Report: Next Mazda RX-8 to use Sky G rotary
Filed under: Japan, Technology, Mazda
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Mazda has big plans for the future of its rotary engine. According to GoAuto, the company is currently hard at work on improving the powerplant's fuel economy by a full 50 percent. If it can pull it off, the new mill will proudly wear the same "Sky" designation as its traditional four-cylinder counterparts. The site quotes Seita Kanai, Mazda's director of R&D and program management, as saying that upping the rotary's fuel economy is essential for the engine's survival.
From the sound of things, Mazda is wholly committed to keeping a rotary in its stable. In the report, Kanai says the company is investigating every possible aspect of the engine's design to look for ways to increase efficiency, down to the very principles behind the design. Even so, he stopped short of saying whether or not the company is toying with an electric turbocharger as part of development.
Even with word that the Japanese automaker is stoking the rotary flames, GoAuto reports the company currently has no plans for a legitimate RX-7 successor. While designers and engineers within the company may be itching to jump onto a new sports car, the company's decision makers are currently more occupied with slimming its corporate average fuel economy.
[Source: GoAuto]Report: Next Mazda RX-8 to use Sky G rotary originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Sep 2010 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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