VW/Wankle...

Does Mazda still make Wankle engines???? Years ago I saw a two rotor Wankle in a ragged out bug.....Not much on zero to 30, but then Kattey bar the door.....

The overall package was small, and I was wondering how it would go in a Spyder....

The RX-8 coupe is a Wankle with about 225hp, although it is know to be lacking in torque.

To the Mazda still make Wankle engines question. Yesssss, is the answer.

Three maybe four years back, there

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/JDM-13B-TURBO-S4-ROTARY-ENGINE-MAZDA-RX7-87-88-13BT-FC-/280499628153?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item414f14a879

All RX-8 have the rotary engine.


According to the latest news, the new one they are developping will accept both gasoline AND diesel, at the same time and regardless of anything.

Expect that, if it goes ahead, to show up in more models.... ;)

I believe they are quite small displacements- around 1.3 L

Mazda RX-8's came in 1'st and 2'nd at the Rolex 24 hour race back in February.

They consistently out-accelerate the Porsche GT's in the straights, and their cornering was outstanding. Not to mention that, if you want to win the Rolex, you have to finish the Rolex and they more than proved their reliability.

Of course, these are not your ordinary, dealer-showroom cars, but then, neither are the Porsches ;>)

VERY hot. Back in the 70's they escaped catalytic converters for a while and used thermal reactors to thoroughly burn exhaust components. It worked for a few years before emissions standards got stricter.

If I recall correctly, Wankle exhaust temps are super hot.

Wonder if Kennedy makes a VW tranny adapter and does the motor turn in the right direction to make it do-able in a speedster?

A long way back one of the VW car magazines (I think) put a Wankel engine in a super beetle and tracked it. If I remember correctly, the car was quite fast.
Ron

A couple of years ago someone arrived at Carlisle with a Wankle in an Avenger, remember? He and a bunch of kids did it as a shop-build project at the Voc. school he taught at. He had it bolted to a VW (not Porsche) transaxle and it hung out the rear, not amidships. Don't remember if he had a Kennedy adapter plate in there or not.

What I DO remember is hearing some Uber-throaty exhaust note coming all the way across the show field and a whole bunch of eyes following the car until it parked near us. Those things just sound so cool.....

Exhaust supposedly glow red hot - not good near fiberglass. Not sure how new ones fare but big genefit wsas few moving parts - unfortunately apex seals (rings to us piston guys) are quite costly - guess since there aren't many around. Didn't guy in TX have one in a 359 but removed due to high heat.

2010 RX-8
1308 cc
232 HP @ 8500 RPM (holy moly batman)
159 Torque @ 5500 RPM (Hey - that's my HP redline)
~3100 pound vehicle
~ 15 MPG on Premium

Please note, if horsepower and torque are equal at 5252 RPM, that baby ain't got much down low on the tach.

Yeah, it's got great horsepower, but how often will you be driving at 8500 RPM? As Jake R. says, do you want bragging rights or a car you can enjoy under all conditions? I guess if you like to row the boat, it's fun, but don't get stuck in too much traffic. It is supposed to have a killer chassis.

Seen a few mods with Chevy V-8s. Despite the extra weight, these are very enthusiastic owners. I wonder what a 240 HP Honda S-2000 engine would do for this chassis?

HP is torque times revs. If you want a lot of HP, you can get it by having a lot of revs. If you can make the same torque at double the revs, you'll have double the HP. This is not a torquey motor, although it will wind up something fierce. I have friend at work who has one, and he loves it. And it is a small package -- does not take up much volume. I am sure it would fit in a Speedy no sweat if you can figure a way to get the bolts on and if can manage the hot exhaust pipes. Making lots of revs is how the F1 guys get so much advertised HP out of such small engines: they make them so they run at 20,000 rpm. Holy Twister, Batman!!!

The rotary engine fits in there with no problems. The one in Texas was in a 359 the came from the factory from CMC. It was a 13b pushing about 165 hp. Right now it is sitting in a garage in Florida along with the complete adapter kit and all the radiator plumbing waiting to be installed in a dune buggy. The exhaust heat issue is the key problem with the speedsters. The other issue with these engines is the apex seals. They have a habit of drying out and breaking off. Last time I checked, the seals alone were over $600 a set.

Thread drift - anybody remember the Wankel engine in a motorcycle?

i believe that suzuki once had a rotary engine bike...
i no longer have the cycle magazine that reported it...

One of my college professors had one of those. Really cool looking bike.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/report-mazda-rx-7-prototype-rotary-runs-on-diesel-or-gas.html

I think the rotary engine bike was a Rotax or Sachs/Hercules or something like that. I also heard something about putting rotary engines in the new Indians or Buell road bikes. I saw one once and it looked like it had a garbage disposal bolted on the front of the engine. It looked pretty strange but it would be very cool if you get a small engine like that to run on anything that is combustable.

The Hercules made a Wankel engined motorcycle of some 381 cc displacement. Saw one today in SD auto museum. Docent also said NSU and either Suzuki or Yamaha also made a rotary.

http://www.nortonrotary.org.uk/

http://thekneeslider.com/archives/2006/05/10/radial-engine-powered-motorcycle/

A buddy and I built a Fiat X1/9 with a 13B in it. Mounted transverse to a four-speed Chevy Citation transaxle. Went from 67 horsepower car to a 180 horsepower. Very cool!

The exhaust pipes glowed cherry red at night and a blue cone about 10 inches long came out of the pipe at night (not visible in the day). Nobody ever tail-gated me - LOL!

I put 13,000 miles on that car. Daily driver duties plus trips to Washington, California and Idaho. The transaxle finally bit the dust one dark rainy night. The transaxle was a piece of shit. The input shaft actually twisted nearly 360 degrees.

Rotaries rock in light cars. Great small package, super easy to work on and very trouble free engines. Love 'em.

angela