When it comes to brand-centric custom cars, this one might take the cake. What you see here is a last-generation Mazda 3 hatchback that's been converted into a rotary-powered rear-wheel-drive weapon on wheels built for one thing: Hillclimb racing.

Swiss native Yann Hêche, driver and builder of this spaceframed Mazda hatch, managed to retrofit a rear-wheel-drive, 630-horsepower turbocharged rotary powertrain under the hood, all while keeping the weight around 2100 pounds—right around the same as a first-gen Miata.

That—plus all of those functional aero bits and slick racing tires—mean this little economy hatch can really move. Those flames and that sound are just a bonus.

We're not sure why someone would go through all the trouble to to through this much fabrication, but we're not complaining. Watch for yourself as Hêche rips his creation up the hill at full power—and remember to throw some headphones on for this one.

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