The RX 500 was sold by British Toymaker Matchbox 10 times over
In October 1970 Mazda unveiled the radically angular and streamlined RX500 concept car at the 17th Tokyo Motor Show. The start of the new decade also marked the company's 50th Anniversary and the RX500 was a bold statement of Mazda's engineering and design ambition. It quickly became a crowd favorite, captivating the public with its futuristic design and technology.
It looked like a car from a different planet to the Cosmo, Luce and R100 rotary production cars on sale at the time - the wedge shaped supercar had forward opening butterfly swing doors, while its 250ps 10A rotary engine was accessed by gullwing opening engine covers. It was also a road safety test bed that had multicolored rear strip lights that indicated whether the car was speeding up, cruising or slowing down by changing color.
This matchbox version was a hit in the diecast world
Given its head-turning design it was hardly surprising that the space-age RX500 generated strong media interest worldwide. This exposure no doubt created the inspiration for turning this spectacular vehicle into a model car. Famous British toy car makers Matchbox recognized the potential of the RX500 and included it in its 'Superfast program' - a response to the 1968 introduction of Hot Wheels by Mattel, which featured thin axles and new wheels that made them faster and more fun to play with.
Why did Matchbox decide to include this one-off Japanese supercar concept in its portfolio? Matchbox's largest sales market at the time was the United States and Matchbox was looking for futuristic fantasy and concept cars that would appeal to children in America. The RX500 perfectly matched these requirements, and with a lot of interest in Mazda and the rotary engine in Europe as well, it was no wonder that the orange Matchbox RX500, introduced in 1971 as the MB66, immediately became a global bestseller.
