More Teasing About an RX-9 Rotary

It's happening.  It's not happening.  It might happen.  But probably not.  But wait- it still might!  This is the emotional roller-coaster Mazda lovers in general, and Wankel-powered rotary engine devotees in particular have been riding ever since Mazda stopped production on the RX-8 back in 2011.

We got a serious tease of what might be at the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show, when the concept RX-Vision (pictured above) was displayed.  More than one reporter said that the RX-Vision stole the show and had more buzz around it that any other vehicle..

It's no secret at this point that Mazda would like to bring back the rotary engine at some point.  They freely acknowledge that 50 engineers have worked for the past eight years working on a new 16x two-rotor engine, and they have already filed a patent for it.  Estimates have been for between 400-450 horsepower.  

A rear-wheel drive, rotary-engine RX-9 would make for an amazing signature car for Mazda. and early guesses are for a $50,000+ price tag.  But, oh, it would be worth the wait.  And the price.  Please, make it happen, Mazda!

And now...The Mazda MX-5 Miata RF Retractable Hardtop

The 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata has won and incredible amount of awards.  If you follow this blog or our Facebook page, you'll notice that we have chronicled quite a few.  From design, safety, driveability, and value, the MX-5 Miata has placed at the top of virtually every category, and has even won the coveted World Car of the Year Award.  

Now, in an exciting announcement, Mazda has announced that they are going to build on the enormous success by adding a retractable hardtop for the 2017 model year. 

The Mazda MX-5 Miata RF will make it's debut for the 2017 model year, and should be available in dealerships late in late 2016. Nobuhiro Yamamot, Mazda MX-5 Program Manger says, "I hope the launch of the MX-5 RF will awaken hidden emotions and dormant sensibilities among our customers. And with these two MX-5 models, I hope we can help introduce the joy of driving a convertible sports car to a wider audience and help even more people live rich, fun-filled lives. In order to achieve this, now and into the future, we will continue our efforts to “innovate in order to preserve.”