From the Classifieds: 1991 Mazda Eunos Cosmo

While the original 1967 Mazda Cosmo coupe is widely known as the first rotary-engined car to be produced by the Japanese car-maker, the final fourth-generation Cosmo was badged as a Eunos and is invisible to just about all except the most attentive car enthusiast.

Built in Japan from 1990 to 1995, nearly 9000 of these high-end 2+2 coupes were sold – at prices that, at the time, verged on astronomical.

The Eunos Cosmo came with a few innovations. The triple-rotor engine – the only one of its type ever used by the Hiroshima-based company – was early off the mark employing sequential twin-turbo boosting to eliminate the dreaded turbo lag and was also available with an optional touch-screen system that included satellite navigation.

For the time, performance was exhilarating. The Eunos Cosmo, in 224kW/403Nm 2.0-litre 20B triple-rotor form as shown here (there was also a twin-rotor 1.3-litre 13B version later used in the Mazda RX-7) accelerated from zero to 100km/h in around six seconds and topped out at 255km/h if the restrictor that was in place to meet Japanese regulations was disabled.

In the manner of all rotaries, fuel economy was not the Eunos Cosmo’s forte.

The 60/40 sales split favouring the smaller-engined Cosmo today makes the 2.0-litre version rarer and more desirable.

While the external styling was nothing if not conservative, the interior was enticingly luxurious with abundant leather and wood, and a gracious, curving dash that would not look out of place in today’s heavily-digitised environment.

The abundantly-padded, wrap-around 2+2 seating was luxurious in the extreme.

In all, it’s quite something, even if the Eunos Cosmo disappeared when Mazda dropped its luxury division in 1996.

Perhaps not surprisingly, some examples of the third-generation Eunos Cosmo have made their way to Australia – including this 20B-engined 1991 model, listed on carsales.com.au and on sale in Sydney for what seems a rather steep (but negotiable) price of $90,000.

A big plus is that this example of the Eunos Cosmo has, according to the owner, travelled only 54,000km and, accordingly, is in what is described as outstanding condition for its age. The owner says it has been “extremely well looked after” for its whole life.

It’s a very rare, seemingly conservative high-performance super-coupe from the 1990s that might slip under the radar but is sure to provide an exhilarating, luxurious on-road experience.

Take a closer look at this 1991 Eunos Cosmo for sale on carsales