Goldmine: Luxuriate like a Japanese executive in this rare 1990 Mazda Luce

Ah, 1980s Japan, where the Bubble Era is thriving and some funky, awesome music genre filled bars and lounges across Tokyo called city pop. This was also a period where hardtop sedans ruled the Japanese car market.

At the same time, as Japan’s economy was bubbling, so were the salaries of your average Japanese salaryman. Obviously, their choice of rides would be a Toyota Mark II or a Nissan Laurel with velour fabric seats. But there was a left-field choice for those who wanted to stand out from the crowd.

Enter the Mazda Luce, its name is derived from the Italian word of the same spelling which means light. For those curious about how it’s pronounced, it’s “loo-chay” (I apologise to any Italian-speakers for reading this, it's probably the worst thing that happened to Italians ever since pineapple was introduced to pizzas and the Fiat Multipla).

The Luce was launched in 1966 and lasted until 1991 where it was replaced by the Sentia. Overseas, the Luce was exported as the 929 to keep it consistent with the rest of Mazda’s numerical line-up.

The Mazda Luce wasn’t sold officially in Malaysia at least in its final form, the HC series. This fifth and final generation of Mazda’s flagship executive was sold from 1986 to 1991 and it came in a gorgeous hardtop sedan body style. It was even sold as the Kia Potentia for the Korean market.

These cool-looking cars had pillarless doors like the Volkswagen Arteon and you could even get one with a 1.3-litre rotary engine. This rare 1990 Luce that was found on Mudah came with a 2.0-litre V6 which is still awesome anyway because look at that hardtop body style! That 145 PS engine is mated to a 4-speed automatic powering the rear wheels.

This Luce looks absolutely mint and clean. Nearly stock too, excluding those 17-inch BBS (RIP) wheels. The interior is covered in red fabric velour which is just so rad and aesthetic. The owner owned it ever since it was imported from Japan.

If you’re interested in owning a rare and fairly obscure JDM with peak Bubble Era design, the car is listed for sale at RM15,768 which for a car that looks like it came out of a Mazda showroom in downtown Tokyo brand new, isn’t that bad.

Photos credit: Mudah.my