- mazda is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, as the company was founded in 1920.
- the first mazda passenger car was the r360, which arrived in 1960.
- the r360 is pictured above with mazda's current lineup, all of which will receive 100th anniversary editions with special trim.
anniversary editions are a dime a dozen in the automotive world, but that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate mazda’s special-edition treatment for the japan market to celebrate the company’s centennial. the company that eventually became mazda was founded in 1920 under the name toyo kogyo. the 100th-anniversary editions will cover the entire mazda lineup, and they’ll feature an attractive white-and-red color scheme that pays homage to mazda’s first passenger car, the r360 from 1960. u.s. availability has yet to be announced.
the mazda 100th anniversary models all feature a white exterior color called snow flake white pearl mica and red interior trim. a special logo is found inside and out, adorning the wheel center caps, front fenders, headrests, floor mats, and even the key fob. the mx-5 miata anniversary edition has a red softtop. this color scheme is to pay homage to the the r360, which offered a white body and a colored roof with a matching interior color scheme.
mazda will make these anniversary models available in japan starting in june, with the anniversary-edition mazda 3 and cx-3 arriving first and the cx-30, cx-5, mx-5 miata, and mazda 6 coming later. we suspect they will eventually come to the u.s. market, but mazda hasn't yet announced availability for our shores.