Mazda Sure Looks Like It’s Gearing Up For An RX-7 Revival
No, in that case, we're children in the depths of denial after being told Santa Claus isn't real. Why? Because we know that adults lie. Especially those heading big car corporations. So when we heard directly from Mazda that no rotary engine or RX-7 revival was being cooked up, we couldn't help but cast that news into our mind's "dubious" pile.
Backing us up here is a report from The Drive, which compiles recent news of a patent for a start-stop rotary range extender together with clues taken from a video on the automaker's Facebook page to claim that if Mazda isn't building a rotary-powered RX-7 right now, it sure is thinking about it. The video itself isn't of much significance, amounting to nothing more than a six second slideshow depicting the three generations of rotary-powered RX-7s with beautiful but out of place modern architecture as the surroundings. The mystery begins with a cryptic video title that reads, "With its rotary engine and responsive handling, Mazda's iconic RX-7 is a legend among drivers. Find out more http://mzda.us/0uhLgV."
Clicking on that link takes you to a Mazda publication called Zoom Zoom, which has a nostalgic ode to the three generations of RX-7 on its page. How cute. But what about the new rotary engined RX-7? Well, clicking on a tab on the Zoom Zoom page brings you to another page with a section titled "Looking to the Future." There lies the most convincing evidence yet, straight from the mouth of the beast, that Mazda is looking towards a future for the rotary engine. " In recent times, the rotary engine's chief bugbear was its relatively poor fuel economy and higher level of emissions compared with the best modern gasoline or diesel engines, including Mazda's own SKYACTIV powerplants," reads the text.
It adds, "But when its potential benefits are so striking—light, compact, smooth, quiet, free-revving—surely there is still a future for the rotary engine?" Sounds good to us so far. The midsection of the reading speaks about the aforementioned rotary engine range extender and about hydrogen applications for rotary architecture, but the exciting news is in the section that follows, which refers to the RX Vision Concept. "With the letters RX traditionally known to preface a Mazda rotary-engined model, the RX-Vision quickened the pulses of rotary enthusiasts worldwide. Mazda merely stated at the time that the rotary remained a symbol of the company's tirelessly challenging spirit, and that rotary engine research and development continues," it reads.
Mazda ends by saying, "But from the company that solved the infamous devil's claw marks and put rotaries on the world automotive map, who would rule anything out?" We'll let you decide what gets ruled out or not.
