Skip advert
Advertisement

New Mazda RX sports car sports car still on track

New Mazda RX concept car set for Tokyo Motor Show as Mazda confirms intention to bring the rotary engined sports car to life

Mazda’s RX Vision concept car is gaining momentum on its road to production and will influence the look of other cars as the brand prepares to unveil a new concept car at the Tokyo Motor Show in October.

It’s almost two years since Mazda first revealed the RX Vision, which gave us our best indication yet that a new rotary-powered Mazda sports car was in the pipeline. Since then it has gone a bit quiet, as Mazda bosses have been trying to piece together a business case for the car.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Frankfurt Motor Show 2017: news

However, a conversation with Mazda’s Vice President for R&D in Europe, Matsuhiro Tanaka, at the recent Frankfurt Motor Show shows things are back on track. “With the Tokyo Motor Show we will be introducing a new design concept - you can think of it as an evolution of theme of the RX Vision.

“When we introduce a concept our intention from the engineering and design community is to make it a reality,” Tanaka told Auto Express. “What I will say is that we are making the utmost efforts to try and make this a possibility.”

Asked if Mazda would consider forming another alliance, like it did with Fiat on the MX-5, to help reduce costs, Tanaka said: “Currently we have absolutely no plans to make any such alliances.”

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement - Article continues below

It’s understood that Mazda wishes go it alone with the RX Vision because of how precious the brand feels over the Rotary engine technology currently under development. 

New Mazda RX rotary engine: hybrid or non-hybrid?

The Mazda rotary-engined sports car is expected to arrive with a pure combustion engine instead of relying on electrification. The Japanese manufacturer showed its RX-Vision concept sports car at its Los Angeles Auto Show in 2016 - and a production version is thought to be earmarked to coincide with Mazda's centenary celebrations in 2020.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Speaking at the LA show, the firm’s head of R&D Kiyoshi Fujiwara admitted that several challenges remained before the long-awaited successor to the RX-7 and RX-8 could be given the green light and acknowledged that a rotary engine development team was still active.

Mazda RX-Vision could preview new RX-7 

“It is a small group of engineers still working, but they are still working,” Fujiwara told Auto Express, before revealing that there are “more than 10 staff and fewer than one hundred” committed to rotary development. “The things standing in the way are both the business case and the technical challenges - but I am optimistic that a solution for the technical challenges can be found.

“We have had significant challenges as a business even five years ago and there are debts from the past 30 or 40 years that need to be overcome, but if cars like the new CX-5 are successful then a production version of the RX-Vision could be a possibility. So you can see that CX-5 is extremely important.”

When asked if one of the potential solutions on rotary tech could be electrification, Fujiwara said, “All of our other internal combustion engines will have to have some form of electrification at some point - mild hybrid or 48-volt electrics” he said. “So yes, that type of technology could be in rotary engines in the future.”

Mazda 3 hybrid review

“However, I believe I would like to introduce the new rotary engine without electrification,” he said, “because I think that is what the rotary engine fans will want.” 

One other potential product strategy could be for the production RX-Vision to arrive in 2020 with a new generation of rotary engine, and then for a higher-performance version to overcome the technology’s inherit torque deficit by using 48V-based electric turbochargers.

Would you like to see a Mazda rotary-engined car with or without electrification? Let us know in the comments below...

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

Next-generation Mazda CX-5 SUV and all-new Mazda EV both arriving by 2027
Mazda CX-5 - front tracking

Next-generation Mazda CX-5 SUV and all-new Mazda EV both arriving by 2027

The new CX-5 will feature a hybrid powertrain developed in-house by Mazda
News
8 Nov 2024
Return of the Mazda RX-7 draws close as Iconic SP is marked for production
Mazda ICONIC SP concept – front (doors closed)

Return of the Mazda RX-7 draws close as Iconic SP is marked for production

Mazda’s designer has said we can expect a production model “in the not-so-distant future”
News
7 Nov 2024
New Mazda EZ-6 goes on sale in China from £15,000
The new Mazda EZ-6 front 3/4

New Mazda EZ-6 goes on sale in China from £15,000

The EZ-6 is offered with pure-electric and range-extender powertrains
News
1 Nov 2024
Mazda, Toyota and Subaru join forces to develop new engines for hybrid cars
Toyota, Subaru and Mazda partnership

Mazda, Toyota and Subaru join forces to develop new engines for hybrid cars

The new engines will be compatible with fossil fuel alternatives like liquid hydrogen and synthetic fuel
News
30 May 2024

Most Popular

New cars that plummet in value can make brilliant used buys
Opinion - Vauxhall Corsa-e

New cars that plummet in value can make brilliant used buys

Editor Paul Barker takes a closer look at our 2024 Used Car Awards
Opinion
20 Nov 2024
A £10k electric car with a 100-mile range would surely be a sales success
Opinion - cheap EV

A £10k electric car with a 100-mile range would surely be a sales success

Mike Rutherford thinks there would be demand for an electric car with a modest 100-mile range if it only cost £10k
Opinion
17 Nov 2024
New Jaguar logos unveiled as big concept reveal moves closer
New Jaguar logo 1

New Jaguar logos unveiled as big concept reveal moves closer

Jaguar has revealed its new logos and styling details ahead of its transition into a luxury EV brand
News
19 Nov 2024