Though the rotary engine certainly has its fair share of detractors, many who find themselves behind the wheel of a Wankel-powered machine from Mazda fall in love with the engine's zippy and rev-happy characteristics... including this particular blogger, who purchased a new RX-8 back in 2004. Regardless, nobody can deny that the rotary has always been a thirsty little bugger, especially when compared to powerplants with similarly rated displacements.
We've been hearing for the last few years – and seemingly every other time a new rendition of the Wankel engine came to market – that the next version of Mazda's rotary would address complaints about its high fuel consumption and emissions. Perhaps the early projections about the so-called 16X engine were a wee bit premature. According to Seita Kanai, head of R&D at Mazda:
The 16X demonstrated the possibility, but that performance is not good enough. We are doing R&D which will incorporate more new technology... The 16X is more a profile of a rotary still in our concept stage. It needs more evolution.That really doesn't sound all that confidence inspiring to us. At this point, only time will tell if the 16X will actually be ready for prime time when the long-rumored next-gen rotary-powered car from Mazda hits the scene in 2012 or so.
We've been hearing rumblings about a Mazda RX-7 revival for so long, we've almost gotten numb to the idea of a next-generation, rotary-powered coupe. But Mazda's new design chief, Ikua Maeda, has given us a desperately needed hope injection when he told Autocar that initial sketches have been completed and he's campaigning Mazda execs to bring the new sports car to market.
The reborn RX-7 will likely be powered by Mazda's next generation Renesis 16X rotary engine, most recently seen in the Mazda Taiki concept, displacing 1.6-liters and making use of a longer stroke, direct injection and aluminum side housings. Outputs haven't been disclosed, but it's safe to assume the new mill will put out around 250 to 300 horsepower and a sizeable increase in torque, while boosting fuel economy and reducing emissions (and hopefully burning less oil in the process).
Maeda says the new RX-7 will move further upmarket than its predecessors, with a focus on higher interior quality going forward. Fine by us, but we hope a hardcore, track-focused version is in the cards as well. And if Maeda is to be believed, we could see the fruits of his labors in concept form as early as next year.
The recent news out of Japan hasn't been good for fans of front-engine, rear-wheel-drive two-doors. First came word that Subaru and Toyota were postponing the launch of their boxer-powered RWD coupe, then the S2000 is killed off and finally reports suggest that Nissan has cancelled its Silvia successor. Thankfully, all is not lost. InsideLine is reporting that Mazda is hard at work on another version of the RX-7 and development is underway on the next RX-8, supposedly – and predictably – dubbed the RX-9.
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For the first generation Mazda RX-7, it didn't get any better than the GSL-SE. The FB cars were done by 1985, and the GSL-SE was only available for 1984-85. Carrying larger brake rotors, an upgraded suspension, revised front airdam and a fuel-injected 13B Rotary, SEs are sought after and a clean, unmolested original-owner car is a rare find, indeed. Patti Wilhelm's 1984 RX7 GSL-SE is the cleanest we've ever laid eyes upon. Even though it's traversed 291,000 miles since she drove it away from Valley Mazda in 1984, the car has been well cared for and has seen recent refurbishment and upgrades like Bilstein shocks.
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