Tokyo Motor Display: Mazda RX-Vision rotary concept is aimed at Porsche
The world is a better place when Mazda is permitted to get a little weird. Shown for the very first time during the media preview for the Tokyo Motor Showcase, the RX-Vision is a rotary-powered sports car that could reach production within 2-3 years, or less.
And yes, it’s undoubtedly a little weird – and we love it!
Take away the “Vision” part of the name, add a seven in its place, and what you’re looking at is a strong hint of what the future RX-7 sports car will look like.
In Tokyo, Mazda was keeping quiet about engine specifics, other than to say the company’s upcoming rotary engine will be called Skyactiv-R.
Mazda has been without an all-out sports car in its lineup since the last RX-7 faded away from the U.S. market in the late-1990s. Sure, the RX-8 that substituted it also had a Wankel rotary engine under its rubber hood. But it was much more mild-mannered and didn’t have the ideally proportioned bod of the RX-7.
Here in Tokyo, Mazda was keeping quiet about engine specifics, other than to say the company’s upcoming rotary engine will be called Skyactiv-R.
Mazda has evidently made big improvements to the fuel economy and reliability of the Wankel engine – but once again, we’ll have to take the company’s word for it, since tech details were scarce.
Mazda has evidently made big improvements to the fuel economy and reliability of the Wankel engine – but once again, we’ll have to take the company’s word for it, since tech details were scarce.
In the metal, the RX-Vision is one undeniably sleek and inviting coupe. It’s thicker than it looks in photos, however, and we hope Mazda liquidates some visual mass when/if the car reaches production. In terms of possible price and spectacle, we see Mazda aiming the next RX-7 slightly upstream, away from cars like the Nissan 370ZX and Subaru BRZ, and more towards Corvettes and Porsche Boxsters.
As for production plans, it looks likely that a fresh RX-7 could be on public roads in as little as two year’s time. Our guess is that Mazda will stick with a twin-rotor and dual turbocharger engine configuration, like the format used on the last-gen RX-7. However nothing is set in stone, and Mazda could opt to forego turbocharging entirely. We sure hope not.
In terms of possible price and spectacle, we see Mazda aiming the next RX-7 slightly upstream, away from cars like the Nissan 370ZX and Subaru BRZ, and more towards Corvettes and Porsche Boxsters.
A lightweight figure and flawlessly balanced chassis will be vital to the car’s dynamic prowess. After all, the previous RX-7, with its flawless 50:50 front/rear weight balance, is still considered a treating miracle more than twenty years after it very first appeared.
The RX-Vision concept is the car that Mazda wants and needs in its lineup. There’s a real sense that the production model will be even better than the show-car seen here in Tokyo.
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