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Mazda is known for its rotary-engined vehicles but after the company decided to end the production of the RX8, Mazda is left without a rotary model. Poor fuel efficiency is one of the major reasons why the rotary engine is given the chop. The company is determined that there is still a future for the rotary engine. Lately, Mazda is developing a new rotary engine which will act as a range extender for electric vehicles. While we wait for that piece of technology to complete, there is some good news for rotary fans out there as the RX7 is making a comeback. Nobuhiro Yamamoto, Mazda's program manager, has confirmed that a new Mazda RX7 is making a comeback and it will be launched some time in 2017. The RX7's comeback will coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Mazda Cosmo Sport which is the first rotary-engined vehicle that Mazda has ever produced. The new RX7 will be more powerful, lighter and more fuel efficient than the previous one. Yamamoto worked on the previous RX7 model and he also designed the Mazda 787B Wankel engine. Yamamoto mentioned that the new car will use Mazda's new 16X rotary engine. In comparison with the RX8's 1.3 litre Renesis engine which made around 230bhp in natural aspirated form, the 1.6 litre naturally aspirated 16X engine will make around 300bhp. And the company is considering a turbo option as well. The 16X engine is based on the 13B's twin rotor design, the main difference is the increased displacement size. With Mazda's latest SkyActiv technology and the addition of special catalytic converters, the new engine will be more fuel efficient than previous rotary engines. Yamamoto also mentioned that the new RX7 will not be offered with hybrid technology because the company sees the car as a pure sports vehicle. Much aluminium will be used on the body shell in order to keep the vehicle weight at a minimum. Also, the car will use a stretched version of the MX5's platform. This is done to keep development costs low. The new RX7's overall weight is said to be less than 2800 lbs (1270 kg). As for the pricing, Yamamoto stated that the new RX7 will be priced between the Nissan 370Z and the GT-R. This means that if it reaches our shores, it will be rather expensive. Image credit: Net Car Show

Over the past one year, Mazda has hinted that their rotary engine usage has come to an end. The company had to struggle with stringent emission laws and fuel economy in its RX8 model and it looks like the RX8 would be the last Mazda model to feature the rotary engine. But a recent Twitter update by a Mazda PR employee shows otherwise. A recent twitter update revealed that Mazda is working on a new rotary engine for a new model and they will also feature their SkyActiv technology into it. The actual tweet also thanked supporters for their continuing support of the rotary engine and the RX8. No expected timeline was mentioned as to when we will see this. From what I could remember, SkyActiv focuses on three key areas: (1) Advanced engines with world-beating compression ratios (2) Highly efficient transmissions (3) Sophisticated lightweight chassis technology for high levels of crash safety performance and driving pleasure. If Mazda is going to increase compression ratios on its rotary engine, I wonder how that will help fuel economy, especially on its RX model. For Mazda fans, don

With the RX-8 sports car expected to be discontinued after the current model year, Mazda, the last bastion of the Wankel rotary engine, will be without a car in its lineup featuring the free-spinning engine. This is because Mazda is yet to engineer a rotary engine to meet its own internal fuel economy and emissions standards. Marvelously simple and compact yet viciously inefficient, variants of the spinning triangle have been used in Mazda's cars for over 40 years. However, It

The above image shows an illustration of what the next generation RX-7 could look like. A proper two-door coupe replacement for the much-missed Mazda RX-7 could make its appearance as early as 2011 as a 2012 model. The introduction of the two-seat RX-7 will lead to the death of the four-seat RX-8 with its 'suicide-style' rear doors, a feature which I finds rather unique among the sea of coupes. Officially, the only piece of information that Mazda has released about its next generation RX model is the development of a new 1.6-liter (800cc per rotor) rotary engine called the 16X Renesis. Rumor has it that the new engine can produce up to 350 bhp. The company is also considering to follow the example of the first generation model by developing a less powerful two-seater with not so many fancy features with a lower price tag. In this lesser application, the Wankel would deliver around 200 to 250bhp, which shouldn't be a bad thing if Mazda manages to keep the rear-wheel drive coupe's weight down. When the RX-8 made its unofficial debut in Singapore some 6 years ago through the parallel importers (PIs), it managed to find quite a number of owners with its killer looks and relatively affordable price tag. It was only after some time that Mazda Motors managed to bring in the car officially. But by that time, the PIs have already captured quite a substantial market share of the RX-7 sales. The RX-7 looks like a winner in the making and Mazda Motors should wisen up this time round. Before this entry ends, I would like to share another rendering of this upcoming Mazda offering.

ranting ranting.....!!! just ranting but this guy always just park as if he own any lots.. in my neighbourhood anyhow park and just refuses to put the car in the lot properly at all times! pls, if u can drive a 'wanker' car i'm sure u are park nicely rite??? do considerate, wanker! ps, i know it's Wankel