On the Mazda stand of the Passenger Car RAI in 1977, the 323, as a European first, was the refreshing exception among the rather timid other models of the brand. The 323 was seen as the least Japanese Japanese of the moment.
When she had to squeeze herself into the old, draughty MG of my hubby on a bleak, rained-in winter evening, it turned out that Jans (from Jan, Jans and the children) was really done with that prehistoric vehicle: “I want a little Japanese!” , she screamed from her toes. Provided that the strip in question was published sometime in the late 1970s, she may have meant the appetizing Mazda 323, which from 1977 came to steal the hearts of the Dutch public everywhere. Until then, Mazda had sold sedans, coupes and station wagons that, despite their modest size, appealed more to the American taste than to the European one.
The 323 proved to be the complete opposite of this that the designers from Hiroshima had taken a good look at our market: they modeled the 323 as a hatchback with a sleek and friendly design and also a minimum of shiny decorations. The fact that the car technically still followed the traditional road (rear-wheel drive, rigid rear axle) meant that it could not compete with a Volkswagen Golf or Renault 14 in terms of space and driving characteristics; the 323 moved more on the level of the Opel Kadett City and that did not in the least hinder its success. On the contrary, test reports refer to very low pricing and an ‘overwhelmingly generous standard equipment’, although both components quickly became commonplace for Japanese cars in the 1970s. So did their pleasant ability to get to work at the command of a turned ignition key without a murmur, rain or shine.
No wonder, then, that exclamation of all of us Jans, who just wanted to go home in a warm and dry car. At Mazda they then learned quickly; they dutifully kept the 323 in line with the competition while creating ripples in the pond by occasionally throwing in a fun five-door coupe, a small V6, a rally cannon or revolutionary engine technology. In the meantime, we are making sure that Jan and Jans can find themselves in an MX-5. Like Jan, Jans and the Japanese. That sounds fine, doesn’t it?
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl