Rotor engine "Mazda RX8": technical characteristics, pluses and minuses

Not every car enthusiast knows that there are not only classic piston engines, but also rotary ones. This is due to the extreme rarity of the latter. The only manufacturer in the world, serially engaged in the production of cars with a rotary engine - "Mazda". Let's take a closer look at the key features of this motor.

As an example, let's take the most popular rotary engine "Mazda RX8" - 13B MSP.

General information

Motor 13B MSP has the conventional and known name Renesis, which will be featured in this article. I would like to note that he received the title "Engine of the Year" in the distant 2003-m. Let's not go too deep into the history of the invention, let's just say that the principle of the work of such an engine was invented by Felix Wankel and Walter Freud in 1954, although the first developments began in the 30's.

In 1958, NSU released the world's first car with a rotary piston engine (in the longest RPD). A few years later, the company "Mazda" began to produce RPD on its own capacities. Therefore, at present only this company has a huge experience in using rotary-piston engines in cars.

In brief about the principle of the operation of the RAP and the advantages

The motor design has a stator, which is an analogue of the cylinder block in the classic ICE, as well as a rotor that is essentially a piston. The eccentric shaft fulfills the duties of the crankshaft. Actually, a mechanism is used, such as apex, which is used to insulate internal combustion chambers. This is one of the most heavily loaded parts in terms of temperature difference.

Such a motor has a number of advantages. The rotary engine "Mazda RX8", whose review will be performed in this article, is extremely compact. It has much fewer details than a conventional piston. This, without a doubt, increases its reliability. Return in this case is also much higher. The volume of 1.3 liters is enough to achieve a capacity of 250 horsepower.

Disadvantages of Renesis

As you probably already guessed, motors of this type have not received wide distribution. And there are a number of good reasons for this. First, low engine life. The design is made in such a way that through a certain run the node fails. Of course, the classic piston engine also works its way, but this is a completely different story.

How much the RAP will work depends on the driving style, but in most cases the mileage stops at around 100,000 km. Of course, there have been cases when the motor went 200,000 km, but this is, rather, an exception to the rules, rather than a regular situation. By itself, RPD is considered an expense, therefore most often it is changed simply to a new one.

Not for quiet driving

The rotary engine "Mazda RX8", whose technical characteristics are considered in the review, is often purchased for high speeds and a sense of constant drive. Work at high speed, though doing less harm than a piston motor, but still significantly reduces the resource. Usually the mark drops to 80,000 km, and in some cases up to 50,000 km. Then comes either a major overhaul and a bulkhead, or installation of a new motor.

There is another important nuance - the RAP does not tolerate overheating, although it is prone to them. That's why you need to closely monitor the serviceability of the cooling system on the car. In time, change the antifreeze, thermostat and other consumables. Since the minimum savings can result in maximum costs.

More capricious

Since the rotor engine "Mazda RX8" often works under extreme conditions, it needs to be carefully serviced. In particular, this concerns the regularity of changing the oil. It is advisable to perform this procedure every 5,000 km. Given that the replacement of oil in this motor is partial, this should not be a problem. To tighten it is extremely not recommended, as it is possible to "get on" a new engine, even overhaul will not help.

As noted a little bit above, apex is one of the most loaded elements of the system. This plate is a seal between the combustion chambers. Therefore, it is constantly under pressure from temperature and pressure drops. Part of the designers managed to solve the problem with its wear using high-alloy steel. Nevertheless, apex breaks down normally in the first place.

Search SRT - the whole science

Even today, not every car service will undertake repair of such an engine. In Russia, such a service station, maybe, and collected a dozen, which are located mainly in large cities, such as Moscow or St. Petersburg. Well, what to do with the owners of such a car in the province is completely incomprehensible. This is one of the key factors that prevent people from buying cars with a similar engine.

But even if there is a service with such specialists, where can you get spare parts? They will have to be ordered and, most likely, it will take a long time to wait. Of course, the rotary engine "Mazda RX8", the resource of which is already so small, may decrease due to unskilled service staff. Therefore, somewhere to give a car, too, do not want to. Most likely, the claimed amount for repairing the RAP will be simply amazing, but it depends on the impudence of the particular motorist.

Renesis engine improvement

The company "Mazda" after the release of the RX-7 took into account some of the disadvantages of the engine and tried to improve it. After a series of manipulations, most of which were not disclosed, the developer stated that, depending on the driving style, the engine will run from 300,000 to 450,000 kilometers. True, he forgot to add that for this period there are also 3-4 overhauls. This is exactly what the situation is today.

The only significant modernization that has benefited is the installation of two oil nozzles. Although there are no shortcomings here. Their design was not the most successful, so the apexes were not lubricated enough and very quickly sintered. This minus has been eliminated in restyling. Well, now it is superfluous to tell about the features of the operation of this motor.

