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To the chagrin of many satisfied Australian owners of the previous model, Mazda decided on an achingly conservative path for its sixth generation 929, mainly to appease Japanese consumers.

Underneath the good features were retained, like the four-wheel steering system, multi-link rear suspension and 138kW 3.0L V6 engine.

And the clumsy styling did increase interior comfort and headroom, while a stretched rear enhanced boot space.

Crash safety, body rigidity and refinement levels also improved.

But a lack of buyers, along with the madness of Mazda offering the cannibalising Eunos 800 just to further confuse customers, prematurely killed the car locally by late 1997.