Mazda 2017 RX-7 - Paris show: Mazda RX-7 dream still alive | GoAuto

1 October 2012

By DAVID HASSALL in Paris

MAZDA executives continue to hold onto dreams of making a new-generation RX-7 sportscar – complete with a rotary engine – and are prepared to pounce when the Japanese company again becomes profitable.

A number of Mazda traditionalists see the RX-7 and the rotary engine as icons of the brand that must one day return and appear to be maintaining the dream.

Mazda design chief Ikuo Maeda – whose father Matasaburo Maeda designed the very first RX-7 that shook the world when it appeared in 1978 – leads the true believers.

Maeda-san, whose nickname is ‘Speedy’, told GoAuto at the Paris motor show this week that, having succeeded his father as design chief, still aims to follow him as an RX-7 designer.

“It is still my dream,” he told us.

“When we make the money, I will be able to spend the money,” he said in reference to Mazda’s recent post-Ford financial troubles.

The 52 year-old designed the last rotary-engined ‘sportscar’, the RX-8 that was recently discontinued, a victim of increasingly tough global emission and fuel economy requirements, but sees the future RX-7 as a real two-seat sportscar, possibly with a mid-mounted engine.

He has an important ally in engineering ace Ichiro Hirose, the recently appointed general manager of Mazda Europe’s R&D centre and responsible for the brand’s SkyActiv technologies.

Mr Hirose, who is also a Mazda Europe vice-president, told GoAuto in Paris that Mazda was still working on a Sky Rotary but, like Mr Maeda, made it clear that nothing could be done until the company was in better financial health.

“There is a dream,” Mr Hirose told us when asked about the potential to apply SkyActiv technology to the rotary engine.

“If this kind of SkyActiv technology is well-received then we have a chance to restart such a development.

“At this moment we are not in a position to restart again, but if in future we earn more money then I believe there is a chance.”

In the meantime, Mr Maeda – the father of Mazda’s current highly acclaimed ‘Kodo’ design language – continues to do RX-7 design sketches in the hope they will one day turn into a production reality.

 

as I've been saying for years: We need more Mazda 3's, 6's, and now CX-5
s on the road because the fate of the Rotary lies in the sales numbers of those main stream vehicles.

If they don't sell, we won't get another rotary. Ever.

 

I really needed news like this to help bring up my shitty day, thanks ASH8 for this post

 

Kinda like a good news to hear. Will wait and see...

 

Another delay. I doubt it will ever happen.

Just happy I owned the last rotary engined car ever produced.

 

My mom wants to upgrade her Dodge Caliber - trying to convince her to get a CX-5 to help the cause

 

citation: possibly with a mid-mounted engine.




supercar....

 

Junkman: if she can hold out till next year, there's a chance the Diesel CX-5 is coming state-side.

 

That's the only part I read as well...
It would be a true dream.

 

Yeah will will see...all talk unfortunately.

If Mazda are going to achieve yet another 30% in fuel economy with SA in "banger engines" (see new thread) making at total of about 55-60% over current MZR, then they will have a very hard road ahead to make a Rotary 'more' economical than Renesis in any future model.

A Super-car or like is a different story, perhaps where Mazda may just have to do it with a 'new' Rotary, but who will pay $100+K?..

I am still very pessimistic about anything new in Rotary for the short to long term..
That is a Rotary that's the primary and only power source.
A hybrid rotary of any kind will never sell imo.

 

If mazda wants to step up and compete with bmw then a 70\90k$ car may be a smart choice to steal some of their sporty customers.
Make a MR layout that competes with a gt3 rs and sell it at half its price... not bad at all and it can be done.

Mazda is a step behind Ford, VW... this translates to miles behind BMW. I know their products are decent and solid but the customers still perceive Mazdas as overpriced econoboxes.

 

here in Italy.

In Germany (a real automotive -country) ,for example, things are slightly different

 

Germany is a white fly in europe. France, UK, Spain etc share our same point of view unfortunately.

 

agree on Spain and France. a lot less for UK. in UK Mazda is well percieved.