What is the engine afraid of?

We have already sorted out a little with you, what is interesting is the rotary engine "Mazda RX8". The principle of operation, advantages and disadvantages are also considered. And now about other important details. RAP is extremely afraid:

• Oil starvation;
• Overheating;
• Bad fuel;
• Long driving at high speed.

As for the first two points, then everything is very clear. Bad gasoline really affects the operation of the RAP. Detonation and unstable activity are possible. Therefore it is strongly recommended to fill in the best fuel that can only be found at the gas station. As for high revs, they cause overheating. Although sometimes it is necessary to give gas to remove carbon deposits and purge candles, but this should be short-lived.

On the costs of maintenance

And this, perhaps, is the most interesting. Despite the relatively low cost of the car, it will be necessary to invest in it, in any case. The first and most important thing is fuel consumption. Here he is quite impressive. On the highway about 10-12 liters, and around the city from 13 to 20. But this is in the case of a working system of all systems and nodes. If there is at least a defective lambda probe, the flow rate is averaged and increased to 20 liters or higher.

Consider also the fact that the car is extremely reluctant to consume AI-92, so it will be necessary to feed 95-m. Consequently, the costs also increase somewhat. But this is not all. Oil car eagerly eats. The flow rate is of the order of 500-1000 ml per 1,000 km, depending on how you apply pressure to the accelerator. The original liter bottle costs about 1 000 rubles. But you can find a quality replacement for 500 rubles per liter. Contain such a "workhorse" is extremely difficult. The car is suitable, rather, for ceremonial trips, rather than daily pushing traffic jams from work and work.

Rotor engine "Mazda RX8": reviews of owners and experts

According to most experts, there is one huge plus of such a motor. He is in his small weight. The same "Renesis" has a mass not much more than one hundred kilograms. If you take a motor of similar power, it's all 250-300 kg. In general, such a power unit on the RX8 allowed to significantly improve the balancing of the car and reduce the weight.

Another key advantage, according to many, is the high efficiency and absence of vibrations per se. This makes the ride more comfortable at high speeds, since the engine does not work too loudly, and it has a pleasant enough sound. But the specialists of many SRT note that this is an extremely capricious motor and, in fact, unpredictable. He can walk as a manufacturer's due time, and at times less. This does not give any confidence in the future.

Another disadvantage is that the service life is reduced at low temperatures. This, of course, applies to conventional cylinder-piston engines, but the RPD has succeeded here. The company "Mazda" has developed a special system for the cold launch of the "Sub-Zero Start", which partly solved this problem.

Is there a Renesis tuning?

Many car owners would like to slightly refine the rotary engine "Mazda RX8". Reviews also say the inexpediency of tuning. This is due primarily to its high cost and complexity. Influences also the resource of the RPD, which is already sufficiently low, and it is unlikely that anyone will want to reduce it even more.

That's why this car is more often trying to install another motor, rather than tuning this one. True, in most cases such attempts lead to nothing. RAP has a small mass, in this case 110 kg. The only more or less sane option is to install a RAP from the RX-7, which is considered more tenacious. Although 90% of owners skate on what they put in the factory, I mean in the stock, and they remain very satisfied.

Let's sum up the results

It was said a lot about what is the rotary engine "Mazda RX8". Photo RAP you can see in this article and see its key differences from the classic piston engine. From all of the above, we can conclude that the motor is extremely fastidious. It does not tolerate low temperatures, requires regular care and maintenance. It is also very "voracious", this applies to both oil and gasoline.

But he also has his own strengths. It gives excellent dynamics, a large amount of horsepower from a small volume, a pleasant sound and an inexpressible feeling. Such an engine will suit, rather, the ardent fans of this car, rather than people who consider their money.

Expenses really can be big. If, for example, you notice that the RAP is not getting hot enough, or if the compression has dropped below 6.5 Atm, this will most likely lead to the quick demise of the engine. With a major overhaul in this case it is better not to delay. In general, the rotary engine "Mazda RX8", the principle of operation of which was considered in this article, is somewhat underdeveloped. This applies not only to this RAP model, but also to all engines of this type in general.

It is hardly necessary to talk about the price of Renesis. This pleasure is not cheap. Add to this work on SRT - and goes to 100 000-130 000 thousand rubles. For some, this amount is not that big for a new engine, but it's also worth considering the cost of the car. Gasoline, oil in large quantities, and so on. When everything turns out, the amount will increase to 300,000 rubles or more. After this, it is worth considering whether the rotary engine "Mazda RX8" is so good. His characteristics are impressive, but there are a lot of shortcomings.