Mazda sticks with rotary power

[Neddo]

This car needs to be produced because Mazda.is getting boring. Basically only transport is what they make.

 

[Moglet]

This car needs to be produced because Mazda.is getting boring. Basically only transport is what they make.

Except for the MX-5

 

[niky]

This car needs to be produced because Mazda.is getting boring. Basically only transport is what they make.

Have you driven Mazda's line-up back-to-back with the competition?

No mass-market crossover drives as nicely as the CX-5.

No midsize car feels as great from behind the wheel as the Mazda6. It could do with more power, but now that they're rolling out turbos, that can be fixed.

The Mazda3 is a more fun steer than its competitors. Ditto the Mazda2, which is near as quick as the EcoBoost Fiesta 1.0 with a naturally aspirated 1.5.

And the MX-5 is still the lightest, purest affordable sports car on the market. And that's a car that you can't level the "transport" complaint against. It doesn't even have enough luggage space for a decent sized suitcase.

 

[mustafur]

Whilst they could do with some performance models, the ones they make now are leaps ahead of their competition.

 

[05XR8]

http://www.carsguide.com.au/car-rev...gon-review-top-3-features-we-like-video-41482
If you get a chance drive one of these for a week. Only Mazdas I've yet to drive, are the ND and new CX-9.

 

[05XR8]

http://www.motoring.com.au/mazda-rx-9-locked-in-103563/



But sub-1300kg, 300kW rear-drive rotary coupe won't be released until 2020

Mazda’s board of directors has formally approved the design, engineering and production of the company’s long-awaited successor to the RX-7 and RX-8 rotary coupes, according to Japan’s Holiday Auto magazine which has also produced these new renderings.

Expected to be called the RX-9 — a trademark Mazda has registered — the born-again performance coupe is not due on sale globally until January 2020, when it will be the centrepiece of Mazda’s centenary celebrations.


Before then, the Mazda is likely to reveal a prototype version at the 2017 Tokyo motor show to mark the 50th anniversary of its first rotary model, before the final production model debuts at the 2019 Tokyo show.


Apart from producing these three new renderings — which show a range of updates from the 2020 RX-VISION concept revealed last October, including a sharper body-side surfacing and a more chiselled front-end design – Holiday Auto has reported a number of key new details.

As previewed by the SKYACTIV-R concept engine, Mazda’s next-generation rotary engine will grow to 1.6 litres by employing twin 800cc rotors displacing 1.6 litres, and for the first time will incorporate turbocharging and, potentially, diesel-style HCCI compression ignition.


Like us, Holiday Auto believes it will produce around 300kW, but the Japanese magazine says the RX-9 has a target weight of less than 1300kg, which will give it a formidable power-to-weight ratio.

Combined with the improved overall weight balance wrought by a rear transaxle, the low-slung rear-drive rotary coupe – which will be shorter than the rangy RX-VISION concept – should offer outstanding dynamics.

Fitted with a leather-lined interior and all of Mazda’s latest safety and convenience technologies, Holiday Auto says the two-seat Mazda sportster will be priced under eight million yen (about $A100,000).

 

[Grandea GTR]

That chrome strip just above the license plate area is keeping me from marveling over that wonderful rear.

 

[Neddo]

RX7 was wider and lower.

 

[catamount39]

ROTARY RETURNS!

 

[CodeRedR51]

Expected to be called the RX-9

That's a shame. NSX returns, Supra may return, GT-R is still around. We need another RX-7.

 

[Ettick]

Fitted with a leather-lined interior and all of Mazda’s latest safety and convenience technologies, Holiday Auto says the two-seat Mazda sportster will be priced under eight million yen (about $A100,000).

This worries me a little.

 

[Eh Team]

I love a lot of how this car looks bar one thing, the generic Mazda front end. I can live with the chrome bit on the back that's sort of out of place, but to paste those headlights and grille on is pretty much unforgivable for me. The whole rest of the car was clearly designed different to that, it looks kinda like some executive came along and saw it and said 'No that's all wrong', took off the interesting front end and put this thing on it. It just irks me.

 

[Downhill Dino]

That's a shame. NSX returns, Supra may return, GT-R is still around. We need another RX-7.

Kind of throwing the RX-8 under the bus though doesn't it?

 

[CodeRedR51]

Kind of throwing the RX-8 under the bus though doesn't it?

Not really.

 

[mustafur]

RX7 was wider and lower.

RX-7 is tiny, a Mazda 3 is wider.

The car will probably look alot different when released but I got feeling the body is locked in, that tends to be how it goes once the second concept is out.

 

[05XR8]

I don't think this is a true RX-7. It seems just as it is. A super car more than a sports car. It can have the RX-9 designation.

 

[Turbotwin01]

Best thing this could do for me is lower the price of all these FD's

I can't wait too see how this turns out though, but 6 figure cars are out of my league.

