Mazda’s Wankel rotary engine will not die, and we’re fine with that. The last we heard, the high-revving, crazy-sounding motor was in the running to possibly be used as a range extender for a hybrid. But at the Geneva auto show earlier this month, the company let a few new tidbits go in an interview with Australia’s Drive publication. Here are some of the highlights:
“We made an announcement that we are considering the combination of the rotary-based range extender and combined that with battery EV,” managing executive officer in charge of powertrain development Ichiro Hirose said.
Mazda says it has developed a flexible rotary hybrid platform that could go on sale in even the most emissions-strict markets. Drive says it will be named XEV and “arrive in Australia in the future.”
But this powertrain will be both a range extender and provide drive, according to Hirose. Like the Toyota Prius, it could also be the main driving engine, with an electric motor for standing starts and low-speed cruising because those are the most fuel-consuming times.
“The enabler is simply because the rotary engine is compact in terms of its packaging size, (and) if we should choose to do so we can have the generator, rotary engine and electric motor all in the one (driveline) because of the small packaging,” said Hirose.
“What we intend to do is that with this combination you can vary the amount of battery and also the amount of fuel tank supply. What that allows us to do is, depending on the ratio between the two, is that we can have a derivative that can work more like a plug-in hybrid,” said Hirose. “If you reduce the other way around, it could be a pure battery-electric, using really the rotary engine as a range extender and, according to the balance, you can even provide something akin to the series hybrid that is providing the drive force.”
Hirose also says that, theoretically, it would be able to conform to our strict U.S. regulations. Here’s to hoping!
Check out the rest of the story at Drive.com.au.
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