1:24 Mazda 767 - Fuji 1988 Decals Set (for Hasegawa Kits)

Mazda 767, Fuji 1988, a 1:24 decal sheet (Studio27)

This product is a decal sheet in 1:24 scale from the maker Studio27, not a kit. It serves to give a plastic model of the Mazda 767 the appearance of the car from the Japanese Fuji Speedway circuit in 1988. The sheet is created for the Mazda 767 kit from Hasegawa, which has to be on hand or bought, as it is not in the package, nor are paints and clear coat. Fuji Speedway lies below Mount Fuji and is the home arena of Japanese prototypes; liveries from there practically never appeared in Europe.

The real subject

Mazda is the only brand that entered cars with a rotary (Wankel) engine at Le Mans and in Group C. The 767 model of 1988 was powered by a four-rotor engine with an output of around six hundred horsepower and, above all: it sounded different from anything on the grid. The piercing, high revving tone, remembered by everyone who heard it live, is among the most quoted sounds of endurance history.

The 767 itself did not bring home great laurels, as it is a development intermediate stage. But it was precisely out of this line that the Mazda 787B, which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991 (Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler, Bertrand Gachot), grew three years later. It was the first victory of a Japanese brand at Le Mans and to this day the only victory of a car with a rotary engine. The 767 is therefore the car out of which the winner grew, but not the winner itself. Let us be precise: the 767 did not win Le Mans.

How to apply the decals

The base for a decal has to be gloss clear coat. A matte surface will not let the film close to the paint, air stays under the edges and the decal silvers, a mistake that can only be repaired by coating over it. The bodywork of a Group C car is huge and smoothly rounded, so decal softener is practically a necessity; only it draws the film into the curves without folds. Next comes clear coat over the whole car and polishing, after which the body gains a wet gloss and the transitions of the decals disappear. Prepare the basic color of the body in advance, as the sheet covers only the markings, not the whole area, and a shade that does not match will bring down even well applied decals.

Who the sheet is for

• owners of the Mazda 767 kit from Hasegawa looking for a different livery
• fans of rotary engines and of Japanese motorsport
• collectors of Group C and of the Japanese racing scene of the 1980s
• modelers who can work with softener on large curved areas

The package contains a decal sheet only. The model, paints, clear coat, softener and glue are not included.