 

You always remain pessimistic. I am glass half full and remain of the belief that we will see something. Of course my view goes up against what major governments are doing but we will see.

For Mazda's survival they definitely need to get quality built cars assembled outside of Japan quickly and more profit from those made in Japan.

Paul.

 

I need to start saving my penny's for it. My trade-in isn't going to be worth much when/if it comes out.

 

Agreed Paul.

The odds can be stacked incredibly heavy against a rotary, but as long as people in charge that really matter to the decision process have it in their head and hearts, the possibility remains very strong for when the time is right. I wouldn't expect Mazda to release a rotary while they still have the financial unbalance that they do, but it is far from dead as long as people like Ikuo Maeda and Ichiro Hirose exist within the Mazda executive tree.

A bit of willpower and a lot of heart goes a long way towards doing something that the rest of the world doesn't really agree with or is trying stacking the deck against.

 

The good thing is, there are MANY more top people at Mazda who feel this way including the president and CEO as well as key Mazda people in the US who are sports car enthusiasts as much as any of us here. A bunch of them own rotaries and track them too. They are itching to bring the new rotary and I am 100% for the name RX-7. Going up in number just because it's a new car is foolish. If it's a successor to the RX-7, name it RX-7. If they build another free style door 4 passenger rotary car it should be called RX-8.

Paul.

 

For myself, one of the strongest motivations is the desire to prove people wrong about something and succeed in your dreams/desires. I know many of us may share that feeling, as do many people in the engineering world. With the rotary being such a strong significance in Mazda's history, its highly unlikely that the engineers don't think about the rotary and the possibilities of the engine if various design flaws can be overcome. Nothing in this world is perfect, but perfection is always a goal. The piston engine used to be incredibly inefficient, but all the money and time put into the R&D of the piston engine has brought it a long way from its early years.

We can all agree that the rotary, despite being around for many years now, is still in its early years itself. A fraction of a percentage that has gone into the piston engine is around how much has been put into the rotary. Many would speculate that engineers both in Mazda and abroad think about that from time to time. While the idea of a rotary powered vehicle anytime in the near future may be slowly diminishing, the dreams in the minds and hearts of society and engineers dreams on. Its very possible one day when all the necessary resources are available that many breakthroughs may revive the rotary, but unless that dream is kept alive it will simply fade away in history. We may not have a rotary in production now, but we may one day in the future. It's only truly the end of the line if you make it as such.

-Xero a.k.a. Ricky

 

Mazda doesn't have to make the rotary into a $90,000 supercar. I do feel they should go upmarket though say around 50-60 grand supercar to compete with corvette, gtr, 911, etc. But, they'd have to bring it in the performance. This segment is extremely competitive.

 

They tried that with the FC and even more so with the FD. Sales were poor. Mazda is a small car company and people don't accept them selling supercars.

 

MotorworldHype — Hype Rumor: Why Is Mazda Keeping A Nissan GT-R At Their R&D Building? (Spyshots)

This article is pure speculation with no facts but wonders at the GTR being used as a benchmark. One can dream.

 

I'd be happy with something that is simply better than the current RX-8. 250-275hp and 2600-2700 lbs. 30-35k range. There's plenty of room for other brands to compete with cars like the BRZ and FR-S.

 

In the case of the FD I think the car's race record (specifically, total domination in auto-x for almost a decade) gained a helluva lot of respect among enthusiasts, and raises the company's status much more than not having such a car. In the end, you're right, sales were rather abysmal but I think they as a company garnered a lot of recognition for what the 3rd gen was able to do against the big guns, and at a fraction of their price points no less.

I'd sign on at the chance at a true successor to that last gen. Z06/GTR competitor for a good chunk less? 3 rotors, 2600-2700 lb curb weight, lightweight materials for the body panels &/or chassis/tub. What sports car afficionado with modest means wouldn't jump at that for $60K-ish? Wankel-haters would probably be the lone dissenters.

 

This is news!!

A rotary powered GTR killer would be pure sex

However, how many of us could ever afford one?