RX-8 has world's best engine

[kinan.f]

The Renesis rotary engine fitted to Mazda's RX-8 has been voted the world's greatest engine in the prestigious annual International Engine of the Year awards. Not only is the powerplant smooth, compact and powerful, but it's also very clean - it's already able to meet the Euro IV emisisons regulations which come into force in 2005.

The first International Engine of the Year awards were dished out in 1999 and there are now 50 magazines worldwide which cast their votes to award a dozen trophies each year. This year Honda scooped a third of those and BMW another three - and as you'd expect, there are some superb engines in the running. This year's winners were:

*Best new engine of 2003 - Mazda RENESIS Rotary (RX-8)

*Best fuel economy - Honda 1.3-litre IMA (Civic)

*Best performance engine - Mercedes-AMG 55(CL55, E55, S55, SL55)

*Sub-1-litre - Honda 1-litre IMA (Insight)

*1.0 to 1.4-litre - Honda 1.3-litre IMA (Civic)

*1.4 to 1.8-litre - MINI Supercharged 1.6-litre (Cooper S)

*1.8 to 2-litre - Honda 2-litre (S2000)

*2.0 to 2.5-litre - BMW 2.5-litre (325i, 525i, Z4)

*2.5 to 3-litre - Mazda RENESIS Rotary (RX-8)

*3.0 to 4-litre - BMW 3.2-litre (M3)

*Above 4-litre - Volkswagen 5-litre V10TDi (Touareg,Phaeton)

*International engine of the year - Mazda RENESIS Rotary (RX-8)

Originally written by:Richard Dredge
www.topgear.com

[Kudosdude]

No doubt it's a good engine. But a great one? Only time will tell.

[Falcon500]

No doubt it's a good engine. But a great one? Only time will tell.

Well iw ork behind a mazda dealer and i sit around the back and have a smoke with their mechanics when they are at lunch (my Smokeo) and they have told me that the RX8 is a bloody unreliabvle bit of gear...and for the priceyour paying its no where near worth it...and another quote was at least the the rx7 you at least got a fast car rather then this gutless machine....so it seems the renisis is not with out its fair share of problems....

[Coventrysucks]

I bet it is having problems because people aren't keeping an eye on the oil levels, or running it in properly.

[Falcon500]

Possible...but them saying that EVERY RX8 they have sold has come back with problems and sometimes even ona trailer doesnt fill mewith confidence...that said i am currently looking around for a new car and a mazda rx7 (despite what they say) is stillvery high on mylist...im just repeating what i ahve heard from reliable sources not knocking just adding a new dimesnion to the conversation...

[Renesis]

ow falcon thats a little harsh
Yeah it may be a little bit slower than the 7
Yeah it may not be as pretty as the 7
But dont forget the car is naturally aspirated, and for a natural engine to punch out 238 standard isnt bad. The car weighs about 2900 pounds, a lot less (200 pounds about) than the lancer evo and even the wrx sti, both of whom punch out around 300-350 (i dont know exact numbers)
Do the math- turbocharge it, supercharge it, do whatever. That number on your rotors will climb to 300 or more.
As for reliability everyone knows that isnt really true. I've got one and have driven it a lot for about five months.
The thing about rotarys is that they are more reliable than piston driven cars-less moving parts which are well lubricated, but since they're so damn complicated in terms of build and everything, when they break, they break hard.
next time you're critical dont be an ass about it

[babel17]

The RX8 and the Renesis are both new designs, so there are bound to be problems. I think we won't know how good or bad they are for at least a couple of years. I know that mine has been flawless for it's first 2000 miles (not that that means a whole lot).

If reliability were a requirement, Ducati wouldn't sell a single bike.

[badboyzbadboyz]

Personally I think the RX-8 is a great car but the engine is its weakest link. I have test driven the 230bhp version and as much as I liked the styling the low down torque honestly reminded me of my previous Citroen Saxo 1.1 This lack of low down performance ruined my experience of the car. If you keep the revs high, very high, then it is fast but on a day to day basis I would soon find that tiresome having to work the gearbox and engine so hard.

[piledriver]

Good choice for the rotary engine...
since I heard about this engine, I say it´s a very good engine in many aspects...

[Nash]

There are plenty of superior proven engines out there.

[davidpnut]

*2.5 to 3-litre - Mazda RENESIS Rotary (RX-8)

what? the Renesis is a 1.3 Liter engine, and if you say that each of the three faces is 654 ccs, then its 3.9L, not 2.5L to 3L.

[Spastik_Roach]

IMHO The M3 3.2 Straight Six should win the best engine thingy prize.

[MikeMcLarenF1]

what? the Renesis is a 1.3 Liter engine, and if you say that each of the three faces is 654 ccs, then its 3.9L, not 2.5L to 3L.

er.. I dun think u know how to count rotary.... 654cc's is per "ROTOR" otherwise having 3 sides 654cc is 1.9L/ rotor?? holy hell.... and if i remember correctly, each rotor is fired 3 times per engine revolution, and COMPARED to a piston engine that puts it somewhere near the 3L margin. (Although logically it sounds like 3.9L, its physically still really a 1.3L.. So i think they moved it down a class for that.)

[bigfatmadmaggy]

but like stated earlier you need multiple rotors to put out allot of power but if you go with the old fashion style motor I think FORD DODGE AND VW have it going good like say the W8 Is Awesome Or The HEMI and The SOHC are awesome too so there you go the ROTary(wankel) is cool because it keeps the "three headed cam" canstantly moving but it does not make it faster or produce more power than capable by any regular old engine when we find that (turbine) engine we will be up for a surprise.

[Matra et Alpine]

but like stated earlier you need multiple rotors to put out allot of power but if you go with the old fashion style motor I think FORD DODGE AND VW have it going good like say the W8 Is Awesome Or The HEMI and The SOHC are awesome too so there you go the ROTary(wankel) is cool because it keeps the "three headed cam" canstantly moving but it does not make it faster or produce more power than capable by any regular old engine when we find that (turbine) engine we will be up for a surprise.

Some punctuation would have helped us understand that.

I think you said ...
Rotaries need multiple rotors to put out as much poiwer as V8 or W12 ?
DUH, the V8 needs twice the number of pistons as an I4, so what WAS the point about rotors ?? ( and the W12 is 3 times )

I think you said ...
rotaries have rotating cams.
Nope, that is the equivalent of the pistons not the cams

I think you said ...
rotaries aren't faster than regular engines.
Erm, rotaries are able to spin at MUCH higher speeds then ANY reciprocating engine

I think you said ...
a turbine engine will be better
Problem with cars is taking the drive FROM the turbine AND keeping the turbine in it's optimal revs range. Will never happen for a wheel driven vehicle. Electric drive in a hybrid is one option though.

So, can you try better for your next post please.......