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MAZDA RX-7 254 (1982)
Car No. 82: Y. Terada / T. Yorino / A. Moffat
Car No. 83: T. Walkinshaw / P. Lovett / C. Nicholson
Qualified: 50th (#82 - 4'04.74), 53rd (#83 - 4'11.29)
Race: 14th (#82 w/282 laps completed), withdrawn (#83 after 180 laps due to a fuel problem)
The memorable 50th running of the event ushered in a new era at Le Mans as 29 of the 55 entries were Group C machines. That year's event was known as the race in which the famous Porsche 956 proved its level of perfection with a lights-to-flag victory on its Le Mans debut. Mazdaspeed (Mazda Auto Tokyo) brought two of its IMSA GTX-spec Mazda 254s, both sporting Nikon colouring. The team associated with TWR (Tom Walkinshaw Racing), which rose to fame with overall victory for the RX-7 at the Spa 24 Hours the previous year, took on the challenge of its second season and was well prepared with a pre-event test that totaled over 4000kms as it competed at Le Mans for the first time.
The RX-7 254s started from the tail end of the grid, but moved up in position to 17th and 21st after 6 hours. From there, they continued to advance, running in fine form. However, just before sunrise, a few minutes before 6 a.m., the #83 machine driven by P. Lovett stopped on track after running out of fuel. The team pit was filled with tension and anxiety as they were uncertain of being able to complete the rest of the event with only one car. Then at 9 a.m., the #82 car driven by Yorino reported a malfunction in the gearbox and pitted. The event regulations didn't allow the changing of assembled parts, so the team was forced to spend one hour and 24 minutes swapping internal parts. Even after this incident, they coped with several incidents such as flat tyres and a clogged fuel filter, and were just aiming at finishing. In the end, Terada endured the lack of fuel and waited on track until just before the finish, finally crossing the line at 4 p.m.
After overcoming a variety of problems in their attempt to complete the race, the Mazdaspeed mechanics were given the "Best Mechanics" award by the organisers.
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