Mazda Confirms Work on Next-Gen Rotary Engine

Mazda Motor Corp. continues development work on a new rotary engine that meets modern performance requirements, President Masamichi Kogai tells Autocar.

Affirming reports from early this year, Kogai says an engineering team assigned to the project is working to boost low-end torque, improve cold-start capability and significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Mazda hasn't said when the engine might go into production. But Autocar suggests a 2018 launch to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the company's first rotary-powered model, the original RX-7.

Mazda phased out its most recent rotary car, the RX-8, in 2012. A year later it showed a prototype car that used a rotary as a range extender in a hybrid set-up. Media reports speculate the new engine will generate as much as 300 hp and will bow in the redesigned MX-5 Miata.