Mazda is working on a new RX-7 and the RX-8 MPS!

I had a thought tonight while bitching about the detuning of the RX-8. From my understanding of the way the Renesis engine works, they've moved the exhaust port from the periphery of the combustion chamber to on the wall, similar to the location of the intake port. I get that they needed to do this to meet emissions laws and all that jazz, and the new Renesis does make more power NA than the old rotaries, but I think the real reason it'll never be turbocharged is that sidewall exhaust ports should suck for turbocharging. :( That was one of the reasons the 7s could be so fast, their exhaust was hot, fast and loud.

So here's my idea. Do them both! :twisted: Build the exhaust port into the engine periphery, as well as the sidewall. Then all you need is a little leaf valve on the split in the plumbing, and the ECU can just knock the valve between Renesis-style and Oldschool. Its kind of like variable valve timing but for rotaries.

Actually, you could have multiple input and exhaust valves at multiple places in the sidewall and just open/close them with mechanically simple and robust valves and get all the advantages of a rotary at high-speed and less of the cost at low.

I think this is far too obvious for me to be the first one to think of it, so I suspect that if Mazda does build a supercar (which is what the RX-7 was originally) it'd be an RX-9 with an engine like this. Mazda doesn't really have a variable valving system that I'm aware of, and rotaries make this system possible without double-camshafts and all that junk.

Maybe supercharge the 8 (Mazdaspeed 8?). I want a rotary Miata... RX-1? :evil:
 
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