Mazda sticks with rotary power
- Thread starter Pebb
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Before I changed the engine configuration (converted to pre-mix, installed a carb instead of the EFI) my RX-7 burned one quart of oil per 3,000 miles. That is within spec of a lot of piston engine cars. Even premixing, it will only be burning about a quart every thousand miles, and that is with over-oiling to be safe! Not only that, this is with 130,000 miles and 28 years on the original engine. My car has near-perfect compression still (seals are totally fine) and I would expect the engine to last easily over 200,000 miles. I've seen a few GSL-SEs with up to 500,000 miles on the original engine. I've driven the car, daily, for nearly 5 years, and it's never once given me a problem. It just starts and goes. My LS Integra (bone stock) couldn't even match the reliability of my RX-7. It had oil leaks, multiple timing belt issues, valve issues, and the B18b is as rough as a sewing machine compared to the 13b.
But go ahead, believe the nonsense if you like.
But go ahead, believe the nonsense if you like.
Nicktune
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In 1991 mazda won the 24hours of Le mans with the rotary engine...It's still the only japanese manufacturer that won this title (piston or not).
The Rotary engine has a lot more sliding surfaces than an equivalent-sized reciprocating piston engine..The oil is also directly injected into the working chamber along with the air/fuel mixture.Could be why it needs more oil.
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CodeRedR51
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My Mazda... a piston-engined Mazda, burns about a quart every 3,000 miles. Exactly like a rotary.
M3s burn oil, regularly. Ferraris burn oil... when they're not spitting it out onto the exhaust sparking engine fires. Two-stroke motorbikes are designed to burn oil ALL THE TIME.
That a rotary burns oil on purpose means very little when comparing it against other performance engines.
And the seals problem, as far as I recall, was only ever a problem on the twin turbos. Other RX-series cars have been pretty darn reliable.
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Making those complaints is like poo-pooing V6s simply because the Chevrolet Venture couldn't make it out of parking lots without seizing... or saying diesel sucks simply because of Oldsmobile...
ShobThaBob
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Nice one.
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To be fair, the early Renesis engines did have an oiling issue, but it was fixed with a recall and later engines had additional oil squirters. 09+ Renesis engines are tough as nails.👍
- 1,778
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- mazdarota122
*sighs* if I hear about this understatement one more time..... KEEP the seals lubricated if you don't then boom. Another problem people have is pushing the limit on the tune instead of being conservative. I can't speak on the miles for my rx7 because it has around 90000 original miles and I'm second owner.
- 746
Bingo. Everyone ive seen have problems with a rotary was because they treated it as a piston engine. Be it in maintenance, mods, etc. Ive seen some 7 second 2 rotors runing upwards of 60psi of boost which barely rebuild engines. Why? They throw tons of oil and dont go all out on timing. Instead they seek more power with more boost and fuel. On piston engines timing is king.
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- mazdarota122
You mean 40psi lol 60psi gives you a 6second slip lol I should show you the rx3 were building to run 7s.
CodeRedR51
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Source
!!!!!!!!
Mazda will bring back the much-loved RX-7 in 2017, with less weight, less complexity and a greater emphasis on driver involvement.
Speaking to TMR at the local launch of the facelifted MX-5, Mazda Motor Corporation's sports car chief Nobuhiro Yamamoto said that the return of the RX-7 will mark 50 years since the introduction of Mazda's first rotary-engined car, the Cosmo Sport, in 1967.
By the time the next-generation model arrives, it will have been 15 years since the RX-7 departed Mazda showrooms.
Production of the FD3S RX-7 ended in 2002, with that model built purely for the Japanese domestic market. Local RX-7 imports ceased in 1998.
Yamamoto was the powertrain head for the FD3S, and has a lot of fond memories of that car. He was also involved in the RX-7's win at Bathurst in 1992 - the last time he'd set foot in Australia.
As you would expect, bringing back the RX-7 has been high on his agenda.
However Yamamoto stressed that the new model wouldn't quite follow the lead of the FD RX-7. Asked if the next-generation RX-7 will feature forced induction, Yamamoto replied "maybe not".
