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Having consolidated its foothold
in the minivehicle market with the R360 Coupe and the Carol, the Toyo Kogyo Company
(today's Mazda) unveiled the Mazda Familia 800 in October 1964, marking the company's
entry into the small passenger-car market. The Familia attracted attention as
an innovative car, featuring an engine made largely of aluminum alloy, as well
as grease-free polyurethane rubber bushes to simplify maintenance of the chassis. |
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During the decade beginning
in 1965, rapid economic growth raised the income level. This rise, coupled with
technological innovations that enabled mass production to reduce manufacturing
costs, boosted the growth of the passenger car market.
First put on the market in 1966, the two-door Sunny sedan had a three-speed column
transmission. As the car was intended for the mass market, the product line consisted
of only deluxe and standard models (priced at ¥460,000 and ¥410,000, respectively),
and the vehicle's name was sought from the public. Together with other rival cars,
including the Toyota Corolla which was launched soon afterwards, the Sunny contributed
greatly to the popularization of automobiles. |
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The release of the Corolla in
October 1966 was noteworthy not only because it was a very successful Toyota model,
but because it was the car which, above all others, introduced motorization to
Japan. It responded to consumers various needs such as performance, fuel-economy,
driving comfort, etc. It had a newly developed 1077cc, water-cooled, four-cylinder
engine, the Type K. “The extra 100cc gives you the edge” went the
ad copy, reflecting the Carolla's adove-average performance. |
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