Yahoo Autos Mazda Will Race the Rotary 767B It Just Spent Two Years Restoring
Mazda holds two records at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The company is the only Japanese manufacturer to win the race overall and the only one to win the race with a rotary-powered car, the 787B.
But the 787B wasn't the first rotary that Mazda took to the 24 hour classic. Before the 787B was the 767B, which looks nearly identical to the car that ended up taking overall glory. This 767B, chassis 002, didn't win, it finished 9th overall and 2nd in class at Le Mans in 1989. Its sister car, chassis 001, won the GTP class at Le Mans that year. Chassis 001 also suffered a crash at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2015 and was crumpled slightly.
One of the 767Bs has been in the care of Mazda North America, and for the last couple of years it has been undergoing a painstaking restoration at Downing/Atlanta. It has a 13J four-rotor engine that now produces the same power-630-hp-as it did when it was racing in 1989 and took a number of class wins in sports car racing. This is chassis 002, not
The car will make its debut at next week's Monterey Motorsports Reunion with Mazda design manager Ken Saward at the wheel.