"At this time it has not been determined. Maybe later in life it will be turbo, but to start with maybe not," he said to TMR.
Instead, Yamamoto favours a naturally-aspirated development of the new 16X rotary engine, which was unveiled in 2007 but has yet to find its way into a production car.
Displacing 1.6 litres (the previous-generation rotary, the 13B/Renesis, only displaced 1.3 litres), Yamamoto says the 16X is capable of up to 300 metric horsepower (220kW) in a naturally-aspirated configuration.
Yamamoto added that, with the use of a special catalyst, the engine will have no problem meeting the ultra-restrictive Euro VI emissions legislation that will be in place by 2017.
As the man who designed the Le Mans-winning Mazda 787B's R26B rotary engine, which developed 700hp from just 2.6 litres, Yamamoto should know a thing or two about extracting the most from a rotary.
Key among Yamamoto's powertrain requirements was throttle responsiveness and linearity of power delivery.
He told TMR that the stepped power delivery of the FD RX-7's sequential twin-turbochargers was not ideal for a sports car and that a larger single turbocharger would result in too much throttle lag. Therefore, a naturally-aspirated rotary is the best solution.
But while 220kW might sound low compared to many other modern sports cars, Yamamoto says that the new RX-7 will be light enough to make the most of its power.
While he was coy about the RX-7's target weight, he said it "would definitely be lighter" than the 1310kg FD RX-7, and "probably around the weight of the Toyota 86" (1250kg).
MORERX-7 | Mazda | Sports Cars | Enthusiast
Expected to be built atop a variation of the next-generation MX-5's platform, the new RX-7 will employ a range of weight-saving technologies to keep its mass down.
Yamamoto said that aluminium body panels will be used extensively, although more exotic materials like carbon fibre won't be due to their greater cost and more energy-intensive manufacturing processes.
It won't, however, be anywhere near as light as its MX-5 brother, which is expected to weigh around 1000kg when it debuts in 2014.
The RX-7 will also be noticeably larger than the MX-5, with a stretched wheelbase to accomodate a pair of small rear seats for the Japanese market.
As with the previous generation, the new RX-7 will be a two-seater in Western markets.
Yamamoto also told TMR that hybrid or EV powertrains were not suitable for a car like the RX-7.
He said that although KERS-like hybrid systems and all-electric powertrains were capable of delivering big torque, their smoothness and near-silent characteristics didn't deliver much in the way of driver enjoyment.
"For a pure sports car, it must be internal combustion," he said.
Yamamoto says that the RX-7 will be a premium product, and will likely wear a pricetag that's higher than cars like the 370Z.
CodeRedR51
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Interesting.
This is pretty much a requirement, IMO.
I expected this to be honest. Might as well use something that's already in development to keep costs down.
Booooo.
Good! And I agree with him!
And it will remain a dream car for me, sadly. That's okay, I WILL someday own an FD. I must.
- 40,878
Sounds to me like it will be the same platform and be pretty much the same inside, but they will just shove a couple of parcel shelves rear seats in the Japanese one and leave them out everywhere else. Kinda like what Honda did with the CRX in America vs. the CRX everywhere else.
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- BasedAckbar
Someone is going to turbo this new RX7 eventually. But he sounded unsure of the entire design so far. Turbo or not, bring back the rotary please.
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The multi-side-port engines don't really do well with turbos, from what I've seen.
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It all sounds very good, lets just hope it'll look nice.
CodeRedR51
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Just read something from RotaryNews to back up the reliability statements from earlier:
Just thought I would share. 👍
We don't do very many engine installs on a GSL-SE. Motor built and getting dressed to go into its new home... The prior engine went 260,000 miles (or 10 times around the earth at the equator). May this one be so blessed
Just thought I would share. 👍
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- mazdarota122
Forget it the rx7 the new beast is on its way the raptor gt ones a four rotor 1200hp and the big boy is a 8rotor 2100 hp claims said its gonna beat the veyron I want one.
http://www.worldcarfans.com/110100528830/rotary-super-cars-unveils-the-raptor-gt
http://www.worldcarfans.com/110100528830/rotary-super-cars-unveils-the-raptor-gt
