Do Mazda Cars Still Use Rotary Engines?

Introduction

Mazda is a Japanese automaker that is known for its innovative and sporty vehicles. One of the most famous innovations from Mazda is the rotary engine. Rotary engines are a type of internal combustion engine that uses a triangular rotor instead of a piston. This design offers several advantages over traditional piston engines, including a smoother power delivery, lower emissions, and a more compact size. However, rotary engines are also more complex and expensive to build than piston engines.

The History of Rotary Engines in Mazda Cars

Mazda first introduced the rotary engine in 1967 in the Cosmo Sport 110S. This was the first production car to use a rotary engine. Mazda continued to use rotary engines in a variety of its vehicles throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including the RX-2, RX-3, and RX-7. However, the rotary engine was gradually phased out of Mazda’s lineup in the 1990s due to its high cost and complexity.

The Last Mazda Car with a Rotary Engine

The last Mazda car to use a rotary engine was the RX-8, which was produced from 2003 to 2012. The RX-8 was a sports car that was powered by a 1.3-liter Renesis rotary engine. The Renesis engine was a more compact and fuel-efficient design than previous rotary engines, but it was still more expensive to build than a piston engine.

Why Mazda Stopped Using Rotary Engines

There are several reasons why Mazda stopped using rotary engines in its cars. The first reason is that rotary engines are more expensive to build than piston engines. The second reason is that rotary engines are less fuel-efficient than piston engines. The third reason is that rotary engines produce more emissions than piston engines.

The Future of Rotary Engines

Despite the challenges that rotary engines face, Mazda has not given up on the technology. In 2015, Mazda announced that it was developing a new rotary engine that would be more efficient and cleaner than previous designs. Mazda has not yet released any details about the new engine, but it is expected to debut in a new Mazda car in the next few years.

Conclusion

Rotary engines were once a major innovation from Mazda, but they were gradually phased out of the automaker’s lineup in the 1990s. The last Mazda car to use a rotary engine was the RX-8, which was produced from 2003 to 2012. Mazda has not given up on rotary engines, and it is expected to debut a new rotary engine in a new Mazda car in the next few years.