Edit: Wasnt there talk of another "RX-7" to be released under the RX-9 or something? I could just be remembering it wrong.

 

[CodeRedR51]

Best thing this could do for me is lower the price of all these FD's

I don't see that happening anytime soon.

 

[Turbotwin01]

I don't see that happening anytime soon.

Shhhhhh

Just let me dream for a while okay?

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

As with any motoring.au article about rotaries, I'll believe it when I'm sitting in it on the showroom floor at Marin Mazda with a Philz' Ambrosia in my hand..

 

[Leonidae@MFT]

As previewed by the SKYACTIV-R concept engine, Mazda’s next-generation rotary engine will grow to 1.6 litres by employing twin 800cc rotors displacing 1.6 litres, and for the first time will incorporate turbocharging and, potentially, diesel-style HCCI compression ignition.

Ermm.. FC and FD had turbo or two.. and Skyactiv already has turbocharged variant too.

 

[05XR8]

Ermm.. FC and FD had turbo or two.. and Skyactiv already has turbocharged variant too.

Read it like Polyphony Digital about Gran Turismo: "For the first time ever in the history of the SkyActiv R engine, turbochargjng like never seen before in a rotary, super diesel style HCCI compression ignition."

 

[Rallywagon]

Is that"incorporating for the first time turbocharging" in regards to the 16x or is it something lost in translation and it meant it's the first time Mazda has said something about the RX 9 being boosted?
@R1600Turbo Nissan dropped the skyline name and used the trim label as the name. Not sure that counts. However, it wouldn't make sense to call it RX-7 considering how the RX nomenclature has worked. The RX is the important part.

All said, I'll get excited once I see something official from Mazda. The RX9 has been rumor mill fodder since the RX8s release. And considering the possible price tag, not sure excited is what I'll be. That price tag really would be a shame too, considering throughout the RX lineage, the idea was always to make it an economically viable sports car. The poor man's Ferrari if you will. I guess they have the Miata for that now, and I wouldn't mind at all having it be a nice, mid ranged priced car, starting below 50k, but I certainly hope they don't try selling it at GTR prices.

 

[mustafur]

100k Aud isn't that expensive tbh, I mean it's looking at having similar power to an M3 whilst being like 300kg lighter. It will be a rocket.

 

[CodeRedR51]

However, it wouldn't make sense to call it RX-7 considering how the RX nomenclature has worked.

Which is? I'm not aware there was an unspoken rule at Mazda that the numbers had to keep going up. The RX-8 was never really a replacement for the RX-7 in the first place, more like a "here's something similar but different".

 

[Rallywagon]

Rx 2, Rx 3, Rx 4, rx 7, rx 8. Many have generations, none have ever gone backwards. None were ever really replacements for the other, as they were built with the same concept, but for different markets. Going from rx 8 back to 7 then makes no sense.

 

[CodeRedR51]

Going from rx 8 back to 7 then makes no sense.

I think we'll just agree to disagree here.

 

[Tornado]

Rx 2, Rx 3, Rx 4, rx 7, rx 8. Many have generations, none have ever gone backwards. None were ever really replacements for the other, as they were built with the same concept, but for different markets. Going from rx 8 back to 7 then makes no sense.

You've actually done a pretty decent job explaining why they could call it an RX-7.

 

[homeforsummer]

Once again, people are getting far too hung-up on the names of things. RX-7, RX-9... does it really matter? Each makes as much sense as the other - one could consider it a revival of the RX-7, but equally there's been a significant gap between the FD and this car, rather than the unbroken run of FB/FC/FD from before. And RX-8 now refers specifically to the four-door, non-turbocharged coupe job, so the move from that car to this would justify any progression in the nomenclature.

Wouldn't be too concerned by the styling in the render either. Renders are invariably a bit crap.

 

[Eunos_Cosmo]

Rx 2, Rx 3, Rx 4, rx 7, rx 8. Many have generations, none have ever gone backwards. None were ever really replacements for the other, as they were built with the same concept, but for different markets. Going from rx 8 back to 7 then makes no sense.

I heartily disagree with that. Each represented a substantially different concept. It's not really different from Mazda's current naming scheme. The RX-2 was essentially a sub-compact, family saloon, the RX-3 was a compact sports coupe, the RX-4 was a GT-type car, and the RX-5 was a straight up luxury cruiser. In fact the REPU was originally slated to be named the RX-5, and that car was originally supposed to be an RX-6. That's when they landed on Sports Car they made 3 iterations of it with the same name. The RX-8 wasn't an RX-7 because it was a different concept.

If it's a sports car with a similar ethos to the 7, it should be called a 7. If it has GT-R rivaling, supercar-esque performance, then RX-9 might be more appropriate.