Mazda Millenia

Mazda Millenia
1998-2000 Mazda Millenia
Overview
Manufacturer	Mazda
Also called	Eunos 800 Mazda Xedos 9
Production	1992–2002
Assembly	Hiroshima, Japan
Designer	Yujiro Daikoku (1990)
Body and chassis
Class	Executive car
Body style	4-door sedan
Layout	FF layout
Platform	Mazda T platform
Powertrain
Engine	2.0L 140 hp (104 kW) V6 2.5L 170 hp (127 kW) V6 2.3L 210 hp (157 kW) Miller cycle V6
Transmission	GF4A-EL 4-speed automatic LJ4A-EL (Jatco RE4F04A) 4-speed automatic 5-speed manual (European 2-liter and 2.5 liter only)
Dimensions
Wheelbase	108.3 in (2,751 mm)
Length	189.8 in (4,821 mm) (1995-2000) 191.6 in (4,867 mm) (2001-02)
Width	69.7 in (1,770 mm)
Height	54.9 in (1,394 mm)

The Mazda Millenia is an automobile which was manufactured by Mazda in Japan from 1993 to 2002.

The Millenia was originally planned as the second of three models for Mazda’s proposed luxury brand Amati. As the company’s dwindling finances prevented the launch of the Amati brand, the Millenia was released in the autumn of 1993 in Europe as the Mazda Xedos 9 and in Japan and Australia as the Eunos 800. The car was launched in North America in 1995 as the Mazda Millenia and in July 1997 the Japanese market Eunos 800 was also renamed to Mazda Millenia as Mazda discontinued the Eunos brand. There was no model link to the other Mazda marque, Ẽfini.

Having been developed for a separate market from typical Mazda customers, the Millenia boasted myriad finer details. It was engineered to far greater levels of perceived quality than existing Mazda cars, such as interior plastic, panel gap and thicker paint coating. The Millenia/Eunos 800/Xedos 9 was assembled along with the smaller Eunos 500/Mazda Xedos 6 in a new production line, presumably set up for Amati cars.

The Millenia does not have a direct predecessor or replacement in the Mazda product line, and production ceased with the introduction of the Mazda 6 in 2002, itself a replacement for the 626. It appears to have received a brand-new platform, although the multi-link suspension at both ends strongly resembled that of the 1991 Mazda Sentia, with minor changes such as replacing the lower I-arm with an A-arm for front wheel drive. It was the only production car in the world to employ a Miller cycle engine (The current Demio/Mazda2 features Miller Cycle on one of its engines). Yaw-sensitive four-wheel steering was available as an option in Japan; Mazda claimed that with this feature, the Millenia was capable of passing the elk test at speeds comparable to the BMW 850i and Nissan 300ZX.