Mazda RX-7 The Japanese Sports Car

Produced between the years of’78 and 2002, the Mazda RX-7 was a Japanese sports car. One unique feature of the sports car was its feature of the Wankel or rotary engine. Mazda used the RX-7 to replace the RX-3 and it eventually was the replacement for all of their rotary engines other than the Cosmo.

The rotary engine in the first of the RX-7s was only 1150 cc. The motor featured a twin rotor engine and the vehicle was rear wheel drive. Wankel invented his engine in Germany, but Mazda is one of the few car manufacturers to ever successfully use these engines. The company faced an uphill climb as they went through the fuel crisis of the’70s with the engine that burned more fuel.

Rotary engines are light weight in their construction. This gave the RX-7 a feeling of more power with a smaller engine. The engines also run smoother that a comparable piston engine.

Mazda found that it was easy to modify the engine to meet tougher emissions standards without use of a catalytic converter, however, these modifications caused the RX-7 to use even more fuel. Finally, by’84, fuel use was improved to 29 mpg highway and’ mpg city. For the RX-8, fuel economy matches other vehicles of the same class and weight.

The RX-7 was initially introduced as a sports coupe. The coupe offered a mid mounted engine that offered great stability. In America, it was offered as a two seat coupe and in Japan some rear seat units were introduced. In the States, there was an option for dealer installed rear seats.

The second generation of the RX-7 was introduced between’86 and’89. The styling copied the popular Porsche. In addition, the RX-7 convertible came on the market in’88. The convertible continued to be produced until’92. It was rated as one of the best convertibles that were ever produced.

The third generation RX-7 was introduced in’92 and sales of the RX-7 were halted in the United States in’95, with only a limited number of vehicles being sent to the United States in that year, although the vehicle continued to be sold in other parts of the world.

The Mazda RX-8 eventually replaced the RX-7 world wide. It was first introduced into the United States in 2001 at an auto show, but sales did not begin until 2004. The RX-8 continues Mazda’s tradition of the rotary engine, however it offers seating in the vehicle for four as standard.

Andy Zain is the admin of RX-7 Forum , a place where fans and owners can get the right information for tuning, customization and general discussions on anything about Mazda RX-7. Get the information you need when you visit Mazda Forum