Mazda Suitcase Car

Weird Car of the Day #475: 1992 Mazda Suitcase Car – Commuter baggage

Mazda Suitcase Car illustration

Today, we veer off to the hard shoulder under some overpass on I-405 and investigate Mazda's smallest-ever prototype vehicle, created and developed in a spirit of close collaboration with like-minded engineers in the U.S. You know, the ones with a few screws loose (in a good way).

No, the Mazda Suitcase Car is not a folding card table. It's a reengineered case, formerly known as luggage, that's been engineered to carry only what you'd need to get from the airport to home, using the sidewalk. Apparently, the Suitcase Car was conceived by Mazda engineer Yoshimi Kanemoto as he waited in a line at the airport for a taxi.

Mazda employee with the Suitcase Car, sometime in the 1990s • Mazda, source unknown

"Why can't I just take my luggage off of the carousel and get going?"

And so it went.

Somewhat related, since 1976, Toyota has held an engineering ideas Olympics of sorts, the Toyota Engineering Society competition. I just wrote about the Nissan IF Concept borne from a similar internal engineering competition, and now, this four-wheeled contraption that, to scale, makes a Honda Motocompo scooter look like a Ford F-150 pickup truck.

Remember when miniatures were all the rage? Take me back.

Mazda held its own idea competition, Fantasiad. The Suitcase Car was started internally in 1991 and finished for the 1992 Fantasiad. It was literally what it looks like, a a pit bike-meets-Samsonite build.

In my estimation, one of (if not the only) vehicle ever built with its mechanicals resting on top of the body shell and structure. In my estimation, this would be a fruitful genre for YouTubers to explore…

That year, Mazda and Toyota had a joint event, where one could see fully-functioning stand-up cars, vehicles with basketballs instead of tires, and a two-faced Mazda Carol. (No, I'm not making any of this up.)

Transforming the Suitcase Car was simple:

Open the suitcase
Attach rear wheels
Raise and lock steering column
Flip up the lights
Pull to start

It has an interesting history, too. Shortly after it was built, the Suitcase Car was crashed and ruined. This is why when you Google all of this, in early pictures the chassis is red, while in more recent photos it's black. It was rebuilt in 1994 by Road/Race Engineering in California, who maintains it to this day.

Then-Mazda PR chief, Mazda's PR chief Mitch McCullough • Road/Race Engineering

"Shown here at speed (up to 27 mph) driven by Mazda's PR chief at the time, Mitch McCullough. This leads to the biggest problem with the suitcase car, it is way too much fun. If it is left unattended for any amount of time, grown men revert to adolescents and trouble ensues."

–Road/Race Engineering

Mazda Suitcase Car at an event, unknown date • source unknown

The first and only prototype was, and will remain, a proof of concept. With a 1.7 horsepower 40cc two-stroke engine and three wheels, it could still hit a respectable 43 km/h (27 mph) and had a drive time of two hours. We can only imagine how much more compelling the package could be in ~2027 with a full suite of modern electric motors, battery & software.

Assembly? 15-20 seconds. Weight? 31.7 kg, or 70 lbs. Yes, it had functional headlights, brake lights, and turn indicators.

Three Mazda Suitcase Cars were made, only one survives—making it yet another WCOTD unicorn.