The humming, high-revving, piston-free 10A rotary was making satisfying noise in the compact R100, Mazda's first official import to the U.S. Few of the most knowledgeable enthusiasts in this country knew of the elegant grand touring coupe that preceded the R100 as the world's first two-rotor Wankel-powered production car. In May 1967, the Mazda Cosmo beat NSU's two-rotor Ro80 to market by a few months (the 1965-1967 NSU Wankel Sport Spyder was first, but its single-rotor engine shook like a coin-operated motel bed). Dr. Felix Wankel and NSU announced the engine breakthrough in 1959 and sold Japanese licensing rights to the Hiroshima-based automaker in July 1961.

The tiny Cosmo clearly wasn't designed for the North American market. It's too small inside -- and it isn't a pure sports car as are Toyota's Jaguar E-Type-like 2000GT, Nissan's MGB-like 2000/Fairlady, and Honda's Austin-Healey Sprite-like S800.

It has the kind of postmodern Japanese styling that should appeal to most Python devotees -- a charming two-seat, two-door GT with styling cues reminiscent of the 1961 Ford Thunderbird. But the delicate nose, with its covered headlamps and its vertically stacked afterburner-style taillamps (the top lenses are reflectors), give it a look all its own. That the Cosmo is little known here, even among those hard-core car nuts, isn't surprising. There are perhaps a half dozen in all of North America (we know of three). Mazda built just 343 1967s for the world and a total of 1176 through 1972.

Our example belongs to Wayman Tang, and it has impressive provenance. Mazda delivered the white car (its only color until 1970) to the Curtis Wright Corporation, holder of the Wankel engine license in the U.S., on November 14, 1967. It's an export model, and there's no "Cosmo" badging on it; the name is 110S. It has 10,000 kilometers and change on the clock.

The 1967 Cosmo is nearly half a foot longer than a 2006 Mazda MX-5, although its wheelbase is 5.1 inches shorter (the 1968 model's wheelbase was increased from 86.6 inches to 92.5, although overall length was cut 0.4 inch). The Cosmo is 45.9 inches high versus the MX-5's 49 inches (top up), so climbing into the right-hand driver's seat takes a good limbo move. Getting out requires some cha-cha, as you shuffle your feet under the pedals after adjusting your legs around the large-diameter, thin-rimmed Nardi three-spoke wheel. There are two dead pedals: one for the driver on the right side of the transmission tunnel and one for the passenger on its left. If you're five-11 or so, you'll want the telescopic steering wheel pushed in close to the dash and the seatback slightly reclined. The driver's seat is canted to the left, toward the middle of the interior, to accommodate a poorly aligned steering column, Tang says. Both seats are black vinyl with cloth houndstooth inserts.

There's a choke lever on the black, business-like dash, a cockpit-like affair with toggles for wiper speed, the electric radio antenna, and something marked "horn." To the left of the speedo and tach are an amp gauge, fuel gauge, clock, and a really cool map light, a rotating eye that illuminates things nicely. To the right are oil temp and water temp. The 7000-rpm redline was high in those days, especially compared with that of pushrod V-8 American performance cars. There are rotary dials inside each B-pillar you turn for exhaust of the flow-through ventilation, and there's room for a couple of duffel bags between the seats and the parcel shelf (the trunk is too small for anything but the most efficiently packed weekend getaway). The Clarion radio speakers on the parcel shelf are original, Tang says, although they look 1970s aftermarket.

The Cosmo starts easily with no choke once the engine is warm. The smooth idle of the type-10A twin-rotor sounds like a softer version of the larger 12A used in RX-3s and early RX-7s, but a bit less rorty, less punchy. The Cosmo's four-speed box shifts with the ease of a Miata gearbox, but with longer throws. The car isn't torquey and quick off the line, of course, but thrust builds like in any other rotary—the faster you go, the smoother and more willing it gets. On a mountain road, unfortunately, you'll often find yourself needing a 3-2 downshift just after building steam between the turns. Momentum is your friend in this car. On long straights, it's best not to shift between 5000 and 6000 rpm to get the most out of the engine. Despite peak horsepower listed at the 7000-rpm redline, the power seems to flatten out above 6000 rpm.

The handling is good in a GT sort of way. The suspension feels like it uses progressive-rate springs that allow some initial roll in a turn, before it stiffens up to hold its position as you power through the corner, with the suggestion of impending throttle-on oversteer. The rack-and-pinion steering helps, and although it was geared quick for its day, it lacks on-center feel. This all comes together in a car that's still most satisfying because of its engine. The wraparound bubble rear window and large windscreen mitigate claustrophobia, although there are times you'll wish this were a convertible.

The Mazda Cosmo, like the Toyota 2000GT, could've been in a James Bond movie. Its Wankel rotary is the stuff of post-Godzilla-era Japanese science fiction. And its long, low, weird styling fits with the motor and vice versa. Acquiring one of these ultrarare coupes would've been difficult in the late 1960s. It's nearly impossible now, but, if you do, you'll find yourself owning a fascinating oddity with an important history, as the world's first production Wankel rotary-powered car.

