For years, enthusiasts have been clamoring for a new rotary-powered sports cars from Mazda and according to a report from Jalopnik, a new sports car from Mazda could indeed be on the horizon but won’t feature a rotary engine.
Jalopnik received word about the car from an unnamed source with ties to Mazda who asserts the rumored RX-9 sports car will feature a turbocharged inline-six Skyactiv-X engine delivering between 350 hp and 450 hp. Inevitably, the car would be rear-wheel drive and could be the perfect rival to the new Toyota Supra.
Read More: Mazda New Rotary Sports Car – A Dream That May Not Come True
Mazda confirmed last year that it was in the midst of developing an all-new inline-six engine with Skyactiv-X technology. It seems as though executives at Mazda have decided it makes more financial sense to slot this engine into a new sports car than it does to develop an all-new rotary engine that likely wouldn’t be nearly as efficient.
In October last year, Mazda chief designer Ikuo Maeda admitted that Mazda could be seen as irresponsible for launching a “rotary-powered performance car in a world increasingly becoming focused on EVs and efficient hybrids.” A turbocharged inline-six could be the perfect middle-ground of performance and efficiency for a new sports car even if such a model does ditch a rotary engine like its predecessors have all used.
No mention is made in the report about when the new Mazda sports car in question could arrive but it’s likely a few years away from hitting the market. Suffice to say that if Mazda uses an inline-six engine for its sports car, then it probably won’t use the ‘RX’ suffix to its name.
Carscoops has reached out to Mazda to see if we can gather any additional information about the car.
Hat tip to Nemo!
