One of the most important parts required for the long-awaited successor to the Mazda RX-7 is nearly complete, but other pieces of the puzzle aren’t quite as ready.
According to Motor Trend, work on the next-generation rotary engine is almost done, and it could go into production as early as 2026.
Before it can slip into a new sports car — most likely based on the 2023 Iconic SP concept (pictured throughout) — those working on the project need to build a viable business case.
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If Mazda can figure out a way to make the numbers add up — a task no doubt complicated by the ever-changing tariff situation in the US — it will give the automaker a second sports car in addition to the evergreen MX-5.
Like the MX-5, the new sports car will be a low volume model. Ryuichi Umeshita, Mazda’s chief technical officer, believes the “Iconic SP will be a good successor for RX-7”.
It’s unclear what the new sports car will be christened. Umeshita-san says a final decision has yet to be made on the name, but it’s likely to honour or reference the company’s rotary history.
He doesn’t rule out RX-7 or RX-9, but is adamant there is “very little possibility that we will name it Cosmo”. The Cosmo was a line of luxury coupes sold between 1967 and 1996, and was available with rotary engines, either exclusively or in top-of-the-range variants.
The new RX is expected to be a 2+2 coupe that’s larger than the current fourth-generation MX-5. The Iconic SP measures 4180mm long, 1850mm wide, and 1150mm tall, which is 105mm shorter, 90mm wider, and 80mm lower than the third-generation ‘FD’ RX-7.
Like the Iconic SP, the new RX will have a range extender EV drivetrain — with output of around 270kW — where the rotary engine operates as a generator for the battery pack. A version where the rotary engine drives the wheels is apparently part of the plan too.
The new rotary engine is a development of the motor used in the range extender (EREV) variant of the MX-30. The MX-30 EREV has a single rotor displacing 0.83L and makes 55kW.
Its sole job is to recharge the 17.8kWh battery when it begins running low, while the 125kW electric motor is responsible for driving the front wheels.
The MX-30 marked the return of the rotary engine to the Mazda range after an absence of 11 years, but the EREV version wasn’t offered in the US because the rotary didn’t meet local emissions regulations, a problem that’s been solved in the upcoming version of the engine.
Although the MX-30 has been withdrawn from the Australian market in 2023, it’s still in on sale in many parts of the world, including Europe and Japan.
MORE: Everything Mazda