Jarred

I'm not sure where this belongs, but I thought it was pretty cool, donno if it's a repost or not...

http://www.rotaryaviation.com/renesis_engine.htm

this guy through a Renisis in his plane...

truemagellen

ahhh Rotorheads will do anything to get their fix

right on :D

SilverEIGHT

Very interesting, I'd love to here the exhaust note.

cas2themoe

Thats cool

PaulieWalnuts

Nice! Those people are some serious rotary geeks.

kmg1186

let's see some renesis powered boats!

therm8

The size of the rotary engine still amazes me everytime I see it.

8_is_enuf

There is a group that takes Sea-Doos with blown motors and puts mazda rotaries in them..

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

At one time, there was a boat builder in Kentucky/Tennesee that was building a 16ft jetboat with a 13B. I don't remember who the builder was.
Another time I was at a boat show in Wisconsin and there was a company showing a 13B setup for marine use.

alnielsen

iTrader: (4)

Rotories are a good fit for airplanes, because the mechanics of the engine are simple and its light. The problems are that you need gear reduction because of the high reving engine. You can't have the propeller tips going supersonic.

1.3L

As you can see, installing an automotive engine in an airplane is much more difficult than meets the eye. Proper cooling is usually one of the biggest problems to solve, along with a reliable gear reduction system.

Typically, traditional light aircraft engines are large-bore, low RPM engines and require no gear reduction. By comparison, automobile engines turn much higher RPM and operate over a much broader RPM range. Typical certified aircraft engines (Lycoming and Continental flat, opposed 4 or 6 configuration) have a redline of around 2700 RPM. That's a fast idle in some automobile engines.

Anyway, builders of the RV (RV-4, 6, 8, etc.) series of homebuilt aircraft usually install a 4 cylinder Lycoming engine that range from 150 HP to about 200 HP, or a bit more. These engines range from 320 cubic inches to 360 cubic inches (roughly 5.3 to 6 litres). Now, compare that to the 80 cubic inch (1.3 litre) Renesis!

I don't know what the installed horsepower of the Renesis engine is in this situation, but it's probably capable of more HP than the more traditional aircraft engines used in the RV aircraft. The author/builder claimed that he was seeing a top speed of 225 MPH which is comparable, if not better, than the 200+ HP Lycoming equipped RV's.

As I mentioned earlier, cooling is one of the biggest problems when adapting an automobile engine for aircraft use and in reading the article, you'll notice that the builder refers to engine operating temperatures many times. Aircraft typically cruise at somewhere between 65% and 75% of rated power, not to mention that all available power (full throttle) is used for takeoff and initial climb. This method of operation is quite a departure from typical automotive engine operation. Not many cars cruise for 2 or 3 hours at 75% power. And this is after launching at 100% (or max available) for the first few minutes or so.

It will be interesting the see how the Renesis holds up for the long-term. Most certified aircraft engines are good for up to 2000 hours before needing a major overhaul. Occasionally, some of them require a top overhaul (cylinders, pistons, valves) along the way, but that is often dependent on how the engine was operated.

Cool stuff!

1.3L

Speed Racer

I also found some of the builder's comments very interesting. Such as the coolant temps coming out of the engine were 16 degrees hotter than what he was used to seeing on his 13B. He traced this difference in temps to the side exhaust ports on the Renesis but he also pointed out that it really is a moot point. The radiator brings the temp back to normal before it enters the engine and the coolant temp is the same as the 13B when it passes the combustion chamber.

He also mentioned that his quickly fabricated ram air duct worked better than he expected with only a 1.5" Hg increase in pressure. He thinks that the lower air temps can be attributed to that extra power but he didn't take before and after temps to prove it.

kmg1186

how about some renesis quads!... or even better, a renesis powered lawn mowerrr ! hahah