RIP Mazda Rotary Engine (1967 - 2012)

[Mazderati]

What was once touted as the next big step in internal combustion engines is no more. The last Mazda rotary engine rolled off the assembly line Friday, June 22, 2012. Poor fuel efficiency, poor emissions, and a somewhat temperamental design trumped the simplicity of three moving parts that made easy power at uncommonly high revs. Almost 2,000,000 Mazda rotaries were produced for the roads and the Mazda rotary powered the first and only Japanese victor in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

A history of the rotary engine.

[The AD]

What a Wankel.

[iceman]

Why on earth would Mazda sponosr a rotary car for LeMans in 2011 and then kill the rotary in 2012?

(that second video is pretty sick, LeMans is crazy, the moving diagram is kewl)

[Mazderati]

The last clip was to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1991 Le Mans win. FIA banned rotaries after that season.

[MakersTeleMark]

I remember a few motorbikes with rotary engines. Never got to work on one, but they always piqued my interest. Would love to know more about them.

[iceman]

The last clip was to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 1991 Le Mans win. FIA banned rotaries after that season.

Gotcha, obviously I don't follow racing all that much.

[Mazderati]

The heavy hitter in the motorcycle category was Norton. Suzuki made the RE5 for a few years.

[Viva]

If this makes my RX-8 a collector's item, please feel free to step forward...with cash, preferably.

Great handling car, though.

[L7]

I recall a rotary engined snowmobile.... maybe polaris?

[Tye 1on]

I recall a rotary engined snowmobile.... maybe polaris?

Maybe thinking of the Ski-doo Rotax motor with the adjusting valves. But trad piston/chamber.

[iceman]

I recall a rotary engined snowmobile.... maybe polaris?

Kinda Interesting

It was probably the Arctic Cat ones you're thinking of. I had no idea Johnson/Evinrude even made snow machines, never mind rotary-powered one in the early '70's.

[L7]

I think it was a Johnson and was butt ugly (even then). It was the first time I heard of a wankel engine. May have still been the 60's or very early 70s I was pretty young which is no longer the case.

[garyfromterrace]

I had an 82 RX-7 from '84 till 92. That was one great little car. Yep the gas mileage was crap, but it handled amazingly and was a good enough looking car that I think it helped me get laid a number of times. I drove the shit out of that car and it never complained. Poor man's Porsche - you bet. That was me.
I sure miss that little silver whale-tailed high-revver...

[Hugh Conway]

Fucking wankels

RIP sergio pininfarina. sex on four wheels

[MTT]

Not sure why but sorry to see it go. Such an efficent design.

Probably does not do well with a buch of shit hanging off it and computer control.

[Benny Profane]

Fast on the race track in it's time. Won a lot of races. Sounded like shit, though, compared to the competition.

[iceman]

There's a video up there with sound, Benny^^^ I think t sounds pretty cool. Different but cool.

[PassTheDutchie]

I wish I knew enough about cars/engines to appreciate this thread...

[MontuckyFried]

This was really sad news to me, and makes me regret selling my old RX-7 even more. The rotary engine is one of my favorite engines ever. Tons of power per liter, super free-revving, and the design really is ingenious in it's simplicity and execution.

One will truly appreciate them when they do a rebuild on an old rotary engine. It's like pulling a lawnmower engine out of a car, unbolts and comes apart like a sandwich, replace seals, and piece back together. Voila. Also, the overall maintenance on my RX was the easiest thing in the world. Oil filter was upside down, and near the top of the motor. Made for speedy and insanely easy oil changes. Replacing an alternator and belts was like a 5-minute job, if that. Spark plugs were just as easy. That car was a mechanics dream.

The moment I get a house with a bigger garage or a workshop, acquiring a mid-90's RX-7 is definitely my number one priority. Hopefully they don't skyrocket in value now that the rotary's been discontinued.

Pouring one out ...

[sidewall]

I test drove an RX-8 and really enjoyed it. Had a great top end rush. Mazderati, have you heard about them using "laser ignition" to clean up emissions/increase fuel economy?

[Ted Striker]

I had an RX7 with a 12A. Never had to look at the tach... just shift at the beep. Fun car.

[Mazderati]

Haven't heard anything about laser ignitions in rotaries but I've been out of the loop for a while. The concept sounds cool but I don't know if the benefit would be the same as with a piston engine; at least with the current rotary design. I'm not well-versed on laser ignitions, though, so post up any articles.

Mazda used two spark plugs per rotor on most of their designs, but the four rotor in the video above utilized a third plug on the trailing side to fire any fuel / air that missed combustion when the first two plugs fired. It worked and the four rotor was a remarkably efficient design compared to other race engines in the same era. I can only guess putting the three plug design into production cars was cost prohibitive.

There was a time the rotary was more fuel efficient than its piston counterpart, but that was in a light car making minimal power.

[philth]

Very cool motor. My bud had an 83 rx7. It was our weekend ski car. Fun and fast. Thank god this was in Pennsylvania...no snow.

[P_McPoser]

Sigh. First car was an '89 RX7 (non turbo). What a fun little car that was.

[Jethro]

A few questions about the rotary engine
1) What are the wipers made of, and how do they wear? They look to be the equivalent of rings in a piston engine.

2) How are the interior parts lubricated? It seems like a good system to use a premix fuel in. Are there any 2stroke versions?

Added: Quick wikipedia search had a lot of answers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wankel_engine. Pretty amazing engine which seems to be a cross between 2stroke and four stroke designs. Like a 2t, lots of power for its size and a power stroke for every face/piston stroke. also no valve train. It is four stroke in the individual face revolution though. Sealing the engine at multiple points seemed to be its weakness.