Mazda Chantez (1972–1976) Overview: Generation and Specs
The Mazda Chantez is a mini car built from 1972 to 1976 with a single 30 hp version. This overview covers its one generation and the version worth choosing.
The Mazda Chantez is a mini car produced from 1972 to 1976, offered with a single 30 hp engine, front-wheel drive, and a manual gearbox. It suits collectors of classic Japanese kei cars and drivers who want a compact, simple city runabout from the early 1970s rather than modern performance.
Mazda Chantez generations
1 generation (1972–1976)
The first and only generation of the Mazda Chantez was built from 1972 to 1976 in a mini body style. Its power range is 30 to 30 hp — every car left the factory with the same output. The lineup counts exactly one modification: the Mazda Chantez 0.4 MT with a 359 cc engine, 30 hp, a manual transmission, and front-wheel drive. This combination of a tiny 359 cc displacement and a 30 hp output places the Chantez firmly in the kei-class formula of its era, and the single-modification lineup means there are no engine, gearbox, or drivetrain choices to weigh — the 0.4 MT is the whole range. Across the four production years the specification stayed unchanged: the manual gearbox was the only transmission ever offered, and front-wheel drive was the only drivetrain layout, so a 1972 car and a 1976 car share the same 359 cc, 30 hp mechanical package.
Which Mazda Chantez to buy
- 0.4 MT (1 generation): the only modification of the Mazda Chantez, with a 359 cc engine producing 30 hp, paired with a manual gearbox and front-wheel drive.
Buying used means looking at cars that are between 50 and 54 years old, since production ended in 1976. The upside of the single-version lineup is simplicity: any Mazda Chantez you find is mechanically the same 0.4 MT specification, so comparing candidates comes down to condition rather than decoding trim and engine variants.
Summary
The Mazda Chantez is a one-generation, one-modification mini car: 1972–1976, 359 cc, 30 hp, manual transmission, front-wheel drive. The 0.4 MT of the 1 generation is not just the recommended version — it is the only one, so the buying decision is entirely about finding a well-kept example of a car whose newest units are now five decades old. For anyone drawn to early-1970s Japanese minis, the Chantez offers a fixed, known specification with no variant research required.