1967 MAZDA COSMO/110

Specifications:Engine982cc twin-rotor Wankel, 1x4-bbl Zenith Stromberg carburetor

Power and torque(SAE gross) 110 hp @ 7000 rpm, 96 lb-ft @ 3500 rpm

Drivetrain4-speed manual, RWD

Brakes:Front: solid disc; rear: drum

SuspensionFront: control arms, coil springs, anti-roll bar; rear: deDion solid axle, trailing arms, leaf springs

Dimensions:L: 163.0 in W: 62.8 in H: 45.9 in

Weight2072 lb

Performance:0-60 mph: 8.8 sec, quarter mile: 16.3 sec @ N/A mph, 60-0 mph: N/A (mfr)

Price when new:$4100 (est) in Japan

OUR TAKE

THEN:"Most noticeable, as is the design's name, was the low and smooth idling speed. But coupled to this was an eagerness to accelerate on a par with such well-known sports cars as the MG, Triumph, and factory-stock Morgans—with about the same amount of noise. Control, stability, and ride characteristics could be rated above par for Japanese vehicles and quite adequate by U.S. standards. "—Motor Trend, December 1969

NOW:Rarity in collectibles doesn't guarantee an interesting car, but the Mazda Cosmo is as much fun to drive and interesting to look at as it is hard to find.

ASK THE MAN WHO OWNS ONE

Dr. Wayman Tang, a Danville, California, dentist, is the third owner of the low-mileage car. He bought it in original condition and drives it weekly. He has rechromed the four wheels ($800 each) and replaced dashboard toggle switches and the heater core.

Why I like it:"I like rotary-powered cars, and I was in a Mazda [online] chat room when I bought this." The car is even much more rare than Tang's 1993 Mazda RX-7 turbo or his 1983 Honda CX650 turbo motorcycle.

Why it's collectible:It has provenance as the world's first production Wankel rotary, but it was built in small numbers and rendered in elegant, attractive sheetmetal. Tang's is one of 343 type-L10A Cosmos made.

Restoring/maintaining:"Any crash would total it," Tang says. He couldn't find original-equipment shocks and used 1977 Chrysler Cordoba rear shocks and 1979 Dodge truck front shocks modified to fit the car. Beware of rotor apex seal wear, which was always an issue for the Wankel prior to the recent side-port designs.

Expect to pay:Concours ready: $28,000; solid driver: $14,000; tired runner: $5000

Join the Club:Mazda Club (mazdaclub.com)

Compact, smooth, and potent, Dr. Felix Wankel's rotary seemed like the engine of the future back in 1959. Apart from Mazda and NSU, General Motors and Daimler-Benz tried the technology (curiously, both built mid-engine rotary-powered sports-car concepts), as did Toyota and Nissan. The rotary just about bankrupted NSU, and the others lost interest after wrestling with seal wear and high fuel-consumption issues. But Mazda has doggedly persisted with the engine, producing an unbroken line of rotary-

powered production cars since 1967 that

continues today with the RX-8.

0.1 >1968 R100 Coupe:Sold as the Familia in Japan, the little R100 was powered by the same 982cc 10A rotary as the Cosmo. A four-door sedan version followed later.

0.2 >1969 Luce Coupe:Unveiled as the RX-87 concept car at the Tokyo Show, the Luce Coupe made it debut with the 1310cc 13A engine designed for Mazda's only front-drive rotary.

0.3 >1970 RX-2:Badged Capella in Japan, the RX-2 sedan and coupe were powered by the 1146cc 12A engine (a 10A with wider rotors). The Capella G-Series was the first rotary-engine car with an automatic transmission.

0.4 > 1971 RX-3:The RX-3 (aka Savanna) was built as a coupe, sedan, and wagon. Launched with the 10A engine, it was fitted with the more powerful 12A in 1972. The GT version was fitted with a five-speed manual.

0.5 > 1972 RX-4:Sold in the U.S. as the RX-4, the Luce was available as a coupe, sedan, and wagon. Launched with the 12A, it was upgraded to the 1308cc 13B twin-rotor in 1973. The 13B would stay in production until 2002.

0.6 > 1973 Rotary Pickup:Developed for the U.S. market, the imaginatively named Rotary Pickup was the world's first, er, rotary-powered pickup, with a 13B under the hood. About 15,000 were made, but the fuel crisis killed sales.

0.7 >1974 Parkway 26:Launched in July 1974, the world's first rotary-powered bus was fitted with a 13B engine that gave it a 70-mph cruising ability with all 26 passengers aboard. It stayed in production until 1981.

0.8 >1975 Roadpacer:Made by GM's Australian subsidiary, the Holden Premier was a midsize sedan powered by big sixes and V-8s. Mazda decided to sell it fitted with a 13B. High price ($10,000) and higher fuel consumption

(9 mpg) killed it.

0.9 >1975 Cosmo:Sold in Japan as the RX-5, the Cosmo was exported to the U.S. with a detuned 13B for 17-percent-better fuel

economy. But carrying 150 pounds more than the RX-4, its performance failed to match its good looks.

0.10 >1977 Luce Legato:Out-of-focus Mercedes-Benz styling and an Italian-sounding name signaled Mazda's desire to move its largest model upmarket. It came as a sedan and

pillar-less four-door hardtop, powered by 12A and 13B engines.

0.11 >1978 RX-7:Mazda finally realized the rotary's virtues—high power and compact size—made it an ideal sports-car engine. With its 12A mounted low and back in the chassis, the RX-7 was fast, affordable, fun to drive, and a huge hit.

0.12 >1985 RX-7:A larger, more refined car with Porsche 944 rip-off styling, the second-

generation RX-7 saw the launch of an intercooled twin-turbo 13B that pumped out 180 horses at 6000 rpm. 0-to-60 mph came in just 6.7 seconds.

0.13 >1986 Luce Rotary:With a regular V-6 under the hood, this was the four-door hardtop version of the 929. But Mazda kept the 13B rotary-powered version in Japan as a top-of-the-range statement of corporate intent.

0.14 > 1990 Cosmo:This tasteful coupe gave us the sequential twin-turbo 20B-REW triple-rotor Wankel that developed almost 280 horses. The triple-rotor engine's smoothness was comparable with that of a conventional V-12.