The Mazda 787b is a certified legend. A 700-horsepower giant-slayer, the first Japanese racecar to win Le Mans, so terrifyingly effective that the sanctioning bodies banned its engine from competition. Before the 787, there was the 767b.
That car wasn’t a Le Mans-winner, but it still got down. The 767 ran in Group C spec, the last of a fine breed. Also: the first of a new one. It pioneered the four-rotor Wankel racing engine, a 600-hp breadbox filled with triangular crazy. At 9,000 rpm, it was loud enough to knock your teeth loose.
Mazda says its next road-going sports car will revive the rotary engine. We hope that’s true. In the meantime, here’s a 767b dyno pull to hold you over.