Mazda RX-9 16X rotary to get laser ignition: report

Article
Gallery

By Brett Davis | June 29th, 2011

According to the latest international reports, Mazda’s upcoming rotary sports car could feature laser ignition technology. This would replace the spark plug ignition system which is currently applied to every petrol car on the market. It’s also a setup which has been around since 1860.

The suggestion that the laser ignition system could make an appearance in the new rotary comes after a comment made by a senior engineer at Mazda. He said the upcoming rotary sports car would use a “special kind of ignition system”. This special ignition is expected to be applied to Mazda’s latest rotary engine development, an engine dubbed the 16X Renesis.

Using laser ignition could allow the new rotary to pass the latest and upcoming emissions regulations, such as the Euro 5 and Euro 6, both of which the current Mazda RX-8 is unable to pass. Reports say the technology could provide a more complete and more controlled method of ignition for each combustion chamber, and help the new rotary run leaner and thus more efficiently.

The laser setup is likely to require a smaller hole tapped into the combustion chamber of the engine too, compared with the conventional spark plug design. This would lend itself well to Mazda’s aim of creating a more compact and lighter engine. The engine also promises to offer more torque than the current 13B 1.3-litre rotary, thanks, in part, to the larger 1.6-litre capacity.

Mazda hasn’t officially announced what the new model will be called, or if it will definitely see the light of day. Even so, reports suggest it will be named the Mazda RX-9.

It is all a bit hazy at this stage, we’ll keep you updated as more details are uncovered. In the meantime, tell us what you think, should the rotary engine live on? Or should Mazda develop a more efficient and economical method of propelling the sports car? Electricity perhaps?

Trump

How do they stop the lens coating up in exhaust deposits?

Dennis

Well i guess being a wankel it wouldn’t exaclty be prone to exhaust deposits compared to a piston engine…

I guess the laser itself would burn any deposits that attached to it if it did.

j

I thought revving it to its redline was a means of cleaning carbon deposits?

And I thought the 13B was already compact and light.

Robert

i’m sure it’s so it can pass emission laws

Jester

I find this hard to believe. Just the shear power requirement to run a laser capable of firing its beam thousands of times per minute is unbelievable, let alone worrying about lens damage and carbon deposits.
I call this a BS report.

dolph lundgren

the question is, how do they stop a laser strong enuff to ignite combustible gasses from burning through the cylinder wall. doesnt sound cheap
snerd

So, trans-ocean optic fiber links don’t work either

Leave the engineering to the grown-ups, mate.

Jester

Fiber-optic networks are a world away from somebody’s phd work mate, leave real engineering to real engineers mate, and phd work to full time students, the ones that never experience real life – I’m still calling this BS.

Chris

As a photonics engineer I can tell you that achieving pulse rates of thousands of times per minute is childs play in the world of lasers. Pulsing at 100′s of millions of times per second are achievable.
Power density levels to ignite combustible fuel would be much lower then the threshold for damaging the metal components in the combustion chamber. Plus a laser can be focused to give you have high power density where you want it and low power density everywhere else.
Total power levels would be very low. I have ignited cardboard with 0.5W of unfocused laser. A laser ignition system would probably consume less power than your interior light.
S Bassly

fact: you’re dumb.

Howdog

Maybe Doctor Evil helped them to develop the laser?

Fenno

…”back in the 60′s”

FCKUK

Cool
Hector

if the new RX-9 resembled the car in the photo above, i would seriously consider buying it. not if it’s electric though.

UMWHAT

really? I was just praying to god hoping that it will look nothing like the one in the picture

Harry

it looks ok, apart from the way the bottom of the rear window is a different height from the top of door

G

Looks horrible.

Harry

I reckon they should use some of the styling from their Furai concept.

Mariusz

How can a V12 pass emissions but a rotary not? I wonder what its based on

Richard

Because rotary engines are dirty… they spew alot of unburnt hydrocarbons out of the combustion chamber.

Mark Anderson

Rotaries are not very thermally efficient, which doesn’t help it’s emissions. In fact, they are one of the worst out there.
What a rotary does have in it’s favour however is that it can run on a wider variety of fuels with less modifications. It is far better suited to fuels like Hydrogen for example than a reciprocating engine ever can be. Will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

Harry

Have you heard about the idea to make all ceramic rotaries? The idea is that they won’t even need a radiator, the temperature will be so high that there won’t be any unburnt fuel or any carbon monoxide, NOX etc. If they make each rotor smaller they will be able to rev even higher. Instead of 2x 654cc rotors they can have say 4x 300cc rotors and rev to 20,000rpm. Awesome

pja

And it’ll cost 200,000 a pop.

btw high temp = MORE NOx and MORE CO, and less unburnt hydrocarbon
pja

hey, are you harry x?
Harry

I’m not an expert, but I was just reading through some articles on it and they reckoned that even by using ceramic lining in normal piston engines (raising the combustion temperature slightly) they were able to ensure more complete combustion and reduce CO emissions.

Either way, the fact that you wouldn’t be wasting so much energy to heat the water in your cooling system would make it a really efficient.
Ford Fairlane

ceramic have been talked about for use in rotorys for awhile.
The problem with ceramics is they suffer from thermal shock if heated up or cool down to quickly.
I doubt that we will ever see a ceramic lined engine.
http://twitter.com/archerw Todd Archer

You may be right about cylinders but ceramic apex seals are considered indestructable,
absent detonation.

http://skasev.com skasev

laser beams in sports cars, could the future be any cooler….

Lox

Yep, sharks with frickin laser beams

Yonny

Ha, yes! Was just thinking that when I read your comment.

Flying High

Maybe it will finally make the car go as hard it looks.

