Mazda CEO says rotary not viable, so don't look for a new one
11-19-13, 02:38 PM
#1
Mazda CEO says rotary not viable, so don't look for a new one
Mazda CEO says rotary not viable, so don't look for a new one
We have some very sad news to report, rotor-heads fans: Don't expect a new rotary-powered vehicle anytime soon. This comes straight from Masamichi Kogai, the CEO of Mazda, which is the only company to ever market a commercially successful rotary-powered automobile in the world. The issue, as it has pretty much always been, is environmental.
While the Wankel rotary engine does indeed make a lot of power in a small, lightweight package, it does so while burning lots of fuel and emitting lots of noxious gases into the atmosphere, at least when running on gasoline. And that means the rotary engine will likely only ever be able to power niche vehicles. And that, in turn, means that it is very difficult to turn a profit on vehicles with rotary engines, particularly for a small automaker like Mazda.
"It has to be a viable commercial proposition. If we are going to adopt it, it has to be a product that can generate at least sales of 100,000 units a year. We have to be able to achieve a profit," said Kogai in an interview with Automotive News. Mazda sold 56,203 RX-7 models in the United States (the automaker's biggest market) in 1986. Sales of the RX-8 peaked in 2004, its first full year on the market, with just 23,690 units.
There is a sliver of hope, though. "We are the first and only manufacturer to commercialize the rotary engine. In that respect, we have some responsibility," said Kogai. Research will continue on the rotary engine at Mazda, and, since the engine will run on a wide variety of fuels, including hydrogen, it is possible that we'll see a rotary return on an alternate fuel sometime in the not-too-near future.
While the Wankel rotary engine does indeed make a lot of power in a small, lightweight package, it does so while burning lots of fuel and emitting lots of noxious gases into the atmosphere, at least when running on gasoline. And that means the rotary engine will likely only ever be able to power niche vehicles. And that, in turn, means that it is very difficult to turn a profit on vehicles with rotary engines, particularly for a small automaker like Mazda.
"It has to be a viable commercial proposition. If we are going to adopt it, it has to be a product that can generate at least sales of 100,000 units a year. We have to be able to achieve a profit," said Kogai in an interview with Automotive News. Mazda sold 56,203 RX-7 models in the United States (the automaker's biggest market) in 1986. Sales of the RX-8 peaked in 2004, its first full year on the market, with just 23,690 units.
There is a sliver of hope, though. "We are the first and only manufacturer to commercialize the rotary engine. In that respect, we have some responsibility," said Kogai. Research will continue on the rotary engine at Mazda, and, since the engine will run on a wide variety of fuels, including hydrogen, it is possible that we'll see a rotary return on an alternate fuel sometime in the not-too-near future.
11-19-13, 05:22 PM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
Disappointing, I don't see why they can't do a pretty low volume RX-7 rotary sports car and introduce some new technologies to make it cleaner and burn less fuel/oil. I just detailed a FD RX-7, what a great car, timeless design. The owner said he will never sell it.
11-20-13, 02:42 PM
#6
Lexus Fanatic
The rotary engine is absolutely not viable. Considering things like emissions, fuel economy, and long term reliability the rotary is a quirky torquerless dinosaur
11-20-13, 03:13 PM
#7
Because they're trying to survive and can't dump money into money loosing projects just because some internet guy thinks it's cool.
Trending Topics
11-20-13, 05:58 PM
#8
Pole Position
Even with all the previous talk (and even now they still hold out hope with other fuels) I had a feeling this was coming. I had some hopes after this story ran on Autoline but alas....
11-20-13, 06:24 PM
#9
I don't think the rotary has ever been viable in street applications. Every generation of rotary engine Mazda has ever made has had serious reliability and longevity issues. If Mazda did turn a tiny profit selling the RX-8, replacing engines under warranty probably ate up what little money they did make on that car, not to mention souring people on the Mazda brand.
11-21-13, 01:44 AM
#10
Lexus Champion
IMHO, the Wankel Rotary Engine still has its place in the automotive world.
Sure, it may not be perfect but it's obviously far from being labelled as 'lousy' or 'inferior'.
Here are some advantages that were listed from wikipedia:
Advantages[edit]
NSU Wankel Spider, the first line of cars sold with a rotor Wankel engine
With that said, I do hope Mazda continues on the next-gen RENESIS engine (aka Renesis 2 or Renesis 16X). That and I can't wait to see the return of the Wankel Rotary engine in a future Mazda RX sportscar 
Peace
Sure, it may not be perfect but it's obviously far from being labelled as 'lousy' or 'inferior'.
Here are some advantages that were listed from wikipedia:
Advantages[edit]
NSU Wankel Spider, the first line of cars sold with a rotor Wankel engine
Originally Posted by wikipedia
Prime advantages of the Wankel rotary engine are:
-A far higher power to weight ratio than a piston engine.
-No reciprocating parts.
-Runs with almost no vibration.
-Far fewer parts than a piston engine.
-Cheaper to mass-produce as contains few parts.
-Superior breathing, filling the combustion charge in 270 degrees of mainshaft rotation rather than 180 degrees in a piston engine.
-Supplies torques for about two thirds of the combustion cycle rather than one quarter for a piston engine.
-Wider speed range gives greater adaptability.
-It can use fuel of wider octane ratings.
-Does not suffer from "scale effect" to limit its size.
-It is approximately one third of the size of a piston engine of equivalent power output.
-Sump oil remains uncontaminated by the combustion process requiring no oil changes. The oil in the mainshaft is totally sealed from the combustion process. The oil for Apex seals and crankcase lubrication is separate. In piston engines the crankcase oil is contaminated by combustion blow-by through the piston rings.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wankel_engine
-A far higher power to weight ratio than a piston engine.
-No reciprocating parts.
-Runs with almost no vibration.
-Far fewer parts than a piston engine.
-Cheaper to mass-produce as contains few parts.
-Superior breathing, filling the combustion charge in 270 degrees of mainshaft rotation rather than 180 degrees in a piston engine.
-Supplies torques for about two thirds of the combustion cycle rather than one quarter for a piston engine.
-Wider speed range gives greater adaptability.
-It can use fuel of wider octane ratings.
-Does not suffer from "scale effect" to limit its size.
-It is approximately one third of the size of a piston engine of equivalent power output.
-Sump oil remains uncontaminated by the combustion process requiring no oil changes. The oil in the mainshaft is totally sealed from the combustion process. The oil for Apex seals and crankcase lubrication is separate. In piston engines the crankcase oil is contaminated by combustion blow-by through the piston rings.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wankel_engine
Peace
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Hoovey689
Car Chat
22
11-11-11 09:59 AM
Hoovey689
Car Chat
3
07-22-11 09:09 PM