Why the time is right for a Mazda RX rotary sports car revival | Opinion

Toyota has a new Supra, Nissan has a new Z, Subaru has a new WRX, Honda has a new Civic Type R, but where is Mazda’s RX rotary sports car?

It’s a question the world has been asking of the Japanese brand for years now, ever since the stunning RX-Vision broke cover in 2015, but one that Mazda is yet to answer definitively.

We know Mazda is toying with rotary engine, it will make its way into the MX-30 as a petrol-powered range extender by the end of the year, but what about a performance application?

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After more than half a decade of questioning, Mazda executives have swayed between hinting that something is coming, and pouring cold water on everyone’s hopes and dreams.

Toyota has managed to resurrect the Supra nameplate, albeit with the help of BMW and the use of its front-engine, rear-drive platform, as well as its inline six-cylinder engine.

Nissan has had to reuse the old 370Z platform and 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 as found in the Infiniti Q50/Q60 Red Sport to deliver the next-generation of Z car.

Subaru’s WRX borrows a 2.4-litre turbo-petrol engine from the US-market Ascent SUV, but sadly, no halo STI version will be produced as the brand focuses more on an electric future.

Meanwhile, the latest rumours indicate Honda will reuse the 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine of the outgoing Civic Type R for its newest (and yet to be revealed) hot hatch hero.

It’s clear then, that producing a standalone performance model in the current market climate is difficult, and that compromises must be made in order to build a business case.

As such, Mazda will also likely need to make some concessions if it wants to revive the RX nameplate.

And that help could come in the form of Toyota, which revealed a GR GT3 Concept at this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon – which conspicuously shares similar proportions to Mazda’s RX-Vision.

Could Toyota and Mazda be teaming up for a new sports coupe? That’s what the (albeit sketchy) evidence would suggest.

It wouldn’t be the first time Toyota and Mazda have teamed up either, as the latter offers the former’s Yaris as the Mazda2 Hybrid in Europe.

Toyota also sold the Mazda2 in the US as the Scion iA and then Yaris iA before it was discontinued for that market, while an Alabama factory is shared between the two brands that produces the CX-50 and Corolla Cross.

But what could power a potential RX revival?

The answer is obviously a rotary, but in the past, under the bonnet of models like the underrated RX-8 and famed RX-7, the powertrain proved to be unreliable, thirsty and pollutant.

If Mazda were to bring back a new rotary-powered sports car, it would likely need to overcome these hurdles, and the answer could come in electrification.

Overseas reports point to a hybrid set-up for the new RX, which would – in theory – lower fuel consumption and emissions.

But what about fragility?

This is a question that only the Japanese brand can answer, but with Mazda already confirming the rotary for its MX-30 means that it might have solved the reliability problems that plagued the old Wankel engine.

Online speculation says Mazda is targeting a 370kW output with the hybrid rotary engine too, which would easily blow away the Toyota Supra (285kW/500Nm) and Nissan Z (298kW/475Nm).

In fact, if that targeted output is achieved, the rumoured RX-9 could easily rival some of the best sports cars on the planet, including the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS (368kW/450Nm), BMW M4 Competition (375kW/650Nm), Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (369kW/637Nm) and Mercedes-AMG GT Night Edition (390kW/670Nm).

Time will tell however, if Mazda delivers on another RX flagship, but it looks like the brand is already paving the way with a trademark filing of a new badge similar to the RX-7 and RX-8’s Spirit R emblem.

On its 100th birthday in 2020, Mazda also released the RX-Vision GT3 Concept for the Gran Turismo video game, powered by a four-rotor engine, which indicates that Mazda is not yet done with the 2015 show car.

All we know is that we’re in the middle of a Japanese performance car renaissance, and it wouldn’t be much of a party unless Mazda also comes to the table.