a sporty car and she loved to drive it fast, especially winding it up on our curvy BC highways. For reasons I don’t recall, she traded it in on a new 1979 Mustang…a distinctly unmemorable car.
I have a Polaroid of her somewhere, proudly showing off the 808 just after she bought it. Yesterday would have been her 69th birthday. I miss her every day…thanks for the memory.
My first car was a ‘73 808 similar to the RX3 pic I attached. As it was my first car it supplied me with many great memories, unfortunately winning any races was not one. While not what I would consider fast it at least handled well due to the previous owner fitting it with orange Mulholland shocks and fat little BR60/13 BFG radial t/a tires. I bought it in very good condition in the early summer of 1977 and drove it for 2 years until replacing it with a ‘71 Chevy Nova with V8 power and poor handling 😄