Mazda sports cars

The Cosmo Sport went into full production in May 1967, one of the first production cars with a two-rotor Wankel engine (source 1). The RX-7 carried the rotary through three generations from 1978 to 2002 (source 2). The MX-5 made its debut in 1989 (source 3) and became the world's best-selling two-seat sports car, passing one million in April 2016 (source 4). The RX-8 followed the RX-7 in 2003 (source 5).

The rotary engine, which Wikipedia credits with a compact design, smoothness and low weight, against lower thermal efficiency and higher emissions than a piston engine (source 6). And keeping weight down: Mazda calls the MX-5 a lightweight sports car (source 4).

The 787B won the Le Mans 24 Hours on 23 June 1991, the first win there for a Japanese manufacturer (source 7), and the first ever for a rotary-engined car (source 8).

Mazdaspeed, which began in 1967 as a racing team run by a Tokyo Mazda dealership and became a Mazda subsidiary in 1983 (sources 8, 9). It took Mazda to Le Mans from 1974 (source 8) and later lent its name to parts and road cars, the last being the 2013 Mazdaspeed3 (source 9).