Devil’s Advocate

I don’t know, the last of the RX7s went pretty hard and still looked fast. I would also say that IMHO the FD Rx7 is still one of the best looking sports cars to ever come out of Japan. They even managed to beat Porsche on quite a few occasions…

Hung Low

3 Bathurst 12hrs in a row (92,93,94)and the Eastern Creek 12hr in 1995 to be exact with the all Aussie spec SP. Great cars that look fresh 20 years later.

The 1994 SP is definitely a collectors item!

Showtime

Mazda, bring back the RX-7!

Harry

I agree, I don’t care what they call it, the RX7 was a million times cooler than the RX8. When I parked my old series 6 next to new RX8s the roof was about a foot lower, plus it looked so much better. I reckon when they release the new MX5 they should include a model with a rotary and badge it RX5. After that they can release a more expensive completely new model that can compete with the GTR, LFA, Porsches etc. Rotaries rule!

Devil’s Advocate

Please don’t call it an RX5 as it will bring back memories of that abomination they sold in the mid/late 70s….

http://www.corksport.com GwynneCorkSport

It would be highly unlikely that Mazda would call it an RX5 – Mazda is not known for going backwards in their numbering. If they decide to keep it a part of the RX line, it will most certainly be an RX9.

UnderBrakes

Good to see the rotary donk live on, God bless Mazda
Hearnty Frazzleziieeet

Yeah bruz, can the oil burning junk box engine and slap a chevie V8 init.

Froww mad skidz it would.

Devil’s Advocate

Hahahahahahahahahahaha. RAFLMAO.
You’re funny!

Elitist

Innovation you could only dream of from American/Aussie dinosaur cars.

Hung Low

The Americans were responsible for the first factory production turbocharged car as a starter you dullard!

http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/ Paul

Mazda seem determined to be the LAST auto maker to go EV.
FrugalOne

Thank God [Allah etc] that Mazda have continued with the Rotary after German engineering failed with it.

The world needs more choices, not plain jane less

Long live rotary, long live Mazda!

Igor

Why bag the Germans? You should be grateful they invented it, otherwise Mazda would have nothing..you twit.

Elitist

…Germans didn’t fail, they just saw it as an inefficient engine technology, which is still true today…Germans love efficiency.

If anyone failed it was Holden with the Pace runner.

Elitist

*edit Road Pacer
Hung Low

Heard of the Audi A1 Etron EV??
Uses a rotary generator!

Also the Germans did fail with this design. It is inefficient in theory but what Mazda has done with it over the decades breaks all the rules.
It is a great design for Aircraft, Go karts, and race engine in sports cars. It never was suitable for mass model cars due to the thirst, oil consumption and critical warm up and general maintenance. It is an enthusiast’s engine, nobody was game to invest into it except for NSU and Mazda!

FrugalOne

@ IGOR ^^

“Why bag the Germans?”

NOBODY is bagging GERMans, NSU could not get the wankel to work, GERMans not smart enough, it sent them BROKE, thats fact.

It took the Japanese, ie Mazda ["You should see us now"] to figure it out.

Mind you, its still not perfect today, uses oil [thats normal], floods, needs to be thrashed othewises gums up, and loves a drink of fuel, sounds silly and no low down torque

Still its a interesting idea, won LeMans, nobody can take that away

http://baji192.wordpress.com Baji

Kudos to mazda for persisting in what everyone else deems to be a failure of a design. Through the unconventional problems mazda have had to work through, I bet mazda have gained a ton of knowledge that no other manufacturer has and this could quite possibly give mazda a competitive advantage.

I remain hopeful, that these engineers will be able to elminate most if not all of the problems that plauge current rotaries. Thanks mazda – determined to be different for the sake of not wanting to blend in with the others.

Falcodore

Totally agree, especially with your last sentence.

Hung Low

This technology will sort out some of the inherent flaws with the Rotary design such as the requirement for a trailing spark due to a very short combustion duration.
With the use of perhaps fibre optics, this laser system can be placed or spread anywhere within the housing.

I think the all alloy 16X with direct injection and laser ignition will be the next chapter of the rotary engine!
Top job Mazda, good to see in house innovation and not the adoption of 3rd party technology i.e Bosch!
Ford Fairlane

This new Rotary could be a real gem given thats its the first time a larger housing is being used instead of just widening the rotors.

Add a turbo and I bet it will be special.

What about a triple rotor 24x turbo in a GTR rival.

And that car at the top looks poxy,an RX7 has to look much better than that.
Corkas

front has lots of potential to look good in person. back looks like its been reconstructed after a major crash and they just couldn’t get her looking the same.

Also the side windows not lining up is getting to me a bit.

but over all it doesn’t look bad, just not good.
I would keep working on it if i was working for mazda.
Karl Krankschaft

I don’t see how firing a laser would be as efficient as a spark which requires very little energy to produce. Maybe the benefits more than offset the increased energy used but I find it hard to believe that Mazda would use this. Yeah yeah rotaries arent as efficient but it would be interesting to see how they’d perform if they had recieved the same amount of development as reciprocating engines . Mazdas attempt to make these engines viable have probably contributed to their knowledge that they applied to their new petrol and diesel piston engines ( sky-activ I think they call them). Mazda are the one to watch at the moment when it comes to small engines i believe.

Jester

Mate, don’t worry. I am yet to see this laser ignition in any of the race cars, doing real life testing. These dreamers here think its first appearance will be in a production car – sure, sure. I see why they need it, since rotary have issues with flame propagation and other stuff, hence they expel lot of unburnt gasses, but until this laser ignition gets properly tested, not on somebody’s university test bench but in a race car doing 10,000′s of racing kilometers this will remain just a pipe dream.

Jerome

They should call it a day and slap the turbo 3 engine into the new car. It will make more power/torque and be more efficient then any rotary they will make.