It's really hard not to get hyped up about it, the 16X will be the first truly new rotary since the introduction of the 13B.

We all want the 16X to set the world on fire. We want the new rotary to sit at the top of the performance pack, and become legendary like the FD.

Mazda won't build an FD again, it was way too expensive and no one bought it. They have to keep the cost down so that people who actually shop for Mazdas can afford it. I'm just hoping that it will lessen the power gap between rotaries and the competition and be a bit better on gas. Asking for more is asking too much.

0-60 times aren't a good yardstick in any case. It's not a fair measurement for a rotary: rotaries are slow as hell from about 0-40, then they start to get quick. Not hard to see what that does to 0-60 numbers.

 

Turbocharged rotaries aren't slow as hell from 0-40. The new 16X shouldn't be either ...if it has one.

 

^ I doubt it will have a turbo. I expect it to be NA at introduction, maybe with a turbo option later if they don't have too many problems with the engines.

 

If the car goes to production NA with lower power numbers than competing cars we will see the same lack of sales we have seen with the RX-8. Then if the car is not selling terribly well, the chances they will release a more powerful turbocharged version later? Nil.

 

I don't see the 16x being turbo from the factory option or not....I just don't think it's gonna happen.....if they do I don't think you will see a 100k miles warranty onthe engine with a turbo..

 

In speed or fuel economy?

 

I agree with Marklar. I think the era of the full-on performance mazda rotary car is over. We won't see another production car designed to take on that market.
16X + FI + Production won't happen. Choose two =)

I'd be thrilled to have a smallish, two-door car with a 16X especially if the gas mileage improves some.

 

If your talking 16x with a turbo you are most likely talking about a car in the 40k + price range. In today's economy that is a tough push. The 370z is not even selling that well.

 

I too would like a turbo'd 16x, however I dont think it will happen. I dont think it will be production cost, or even emissions or gas mileage. I dont think an FI version will come due to WARRANTY claims. How bad did Mazda suffer on warranty claims on the FD? And that was before the "tuner" has come along in the last 10 years.

 

18/26 mpg and up would be nice, but I honestly couldnt care less if I brought a sports car. It's a damn sports car, not an econobox. So speed/handling it is.

 

For starters, the RX-8 is no stranger to warranty claims. Also the FD was the first production car from Japan with sequential turbochargers, a rats nest of vacuum hoses, and seriously deficient cooling. A low boost turbocharger with a proper intercooler and warranty dependant on not overboosting the stock turbo would probably be fine if the new motor is even as strong as the Renesis.

Gas mileage... I just dont' get why people get so hyped about this. It's a sports car! I've had other cars with a hell of a lot worse gas mileage than the RX-8 thats for sure. My '73 Corvette actually had a gas leak on top of its lousy fuel economy.

If emissions are capable of killing a new car from Mazda the rotary would be the one killed... rotaries by nature will always produce more emissions than a similar class piston engine. It's just one of the drawbacks of the design.

I think Mazda needs to decide what the rotary engine will be used for, a unique but underpowered niche touring car with good handling but few customers or a full out sports car that can hang with the best from Nissan, Porsche, and the rest. Having seen what a properly built FI setup can do for the RX-8 I have no doubt Mazda could make a killer next generation sports car, but they aren't going to do it with an NA 2-rotor engine unless the car is TINY. Having invested over $20k into mods for this rotary I just can't see myself doing it again for the next version if it doesn't start turbocharged.

 

I've never seen anyone post a video of the Mazda Taiki getting loaded on a trailer truck, but you can hear the bad *** 16X rotary engine start up and idling as it's getting loaded up on the truck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XotU0CnlU0

 

sounds like its running just headers

 

all i want is it to do is be as fast as it looks. my 8 for the most part everyone thinks its fast. but my friends 93 hyundai s coup is faster in almost everyway

 

That's what I would guess, since there aren't any exhaust tips that can be seen. And looking at the underbody of the car, it just looks like it has no exhaust at all. Still though, it's a nice sound..

 

Love the sound of a rotary engine in the morning

 

driver error

 

Or a 4 port AT.