After years of waiting, the rotary engine Mazda has returned, although its return is not what many expected because it is posed as a generator. However, its presence has led many to wonder about its continuity and the possibility of see it in a sportier model: Can the motor world dream of something like this? Mazda has given certain licenses for it.
This year’s Brussels Motor Show has been the event chosen to present the new Mazda MX-30 e-Skyactiv R-EV, the plug-in hybrid version of its electric crossover. The great novelty that attracted all the spotlights is the rotary engine that incorporates the aforementioned model, which, as we said, will act as a generator working as a range extender.
This Mazda rotary engine it’s brand new and is composed of a single rotor of 830 cc: it has 74 CV of maximum power at 4,700 rpm and a maximum torque of 116 Nm at 4,000 rpm. It is more advanced and efficient than the one that the Japanese brand used for the Mazda RX-7 and RX-8: it is made with new materials and, in addition, it has gasoline direct injection and EGR. All this minimizes the friction between the moving parts, thus extending its useful life.
First, electrification
The presence of this rotary engine has not left anyone indifferent. Although, as we pointed out before, it is planned as a generator, some see it as an open window to the possibility that Mazda shapes a sports car with a rotary engine that fills the gap left by the Mazda RX-7 and RX-8. . In Brussels, Yoshiaki Noguchi (one of those involved in the development of the Japanese propulsion system) spoke with Coach to give, to the motor world, one of lime and another of sand.
He explained that the rotary engine is one of the symbols of Mazda and revealed that the brand’s engineers “dream of having a sports car with this system, but now is not the time for it. When the situation of the company is much better, we will be able to think about that dream”. Yoshiaki Noguchi clarified that the improvement in the situation refers to the electrification of the main members of its range in the coming years.
Mazda is investing heavily in electric and hybrid technology. When this chapter is closed, they will consider the arrival of a model that is the successor to the Mazda RX-8 with a rotary engine: “The first thing, in this era, is electrification, but maybe in the future, a sports car may come along.” It doesn’t look like the engineering team’s dream is going to come true anytime soon, but at least it hasn’t been completely ruled out.
A change in your thinking
This stance marks a major shift in Mazda’s thinking. Seven years ago, in 2016, Masamichi Kogai, former CEO of the brand, ruled out a sports car bigger than the Mazda MX-5. However, there are still more shadows than lights. Without a firm commitment from the brand to the sports car segment, it’s hard to predict what such a model would look like with the reborn rotary engine.
Some point to a vehicle based on the Mazda RX-Vision.It was presented in 2015 and although it appeared in patent applications in 2021, nothing is known about it, so it is unlikely that it will reach production. Another point that is in the air is the type of fuel with which a hypothetical sports car with a rotary engine would be fed: gasoline? Synthetic fuel? Hydrogen? Many questions… and, for the moment, few answers.