The Mazda RX-3 was a rotary-powered Japanese vehicle sold in the U.S. between 1972 and 1978. Several body styles were offered, including a station wagon like this one. On its home base, the car was known as the Savanna, and Japanese buyers benefitted from the rotary engine when it came to paying road taxes (something that didn’t help U.S. buyers). This wagon is in good shape for its age (when was the last time you saw one?), and it can be found in Chicago, Illinois. It’s available here on Facebook Marketplace for $18,000.
RX-3s were designed to be sportier, yet smaller versions of the RX-2, also rotary-powered. It resembled the conventional 4-cylinder Mazda 808, which was a popular seller for the company. Various versions of the rotary engine were employed, depending on the model year. The one in the seller’s wagon is the 13B, which may have been transplanted from a 1990s RX-7. This vehicle runs and drives, but not well enough so it will need a tune-up.
The seller had this wagon sold, but the deal fell through, so the Mazda is back on the market at 73,000 miles. The body is good, but the red paint is dull, and the seller suggests a repaint should be in the wagon’s future (the photos look better). There is a bit of rust, but it’s repairable. The white interior is stock and in decent condition for a 53- or 54-year-old wagon (the seller says it’s a 1972 or a 1973 model, both in the listing).
Possibly rare is that this wagon comes with air conditioning, probably installed by the dealer before it was sold new (just a guess). The wheels are aftermarket ones, and they help make the wagon stand out. The seller isn’t interested in trades, so he won’t take your 1966 Chevy Malibu instead of $18k cash. Our thanks to “Sam61” for the tip!
In Chicago with Vermont plates? I would expect this to be
a rust bucket,but it doesn’t look like it is.Since the prices have
gone insane on these type of Mazdas,it seems like a good deal,
but I’d want to check it out first,before buying.
When we stayed in Harlowton,Montana many years ago,I
walked all over town & spotted a Blue RX3 wagon sitting on someone’s
property,but couldn’t get a hold of anyone.
Well shiver me timbers, been a while. It’s odd, the RX3 was actually smaller than the RX2, and way below the RX4 that I thought was a nice car, aside from the rotary. The RX2 and 3, I believe had smaller motors, and got a bit better gas mileage, but was still too far out there for grandpa 6 cylinder, who was contemplating a Vega, Pinto or Toyota. It was worth a test drive and that’s usually where it stopped. Here’s a fact for ya’, while the RX3 sold over 280,000 cars worldwide, only a scant 2300 were sold in the US. I think modern rotaries addressed all the old bugaboos, but at the time, it just wasn’t what Americans wanted, when a Toyota was on the radar. Took a long time for Mazda to get past that and make great cars today. Amazing find.